Great job Razor on the posts ... while Razor covered our tiger sighting very well, I'd perhaps do a quick wrap of Kanha with some photographs from my end. All photo's taken with a Canon 350D (Rebel XT) with 18-55 kit lens, which kind of explains all my snaps - no wildlife photography with these lens unless you have a tiger in your tracks. Most of the time I was relegated to being the video photographer !
I still remember the 1st evening we reached Kanha and went for a walk on a nature trail on the outskirts of the park, open to tourists on their own. We had been told not to venture too far as it was getting dark, yet as we were on our way back, we saw people motioning us to head back. Only on reaching the hotel, did we hear the reason. Apparently a tigress with a couple of cubs had made a kill of a wild boar
within a km of where we were ... was enough to send a shiver down the spine of anyone I guess. Could not help thinking to myself ... so this is what a jungle visit is all about ... the excitement had just begun.
The 1st safari will always remain the most thrilling and exciting ... waking up at 5 am, getting ready and then stepping out in pitch darkness. It's only when the open Gypsy kicks off, does one get hit by the chili winds of mid-December. Strongly recommend a woolen cap which can cover the ears, something I sorely missed.
Some quick details for folks who have not been to Kanha ... each day there are two safari's ... one from 6:30 am till about 11 am ... and another from 3 pm to sundown (do check for exact timings as these change based on the season). You need to pre-book an officially sanctioned Gypsy and get the entry passes done atleast a day before (for the morning ride) and during the day (or in advance) for the afternoon one.
As you enter the park one gypsy at a time and start travelling the better known trails and tracking the jungle calls, one can't help getting captivated by the jungle thrill.
For me, the photo below epitomizes the mystery that a jungle is ...
At around 7 am we were greeted to an amazing sunrise, with the sun breaking through over the tall trees.
We had a fleeting glimpse of a tiger the 1st day but rest of the day past relatively uneventfully, with various animal and bird sightings - gaurs, sambars, barasinghas, the ever present PMD (Peacocks, Monkeys & spotted Deers), Hawk Eagle, Owl and variety of other birds - photos already posted earlier. Evenings in Kanha are pretty much a souvenir shopping, idling in the hotel or "downloading snaps to the laptop" experience.
If day 1 was an incredibly chili day, we woke up on day 2 to the pitter patter of rain. Nothing could set us back though, we started out braving the light drizzle, but soon it got very heavy and after an hour long wait at the gates, we had to return back to the hotel. Was day 2 destined to be a washout ?