Corbett Summer

 

Typical of the standard rant these days, the pandemic is to blame for throwing normal life out of whack, causing mayhem in our lives. After multiple false starts, a couple of postponements and a last minute cancellation, we finally made it to the seat in the Aircraft.

Trepidation still in the back of our minds considering the uncertain situation at Delhi, the gang went ahead and made it to Delhi without further incident. Bags collected and as we stepped out of the Airport, we gasped in the heat... Thankfully it was still morning, hence it was not that bad and soon enough we boarded the Cab and settled in for the drive to Ramnagar.

For the monetarily curious, the costs have gone up nearly 20% with service providers across the board scrambling to make most of the spurt in travel. 

With the roadwork mostly completed, the drive was smooth and after a mandatory refreshment stop at the Shiva Dhaba (Mamaji) we made it to Ramnagar by late afternoon and checked into the Corbett Machan resort for the overnight stay.

With a bit of the day still left, we stepped out for a short walk in the sorrounding area and came across a few birds. Summer heat meant that the walk had to be short, but it was a decent experience. Pretty sure the walk would be fantastic during cooler weather, with a lot more birds.

Changes in the timings of entry at the Dhangari gate, meant that you were allowed in at 10:00am or later, instead of early morning as was the case in the past. With such a change, it makes sense to either take the overnight train from Delhi and spend a few hours at Ramnagar refreshing and shopping before driving down to the Dhangari gate or alternately take a late night flight into Delhi and drive down from Delhi to Ramnagar through the wee hours of the morning, braving the heavy commercial traffic on the highway and arrive bleary eyed at Corbett, or the best option being what we did; stay overnight at Ramnagar and drive to Corbett after breakfast.

The overnight rest and breakfast in the morning really help! 

At Dhangari gate, Murphy's law came into play.....our permits were forgotten, causing a few moments of anxiety, while the permits were scanned and sent to the drivers and more fortuitously, the officials at the gate allowed for the scanned images to be printed and soon, we were on our way to Dhikala.

About an hour and a half later of driving through some pristine jungle, with a small herd of elephants halting us for a brief while and providing us with a glimpse of what lie ahead, we reached Dhikala.

With rooms allocated shortly, we had a quick refresh, dropped into the restaurant for a quick lunch and soon ready for our first venture into the forest....and what a trip it was.....

The next 3 days just flew in a blur of amazing scenes of successful and failed hunts, charging elephants, clouds of dust mingling with the pungent odour of naturally growing Bhaang plants. Videos will be available on our YouTube channel, meanwhile here is a short collection of images.

The Silent Corbett

Visits to the Corbett National Park usually mean that extra batteries and memory cards for your cameras are di-rigeur, since every drive through the park pathways brings up something.

IF you think this is another of those odes to Tigers, you are mistaken. Every National Park has a huge life support system comprising flora and fauna, which are essential for the Tiger; which is an apex Predator to survive. Many of us make the mistake of running after the "glamour" species and end up missing experiences which could leave us with a lifetime of memories. Here is one such trip.

Filled with prime real-estate which will leave you slackjawed and filled with awe.

Despite being a repeat visitor, the landscape leaves me hungry for more, every single time. The Sal forest overhangs with the trees competing with each other for the sunlight, making for tall and slim trees or at another location, where the trees have more space resulting in thicker tree trunks and spreadout foliage.

Step out in the early morning to catch the mist (unlike the smog in our cities!!) rising up from the Ramganga waters, the crisp sunlight warming your cockles as the mist and the breeze do their best to keep you chilled.

Watching the jungle dwellers waft out of the mist like apparitions is a sight to behold, here are some pictures....

Island in the Sky....thats what this shrub looks like in the thick river fog

Nature's way of telling you...no matter how big you are, you will still be brought to your knees. This is the remains of a huge Sal Tree that was stuck by lighting that all but destroyed it. The base of the trunk is easily over 10 feet around, so you can imagine how large this tree would have been.

 As far as the hardcore Big Cat fans, yes we did get to see them too, a tigress and a Leopard...here you go....

The other forest dwellers that gave us an opportunity to say hello....

Black Necked Stork - Male

Changeable Hawk Eagle Pair Basking in the morning Sun.

Common Bushchat

Crested Kingfisher 

Pallas Fish Eagle bringing home the catch

River Terns 

Great Thicknee

Asian Elephant - Male

Water Pipit

Lesser Coucal

Fulvous Breasted Woodpecker

Scarlet Minivet

Siberian Lesser Whitethroat

If you have reached here...you deserve to get a look at the highlight of the trip - A mini tussle between two Tuskers...

See the Video here...Tusker Tussle

Looking forward to getting back to Corbett Soon for another set of memories, but thats for another day.... Sayonara!!