Thursday, November 13, 2008

Tigers of Bandhavgarh

One fine day while i was watching television I stumbled upon a TV show which was about Indian wilderness, it was for the first time that I was witnessing the drama unfolding in Indian jungles. The theme centered on tigers of Bandhavgarh, and I was instantly captivated by raw aggression of the dominant male tiger, the legendary "Charger" and graceful tigress "Sita" who starred in this documentary.

Those piercing eyes and beautiful stripes got etched on my memory, though i straight away wanted to head towards this magical place the opportunity to visit Bandhavgarh came much later, and I finally visited Bandhavgarh for the first time on a shoestring budget in Dec 2005. Since then I remain captive to those mesmerizing eyes and beautiful stripes. “Bandhavgarh” The name evokes a mysterious excitement, I find it hard to resist, not thinking of Bandhavgarh whenever i plan my holidays. The case wasn’t any different this time too and I decided to squeeze in 3 days tour to Bandhavgarh in my week long trip to India.

The moment the decision was made, I called up Mukesh, now a friend in Bandhavgarh who quickly made all my arrangements. I alighted at Katni late in the morning after and overnight train journey from Mumbai.Much to my pleasure a vehicle arranged by Mukesh was waiting for me outside the station to ferry me to Bandhavgarh.One and half hours later I could feel the forest getting dense around me. Sal and Bamboo seemed to dominate the landscape and villages in between were far apart and few. Before I realized I had reached Tala. I was now right in heart of Tiger territory.

I was too tired from the journey and was eager to have refreshing bath at the resort.The bumpy ride and dusty road after an over night train journey had took its toll and my body seemed to be cribbing for putting it through this grind. I sure was tired and to find a smiling face at the reception was the first thing i saw. To add to my pleasure the welcome party at the resort included little little green bee eaters, Langurs, Babblers, Kingfishers , Grey hornbills amongst others.

Tea was ordered instantly and with menu for lunch decided, i had a bath with cold water.When i returned, pipping hot tea was served with some snacks, I was already feeling better, pepped up, probably it was the fresh air i was breathing, or the thought of entering the forest soon. All the pain and fatigue had vanished in thin air and i was now looking forward to the evening safari. Lunch was served soon.It was simple Indian vegetarian fair, yet delicious.After a sumptuous meal I decided to test my camera on fluttering butterflies in the resort gardens.















It was indeed a tough task following these small yet beautiful insects. After going after them for half an hour, I decided to rest, tired down by the relentless heat.


I still had a couple of hours before the safari and I soon resumed my activity, only this time, the subject had changed and I found myself enticed by little green bee eaters. These birds were surprisingly swift and adept at changing course of their flight midway. They would settle down on a perch, I would slowly start approaching them, very cautiously, but they always seemed one step ahead of me and would fly away leaving me fuming with despair. This drama continued for almost 30 minutes before I decided to call it a day and take some rest before entering the park.













Day One (Safari 1 - Evening)

After lunch I was eager to enter the park for a 3 hours drive through the jungle. I had never visited the park in peak summers earlier and the sights were very different. The jungle floor was covered with dry reducing grasses which improved visibility, which is not the case in winters when the fauna dominates the landscape. “Good chances to see the tigers early in the morning” I thought to myself. Knowing, that tigers are more active in the early hours. Little did I know that, Mukesh was taking me to Sehra meadow, where a young male tiger had made a habit of staging an appearance in the evenings in front of vehicles already waiting for him. Mid way I insisted on stopping to photograph a king vulture which was quenching its thirst near a rivulet. The delay did cost me dear.

We reached Sehra meadow behind 20 odd vehicles to see the young male who had crossed the road by then. Our driver Vikas was keen on allowing me some photo opportunity and rushed to get us a good spot, by now this magnificent sub adult male had crossed the road and was startled by our intrusion. He looked straight at us as, the eye contact lasted for few seconds but those piercing eye left an indelible impression, he then moved on further into the grass lands alarming the dear and peacocks. I quickly made some images as his massive paws trampled the grasses and the deer ran for their life in midst of alarm calls from Langurs and other animals.















