[curiousElf]

Note: This is more of travel notes than an actual travelogue. The pictures are minimal and the prose is stolid.

We have been on a Jungle Lodge Resorts (JLR) spree the last 6-8 months. After our experience with the JLR resort River Tern lodge in Bhadra some time last year, we visited multiple JLR properties and they have never disappointed.

This year until September we had done:

• 2 trips to Kabini River Lodge JLR
• 1 trip to Bandipur Safari Lodge JLR
• 1 trip to K Gudi Wilderness camp @ BR Hills JLR
• 1 trip to Gopinatham Mystery Trails

So when a friend called up and said they had never been to a JLR and would like to go to one - it was time to make it a hattrick for Kabini this year.

Kabini is known for big cat sightings but we prefer it because of its sheer natural beauty and the birding opportunity it presents especially when you go on the river safari. The big cats are an added bonus - especially if you can get to one without the hordes of other jeeps being present. We got 1 such opportunity on our trip earlier this year when we ended up on a JLR jeep with a private safari by a well known photographer.

Bookings:
Anyone who has looked up Kabini booking knows that getting a weekend booking at short notice is close to impossible (more so during peak big cat sighting season ). However, the post monsoon season seems to attract lesser crowds. We booked our stay for 1 night. Booking at JLR is a simple thing. The no frills site just works. No worries about discounts - as there are none for Kabini (I think our frequent trips to JLR resorts makes us eligible for some loyalty discount - need to figure this part out)

The accommodation:
We booked a tent stay. This is a tent only in name. It has a proper shower+toilet with masonry walls. The tents are fairly large and can accommodate 3 people. There is a separate dressing room that connects the bathroom and the main living area. The dresser has a mini fridge (don’t remember it being there when we visited earlier this year).
There are 2 beds in the tent with 2 of them joined together to make one twin bed and the other single bed.

There were cookies and brownies in the room! (again this is something they have probably started recently).

We are pretty happy with the tents. Having stayed in the Viceroy suite previously - you don’t really miss much as we hardly stay inside the room. Plus, the tents have a better “view” as you can see the Kabini reservoir from outside.

A roly-poly outside the room. It has an interesting behavior on being disturbed - it rolls into a hard ball which you could mistake for some fallen fruit or pebble. It is also the only known terrestrial crustacean. You can hold the curled up fellow in your hand like a marble and not know this is a living thing. Fascinating creatures!



Evening Safari to the Jungle:

Ah..the safari. For those unfamiliar with JLR safari schedules it goes something like this.

12.00 pm - Check in
1.15 to 2.30 pm - Lunch
3.00 pm - Tea/Coffee before safari
3.30 pm - Leave the property in the familiar open bolero campers.

There is a head naturalist who prepares a schedule and will allocate you to a certain vehicle. A typical camper (4 row) seating arrangement goes as follows:

1st row - 2 seats (naturalist and driver)
2nd row - 3 seats
3rd row - 2 seats
4th row - 3 seats

However, for various reasons people have preferences on which row they would like to sit. This results in an arms race as people start coming earlier and earlier including skipping the tea/coffee and just heading to their campers.

We headed out to the "Golghar" at 3 for the tea/coffee only to find that the campers were already occupied and that we (2+2 ) had to sit 3 in the back row and 1 person in the middle seat of the 2nd row with strangers. I counted 9 JLR jeep safaris I have done previously and never have I seen the middle row being occupied - for good reasons:

1. They are cramped.
2. How do you observe anything while crammed between 2 people?
3. These safaris are not cheap!

We had to raise a ruckus, run to the main reservation building while keeping in mind not to delay the jeeps as there were folks whose experience would have been ruined due to us refusing the seating arrangements provided.

Thankfully, the issue was sorted out and we were moved to another camper which only had 2 other guests.

Note to future travellers: Have a word with the safari planners when you check in. They are usually accommodating of requests. We think that since we booked 2 rooms, they thought it was ok to squish 3 of us in. Never happened when we (1+1) visited previously.

The “actual” safari:

We were accompanied by Mahesh who was the naturalist and Prashanth who was the allotted driver for the camper.

