Jungle Book - Experiences at Kabini

Cool Videos

City Buzz

Life Style

Health

Food Guide

Weekend Spot

Janardhan :Common cheer for INdia win || Ram Prasad :Happy Independence Day To All || ramesh :hai || Vijay -Just Do IT :Congratulation to INDIAN IDOL-5 SRI RAM from one and only Telugu Bidda || suresh :IM THE ONE THAT NO ONE IS || Suresh Kumar :KOMARAM PULI THE KINGS FILM MOST AWAITED MUST WATCH FILM IN TOLLYWOOD || N.T.R(R=REDDY) :All Record break...only Powan kalayan can do this.. || Moh@n :Have a strong hearts for apponents 2 hear the record breaking of komaramPULI ever seen... || sreedhar :mahesh is looking good in khaleja || pardhu :Hi sir || avi... :The king of AP is Ys.Rajasekhara Reddy... || Anonymous :PULI...PULIHORAA EPPUDU RA RELEASE LABBE!!! || Prasad :Prince Mahesh the only star with huge fan following.Eargerly waiting his Kaleja || SRAVAN :KOMURAM PULI ROCKS.......POWER STAR ROCKS... || $r@v@n: :WAITING 4 KOMURAM PULI..... KOMURAM PULI WILL BREAK MAGHADHEERA RECORDS......POWERSTAR || venkatesh :Enjoy ROBO . || chakri :waiting 4 powerstars komaram puli to roar andhra!!!!!!!!!!1 || suri :SIMHA all time record 100 days in 91 centers || Sirivennela :Dupu Recordulu Vesukunna Balayya || vishnu vardhan Reddy :BABU CHIRU NUVU MEGASTAR Vi CINEMALO...POLITICS Lo NUVU MENTALSTAR vi....GET WELL SOON ||

Submit Your Message

Categories

Jungle Book - Experiences at Kabini

The lush green surroundings, the freshness of dew and the mind soothing calmness, these are the images that come to my mind when I think of Kabini - a part of Nagarhole National Park in Karnataka which is a part of Project Tiger Initiative.

Maybe it was our common love for nature and the outdoors or maybe the frustrations of city life that made us choose this destination to celebrate our first wedding anniversary.Kabini is at a distance of 250 Kms from Bangalore which made it perfectly suitable for car travel .We started early on a Friday morning with some paraphernalia consisting of a route map, a printout of the reservation acknowledgement at Kabini River Lodge and a few munching tit bits that are ever so essential to bring out the 'picnic' feeling in our Indian hearts. After maneouring through the infamous Bangalore city traffic we hit the Bangalore - Mysore highway with the zest and zeal of a three year old. As true to travelers and as opposed to tourists we enjoyed every moment of the journey as much as we were going to enjoy the destination.

We reached Kabini River Lodge which was once the hunting lodge of the erstwhile Maharaja of Mysore around lunchtime. The breathtaking locale with the tranquil backwaters of River Kabini combined with the tent accommodation promised for an uncommon mixture of leisure and adventure. After having a sumptuous lunch at the 'Gol Ghar', we relaxed on one of the monster hammocks tied between two trees watching the antics of a monkey family on the adjacent hammock. It was then time for our first jungle safari. Everyone was instructed to gather at a point for pickup and after a reminder of our ecological duty, we disembarked on our 2 hour drive through the protected tourist area of the 247 square-mile Nagarhole National park with a lot of expectations and hope of catching some big cats in their territory.

The gentle forest breeze, the chirping of birds, the alarm calls of the macaque and the occasional cry of a peacock set the stage ablaze. As time passed we realized how the forest comes to life after dusk. We spotted Bison in huge herds, sambhar deer, barking deer, Mongoose, the Serpent Eagle and the Blue Jay. We were even lucky enough to witness a fight between a pair of Bison with their horns locked. The Crackling of the jeep radio broke through the jungle peace. The jeep behind us had spotted a leopard in the undergrowth and had passed on the info. Our driver put the jeep in reverse gear and rushed to the spot. The tension and excitement among the guys in the jeep was palpable.

Then we saw the magnificent beast, as it watched us from behind the bushes. Its unhurried and relaxed ways surprised us and reminded us that this was their territory. After convincing itself that we were no threat, it slowly crossed the forest trail in front of us and again disappeared into the bushes. The pin drop silence as it walked past and the euphoria in the jeep can only be felt and not expressed. All I can say is that the moment had been etched into our memories and it will be replayed many a times in our thoughts.

We headed back to the resort after the eventful tour through the jungle. All the guests huddled in the projector room and watched a documentary on 'Nagarhole National Park and Tiger Reserve' detailing the seasonal changes in the forest and the impact on its dwellers, over a cup of coffee. Conversations were struck, experiences shared and new acquaintances made on the fulcrum of a common interest in nature during the course of a delicious dinner around a bonfire. After bidding farewell to our new friends, we retired for the night and bundled up in our tent. The forest noises and the occasional hoot of an owl made sleep a little difficult but we slowly drifted into sleep.

The morning sun rays and the activity around the tent woke us up and we started out with renewed interest for exploration. We were booked onto a motor boat safari on the Kabini River. As we went further the shore line disappeared behind us and a vast expanse of water and a few tiny islands were all we could spot. As we neared a few islands we saw crocodiles basking in the sun and they slowly glided into water and disappeared underwater when we came too close for comfort. The resort guy operating the boat suddenly spotted something on the opposite bank and headed in that direction on full throttle. We then saw a sight that is the trademark of Kabini - A Congregation of elephants. They had come on to the bank for a drink and maybe wanted to cross over to the opposite side. The herd had many calves of different age groups with the matriarch keeping a keen eye on them. We stopped at a safe distance as elephants are known to be very dangerous if they have young ones around. We watched them for a long time and then started back towards the resort.

After packing and completing the checkout procedure, we proceeded back towards Bangalore with a relaxed mind and our heart full of long lasting memories.

- Nritts

Posted Comments

kimsharma :

great location..

Comments

Don't post rude or nasty comments. Ethnic slurs, personal insults and abuses are rather uncool. Criticise, but know where to draw the line. No point putting in personal details or links, we won't publish them.