First Flight:
With wings of hope, feathered with care,
We began the journey, yet unaware,
Of the beauty awaiting us at bay,
Of the dry lands where wild animals play,
In windy sun and mildew of night,
We found our way through harsh sunlight,
And in these forests of Pench we saw,
A myriad of changes in the foot, claw and paw,
Oh what a cherished sight it made,
To see how far the forest laid,
It's trees so scattered and so few,
It's life so fresh and death so new,
Yet it wasn't the sorrow, there was no strife,
For in the wild, this is the circle of life.
Pench national park is a beautiful place to be in. It gives you peace of mind and the silence after the city lights is a blessing. So is the dark night filled with stars that one can see almost from horizon to horizon.
Pench National park is located between Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh. It can be accessed from two gates.
Despite a recent attempt at poisoning the lake, all is well in the park. The authorities have also now made sure that no such incident takes place again. Security at the gates has been increased and checking is much stricter. For more information about Pench National Park please click the link below:
Pench National Park
A ride among clouds and trees:
The anticipation of seeing a tiger, the hope of seeing nature at it's best, the will to wait it out till these wishes are fulfilled is what makes the journey from home to the jungle so exciting. And of course there's the ice-breaking with new people and hoping we find a friend in them all. We started our journey, all of us, with dreams of rustling of leaves,crackling of gravel and the scent of the earth, for we knew we were to find it all where nature flourishes.
That morning was one of enjoyment as we gathered to celebrate a birthday.
In the evening we had some introductions and laughter. The youngsters all had a celebration of their own and we were all hollering as we teased some and backed some up on our debate of how 5-3-2 is played.
All of us were rather tired after reaching Hotel Baaz. Our bellies full of idlis and dosas, and dosing from time to time, yet euphoric, we began traveling for our first ride.
We saw many birds that day. A jackal strolled out from the bushes to walk beside us for quite some time. A pack of wild dogs lounging near a small pond of water and deer grazing calmly with peacocks strutting along...These were the sights that told us how sleepy the forest was feeling. It did show promise of activity later though and we returned with satisfied spirits.
It was in all a wonderful start. We ended up after three days, exploring bits of ourselves as we explored the forest!
In midst of the woods:
There we were, early next morning hoping for a wake-up call from the forest. This second ride was the best of all. It merits a poem :-
As dawn rose against the April sky,
I found birds are not all that fly,
For our thoughts flew right into space,
Our heartbeats tried to keep them pace.
For we had hopes in our minds of a good sight,
As in our eyes we had some sleep to fight,
That day was a fair share for us all,
And we returned with memories of more than a call.
So how does news travel in the forest?
Among animals, it travels with the speed of sound;literally. Whereas among us humans it travels with the speed of gestures. The center point is like the listening side of the wall.Here the news is passed from mouth to ear swiftly.
Our gypsy was stationed at the center point and we were having breakfast. Out of the blue (or rather, green) it seemed, a tigress had come our way;literally. We didn't stop to debate, there was no thought. As a unit,we packed up unfinished breakfast in a hustle and drove away like bats in hell. To see Collar-wali rumored to be spotted on Route 1.
On the route were many gypsies waiting for her majesty to grace us with her presence. We silently joined them. After sweating for a long time in a pin-drop silence in the burning sun, we drove a little ways ahead and saw some jackal cubs completely camouflaged by leaves. After a while, we backtracked, and voilà!
There she was, the beautiful Collar-wali. She walked right towards our gypsy and crossed the road, making her way along it for a long time. How awe-inspiring the sight was!
In the evening, we chatted a lot as a group, had some fun....and then went on a night trail!
As stars burn out:
Feathered skies and trailing sun,
gone in a split over the horizon,
A twilit trace of silent night,
comes creeping in with faded light.
And the trail began. We were armed with torches, sticks, hope and courage...and as a group we set out, walking a long winding road in the forest. That's the beauty of it.
