I struck off one from my bucket list "Spotting a tiger in the wild". I had read lot of people describing the tryst with this magnificent and enchanting creature; but experiencing it in life was very surreal almost movie like. So let me tell you the story of T 17 my first tiger.
I took a train to Sawai Madhopur with two of my great friends; days of meticulous planning and complex coordination had gone into making this possible, we were finally off to the much awaited trip. My chat history is a digital evidence that how much pressure was Ranthambore forest under to match up to our high expectations.
We reached Sawai Madhopur station right on time after being ditched by our appointed pick up; we reached our abode lugged in a garishly decked up auto rickshaw. As soon we touched base it was time for our first safari; we rushed through our lunch and just jumped into the open air canter. Canter is a mini topless truck with some ten uncomfortable seats on both sides of an aisle. The most coveted seats are generally taken by first pick ups. Ok so after picking others we were at the entrance of Ranthambore National Park. The security was well deserved after all we were standing just outside the home grounds of one of the sort after and so called protected species.
After a round of form filling, identification and attendance one of each we entered the park. The sun was on its way down and was gleaming in our eyes but once we got on the road to the innards of the forest the trees had cut the heat off and there was a sudden change in the weather and the noise levels. there was a rock fortress just at the entrance and was flanked by a water tank with a board saying dont swim and a crocodiles' picture was painted. Now the very knowledge that there were crocs a few feet away resting in the lair was exciting. As we had just entered 'zone one' we could see the rising rock face staring down at us. Our guide was telling us how many predators like leopards and hyenas being shy in nature keep to the hills .My adrenaline was beginning to pump when our guide said " look there a Marsh Crocodile" i was so excited! my first crocodile in its natural habitat, it was many feet away but i could see the grainy grey textured skin on the muddy side of a pond. I was still taking it in when we moved on.
We photographed deers, antelopes, neel gai, a dead snake and other not so dangerous creatures and only easily seen ones.
I was hallucinating stripes in every "Tiger must come here" kind of spot it dawned upon me what exactly happens to travelers in a desert. Though this first safari was disappointing for many fellow canterers as we did not spot any Big Cat but for me, i was still reeling under the excitement of being in a real jungle.
This was few of those nights when i was waiting for sun to rise before time. Our next safari was at six in the morning; it was chilly and thanks to my friend's references i was in woolies and prepared or so i thought. This time we were better prepared for the safari we were waiting for our canter much in advance to get coveted spots and had remembered to bring along water. - cont