All the eager tourists followed his movements restlessly, but in vain. He had by now settled near the pond deep inside the grasses and the deer had resumed grazing maintaining a safe distance from the predator indicating no movement from the tiger. After being out of view for some time we were able to spot him from sitting on the edge of the water hole, but the distance was too large for my 300 mm lens to leap. I decided to stand atop of the gypsy and made a wide angle frame.













It was time now to head back to the park gates as it was closing time. Satisfied on spotting a male on my first safari in perfect evening light I retired to bed.


Day Two (Safari 2 – Morning)

I woke up early in the morning, excited to venture in the forests early in the mornings. Early morning drives in central Indian forests are very beautiful. One enters the forest with a breath of fresh air and there is renewed vigor in the jungles which is palpable. Birds chirping and starting their day offers one some very good opportunities to photograph these winged beauties. I don’t remember the route which we were assigned to, as one has to strictly stick to his route allocated by the forest dept. This is done to avoid over crowding on spots with more probability of tiger sightings. We were lucky to get a good route, which passed through territories of 3 tigresses, while passing through Sidhbaba area I could smell unmistakable stench of a rotting flesh. A sure sign indicating that there may be predators around. Bandhavgarh has numerous carnivores like, Sloth bears, Leopards, Jackals and of course the mighty Tigers. I scanned the hill side intently hoping to spot either a tiger or a leopard, with no further clues we moved on our route. The morning was indeed beautiful, with soft sunlight making its way to the forest floor through dense canopy of Saal and Bamboo.

By now we had entered Chakradhara and there were no signs of tiger movement, no pugmarks, no alarm calls. We moved on with our route and after one turn we stumbled upon a muntjac/barking deer. It’s a rare sight and this beautiful red colored ungulate is a shy creature.Allowing me some photo opportunity the deer ran away into the bushes as another vehicle approached from behind. We continued our safari, and now into the territory of Mahaman female I kept my fingers crossed. However it looked like all the tigers had given us a slip and we had no option to report to the Elephant camp, where we would come to know if there were any tigers being sighted on elephants back. When we reached camp a fellow tourist told us that they had seen the Chakradhara tigress in the grasslands for more than 15 minutes in middle of the road. Hoping to get some good news from the camp I asked our guide to find out whether there was a sighting possible from the elephant. He shook his head, indicating that no tiger had been sighted by the Mahaouts on elephants back.














We decided not to waste any more time and see if I could make any good pictures of Sambhar deer in water near Rajbehra Dam. It was now time to exit the park, we started moving towards the gates, just as we were near Sidhbaba we saw two forest dept. elephants standing on the road. It indicated that there was tiger in that area. Accelerator pressed to the floor, we rushed to the spot, there was no other vehicle in sight and we were the only ones there. The Mahaout pointed in the hills and there she was, comfortably sitting on the rocks, was the beautiful Chorbehra female. Completely oblivious to our presence she was sitting gracefully with demeanor of a queen. She is no less beautiful than a queen and I stood mesmerized by here peaceful appearance and powerful symmetry. This part of the forest is heavily wooded and light was tricky due to the canopy of leaves above. The tigress however allowed me lots of time to take enough photographs. I was hoping for her to move in better light and give a good frame. As if, the queen had heard me and wanted to grant my wishes, she turned around to look into another direction. With light falling on her face this time and no leaves in between the tigress and my lens I made this picture.













Soon enough rest of the tourist joined in and then the scene became chaotic, the tigress decided to move on and walked away into the woods towards her cave.

Day Two (Safari 3 – Evening)

With the morning safari living up to our expectation we started our evening drive.So far Bandhavgarh had lived up to its repute of a place with highest density of tigers anywhere in the world. With two beautiful sightings we were very happy, still we wanted to see more tigers as we had seen just two individuals of the 38 odd which are believed to call this haven their home. Since their was no restrictions on the route to be chosen for the evening drive we decided to go to Rajbehra, to take our chances with a big dominant male called Bokha. Bokha was sighted by some tourists the earlier morning and was believed to be lying close to the small stream which passed through the grassland, however the stream was in a low land and wasn’t easily visible. We left the spot hoping to catch sight of some other tigers as there was no movement, nor there were any alarm calls warning us of any predators. Next we decided to wait it out for the Sehra Male (Sub adult male spotted on our first safari). We waited in anticipation fro 5.00 pm till 6.00 pm without luck. That one hour passed by in absolute silence with an occasional call from a Changeable Hawk Eagle perched in woods at some distance.