When the shadows slither in the torch's beam,
when the sounds turn out to be far from what they seem,
you still hear and see the electricity of silence and nervousness,
your tired eyes and ears want to rest,
but you don't feel it as much as you feel the beauty of the forest.
That's the beauty of it.
We reached a gate where we were later to learn, two tigers and a leopard had been spotted not less than a year ago. We crossed a bridge flung over a drying canal where one recorded had walked. Our eyes popped after we realized, back at the hotel, where exactly we'd just been.
There was a lake beyond the gate and we all stood along the bank wanting to get a glimpse of something. Much time was spent in getting everyone to quiet down, and then some in star gazing.
As we sat on the bank with our torches off, I remember thinking,"What if I were alone here?" Imagining that, and it can only happen in that pin drop silence, was truly a blessing. For once, you want to feel like you're all alone in midst of a crowd. And then you are. You forget about everyone as two eyes gleam at you in the dead of the night, whether it's a bird or a tiger.
We were fortunate enough to see two birds flying away and then, as we got up and strolled along the shore, lo and behold ! Out of a shady bush, two green eyes gleamed in the flash of a torch, bobbed up and down in the gait of the majestic walk, paws hushing the ground below.
Had it not been for the lucky swing of the torch and the brilliant eyes of people, we would never have seen the tiger/tigress make his or her way along the shore for about quite a distance. It was rather dark and none of us could capture an image before the tiger or tigress vanished into the thicket. It was more than worth the sight, all the long walk, the keeping a pin-drop silence, the nervousness, the excitement...all worth it.
The next day dawned quick and clear, and it was time for our last ride. We set out like the day before dressed like bandits with our heads and mouths all covered, most of us wearing sun coats.
That's another thing about going out to a camp like this. You don't have to worry about how you dress, how you look. Nobody cares; not even you. You're not there for yourself, as much as that is actually true. You're there for a chance to see some of the most beautiful creatures ever to exist.
The last ride too was like the first one: we heard calls, saw many birds, jackals,wild boars and wild dogs. We said goodbye to the forest with a sorrowful heart that yet vowed to return. And return we will someday to the forest, for the nature is truly where we belong, where we can be ourselves without the pressures of the society.
And as the sun's burn lessened, we felt like the night before, when the stars had started to burn out....it was time to go, and we knew what awaited us. With routine, there's only one way the day and night can go. In the jungle, the day and night hold surprises you never get tired of.
Farewell to the Land of Mowgli:
We were in Haldirams at Nagpur when we said our goodbyes, as half of us were going by train, and half by plane. It was time to go where we came from. But instead of gifts and presents we usually bring home for family and friends, we brought back memories.
And fabulous photos, credits for which go to Kedar Kulkarni, Ninaad Joshi and Amodh Joshi. A long and frankly tiring effort by Shreya Kulkarni, a good friend and birder, is the bird list below the photos. There is also an animal list below it.
