Indian Wildlife Club Forum

1. Sariska National Park, Alwar
2. Sita Mata Sanctuary, Pratapgarh
3. Keoladeo Ghana Bird Sanctuary , Bharatpur
4. Keladevi Wildlife Sanctuary, Karauli
5. Kumbhalgarh Wildlife Sanctuary, Kumbhalgarh
6. National Chambal Wildlife Sanctuary, Kota
7. Darrah Sanctuary, Kota
8. Mount Abu Sanctuary, Mount Abu

Corbett National Park was the first protected area to be declared as a Tiger Reserve. Named after the legendary hunter of man eating tigers Jim Corbett the region abounds with rich wilderness. The park is now a hub of tiger tourism and birding in India.

Situated at a height of six hundred MSL it is also known as the foothills of Himalayas. The towering mountains can be seen while on a game ride in the park. Divided into six zones namely:

Bijarani

Dhela
Jhirna
Dhikala
Sonanadi
Durga Devi  

The entry has to be booked in advance using the online facility or through a tour operator. All zones are equally good for a safari but I personally rate Dhikala and Bijarani as best. In Dhikala one can see plenty of birds apart from the tiger, wild elephant, sloth bear, gharial and marsh crocodile. For a game round Dhikala a stay in the complex is necessary. The booking is done in advance due to the heavy rush. Bijarani is good for tigers and other mammals found in the reserve.  

There are more than five hundred avian species to be sighted here. Many of these are altitude migrants while some arrive from far but local migrants and residents abound.

The region is having affinity with Indo-China hence one can see the goral as well on the mountain slopes. Hod deer is another species worth looking for. There are more than six hundred wild elephants which cover an extensive area.

The reserve is top rated by bird watchers in Northern India. The best season is of course in winters. For tigers summers is the best season but they are visible throughout the year. The destination has more than 200 tigers hence the impressive sightings. 

Joy rides on elephant back are also available which are conducted by the forest department in the zones. In the buffer region at Ramnagar one can hire privately managed elephants for ride in the forests adjacent to the Ramganga River. 

For safari in other zones stay at Ramnagar is the best as there are many hotels and guest houses. One can  avail any kind of accommodation depending upon one's budget.

Corbett is accessible from Delhi by road and a visit is often organized in a package tour. The itinerary often contains a visit to Bharatpur, Nainital and Corbett. While the first two are for bird watching the latter is for tiger tours apart from bird watching.

The destination is also accessible by train from Lucknow and New Delhi. Due to extreme cold one needs warm clothing and a cozy place to stay. If you are not in a package tour then hire a birding guide to hence the checklist.

Less known as tiger reserves since quiet late the park in India was made famous by the legendary Rudyard Kipling. It is said a British Officer (Lt.Moor) discovered Mowgli living among the wolves near the village of Sant Vavadi. The news got to Col.Sleeman and then to Kipling.

Using his imagination he carved playful but adventurous life of the child and his wild entourage of the Seoni Hills. The vivid spins of imagination and entailing story that emerged made the Jungle Book immortal. The escapades enthrall and enliven the minds of young and old. The Seoni Hills mostly under serve biotic stress harbor enchanting wildlife in small area untouched by the mauradaurs of the wild.


This is now known as Pench Tiger Reserve and National Park all over the world. Ensconced in Seoni and Chhindwara District of Madhya Pradesh in Central India the tiger-land is one of the choicest place to get to see the tiger in its natural home. A part of the  reserve is under Maharashtra Forests but most of the tourism is in the belt that lies in Madhya Pradesh.


The park is about eighty km from Nagpur Airport while the distance from Jabalpur Airport is about 200 km. The distance from Kanha National Park is about 150 km. The long drives to the reserve takes a turn at Khawasa Township on the border to the two states. From here it is a ten km drive to Turia Gate of the reserve.

Both the long drives to the tiger reserve cut across some of the finest reserve forests creating a picturesque spectacle. The road to Turia Gate offers a chance to see the Indian wolf for those lucky enough. The big cats are encountered everywhere in the dense canopy besides the other animals. The reserve is home to many other mammals and antelopes like the Nilgai, four horned  deer and Indian Gazelle.