Side Note: Prasanth had become quite the social media sensation recently due to his cool demeanor and incredible driving skills when a safari jeep he was driving met a male elephant in musth who charged at the jeep (Twitter Link)

Mahesh was a superb naturalist and unlike some of the big cat focused commentary - he was happy to stop and point out various trees and their unique characteristics

1. Crocodile bark tree
2. Cassia Fistula (Golden shower tree/Konna in malayalam)
3. Cassia Spectabilis
4. Yellow Teak
5. Strangler Figs
6. Eucalyptus - Mahesh mentioned that the eucalyptus trees are very aggressive in their water usage and tend to starve other trees and plants. Apparently there has been an internal order that eucalyptus can on longer be planted on forest land.
7. The lantana continue their march through the forests.

Fauna:

What's Kabini without a big cat sighting? Some might say disappointing or other variants of it. For us, thankfully we have an interest in birds and that means you never come out of a safari disappointed. There are always glint of blue here, a crimson there - a previously unheard melody or a familiar silhouette on top of a leafless tree which keeps us engaged - never mind members of the “panthera” family

But sight we did and that too without too much of a struggle. Here she is - sleeping on the road like an overfed house cat - just more lethal. According to the naturalist - this one is a 10.5 year old female named “Backwater female” who had littered recently. Her 2 cubs were hidden somewhere nearby.

This below pic was taken by the naturalist by focusing my iPhone via our binoculars (10x42 Zeiss Terra ED) in “Zone B”


Other sightings:

1. Monitor Lizard
2. Sambar deer (2 groups - 4 females and another 1 male and 3 females)
3. Spotted deer (too many to count)

Birds Sighted:

1. Indian Peafowl
2. Gray Junglefowl
3. Spotted Dove
4. Great Cormorant
5. Malabar Pied Hornbill
6. White-throated Kingfisher
7. Streak-throated Woodpecker
8. White-bellied Woodpecker
9. Plum-headed Parakeet
10. Orange Minivet
11. Bronzed Drongo
12. Red-vented Bulbul
13. Red-whiskered Bulbul
14. Velvet-fronted Nuthatch
15. Southern Hill Myna
16. Oriental Magpie-Robin
17. Gray Wagtail

Other observations:

• The water level is quite high compared to the summer (as expected).
• The backwaters where you could see hundreds of deer and elephants are all submerged for now.
• Lots of liquor bottles and plastic have washed up onto the jungle floor. The naturalist said that there are a lot of bars along the river upstream in Kerala where they dump liquor bottles (both plastic and glass) into the river which gets washed up to the forest when dams are opened during the monsoon. They have been going to Kerala and sensitizing some of the culprits. He mentioned they are even considering putting a net to prevent the larger pieces of trash from reaching the forest floor. Recently they took out 3 tons of plastic from the river.
• No sightings of wild dogs(dhole) , elephants, gaur, wild boar or other large mammals.

Morning River Safari:

The Kabini river safari is a beauty and we always find it surprising when we hear people trying to get it exchanged for a jeep safari saying that it will be “boring”. It is almost meditative in its slowness and if you go in prepared you can actually witness a lot of wildlife activity.

**Side Note**

Please do yourself a favor and get a good camera/spotting scope/binoculars along with you.
If you are going to spend ₹30,000/night for a JLR booking, you might as well make the experience worth it. We were short of a binocular in one of our previous visits and stopped by at the Toehold camera rental( just a kilometer or so before you reach the Kabini river lodge gates) and were able to rent a Leica NextVid 12x50 from there for 400/night. That is insane value!
No wonder people want to spot big cats. What else is the comparatively weak human eye going to spot at larger distances.

**End Side Note**

The river safari wore a different look this time as the water level was quite high. The number of sightings was lesser than during the dry season.