It seemed as if the male had decided not come to the water hole and had kept many others like us, waiting for one glimpse. We decided to move out of the park and as we approached the Sidhbaba area we saw lots of tourist vehicles thronging the place.Once again the tiger was being spotted. Sidhbaba was turning out to be a tiger hotspot. There was immense energy in the air as
everyone wanted to see the tigress. She was descending from her cave and was walking through the forest affording eager tourist with glimpses of her, through the annoying foliage.

We decided to move away from the crowd and leaving the tigress behind we took our position way ahead of the pack of jeeps anticipating that the tigress will walk for the stream at the base of the hill for water. Slowly she was getting closer, though we were not able to see her yet; we could see the crowd behind us jostling their way towards us. She had by now climbed the hill half way and appeared at least 50-60 meters away from us at slight angle to our left. It looked like she was moving with intent through her territory. She stood there for some time, poised on the black rock she looked enchanting with her beautiful orange coat. With hurried steps now she descended the hill. It was only then we realized that she had stashed a carcass for her to feed on. She had found it now and with a graceful lug she pulled the remains of what seemed like that of a deer. That powerful drag highlighted every muscle in her body. All present there murmured in excitement and disbelief as this beautiful creation of nature settled down for evening meal.

The light was poor for any photographs and with no intention to disturb the tigress with a flash we moved on to park gates leaving her to finish what remained of the kill.

Day Three (Safari 4- Morning)

Once again it was morning safari and with high hopes we entered the forest gates.We had got a good route which passed through Rajbehra, another tiger hotspot as this place had large grasslands with adequate water. Passing through the beautiful meadows of Chakradhara and Sidhbaba we kept an eye open for any moment on the hills where the tigress was spotted twice the earlier day. I was tempted to believe that the tigress still could be there, attributing it to plain luck which had been on my side till then. However the possibility of tigress having moved away from the spot in search of fresh food couldn’t be ruled out given the fact that she had finished her kill the earlier evening. While moving through the forests in Rajbehra area we were able to hear some alarm calls which indicated presence of predators. We scanned the area for any signs of movement, going up and down the tracks to find any pugmarks indicating tiger movement. By now most of the vehicles in the vicinity had herd the alarm calls and had rushed to the spot. Almost and hour passed by with no luck and now the vehicles had ringed the area of forest where the tiger was believed to be in. Following the alarm calls we took position at
a cross road where we thought the calls were coming from. We waited there for another 15 minutes but there was no sign of any tiger there, we decided to circle the area in search of tiger and moved away from there.

We had barely traveled for around 5 minutes when we heard frantic Sambhar and Langur calls from the direction we had just come from. We rushed back to the spot only to find elated tourists in two vehicles. They had just now witnessed the ultimate drama one can witness in the jungles. The struggle for survival between the predator and prey had unfolded in front of their eyes and they were ecstatic to have witnessed the tigress making a kill of a Chital barely 150 meters from where they were standing. I just cursed our selves for not being patient and having missed this incredible spectacle. Knowing that the female was with cubs and in fact the cubs had helped here drag the kill to bushes was the last nail in the coffin and it was now confirmed that I had shot myself in foot by not being patient. The Langur on the tree near us was still struck with fear and was calling incessantly. There was now only one Sambhar in that open area with its tail upright. The Sambhar stood there for a long time and did give out a few alarm calls before moving away.














No one knew what would be the next move of this family and we decided to wait for it to come out in the open, having learnt from our earlier mistake. We waited for over 30 minutes. By now there were only a few vehicles left in the area. Every one had expected the tigers to hide in the bushes till late afternoon as there were cubs and most believed that the tigress won’t come out with cubs to take care of. Just then a wild boar unaware of the tiger’s presence walked towards the bushes where the family was having their meal. Every one around waited with abated breath. Will the tigress charge the boar? Will there be another kill? Well, all the excitement died
when the Boar spotted the tigers and ran for its life.