Tourists on tiger safari preen their eyes and alert their sensory apparatus to get a sight of the sloth bear,leopard and the wild dog. The majestic gaur is striking in appearance due to its massive musculature and sheer grace. The coarse feeder thrives in the park thanks to excellent conservation efforts. Wild boar, spotted deer,sambar and langur are a common sight.       
Pench River intersects the reserve and is dammed at Totlah Doh. This has created a large reservoir now frequented by various species of water birds. Hence the reserve is a good place to see both the wetland and forest species in Central India. The river is a perpetual source of water and hence acts as the lifeline of the park.  

The ecosystem comprises of low lying mountains, dense mixed forests, grasslands, water bodies and rivers. These elements form an excellent habitat for the tigers and major mammals. Small nocturnal mammals can be seen on the night safari in the buffer zone of the park. Animals such as civets, mongoose, wolf, leopard, porcupine, pangolin, ratel and many more. The night safari is available throughout the year and can be booked on the MP Online Portal.

There are many resort hotels for accommodation in the buffer zone of the park near the Turia Village. The hotels at Pench National Park range from budget to star category offering accommodation at different tariff to suit the visitors.  

The main tourism zone of the park is open from  1st October to end of June while the night safari is available throughout the year.  Tourists visiting the park must carry warm clothed during the winter along with good set of binoculars and some bird books.

Since the gate entry is limited to set number of vehicles one should always book in advance before arrival.        

A four hour drive through picturesque Umaria Forests takes one to Bandhavgarh after landing at Jabalpur Airport. Albeit one comes across lot of denuded patches the remaining low lying hills with good forest cover create a pleasing picture. Once teeming with wilderness and forests the region has lost its sheen. Like every where else the reserve forests are slowly turning into green deserts. The wildlife is badly decimated thanks to indiscriminate poaching which still goes on sporadically. 

The long continues stretch takes an abrupt turn at Shahpura township. This place hosts the famous Ghagua Fossil National Park. The plant fossil date back to 60 million years whence the tectonic plates became active. Another fifty km of drive takes you to Umaria rail head. Close to Bandhavgarh National Park the forests appear some distance from here. A good thirty two kilometer drive takes you to the Tala Gate. This is a premium tourism zone in the land of the tiger. The tiger landscape stretches to about 1100 sq.km an area under the Project Tiger.    

Bandhavgarh is one of the most picturesque park in India. Small as compared to many it contains high density of tigers. It is also an excellent breeding ground for the big cats and other mammals. The stunning biodiversity encompasses all forms of wildlife from microbes to giant gaurs. The Indian bison as they are called had become locally extinct some years back due to disease prevalence.     

Translocation of gaurs from nearby Kanha National Park is a major success story. The park is home to other mammals like the sambar, leopard, barking deer, sloth bear, spotted deer, four horned deer, langur, rhesus macaque, wild boar, dhole and many small nocturnal ones.  

Excellent bird life prevails especially the forest species. Unfortunately bird watching is much neglected under the shadow of the majestic tiger. Reptiles, insects and many other forms of diverse life thrives in this magnificent ecosystem.

Bandhavgarh is home to some ancient relics of civilizations dating back to two thousand years. The fort complex is magnificent, a visit offers sight of Vishnu Idols in stone in zoomorphic forms. The large reservoirs, fort in ruins, Hindu temples and intervening forests and grasslands all create exotic ambiance. The low lying Bandhavgarh Mountain offers a view of the park. A panoramic grandeur which leaves the visitors spellbound. Midway up the ascent is Sesh Shaiyya esoteric and remote the pool is surrounded by ferns and grasses with springs. The dense canopy and the grove accord amazing serenity to the visitors. The reclining Vishnu is carved out of an igneous rock and is twenty feet long.   

Jungle roads enable the tourists to cover a large cross section of the forests. This is the tiger safari that lets you seen the beast in the wild. A drive yields much more deer, wild boar and langur the ubiquitous fauna of the reserve. Three species of antelope can be seen here namely Nilgai, Four horned Deer and the Indian Gazelle.

For the more attentive plethora of avian species mesmerizes with their startling colors. More than two hundred and fifty species inhabit this National Park many of which are migrant.

The park is open throughout now but during the monsoon only buffer zone safaris are available. Post monsoon all the three core zones are open for tourism. While photographers tolerate the intense heat of the summers, International visitors keep to the cooler months. Hence October to March are busy months here. Visitors should avoid festival days in order to gain a positive experience of the resort.            