Animals sighted:

1. Mugger crocodile
2. Stripe necked mongoose
3. Bonnet Macaque
4. Malabar Giant Squirrel
5. A tusker - this one was a fairly large tusker in the water. He had an injury near his tail where there was a large-ish swollen mass. One of the JLR staff on the boat mentioned that it's probably a result of a fight. The boat went a bit too close to it and it was not very happy about it. Interestingly, just as we were turning back from seeing the tusker our JLR boat was intercepted by a motorboat with “Bandipur Tiger reserve” written on it. They warned the captain that he was on the Bandipur side of the river where he should not be and way too close to the elephant and warned him to stay at a distance from elephants.

Birds spotted:

1. Brahminy Kite
2. Orange Minivet
3. Grey Heron
4. Green Imperial-Pigeon
5. Lesser Whistling-Duck
6. Indian Spot-billed Duck
7. Indian Peafowl
8. Great Cormorant
9. Great Egret
10. Intermediate Egret
11. Malabar Pied-Hornbill
12. Common Kingfisher
13. White-throated Kingfisher
14. Chestnut-headed Bee-eater
15. Large-billed Crow
16. Purple-rumped sunbird
17. Gray Wagtail
18. White-browed Wagtail

Other anecdotal observations:

• Only 1 elephant was spotted in the entire trip. The Nagarhole forest has more than 2000 elephants - I guess this is more of a seasonal thing.
• No raptors other than a couple of Brahminy Kites. Usually we spot a fair share of Crested Serpent Eagles, Ospreys, Grey-headed Fish Eagle during the river safari
• No otters observed.

It was a satisfying 2.5 hours. The only irritants were 8 ladies from the Lake View resort who were there to see “Lions and tigers” (their words) and were making inane comments when the boat captain was trying to point out smaller fauna. I had to inform them (to their disappointment) that lions are not found in the South of India. Ironically they were speaking Gujarati and Gujarat is the only state in India that has lions.

Food @ the resort:

JLR serves food that tastes almost homemade. By homemade, meaning there is no overuse of masalas and spices which is rampant in cheaper eateries to hide the freshness (or staleness) of the produce used for cooking.
It is a fairly large buffet, so it's easy to go overboard. Their desserts can be sickly sweet at times. We take a tiny portion (less than a teaspoon) then taste it before committing to the sugar rush.

Equipment Notes:

We had 4 binoculars on hand for 4 people.
Krevia 8x42 (Porro Prism)
A toy binocular which we carry along in case someone needs a binos. It was our first pair of bins. The pricing is in the low range. Works ok for beginner birders if they are not sure about investing some amount for better optics

Olympus 10x50 S (Porro Prism)
We moved on to a mid range Olympus after playing around with the Krevia. It has excellent optics. The color reproduction is pretty darn good (as long as the light is decent). If your budget is <10K, you can buy this without batting an eyelid. The Porro prism design means you get a decent field of view

Zeiss Terra ED 10x42 (Roof Prism)
The desire for better optics usually comes at a steep price. Plonked down an amount that could have bought a nice used (not too old) Activa for this baby. And it is glorious! The color reproduction and performance in dim lighting is absolutely a hoot. The binocs are waterproof and the lenses are filled with gas (Nitrogen?) to prevent any fungal growth on the inside. The eyecups mean that I can use them without removing my spectacles. The only complaint is the poor quality objective lens cover. For a binocular this expensive - Zeiss should have done better.

Carson 8x42 (Roof Prism)
These were my friend’s binoculars. I had never heard of this brand before. It was a very decent pair.

Route Notes:

