We reached Ramnagar which is on the outskirts of Jim Corbett National Park on the 28th afternoon and booked ourselves for the safari the next day. Only mistake we had done was that in order to go to the innermost part of the jungle that is covered in the safari, you need a permit that must be applied for 20 days in advance. This part of the jungle is called Dhikala. So we settled for the usual safari. For 11 people, it meant 2 jeeps as one jeep will carry about 6 people plus the driver. Each jeep costs about Rs. 2000 for a 3 hour jungle ride.
Khushbu, Farhin and Pawan reached our hotel early next morning, and found remnants of a bonfire we did on the 28th night. This was just a preparation for the real thing that would happen again this night. We got some potatoes and some ingredients from the market for a dip to have the baked potatoes with. The secret dip recipe is something only Kashif knows because although I was supposed to help him with it, I fell asleep and he did it himself without any complaints (you’re what dreams are made of)! It turned out to be excellent and everybody was raving about it when they ate it with the potatoes, freshly thrown in to the bonfire and removed after 10 minutes of cooking.
We then left for the 2:30 safari ride with me, Kashif, Manish, Chandan and Ashish in one jeep and the rest in the other. We saw many species of deer, a leopard in the distance running (that was really beautiful), peacocks and peahens, wild boars, and many types of birds. The deer and boar babies we saw were really cute and it was amazing how fast and agile the deer babies can run. Oh and yeah, we saw monkeys…sitting with deer and eating together. The driver told us monkeys and deer are very co-operative with each other. The monkeys throw berries from high trees to the deer below and also warn them of approaching tigers visible from the height. We didn’t spot any tigers which was very disappointing, but we did see pug marks on the way back – the driver suspected one mother and one cub – and it really got us excited. The jeep was stopped and suddenly everybody’s senses came alive. Every tiny sound suddenly seemed louder than before, every corner of vision was clear! It was a feeling I have never felt anywhere other than that jungle. I felt that I was really utilizing my sensory organs to reach optimum levels! Another highlight of the trip was a small hutment in the middle of the jungle which served as a snack bar and a “bio-break” for all visitors. There we saw a pet spotted deer which was walking amongst people with no reservations at all. I touched it and its fur was smooth and clean. In fact, even its horns had a lining of skin on it!
Information:
The spotted deer shed their horns regularly and when they grow a new one, it has a soft lining of skin over it. If its horn is hurt in the stage, it will bleed. However, as time passes, the horn gets harder and the skin completely disappears. An injury to the horn at this stage doesn’t result in any bleeding for the deer.
That night we set stage for the full fledged barbeque by the bonfire in our hotel, The Corbett International Resort. Kashif and Manish were the official chefs, but everybody helped in the whole effort. I helped start and sustain the bonfire by getting firewood, along with Pawan who was continuously fanning the flame. Farhin helped peel the garlic and Khushbu helped marinate the paneer. The chefs handled the chicken themselves, cleaning and marinating 3.5 kilos of pure delight and finally putting them on the barbeque. Chandan was the official photographer while Rajesh and Ashish were the official jokers. He he!
People: Alpana, Kashif, Saurabh, Rajesh, Chandan, Vicky, Ashish, Manish, Khushbu, Farhin, Pawan + Nishit + KanikaThe next morning we were joined by Nishit and Kanika on the day we were to leave Corbett. We decided to spend a night at a hill station called Kausani which had absolutely nothing to offer, except some caves about 150 km away which we eventually didn’t check out. We still had to decide where to spend New Year’s Eve and after a lot of evaluating, we headed for Bhimtal, which is on the outskirts of Nainital. Below: Our hotel in Bhimtal.
Information:Bhimtal gets its name from the mythological Mahabharat story in which the Pandavas and Draupadi are in banvas in the mountainous jungles surrounding Bhimtal. When Draupadi gets thirsty, Bhim goes looking for water and when he cant find any, he digs all night long at the foot of a few mountains. The lake thus formed is called Bhimtal.
