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India: Kaziranga, Banhavgarh and Gir


gatoratlarge

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This is from 08 but had an absolutely remarkable trip to India...used Easy Tours of India and they did an excellent job...I knew exactly where I wanted to go (had been once before to Ranthambore and Nagarhole NPs)...had a limited number of days but it was wonderful. My itinerary would not be every one's choice as I'm a bit of a travel warrior...I will go on long drives or whatever it takes to see what I'd like to see so there were times of pretty long car drives which in India is a wildlife experience all to itself!...but the rewards were worth it to me...

 

Trip went something like this: Kaziranga NP in Assam for four nights (Wild Grass Lodge)

 

flight to Rajkot via Mumbai (overnight), drive to Gir Forest in Gujarat, two nights

 

Flight out of Diu to Nagpur and drive to Bandhavgarh NP for three nights

 

Drive to Khujaraho to see the temples and train to Delhi (flight was cancelled)

 

Then morning train to Haridwar for two nights---trip to Reshikesh

 

back to Delhi and flight home...

 

Tigers:

 

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=4170...mp;l=a4d0984a6e

 

 

Lions:

 

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=4170...mp;l=e759f375c4

 

Rhinos:

 

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=4169...mp;l=fc0f6f7665

 

 

Gurus and Swamis:

 

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=4171...mp;l=7d7c2fafa1

 

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=4170...mp;l=d37deb53bb

 

 

On the Brahmaputra:

 

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=4172...mp;l=cb52c133b7

 

Khajuraho:

 

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=4171...mp;l=ae4c7d0414

Edited by gatoratlarge
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madaboutcheetah

Thanks, Gatorlatlarge.

 

That must have been a loooooong drive from Nagpur to Bandhavgarh? If you plan to go there again, i recommend flying to Jabalpur from Delhi and then do the drive from there. Nagpur is better connected to Kanha by road. However, i have never been to Bandhavgarh myself ......

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  • 9 months later...

I checked out the Kaziranga photos. Lots of rhinos out in the open. Is that typical? I thought they would have been in thicker vegetation. Sorry about your camera. The hazards of ele riding.

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  • 5 months later...

I am currently planning for this years volunteering trip and have decided (largely due to the flight costs) to spread my wings away from Africa (Im taking my students there in 2013 anyway) and am looking at India. I ahve been approached by NatureTrails India to volunteer on their conservaiton programme at Bandhavgarh NP. Does anyone have experience of either the park, the company. the camp (Tiger NGO camp) or even the volunteering itself? This would be my 1st time to Asia and am hoping to get some camera trap surveys done but want to make sure it is the right placement.

 

Thanks all (been a while since I have been on here, apologies for the absence)

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Sorry for the tardy reply to you both...travelynn, indian rhino viewing is not too difficult. The entire park is mostly grassland albeit high elephant grass...elephant back is the best way to view wildlife in kaziranga and the rhinos are very comfortable with elephants. Much more so than jeeps...in my case (and folks should be aware of this) the park was closed for the monsoon season...I traveled in late may if I remember correctly...so the only access allowed was a viewing tower in the middle of the park...still we saw a number of rhinos and the guides are very predictive of their movements. If they spotted a rhino feeding and moving through the grass, they'd position the vehicle on the road very close to where the rhino would eventually cross...we apparently were too good at this and shrouded the one rhino as he charged the jeep! I've observed Indian rhinos in kaziranga, royal chitwan and royal bardia in Nepal, and the experience on elephant back is thrilling. Mostly they are in the open grasslands but to get near then ot might be necessary to cross streams etc..something impossible to do in a jeep...

 

As for Bandhavgarh I would think that would be an excellent place for a project and to bring students...it is loaded with tigers! I was there during some student holidays and I must say that the management is quite different in India...vehicles line up like the grand prix at the gatecin the morning and the visitors are loud...just seemed a bit out of control...that being said I think you're in a prime spot for tiger and other wildlife. There were two instances not to scare you after I left...a tiger charged a vehicle that got between it and it's cubs and there was an attack outside the park in some agricultural lands for a similar reason...inside the park it goes back to management...and stress on the animals due to the number of vehicles...we also s a leopard while I was there in addition to a mother and cubs. The dominant male of the territory and another female so all told five tigers in a couple days in the park.

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  • 4 months later...
Atravelynn

Now I have a better feel for where all these places are. You really spanned the country. For lions, tigers, rhino, I guess you have to.

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  • 8 months later...

Interesting. Would you change the timing of such a trip considering your limited access to Kaziranga?

 

The lions you has got me thinking. Are they imports from Africa?

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Any reason why with a stable population in the one park the lions are in, they don't repopulate other parks. Can only think that it'll create a bigger gene pool and also be a massive attraction at the new parks.

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The state of Gujarat do not want to lose their monopoly on lion safaris...

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Once again man only see's $$ signs. So sad.

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  • 4 years later...
gatoratlarge

Interesting. Would you change the timing of such a trip considering your limited access to Kaziranga?

 

The lions you has got me thinking. Are they imports from Africa?

 

@@Riaanf31 Sorry about the late response (four years late! LOL) but I just was looking back at various posts and saw your question. I would definitely consider moving the trip back a month or so --- I believe I've heard that October to March is the best time to visit India and by visiting in May I was flirting with monsoon season which is why Kaziranga was basically already closed. There is definitely a more optimum time to visit but I had no choice on my dates at the time.

 

As others stated lions used to span Africa, the Middle East and Asia but are now relegated to this tiny population in Gujarat in India....the last place for Asian lions...

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