Kanha National Park

Day 6 Pench to Kanha 

Distance: 200 kms. 
Road Condition: Very good roads and we clocked 1000 kms of our MP journey.

Today, we drive to Kanha celebrating our 2nd Wedding Anniversary. It would have been ideal to pamper yourself with apparel from a high end store, expensive jewelry, and a candle light dinner at a star hotel. However, there are few things money can't buy like having breakfast in middle of nowhere with birds chirping around, langurs jumping on trees, a lake nearby and the love of your life beside you making this perfect day priceless.

Blissful Breakfast

The best part about road trips are the challenges and surprises thrown at you and how one improvises to find solutions.  After driving a few kilometers enjoying the pristine beauty of the jungle on either side, we were taken aback to see a huge tree fallen on the road due to a heavy storm the previous night. Reminding us, mere mortals that we are at the mercy of Mother Nature. We took a detour via some fields to reach the other side of the road.

Challenge Accepted! 

Arriving at Kanha, we made this our home for the next 3 days and took 3 Safaris. The beautiful and huge Sal trees paint the jungle green. In the morning the park is cold in it's unique way and one has to experience it. National Parks across Madhya Pradesh are closed for evening safaris on Wednesdays. Nearest petrol pump is 25 km away. There is an ATM right opposite Khatia gate.

Colors Of Jungle

Go here not for the tigers but to catch a glimpse of the rare Barasingha. These endangered species can be found only in Kanha. Thanks to the conservation efforts their numbers have now reached to 450 from a mere 66.

Endangered Barasingha

Do not be hooked on to just spotting a tiger, the park is full of surprises, try and be appreciative of nature around you. You never know what the jungle has in store for you. We heard strong warning calls from Sambhar and spotted deer, which means only 1 thing- the predator is around the corner. The wait for the tiger was fruitful and we did catch a glimpse of the tiger walking down a hill and a tigress lazing around in the bushes to beat the scorching heat. As all jeeps were lined up awaiting the arrival of the tiger, from nowhere a spotted deer sprang up and sprinted towards the meadows.

Surprise Element

We were lucky enough to spot a confused peacock dancing and trying to impress a spotted deer. Other wildlife sightings included bison, vulture, endangered barasinghas, painted stork, racket tailed drongo.

Bewildered Peacock

Racket Tailed Drongo

Indian Bison

Unexpected showers during our second safari was a very unique experience. The air was clear, the park way too calm and silent without any alarm calls. As the safari was coming to our end, there was buzz around a waterhole - Alas! the royal bengal tiger relaxing in the waterhole. The shutterbugs went click, click, click.

King Of Kanha

As we headed towards the exit gate, we saw a deer raise an alarm call sensing danger from a harmless macaque. Since the deer is only used to seeing langurs, it wasn't sure if the macaque  was a friend or foe and hence raised the distress call.

Safari Expenses- Entry charges Rs.2000, Jeep Charges Rs.2000, Guide fee Rs.300. No charges for the camera. Note- Entry to zones other than Kanha are Rs.600 less expensive.

Checked into Wild Chalet Resort, spread across 9.5 acres. It is a Bird watcher's paradise. Top class hospitality service. The staff is enthusiastic and love to take care of their guests. They surprised us with a cake during dinner as it was our anniversary. Resort offers great food and their masala chai is a must try. The property overlooks a river and you can watch elephants taking a bath in the river. Add-on the lake attracts a lot of birds. One more great property from India Adventures. We chose a Non-AC, Air cooler room during summer and we did not regret it one bit.

Our Den

Other attractions- Nature walk across the river bed, where we saw a crow hunt a bee- eater and simultaneously the bee-eater hunt for an insect, both failed attempts. It was an amazing sight to see the bee-eater hunt when it's own life was at stake.

Egret hunting for food

You can also watch the sun set by the river. The view in the evening is amazing with three different shades in the sky- pink, orange and blue. Clouds partially covering the sun with thunder and lightening.

Sunset

Resort Staff, Ghanshyam took us to the nearby weekly market to experience the flavors of the village. He was kind enough to buy us desi daaru, Mahua Liquor that is made from the mahua flower available in abundance.

Villager Collecting Mahua Flowers

Taking fond memories we packed our bags and left for Bhedaghat. 

Pench National Park

Day 2 Tadoba to Pench via Warora 

Distance: 250 kms
Road condition: Very good

Pench National Park derives its name from the Pench River that flows through the jungle. This park inspired Rudyard Kipling to pen the cult book 'The Jungle Book.' Many of the places described in the book are actual locations in Seoni district.

Calm Beast

The park is massive with three natural watering holes. We took 4 safaris and saw jackals scavenging, mottled wood owl, woodpecker, changeable hawk eagle, deers locking horn and fighting for territory/female, jungle owlet- playing hide and seek with us.

