India Travel Blog

Tiger Tourism at Pench

The dead sambar lay rotting inside the core zone of the park. Careful inspection did not reveal any incision or wounds inflicted by the big cats. Obviously the deer had died of a natural cause. But what surprised me was the carcase which was untouched by the big cats as well as the opportunistic hunters like jackal, hyena or wild dogs.   

The first question that came to my mind was how come the predators had not reached the dead animal yet? Are they thriving in sufficient numbers? My doubts were cleared by the hotel manager at Pench.

"No sir its just an instance, the predators thrive well in this nature preserve", he answered my question with utmost sincerity.    

Well very soon I saw a tigress with four cubs, wild dogs but not the Indian Wolf. The latter inhabits the periphery which comprises of scrub and open area ideal for this endangered canid.   The tiger sighting was a unique experience and my first at Pench Tiger Reserve. 

The tigers in Pench are easily seen on jeep safaris and elephant rides. There are many guides available for game drives in the park, some are expert tiger trekkers.  

The park lies in Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra border in India about two hundred km from Jabalpur. Earlier known as Seoni Hills the area is also called Kipling Country since the Jungle Book is based upon the folklore of these forests.

The Pench jungles are mixed deciduous type with large number of fruiting trees. The habitat is home to Central Indian mammals, birds and reptiles. The floral richness is  evident on very first visit. The preserve is much visited by tourists on tiger safari and birders.

Animals seen on wildlife safari are tiger, leopard, sloth bear, bison, spotted deer, barking  deer, langur, wild boar, wild dog or dhole. sambar, rhesus macaque, Indian wolf etc.

There are a large number of birds to be seen and Pench promises to be a leading birding destination in Madhya Pradesh. Much survey has to be done in order to checklist birds of Pench.  Professional birding guides are available for bird watching at the Pench Resorts. 

The park can be reached from Nagpur airport which is about 80 km. Pench is about 200 km from Jabalpur airport and rail head. The accommodations are based Turia since most of the Pench hotels are situated here. At Karmajhiri, forest rest house and dormitory are available for a stay with prior reservation from the DFO office in Seoni.    

The visiting season is from !6th October to June 31st whence the reserve is open. Those wishing to avoid heat should visit in the winters which extend up to February.  

Tiger Tours in India

Indian Wildlife is enchanting and unique much different from Africa. The whole country has protected areas which are the habitat for all wild animals and birds. Many other life forms survive in these nature reserves.

The diverse habitats in India have nurtured mind boggling number of life forms. There are many wildlife sanctuaries and National Parks that protected endangered and rare endemic species. Besides major conservation centers wildlife survives in the reserve forest of India.

The mega fauna which attracts the largest number of tourists on wildlife safaris are:

Tiger
Leopard
Snow Leopard
Clouded Leopard
Elephant
One Horned Rhino
Asiatic Lion
Wild Ass
Sloth Bear
Bison
Wild Water Buffalo
Himalayan Bear
Swamp Deer
Hangul
Wild Dog

There many other predators and prey species that makes a safari enchanting and interesting. The best places to see the big cat are habitat of many of the animals listed above. Tiger visibility is the highest in Kanha, Bandhavgarh and Pench Reserve. It is also high in Ranthambhore and Corbett National Park. There are tigers in many other reserves but the visibility is not very good. The animal is shy and easily hides itself in forest floors behind shrubs and bushes. 

Kanha, Bandhavgarh and Pench are situated in the state of Madhya Pradesh erstwhile Central India. They are known as the tiger heavens most popular for big cat signting  in the World. The density of big cats is very high in the preserves hence the sighting are frequent. The tiger shows though much criticized conducted in the parks increase the sightings.     

This predator can be sighted at many places were the target species is different. In Kaziranga and Dudhwa you can see the Rhino and the tiger besdies water buffalo and swamp deer. Wild Elephant  can be seen in Corbett along with tigers, hog deer, goral, Himalayan Black bear, gharial and marsh crocodiles can be seen. 

For Asiatic lions Gir National Park is the only place in the World to see them. One can see leopards and plenty of deer species at Gir in Gujarat.  Wild Ass can be seen in Rann of Kutch along with flamingos, caracal, wolf, hyena and many other animals.  Little Rann of Kutch is excellent birding spot. 

Hence in many protected areas big cats are present though sighting them on a short tour can be difficult. On the wildlife tours you can visit of one the Indian tiger parks and then visit other reserves. Thus  you can see  different animals and have a holistic wildlife tour in India.  Most of the protected areas are excellent bird habitats and deliver a combined experience of animal and bird watching.

India diverse and beckoning

The country lives in various strata of history, it is diverse and colorful, that amazes and at times stuns. The Indian society is multicultural, multiethnic and tolerates multiplicity in beliefs.   On no land, such mind boggling variations occur amidst the humanity.

Being an old land the ancient history has left an indelible impression on the modern society. Vedic rituals still exists in practice and the song of the Lord Bhagwat Gita is growing in popularity.  People live in a modern society with past hinged to entity.