During holiday periods the hotels in Bandhavgarh Tiger Reserve are nearly full. All type of accommodations are available near the Tala Gate. The park permits are also booked fully hence one should reserve much in advance for the busy period. Early Booking is possible on Internet at MP Online Portal.   

About three day safari offers holistic experience of the wildlife heaven. Winter clothes are required as it gets very cold. In summers khakis will do. Carry binoculars, good cameras and bird books for better understanding of this magnificent ecosystem. 

The beautiful appleorchards in Himachal Pradesh are a popular travel attraction of the state.While in HP a visit to these beautiful apple gardens is a must as here you canget to know more about the cultivation process along with enjoying thepanoramic view of the Himalayan ranges at the backdrop.  Shimla isimportant for apple cultivation. This picture is of the hill slopes of Theogwhere apple cultivation is the most important activity. Also you can buy lotson apples from these orchards on your way back. Apple is one of the mostimportant commercial crops    of    the   Himalayan region  and  Himachal  Pradesh  (HP) with 1.05 lakh ha area under apple cultivationwhich  fetches livelihood  for  more  than two lakh farmers. The wintertemperature and precipitation  in the form of snow are rtant  and sensitive  climatic  factors for   induction  of  dormancy, bud   break and  also  to  ensure proper  flowering  in apples.

Kanha:Conservation

Kanha is World’s finest tiger conservation unit and a National Park. Situated in the cradle of Satpura Range,Kanha National Park is in a part known as Maikal Hills. The forest received early protection during the Raj whence wildlife all over India was on brink of decimation.

Post independence era the park received status of National Park and subsequently it became a Tiger Reserve under the aegis of Project Tiger Program. In earlier times Kanha was a contiguous part of Central Indian Highlands which are now fragmented. The fragmentation came about by conversion of forest into agricultural lands,settlements and denudation.

Tourism at Kanha

In the contemporary era of protected area concept many of the viable ecosystems in the Satpura and Vindhya Ranges have been converted into National Parks and Wildlife Sanctuaries. The protected areas offer varying degree of protection and seclusion depending upon the status granted.

Since the seventies Kanha National Park is receiving tourists from all over the World. During the seventies the safari was conducted in private cars and the forest staff acted as park guides.Most of the tourism took place in Kanha and Kisli Ranges. Elephant rides were freely available and the tiger sighting was good. This was the era whence the park was recovering from land use and settlements that had been trans-located -leaving few.

The park enclosure had been created for Hard Ground Barasingha and about twenty heads or more where kept inside a place devoid of predators. The rest is history of a highly successful conservation program. There are more than five hundred swamp deer now from a critical figure of sixty six in the seventies.   Some where in nineteen seventy six bison population suffered from an outbreak of rinderpest disease that reduced the numbers subsequently.

In the seventies the major problem for tourism was lack of accommodation and bad highways that lead to the park.There was no hotel in Kanha at that time albeit a canteen sold regular stuff including vegetables did exist. The first accommodation which could be described as basic was established by Kissu Chacha a relative of the canteen owner. I remember the shortage of food stuff at the canteen that nearly marred our excursions in the park.

Bob Wright was the first to establish a hotel in the early eighties. This was then followed by Nilesh Agrawal who established jungle resort with twelve rooms. I began frequenting this hotel during my excursions in the park. The resort went on to be the most successful venture and was later sold for profit around 2012.   Today there are more than 30 hotel resorts in the periphery conforming to all grades.      

Subsequently more rules were incorporated and tiger safari and tourism became well organized. The conservation efforts paid heed and the ecosystem flourished with increase in tiger numbers. Other forms of life also increased in numbers and the populations became stable.

I could see bison and swamp deer inhabiting areas which they vacated due to population decline. This was a welcome comeback and I was thrilled.

Stricter implementation of tourism rules made life much less stressful for the wild denizens and their numbers are constantly increasing to reach the carrying capacity.

The Zones

The park is now divided into four zones for tourism, Kanha being the prime zone. The other zones are Kisli, Sarhi and Mukki. All zones can be entered from Khatia Gate which is reachable from Mandla Township. The number of vehicle entry is now regulated in all four zones except in the buffer where safaris are being conducted. Total area reserved for tourism is 22 percent as per NTCA guidelines.