I sat back watching the Langur now comfortably sitting on the tree. Just then some one from the neighboring jeep shouted, “Tiger”. And sure it was. The tigress had come out of the bushes and had started waking on the fringes of the forest and the open area just behind the bushes. The tigress was on the move, we rushed towards the spot to get a better view, she had stopped in her tracks and we waited for a good spot to see her. Every vehicle around was jostling for space and one in the mean time had got off road to find itself stuck in a ditch.














With tigress with cubs at close proximity it was dangerous to get out of the vehicle to help those unlucky souls. The tigress by now had moved on and all vehicles except one were in hot pursuit of this tigress. We were at the helm of the pack and hoped the tigress to cross the path right in front of us. However the tigress decided to cross the road at the far end. She passed through the open grassland far away from us just giving us fleeting glimpses. Vikas and our guide soon realized that she was moving for water and the only place she could find water in this area was at the Rajbehra dam. We rushed to get the best spot leaving others to follow in dust. Soon there were other vehicles following us to the dam. We positioned ourselves close to the waters edge with the dam wall in front of us.



























Within 5 minutes of us reaching there, this beautiful lady known as the Jhorjhora female walked in to the dam’s water right in front of us. She was grace personified as she slowly tested the waters and then slowly entered the dam. It was the moment I was waiting for.




















She had by now progressed towards the dam wall. She laid one of her paw on the dam wall and then with flexing those immensely powerful shoulder muscles, she pulled herself out of water in one lunge.Water drops trickling from her wet coat I made a few images.



























She sat in the water for more thanten minutes providing ample opportunity for photographs. She looked very beautiful in those shimmering waters. After having cooled down and a drink she decided to swim through the water to the dam wall.











She then walked on the wall to get off on the other side of the wall to go up in the
dense forest. The safari ended with the best sighting ever of my life.














Day Three (Safari 5 – Evening)

That evening we decided to track the same tigress we had seen earlier in the day. We went to the patch of forest behind the dam where she had disappeared in the afternoon, and to our surprise, she was there, near the water hole sleeping peacefully. The evening light was tracing its way to lighten up her radiant orange coat, as if god had decided to cast a spotlight on one of its supreme creations. I observed this captivating sight for over fifteen minutes and with no hopes of the tigress getting up, we moved away to see if Bokha the dominant male had moved from the stream he was seen entering.














We had reached there just in time as we could see a lot of camera flashes indicating this big dominant male was on the move and offering a photo opportunity for the tourist. However there was a large patch of grass and he was moving on the opposite bank of the stream. I just saw him entering the grasses and the then he disappeared. He moved secretively through the grasses and we had no clue of where he would emerge. Hoping that this huge male will emerge right in front I
waited with my camera. Just then a peacock flew from grasses from the far end of the grasses.








Bokha was moving away from us, with no hopes of getting him on camera I quickly turned to the fleeing peacock. Bokha exited the grassland far away from us and passed just a few meters from the waiting vehicles. With mixed feelings of sighting the Jhorjhora female and having missed out on Bokha I returned to the resort with sun setting on the picturesque Bandhavgarh Fort in the background.

Day Four (Safari 6 – Morning)

The last safari of my tour was staring in my face and I was indeed sad on it being my last safari. We decided to go in pursuit of Bokha who we had just missed in the morning. We reached a small dam called "Anicut", which was close to the area where Bokha was spotted. To our surprise Bokha was sitting inside the water trying to ward of intense heat and pesky flies. Only his massive head was visible over the water's surface with binoculars and with the tiger far away I couldn’t get any photographs. We continued with our safari which was fast nearing its end. At last when there were no hopes of spotting any tigers we decided to check out the elephant camp site where most of the forest dept elephants come to rest. In particular I was more excited to see a playful young elephant, I had seen 6 months back. This playful bundle of joy was the cuddliest of all creatures.















After having spent enough time with this young fellow, it was now time to head back to park gates. As dusk descended on the forest floor I exited the park gates, determined to return to Bandhavgarh to see its elusive, almost mystical tigers.