Mottled Wood Owl

Changeable Hawk Eagle

However, the start attraction tiger continued to elude us. We were lucky to grab a spot booking for Sunday morning and shared our safari with Taj guests. Taj offers jumbo safari jeeps that are super comfortable and have a slight edge over other jeeps in terms of wildlife experience. We met a naturalist, Sangita, who had quit her marketing job and now works for the Taj.

Safari expenses - entry Rs.1400, guide charges Rs.300, jeep charges Rs. 1800. There are no camera charges unless it is a professional video camera. Please note there are only 5 jeeps available for spot booking on any given day.

There are plenty of stay options to suit every budget. The Riverwood Forest Retreat is the first resort, one would encounter en-route. It has a great view of the forest/river from the room. It is a huge property with great aesthetics, priced at Rs.4500/day all inclusive. However, it is 12 kms away from the forest entry gate making it difficult for those who do not have online safari booking.

We checked into Tiger N Woods Resort.  It is way better than Kipling and Pench jungle camp in terms of view, proximity to Turia gate, amenities and service. They take hospitality service to new heights. Dheeraj, the manager, is very friendly and helpful. The wake up calls by the resort are of military standard. The resort shares its boundary with the national park. One evening after the safari we were lazing in the sit out area and were elated to hear strong warning calls proving that tigers are not restricted by boundaries and it is not necessary to spot a tiger only during a safari. The last day in Pench happened to be our wedding anniversary and the resort guys gifted us a handmade bouquet, they had also packed an early breakfast as we hit the road to our next destination.

Tiger N Woods

Handmade Bouquet 

Local attraction- Pachdhar pottery village is a must visit. The locals are very shy yet welcoming and friendly. One can also experience the local business of brick making, you are welcome to try your hand at making one.

Pottery Village

Earthen pots of various shapes and sizes displayed outside each home hone the beauty of the place. The clouds thundering, the raindrops falling all over your face, your feet sunken in the mud and the splash of water all over the mud emanating the beautiful earthen fragrance and the sun setting in the sky made a perfect end to a beautiful day in Pench.

Nearest ATM is approx. 30 kms away so stock up enough cash as most resorts do not accept cards and safari booking is by cash only. For ATM, head towards Kawasa, cross MP check post and watch out for 2 ATMs on your left at Kurai village. Nearest fuel station is 25 kms away in the same direction.
After spending 5 days in Pench, we headed to our next destination - Kanha.

Tadoba Tiger Reserve

Day 1 - Hyderabad to Tadoba National Park. 

Distance: 480 km via AH43/NH7
Road Condition: First 350 km absolute carpet like road. Bad stretch of 100 & 30 km very bad stretch. 

The best part about any road trip is the food one could enjoy, and NH7 offers plenty of desi dhabas for the foodies.

Tadoba is the largest national park in Maharashtra covering 625 sq kilometers. Spot booking for jungle safari can be done at any of the entry gates for Rs.3250 per jeep. Jeep charges Rs.2000, camera lens over 250mm are charged at Rs 200, guide charges Rs.300 & entry fee is Rs.750. Entry fee is Rs.250 more on weekends. One can also take their car into the park which would cost around Rs.2250. Safari bookings are payable only by cash. Do plan your trip keeping in mind the weekly holiday of the park that falls on every Tuesday.

Basking In The Sun

The park has abundant teak that adds more charm, and the primary source of water is a huge lake that is beaming with water even during summer. This is one of the few parks where entry is not restricted just to the buffer zone. They have multiple entry gates for buffer and core zone. However, the best zone for wildlife sighting is Morhali.

Wild Dog

We were left intrigued by the stone pillars at the entrance of Morhali zone and we were informed by our guide that these used to be antique lamps posts during the Gond period.

Malabar Pied Hornbill

Star attractions of the park are Tigers, Leopards, sloth bear, wild boar, nilgai, barking deer and more. We stayed for 2 days and had great safaris. Spotted highly camouflaged Savanna Nightjar with chick, sloth bear, wild dog, bison with calf, beautiful Indian roller, malabar pied hornbill, jackal, woodpecker. It is a great experience to see wildlife in their natural habitat. The silence inside the jungle is golden and soothes your ears that are constantly exposed to high levels of noise pollution. The birds chirping, warning calls from potential prey, mating call... they all seem to be music. Once inside the park, one would not have the heart to leave.

Savanna Nightjar With Chick

There is never a dull moment inside the jungle and every experience is unique. One would never know what surprise nature has in store.

True That

We checked into Royal tiger resort which is only 500 mt away from the entry gate. Rooms were reasonably priced and food was exceptionally good, the service was also good. They have car park and lawn. Downside being - they don't offer complimentary breakfast. Cleanliness standards of rooms could be better.

After our sojourn in Tadoba, we headed to Pench National Park.