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Card Games
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| At Ajani Station |
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| Happy birthday Amit!! |
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| And Celebration |
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| Jo Khayega Ber, Use Dikhega Sher!! |
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| Ready for the Safari! |
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| Deciduous Jungle |
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| Dirt Tracks |
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| Mahua |
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| Ghost Tree |
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| Roller with a kill |
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| Catching it |
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| Ready to Eat now! |
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| Malabar Pied Hornbill |
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| White Rumped Vulture |
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| Golden Flameback |
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| Tickell's Blue Flycatcher |
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| Yello Wattled Lapwing |
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| Brown Headed Barbet |
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| Brown Headed Barbet |
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| Golden Oriel |
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| Red Jungle Fowl |
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| Pea Fowl Display |
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| Crested Serpent Eagle |
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| CSE |
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| White Eyed Buzzard |
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| Painted Spurfowl |
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| Indian Grey Hornbill in Flight |
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| Grey Headed Starling |
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| Sirkir's Malkoha |
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| Orange Headed Thrush |
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| Jackal |
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| Mom and Me! |
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| Jackal Pup! |
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| Wild Dog |
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| Sambar Deer surrounded by pack of 15 wild dogs |
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| Wild Dog, locking new targets |
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| Kill |
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| Half Eaten, but alive! |
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| My Water hole! |
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| Fight for the remains |
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| Monitor Lizard |
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| Thirsty spotted Deer |
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| Dead Python! |
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| Eyes of the Jungle in Making! |
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| The Eyes! |
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| Collarwali |
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| Collarwali |
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| Collarwali |
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| Raiyakasa Male |
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| Raiyakasa Male |
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| Territory Marking |
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| Baddeo Female |
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| Collarwali |
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| Baddeo Female Cub |
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| Collarwali |
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| Collarwali |
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| Collarwali |
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| Collarwali |
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| Baddeo Female Cubs |
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| Baddeo Female and a male Cubs |
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| Signed up on Kedar's cap!! |
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| Where is our Kill! |
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| Kids Gang |
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| 35! |
List of Birds:
1. Rufous tree-pie
2. Brown headed barbet
3. Crested serpent eagle
4. Asian paradise flycatcher
5. Indian roller
6. Black naped monarch
7. Jungle owlet
8. Spotted owlet
9. Tickell’s blue flycatcher
10. White rumped vulture
11. White throated kingfisher
12. Common myna
13. Malabar pied hornbill
14. Grey hornbill
15. Shikra
16. Indian peafowl
17. Wooly necked stork
18. Black hooded oriole
19. Golden oriole
20. Black drongo
21. White bellied drongo
22. Racket tailed drongo
23. Red crowned woodpecker
24. Black rumped flameback woodpecker
25. Laughing dove
26. Spotted dove
27. Eurasian collard dove
28. Rose ringed parakeet
29. Alexandrine parakeet
30. Plum headed parakeet
31. Pied kingfisher
32. Coppersmith barbet
33. Changeable hawk eagle
34. Grey headed fish eagle
35. Tawny eagle
36. Black shouldered kite
37. Honey buzzard
38. White eyed buzzard
39. Common crow
40. Jungle crow
41. European roller
42. Chestnut tailed starling
43. Pied myna
44. Bramhiny starling
45. Asian openbill stork
46. Black headed ibis
47. Painted stork
48. Cattle egret
49. Little egret
50. Pond heron
51. Yellow wagtail
52. White browed wagtail
53. Jungle babbler
54. Tailor bird
55. Ashy prinia
56. Plain prinia
57. Common woodshrike
58. Oriental white eye
59. Red vented bulbul
60. Painted spurfowl
61. Red jungle fowl
62. Oriental magpie robin
63. White throated fantail flycatcher
64. Purple sunbird
65. Gold fronted leafbird
66. Sirkeer malkoha
67. House sparrow
68. Scaly breasted munia
69. Tricolored munia
70. Yellow throated sparrow
71. Red wattled lapwing
72. Eurasian thick knee
73. Rock pigeon
74. Green bee- eater
75. Indian robin
76. Orange headed thrush
77. Greater coucal
78. Yellow footed green pigeon
79. Singing bush lark
80. Pied bush chat
81. Paddyfield pipit
82. Indian nightjar
83. Barn swallow
84. Wire tailed swallow
85. House swift
86. Dusky crag martin
87. Red naped ibis
88. Silverbill
89. Crested treeswift
90. Grey wagtail
91. Black kite
92. King vulture
93. Great tit
94. Little cormorant
95. Intermediate egret
96. Common hawk eagle
97. Common kestrel
98. Asian koel
99. Small minivet
100. Great egret
101. House swift
102. Yellow wattled lapwing
List of animals:
1. Tiger
2. Spotted deer (Chital)
3. Barking deer
4. Sambar deer
5. Blue Bull (Nilgai)
6. Indian Gaur (Gawe)
7. Wild dogs
8. Jackals (Landga)
9. Monitor Lizard
10.Wild Boar
Thank you all for reading till the end.