Kanha Tourism Zone comprises of large grasslands or meadows interspersed with many water bodies and streams. Itis the center of the critical tiger habitat. This area is most frequented by tigress with cubs as the open grasslands provide them with prey and security cover due to high visibility. Other animals sighted here are Leopard, Sloth Bear, Bison, Sambar Deer, Spotted Deer, Langur and Wild Boar.

The zone also contains an interpretation museum and cafeteria and most important of all a well equipped set of toilets for the tourists.

Kisli Zone comprises of rugged hills which are low lying and table top. These hills are covered with dense forests of Sal, Bamboo and Mixed.The hills give rise to deep glens which contain numerous water bodies and perennial streams. These are the lifeline of the ecosystem.  The ecosystem supports tigers, leopards,sloth bear, bison, sambar, wild dog, wild boar, spotted deer and langurs.  The zone encompasses diverse habitats. It offers good sightings of tigers and other animals to tourists on jeep safari.  

Sarhi Zone comprises mixed forests, bamboo along the Sulkum river, and it is the most picturesque as well. This is the best place to seethe tiger besides four horned antelope, Nigai antelope and sambar deer.

Mukki Zone comprises of midsized grasslands and large swampy lakes which are home to the Hard Ground Barasingha.  The low lying region is surrounded by tabletop mountains which are home to many tigers. There is a separate entrance for this zone called Mukki Gate. The zone can also be assessed from Khatia Gate towards Mandla. There are many luxury hotels near the Mukki Gate.       

Buffer Zone Tourism

Kanha Tiger Reserve is divided into two management zones. One is the core zone or the critical tiger habitat while the other is the buffer zone which cushions the core zone. In the core zone no human habitation is allowed while this takes place in between the buffer forests subject to some regulations. The gate fee for excursion in the designated buffer zone is less and there is no limit on the number of vehicle entry.  This is booked by the tourists whence no entry is available in the four prime zones. The buffer zone ride yields sight of many deer and with luck one can see the tiger, leopard, bison and the sloth bear.             

Park Safaris

The park safaris are well organized and conducted by the Kanha Management with some strictures from NTCA or National Tiger Conservation Authority. All safaris are conducted on open jeeps registered with the Kanha Office. There are two safari conducted in a day one s in the morning which begins at predawn and ends at 11 AM. The second one begins at 4.30 AM and ends at 6.30 PM. The safari timings keep on changing as per the day light available.

The entry for park safaris is from the Khatia Gate and the Mukki Gate. The entry is booked in advance albeit on spot booking is also available. Advance booking is done on the MP Online Portal.  The jeeps for safaris are available at the Khatia & Mukki Gate. You can also use the resort jeep if available or request the resort to book one for you. Six guests are allowed to sit for the safari in the park.

The zone is allotted during the time of gate entry booking and the excursion is limited to the allotted zone.All zones have different rates which keep on changing but the guide fee is fixed at Rs.300.00 which has to be paid at the time of entry. It is compulsory to hire a park guide registered with the department. Recently full day safaris have been introduced for which a greater charge has to be paid.

Tiger Tracking & Animal Watching   

This has in recent time become a well developed mechanism. The guides and naturalists are expert at locating tigers using a number of signs that includes alarm cries of the prey species. Their knowledge enhances visitor experience by their interpretation of the ecosystem and morphological descriptions. Some of the naturalists are also good at birding which is very useful for the bird enthusiasts.   

Tiger Show: Elephant Joy Rides

Though joy rides on park elephants are still available tiger show has been banned. It is no more possible to see tigers from elephant back. This recreation is banned in all Central Indian Tiger Reserves. Elephants are also available for filming wildlife at Kanha but this is subject to a set of procedures. 

How to Reach?

Reaching Kanha: From New Delhi& Mumbai by flight to Jabalpur and then drive 165 km.

Best reached From New Delhi &Mumbai by overnight train and then drive 165 km. 

Notes: The Park is closed from Julyto October 16th every year. It is also closed on evening of every Wednesday.    

About The Author

Uday works as freelance naturalist guide for Courtyard House a luxury resort at Kanha National Park. He also organizes and operates Kanha package tours for inbound groups.   Uday loves to write on wildlife safaris and travel in India.