• We took the Bangalore - Maddur - Malavalli-Mysore ORR - HD Kote - Handpost - Kabini River lodge. Much saner drive.
• Stretches of the new highway from BLR to Mysore bypass Bidadi, Ramanagara and Channapatna. Please be aware of this if you are planning to have food somewhere around this stretch. We had to drive till Maddur to have food along the highway as we didn't want a detour.
• Food at Maddur Tiffany is pretty decent. Their “Paneer Dosa” is literally blocks of paneer mixed with plain potato masala. My north Indian spouse was taken aback a bit. Some might say that people who order a “Paneer Dosa” deserve what they get :-)
• Poojari Fish Land still got it. They have somehow managed to remain relevant and accessible when eateries on the existing highway have been decimated due to the new highway diverting traffic from the existing carriageway.
• Please remember to maintain sane speeds on the new highway and not to get carried away as it is not yet ready. There are scores of people and animals darting across the road. A pupper darted across 3 lanes missed the car I was driving by a whisker and became instant roadkill after an unfortunate contact with the front bumper of an XUV 5OO going at more than 100 clicks.
• NICE road is a misnomer. It is a travesty on all sane safety regulations. Every time I drive on that road, my watch records a high heart rate. Trucks blocking fast lanes, two wheelers darting between weaving cars. Overtaking on the left shoulder (sometimes there is no option). I saw a two wheeler coming the wrong way on the shoulder on that road. I shudder to think what would have happened to that chap if lady luck looked the other way for even a second.
• Got to drive my friend’s 2015 Polo (Highline) for the trip. It was such a fun car to drive. Even with my usually sedate driving style - I found myself revving it. The engine didn’t complain one bit. It was a different matter for our partners in the back. It is cramped there and I would not like to be in the rear seats for the long haul.

All in all, not bad for a 1 night trip. That's all for now folks. I think I spent more time writing this than I did in the safari

P.S.: Folks who take fancy cameras to Kabini - you might have some good news incoming on the camera charges front. Apparently, there was a board meeting in the resort a day before we checked in and the topic was about removing/rationalizing the camera charges.

P.P.S: On entering our home we spotted the elusive “Felis catus” who like their Panthera cousins were happy to ignore us until bribed with treats

[ACMerchant]

Originally Posted by curiousElf

P.P.S: On entering our home we spotted the elusive “Felis catus” who like their Panthera cousins were happy to ignore us until bribed with treats
Attachment 2362102

Please can you give an approximate estimate of costs
* JLR tent Stay
* Safari costs jungle & River
* Camera charges if any to be paid.

[deepak_misra]

Very nice travelogue. I loved the text and lesser number of photographs.
I have mentioned often in my comments that writing down your travels helps retain memories far more than photos do.
Hope you keep writing

[deepak_misra]

Originally Posted by ACMerchant

Please can you give an approximate estimate of costs
* JLR tent Stay
* Safari costs jungle & River
* Camera charges if any to be paid.

Check out https://www.junglelodges.com/

[curiousElf]

Originally Posted by ACMerchant

Please can you give an approximate estimate of costs
* JLR tent Stay
* Safari costs jungle & River
* Camera charges if any to be paid.

Our Tent stay cost us 27,140 for 2 people per night. The charges are per person. If you have 1 more person joining you - the cost goes up proportionately.

The good thing about JLR is that the costs are all inclusive (other than camera charges). Your safari costs are bundled into the room cost. If you were a guest from another resort - the JLR safari would cost INR 2500 per person per safari.

I don't remember the camera charge slab rate. My recollection is that anything above 600mm will cost around 1200 rupees per safari trip. Only Kabini JLR has the exorbitant camera charges AFAIK

[TravelLover]

We (my family) are planning to go to kabini the following week. It will be our first trip to this place, and our first visit to a proper wildlife reserve. I have some doubts and will be very pleased if members of the forum clarify it.

1. Any general tips.

2. The average price of a stay nearby comes to nearly 15k - 20k. Since we are a family of four in places like the jungle lodge prices go upto almost 40k. Are there any other options?

3. Is it good to visit the reserve at this time of the year?

[curiousElf]

Originally Posted by TravelLover

We (my family) are planning to go to kabini the following week. It will be our first trip to this place, and our first visit to a proper wildlife reserve. I have some doubts and will be very pleased if members of the forum clarify it.

1. Any general tips.

2. The average price of a stay nearby comes to nearly 15k - 20k. Since we are a family of four in places like the jungle lodge prices go upto almost 40k. Are there any other options?

3. Is it good to visit the reserve at this time of the year?

1. Please get a binocular along if you can - makes the trip much more nicer. You are not wondering if thats the ear of tiger peeking through the bush or a dry leaf. If going on a jeep safari, better to go on a light stomach - the ride can get bumpy if the drivers get a call from their peers about sighting in another part of the reserve.

