We started our trip from Nagpur to Kanha early, well early by our standards…… all three of us getting up, ready and out by 6.15am specially after sleeping at 1.30am night before catching up on the exciting and not so exciting news about college, friends and the world around us. All this the night before was at the 4th floor Dhaba of the same hotel, over butter nan, two orders of Tanduri prawns, ‘chicken do payaji’ and some exotic named mutton dish that I don’t remember. Ofcourse to accompany we had the chivas brought in by Joe, but like every thing we had to go thorough a round of negotiation about that also, they finally called in there F&B manager who agreed to let us go for it with Rs.200 corkage and soda etc supplied by them. But the service was really royal, infact all three of us agreed that the responsiveness and eagerness to please of Airport Center Point staff was more then we had even in 10times more expensive 5 to 6 star hotels. That was a pleasant surprise provided there rooms was as crappy or more then we imagined.
Our driver Kailash was quite kind but a good driver for long haul, keeping his speed around 80 Km/hr ideal for the road conditions. We made our first stop around 100 Km from Nagpur, inside MP state border by the roadside Govt. Tourism stop-over by the name of Bison Highway Treat Rukad. The place was known for its very old Banyan Tree and the lovely jungle around, some 15 or more year ago when I visited it had nothing at all but couple of swings from the humongous tree. What was new to this place now was a empty pit that was to hold couple of tigers few years ago that they caught entering the near-by villages; another of this human and wild conflicts caused by even encroaching human habitats into the wild. Now those tigers have been moved to Bhopal open zoo and only thing present was the tree, the swings and the restaurant that day attended by the care-taker and cleaner of the place. He eagerly made us ‘aalu parathe’(bread preparation with fillings of potato and spices), MP style and tea, not bad for multi-tasking.
Another 50 kilometer through the national highway and lovely forest on both side with occasional human habitats we crossed the Pench National Park, some road side construction and entered into the bi-pass that takes us to Kanha, its happening, we are close. The road after that got real rough with some places hardly classifiable as road at all.
This is the first time I realized how bad the roads of MP has become over the last years and why all drivers are scared of MP roads. The relive was the site of the tribal village by the road and watching the daily life of the people there. There is a typical decoration we observed of all the village houses there, they prefer to paint it blue and white on there mud walls, with burned terracotta tiled roofs. Another observation was effort from some NGO’s in getting them to be more hygiene minded, going for building and using toilets rather then relieving themselves in the fields and forests around.
After crossing Nainpur a rail junction and a small town we reached ‘Jamgaon’ meaning berry village. Nainpur was a rail junction for the narrow gauge rail line that still runs in MP from Jabalpur to Gondia, there is some sort of rail connection from Nagpur to Nainpur also, but not a preferred tourist connection. The trains are slow, sometimes stops for very long time for no apparent reasons and compartments not adapted for international tourists. I remember during my college days of loading our two wheeler bike on one of this trains and after getting off at the far fetched station driving off there on, it was fun at that time.
The road after Jamgaon was perfect, some kind of toll road for which someone was collecting toll though it was written as road funded by National Park or something any ways, did not mind paying that since the road was so nice, we made the remaining 30 odd kilometers in great speed and good mood feeling the jungle getting closer and closer. The excitement and anticipation was not as much as my first visit some 20 or 22 years ago, I feel good that I did that trip that time, its not about the place but about our mind, more you travel and know less special places become, no wonder people says ‘ignorance is bliss’, but it was still great, better then the feeling of visiting any new city as far as I can remember. We could feel the presence of rich forest from the presence of birds like Racket Tailed Drongo on the roadside trees, finally I am back after years, wao!
The fun part has been the questions from Joe along the way regarding how dangerous it would be to go around the forest in an open jeep. Even Kunchi was expecting a enclosed vehicle with the top being opened to peep out kind, hehe, knowing we will be sitting in a open Gypsy with absolutely nothing between us and the jungle drew an interesting reaction for both of them. Joe kept saying that he is ready to die but not as a lunch for some animal, I kept reassuring them that its perfectly safe even for a kid, but they really have to see it to believe it.
The dry rivers we crossed reminded me of a trip by my ‘Hero Honda’ bike where me and my naturalist friend Saleel went off walking along the path looking for pug marks and signs of wild life that might surely have waked over there in the last 24 hours, the feeling of some animal watching us from a hidden position makes the hairs at the back of your neck stand, you do need to have some hairs to feel it though. And then like that out of no where we arrived at the signage that said we need to turn right into the red earthen road to reach our immediate destination ‘Tuli Tiger Corridor’.
The resort was lovely property, with a nice gate with earthen walls and reception area giving the full feel of safari resort. It was a easy check-in by 1pm with no problems and we were in our tents with schedule to meet for safari by 3pm. The tents were really great and beat our expectations and after the crappy room at Nagpur both Joe and Kunchi was very pleased to see this place.
We took a quick shower, nice lunch at the tent set for that with some VIPs of Indian politics staying at the next tent who came with her 3yr old son to show tigers as its being feared that no one can say how many more years you can see them in the wild.
And by 3pm we were at the open area in front of the reception with bunch of safari jeeps and loads of tourist, mostly foreign and some Indian lining up to start off for there evening safari. We were welcome by one of the resorts senior naturalist Sanjay and on asking if he will accompany us he politely said we wont need him as he will let one of this best driver go with us. At this stage I remembered that I forgot to bring my bean-bag that I purchased solely for this trip to stabilize the camera on the Gypsy, which I ran off the fetch from the tent. On returning I found other guests already left and Sanjay was sitting in our vehicle along with Joe and Kunchi waiting for me, wao!! what has changed his mind, later I found it was Kunchi and his Indian style persuasion.
next >