The Tiger family has been very much in the news these past few weeks….and I take great pride in stating that I have seen one in the jungles of Jim Corbett National Park, just a few days ago - on 10th
February, 2008 to be precise.
A few colleagues & friends agreed that we needed an outing. After deliberating on a couple of places in the 300 kms. radius, we zeroed in on Jim Corbett National Park….an approx. 6 hour drive from Delhi. JCNP lies in the Nainital, Pauri Garwhal and Bijnore Districts of Uttaranchal. The present area of the Reserve is 1318.54 sq. km. including 520 sq. km. of core area and 797.72 sq. km. of buffer area.
We had planned a 3 day outing….starting on a Friday night, after office hours; planned to be back in Delhi by Monday evening….to attend work on Tuesday .
We started with14 of us(2 Nerds / 8 Super Nerds / 1 Jughead type / 3 Management Folks -incl.
me). 3 vehicles were used - 1 Fiesta - mine, 1 Scorpio, 1 Corolla. Motive of the
Trip was to enjoy natural surroundings / Spotting the Tiger.
The journey to Ramnagar was uneventful….most of the people were wide awake….except Jughead……taking turns to drive….except Jugs…….stopping thrice en route…….Jughead wanted a snack(after devouring all the stock we were carrying to last us thro’ the trip)….we all had
tea only.
We arrived on Saturday, at 7.00 AM at the Wood Castle resort and were shown to a cottage we had booked. The resort is a new one with cottages scattered across a huge area and an awesome view. We decided to quickly change and get ready for breakfast, prior to spending a leisurely afternoon. However, one of the Supernerds discovered a volleyball court within the resort, on the sands flanking river Kosi….Needless to say, a couple of animated games followed. Jugs joined in….albeit reluctantly. An hour later, drenched in sweat & covered in sand we headed towards the dining area for breakfast….a lavish Indian / American / Continental spread. A quick bath later,
we decided to head for a jungle excursion.
At 12.00 noon, the weather was sunny…clear skies…cool breeze. We headed towards the jungle from the Dhikala end. On our earlier 2 trips, we had entered from the Dhikala end, but had not been able to view any tigers….only pugmarks and scratch marks on trees as pointed by our guide. But, the foliage at Dhikala end is more dense….a treat to the eyes of anyone coming from the concrete jungles of the city. Jugs wanted to see Corbett Museum. The visit to the Museum was educative….all agreed(most of us had visited it in the past except Jugs). There were stuffed, preserved tigers, skeletons, embryos, charts etc. of the tiger family. After the Museum, we decided to visit the banks of Kosi and a nearby Shiv temple on foot. The trek was an enjoyable
one, across Kosi on a narrow bridge, where we enthusiastically did river crossing via a ropeway, as well as rock climbing under the guidance of skilled professionals.
Returning back to the Resort later that evening, had a good time under the open clear skies, besides a bonfire, singing, sharing eerie ghost stories and in general having fun at the expense of Jugs.
After an elaborate delicious dinner, we retired for the night.
The next morning, i.e., Sunday, we were up early and had a few enjoyable games of volleyball like the previous day. After breakfast and bath, we asked the Resort to pack a Picnic lunch, snacks, water and juices and headed off the Corbett forest from the Bijrani end……to try our luck at spotting Tiger/s. This time, All 14 of us were loaded in 3 specially modified Maruti Gypsys with a guide aboard each vehicle, besides the driver(this costs approx. INR 2500 per vehicle).
We carried with us cameras of various configurations & makes(plus snacks for Jughead), all ready to shoot and click the majestic Tiger. But all we saw was Deers, Antlers, Sambars, Peacocks, Monkeys, Langoors, Wild Lizards etc. .The antics of the members of the simian families and baby Deers kept us occupied. Our group happily chatted and laughed….they had discovered a game….finding the closest resemblance of suitable animals with the folks back in office, neighbourhood, friends and family….bosses and their spouses….very enjoyable!
By 2.30 PM, we were tired and weary of the ride and snacks. The lead vehicle was now headed towards a dried monsoon river bed. Jughead demanded an apple to compensate for the fruitless trip. As we approached a cluster of trees, the lead driver suddenly switched off the ignition of his vehicle and motioned others to follow suit. In complete silence, our guide pointed towards a clearing in a thicket of trees….there was His Majesty, Tiger Ji, sitting under a tree, inspecting the carcass of a deer.
The tension in the atmosphere was electric. I admit, I was scared, very scared.when I mentally calculated the distance between the Tiger and us: a mere 20 feet. He had sensed our presence, raised his head and stared directly at us. All of us were frozen at our respective positions. Then, the spell was broken….the tiger retreated a few steps. A Supernerd realized that this tiger was the reason we had carried 10 cameras between us….click… shoot….click ….click. All activity started. Only Jugs remained transfixed!
The Tiger moved back further, stepping backwards into the foliage. There was a lot of rustling in the bushes….Then he emerged on the road a few feet away from us, behind us. After he had vanished out of sight, mayhem broke loose….animated discussions, all of us sharing our personal state and experience….WOW….we had sighted a Tiger!.Our guides said we are one of the lucky few who actually sighted one. Jugs attributed it to his benign presence….claimed the Tiger had come to pay him respect(God save the Tiger….Jugs might had ended up eating one of the endangered species had it not been for the unending supply of snacks. Mission accomplished, armed with a supply of photographs and clips of the Tiger, we headed back to the main Bijrani end gate, after filling the tiger sighting log at Bijrani Camp.
Once outside, we feasted on our packed picnic lunch. Back at the resort, we were the heros….sharing our pics of the Tiger with other residents of the Resort. It was indeed a huge group that had a blast that evening.
The next morning, we checked out after our routine volleyball and breakfast….on a leisurely drive back to Delhi….ecstatic Jugs could not sleep after the tiger sighting……but his appetite had almost doubled.
As we entered Delhi that night.I remembered the song.back to life.back to reality.
Signing SM
