The monsoon had arrived early and it was raining
almost continuously for past few days filling up the lake as the Elephant matriarchs started leading their families back into the forest. The great Elephant show on
the banks of the Kabini had come to a premature end.
I was quite sure that wildlife sightings would be few
and far between as is the wont during the rains and
it was with few expectations that we set out for safari. With me were two guests from Belgium along with
their infant child. They had heard about the Elephant congregation on the Kabini and had planned their vacation to arrive at the end of summer. Nature had
not been kind to them.
After a hurried consultation with the driver Chamaraj,
I decided not to go towards the lake and instead concentrate on the other side. As we got off the main road and took the game road, we noticed some movement ahead and I realized with a sigh of relief
that it was a Tusker grazing in the undergrowth.
Hoping that the guests would be happy to have
a good view of what I was sure going to be their only Elephant, I waited for some time for him to come out
onto
the viewline. He was a magnificent animal.
As
we drove a little further we saw another even larger Tusker! Well, I thought, at least their trip was not in vain. They seemed quite pleased to have seen both animals.
We continued with our drive and as expected, we did not see much for quite some time. To top it all it had started raining and we were forced to put back
the hood thus effectively restricting our field of sight.
We drove along listlessly when suddenly Chamaraj jammed the brakes. There peering out of the bushes was a Sloth Bear. He saw us and bolted into
the undergrowth.
We managed to get a good look
at him and rejuvenated with our good luck carried
on with the safari.
We encountered a few Gaurs before the rain started slowing down. After some time it stopped and we decided to take off the hood. It was a relief being able
to stand as I suffer from claustrophobia and a covered jeep is my idea of hell. Feeling liberated I said a silent prayer to Mother Nature when suddenly there in front
of us were a pack of Wild Dogs. Call me superstitious
if you like but whenever I talk with Mother Nature
she always answers.
The dogs were quite bold and approached close
to
the jeep. We counted ten individuals (three adults
and seven juveniles) before they trotted off in
single file.
We were now close to the end of our safari and quite pleased with ourselves that it had been
a memorable safari.
As we got onto the main road again I heard some
alarm calls to my right and immediately stopped
the jeep. We waited for quite some time as these sporadic calls continued. Just as I decided to drive away, as it was getting dark now and I was a little worried about the infant child, I happened to look back over my shoulder and saw two Leopards crossing
the road. I gestured to the guest and they were
able to get a good look even though visibility was
not all that great.
We drove on. It was now pitch dark and I was
in
a hurry to get back as it was threatening to rain
again. As we approached the T-junction, we saw
a black shape in our headlights. The black shape turned out
to be a Sloth Bear.
Thunderstruck and at a loss for words I spent the rest
of the evening listening to the sounds of approaching thunder. It was nature reminding me that she was supreme and full of surprises and never to take her
for granted.
Now every time I go into the forest I do so without any preconceived ideas.