India is a spectacular array of festive colors, pot potpourri of culture and a cauldron of ethnic communities. The land varies from high reaches of Himalayas to plains of the lower reaches. The desert, forest, river deltas, grasslands, mangrove and vast stretch of beaches define India.

Hinduism has the largest followers in the country and is an open-ended religion without any didactics. It is an environment that nurtures the country with it liberal connotations and free spirit. It is a colorful religion with lots of rites and rituals. The festivals are path to expression of free spirit in belief, tradition and the way of worship.  Other ideologies that developed in India are
Sikhism, Buddhism and Jainism besides many micro beliefs that exist without any impediment. 

The number of languages and dialects are uncountable confined to regions but large numbers of people speak Hindi and English. These languages are bridging gaps among innumerable tongues that exist here. The English that was once a symbol of foreign rule has been adopted with religious fervor thanks to it utility. English is an internationally spoken language and has benefited the expatriates and professionals in India the most.

The Indian cuisine is one of the fastest growing in popularity.  It differs from people to people, place to place and region to region. The style recipes have a commonality but the buck stops there. The food varies depending upon the local ingredients and styles. From the multiplicity has arisen many nationally popular foods like the tandoori, dosa, idli, kofta, pulao, biryani and what not. These are the International symbols of Indian Cuisine the range is realized only while taking the tour of India.    

Tourism in India is an ethreal experience if one can tolerate discomforts here and there. The sights and smells of approaching rural habitations and urbanity are imemorable etched in mind for ever. India is a treasure trove of history and historical monuments that stand testimony to its beleagured history.

The wildlife is enchanting with the World's top most charismatic animal the tiger. There more than 300 mammals found in the protected areas and 2000 bird species. Besides the Bengal Tiger, Asian Lion, Indian Elephant, Leopard, Snow Leopard,  Clouded Leopard, Wild Ass and bears are the star attractions.   

Bird havens of North India

The expedition begins with birding at Okhla Barrage in New Delhi and Sultanpur Lake in Haryana.  Both are wetlands and excellent destinations for wetland species. One can sight many birds here including yellow bellied prinia and striated babbler at Sultanpur.

The birding group than moves to Bharatpur with on the way birding at Palwal and other suitable destinations. Agra to Bharatpur is two hours drive with bad road in between. The Keolodeo Ghana Bird Sancturay is one of the top birding spot in the World.  In a three day tour one can see as many as 180 avian species. Nearby places are Bund Baretha where one can see many birdings including Indian Skimmer and Whiskered tern.    

Another good place for birding is Bayana on route one can see Munias, Blue Rock Thrush and many more avians. The wetland species though in good number are not impressive at Bayana but on the way stops offer good sighting of eagles, wheatears, munias and other passerine birds. 

The next destination is Dholepur which is on MP Rajasthan border. The Chambal River Sanctuary flows through this destination and offer good chance of sighting River Dolphin,Gharial and fresh Water Crocdile. Avian species abound Osprey, Bonelli's Eagle, Laggar Falcon, Rock Eagle Owl, wheatears, black bellied tern, gulls, ducks, teals, storks, Bar headed geese and much more.  

It is back to New Delhi via Agra. Sightseeing at Agra is the Taj Mahal of course as  well as Fatehpur Sikri. If time is availabel than one can see the Red Fort at Agra.  Bharatpur to New Delhi is a long journey hence a night stay is required. From the Capital  it is straight to Sat Tal almost 8 hours of drive. Birding takes place at Ganga River on the way for River Lapwing, Bar headed geese, Avocets, Stilts, Stints and many other river species.  

Sat Tal near Niani Tal in Uttranchal is a birding paradise with many exotic species like wise species of higher reaches can be seen at Pangot. These destinations in Niani Tal District offer spectacular landscape of the Himalayas. Pangot is at height of 2300 plus MSL while Sat Tal is around 1400 plus MSL.

Two day bird watching at these places are enough. You can see many birds here, the journey to Corbett from both is downhill going through outer fringes of Naini Tal Township. Another good place for  bird watching is Bajun but I have not been there.

Corbett is a birder's paradise with more than 500 resident plus migrating species. Birding outside the corbett reserve is at the banks of Koshi, Mohan, Lal Dang, Garjia, Sunderkhal and Kumeria.  This is followed by visit to Dhikala Zone of Corbett. It is delightful birding at all the places in and aound the tiger reserve. Stay overlooking the Dhikala Meadow is rewarding both in terms of animal watching and birds. The lanscape is spectacular and a drive down the meadow, Sambar Road or Champion Road offers chance of sighting the majestic Bengal Tiger. The Dhikala Rest House is basic but no major complaints have been recieved. The food is good hygenic and servede in an enclosed dining hall that offers a view of the meadow and the mountains.     

The Corbett birding is about three days or more the target species are Ibisbill and Wall Creeper. But all species are sought after anyway besides the tiger safaris. 

Some tours extend to Kanha or Bandhavgarh for tiger safaris. The tour is known as tiger extension but the tourist are flabbergasted by the avians species in these Central India tiger reserves.