2. Most resorts nearby have pricing that is similar once you include the JLR jeep safari cost into the trip. You could optimize by going on the jeep safari once and only the really interested can go on the boat safari. If it's your first time and you have to choose between the jeep and the boat safari - choose the Jeep. You can also do the Forest department safari in a van which is around 500/person on a weekday. More details can be found here: https://kabiniresorts.in/Tariff (just scroll down)

3. Sightings won't be as good as summer but chances of getting a big cat sightings are not bad

[TravelLover]

Originally Posted by curiousElf

1. Please get a binocular along if you can - makes the trip much more nicer. You are not wondering if thats the ear of tiger peeking through the bush or a dry leaf. If going on a jeep safari, better to go on a light stomach - the ride can get bumpy if the drivers get a call from their peers about sighting in another part of the reserve.

2. Most resorts nearby have pricing that is similar once you include the JLR jeep safari cost into the trip. You could optimize by going on the jeep safari once and only the really interested can go on the boat safari. If it's your first time and you have to choose between the jeep and the boat safari - choose the Jeep. You can also do the Forest department safari in a van which is around 500/person on a weekday. More details can be found here: https://kabiniresorts.in/Tariff (just scroll down)

3. Sightings won't be as good as summer but chances of getting a big cat sightings are not bad

Thanks for the information sir
I think a camera would suffice as I won't be able to purchase a binoculars in such a short period of time. About the van safari, I feel like most other mass offerings it would be kind of rushed. I am an amateur birdwatchers and would prefer the jeep. Thank you for your help.

[Actuator]

An informative travelogue that will come in handy for prospective visitors. Disheartening to know that plastic litter has defaced the sanctuary in such large numbers. Good job on detailing the specs of the binoculars carried by you, will be helpful for those in the market to buy one!

Have been wanting to visit Kabini to photograph the elusive melanistic leopard, Saaya. Shaaz Jung, who also operates a resort there has documented him extensively. Hopefully, sometime soon… will bear your inputs in mind.

[mah45]

Excellent write-up, Thanks for sharing.

Can you also mention roughly how long it takes from Bangalore to Kabini, and whether we could reach the resort in a low GC sedan
Any other places of interest nearby would also help us plan.
Again, thanks for the great write-up with very important tips about what to expect and what to pack etc

[curiousElf]

Originally Posted by mah45

Excellent write-up, Thanks for sharing.

Can you also mention roughly how long it takes from Bangalore to Kabini, and whether we could reach the resort in a low GC sedan
Any other places of interest nearby would also help us plan.
Again, thanks for the great write-up with very important tips about what to expect and what to pack etc

No problem with low GC sedan. There are some rough roads but nothing of concern.

We usually just do BLR <-> Kabini so not that clued in. Mysore is a nice place to stop at. The palace, zoo and Chamundi Hills are a crowd favorite.

[travelwriter]

Originally Posted by curiousElf

.... favorite.

Hi
I am planning a visit to Kabini early Jan. Plan to drive down from Hyderabad with a stopover at Mysore.
I was wondering if it makes sense to stay at Mysore and visit the park for the safari? Or do you think the family of 4 will enjoy staying at the park itself?
I am asking this due to purely financial reasons as prices in the resorts at Kabini park are quite high (>20K per night per room).

Looking forward,
Travelwriter

[curiousElf]

Originally Posted by travelwriter

Hi
I am planning a visit to Kabini early Jan. Plan to drive down from Hyderabad with a stopover at Mysore.
I was wondering if it makes sense to stay at Mysore and visit the park for the safari? Or do you think the family of 4 will enjoy staying at the park itself?
I am asking this due to purely financial reasons as prices in the resorts at Kabini park are quite high (>20K per night per room).

Looking forward,
Travelwriter

While we have not done this - there are other (A road-trip to Kabini | The jungle never disappoints) posts in this forum where folks have driven down to Kabini directly for the safari. They seem to have had a good time - you can try asking the OP about their experience.

On a tangential note: Unfortunately, most resorts in Kabini are priced at the very high end range - and costs are per person (not room) at least thats the case in JLR. Hopefully, they will rationalise the charges - I had read about someone filing a PIL on JLR monopoly on jeep safaris.