The Longest 30 Minutes..

Eerie and cold silence..occasionally broken by the phantasmal whistling created by a gentle breeze passing through a dense jungle canopy a few hours before day break. I waited in my new Scorpio, checking every few minutes to make sure I had locked all doors from inside…engine turned off, lights switched off hoping that the black color of my SUV would make for a good camouflage. Visibility almost zero in the darkness, I waited 30 minutes… the longest 30 minutes of my life!

Mid – February is the perfect season to go for nature outings in Uttaranchal. Jim Corbett National Park tucked away in the foothills of Himalayas presents a remarkable variety of landscapes, and breath taking vistas. During my school days I had read “Man Eaters of Kumaon” and since then nurtured a secret desire to visit the terror stricken yet beautiful places mentioned in the book. After I moved to New Delhi post my long stay in the US, I realized that Jim Corbett was a reasonable drive from the nation’s capital. I picked up on nature getaways during my life in the US when I used to pack my bags during weekends and go for long drives to national parks near Washington DC.

As a new year resolution, I decided to continue this old habit of mine. Jim Corbett is a good 7 hour drive from Delhi and as always I left at 4.30 am to get away from rush hour traffic. After almost 6 hours of relatively painless driving, I started seeing glimpses of the first national park of Asia. Sal trees grow abundantly here, the Sal trees whose timber was used in railway tracks during the British era. Various cottages and resorts offering modern world amenities in the rustic settings of the jungle are available for tourists. Most cottages are aesthetically designed to reflect an old world charm. My own cottage with walls and floor lined with wood offered 270 degree view of the jungle, the pristine aquamarine waters of Ramganga, flower beds on the banks of the river and the mountains beyond. It was just perfect!

Since I was there just for the weekend, I quickly changed as soon as I checked in and went to the information center to plan out my activities for the weekend.  Before arrival I had booked for a safari. Only Govt guides are authorized to conduct jungle safaris inside Jim Corbett, and since there are limited vehicles – Canters or Gypsies available for safaris, one has to book early. Safaris run twice a day – starting at 5.30 am, 4.30 pm and last 4 hours.  I was confirmed for the early morning safari for the next day.

That day I decided to try out some adventure sports. There are several qualified instructors at Jim Corbett who can help you quench your thirst for adrenalin pumping activities – rappelling, bridge jumping, flying fox and so on. Bridge jumping literally is jumping off a bridge. In my case jumping off the suspension bridge that spans the Ramganga from a height of 30 – 40 feet. Waters don’t run deep in the river, but the riverbed is riddled with pebbles and rocks of all sizes. My instructor did a good job allaying my anxiety by explaining the technical specifications of the safety harnesses, double/triple checking them. And yes ..against all natural survival instincts I jumped into the gurgling waters below. The sense of liberation I get when I let go, trust something outside me and allow myself to fight against preliminary reactions to situations thus stretching my comfort zone is what I live for!

Late evening, most cottages organize large bonfires allowing guests the opportunity to enjoy nature after sunset, yet not freeze to death. After having a quiet dinner of vodka, fish fry and variety of Indian dishes, I retired to get a good night’s rest in preparation for my early morning safari.

Canter safari

Jim Corbett covers over 500 sqkm of land. Several safari routes are available – Bijrani, Jhirna, Dhikala to name a few. I had opted for the Dhikala safarai which was conducted in a canter. I had to travel 3- 4 km deep inside the forest to the spot where I was to board the canter. Reporting time was 5.30am and I was told to account for 25- 30 minutes driving time because of road conditions. The previous day I had heard stories of tigers that had appeared at the periphery of the national park and had paid visits to many of the cottages and residences, waking up residents at night by clawing on doors and windows. I was not exactly thrilled by the idea of driving before daylight deep into the forest where there were no street lights or any natural light for that matter. But I had wanted to do this for as long as I can remember. ..So, I left my cottage at 5 am, took some directions from the information center and set off to the pick-up point for my canter safari. I had never experienced a night darker than that or a road more deserted than the one I was driving on..I pushed away all horrendous thoughts of my SUV breaking down, running out of fuel or fog lights going dysfunctional…At every curvature on the road, I expected an encounter with the orange and black striped jungle feline, because of the nocturnal behavioural patterns of the animal.

Elephant herd

I was the first one to reach the pick-up spot. There were no other vehicles, no check post staff, no visitors’ center… not a single human in sight. During my entire trip I was advised not to step out of my vehicle anywhere inside the jungle. So I waited inside..waited…and waited…I turned off the engine, switched off the lights, locked the doors and ducked in so low as to be able to just barely see over the steering wheel. Occasionally I could hear ruffling of leaves and I would jump up to see if I had a jungle visitor. I started recollecting pages from “Man Eaters of Kumaon”, tiger attack documentaries from The Discovery Channel and the bloody history of Jim Corbett. The entire time my body was on such high alert and heart was racing so fast that I could feel my fingers shake. It was almost 30 minutes before the next car arrived. I have never been so happy to see another human although am not sure what he could’ve done in case of a wild animal attack. Soon more people and the canter arrived and we set off for the safari…phew!

Sambhar deer

Tiger pug marks

Every piece of land was covered with splendid landscapes, dense vegetation, geographical formations unbridled by human touch. Jim Corbett is home to moist deciduous forest which mainly consists of sal, haldu, pipal, rohini and mango trees, 50 species of mammals, 580 bird species, 25 reptile species and most importantly it’s the home of the Bengal tiger.  This park was the first to come under Project Tiger initiative. We also saw numerous ravines, ridges, streams, small plateaus with varying degrees of slopes and the partly dried up Ramganga with foot prints on the banks of wildlife for which Ramganga is a life source.  After almost 2 hours of driving during which we spotted herds of sambhar and spotted deer, elephants drinking water and a few wild boars, we reached a rest stop. This is the only place within the forest visitors are allowed to alight their vehicles. So we got to walk around, enjoy the touch and smell of wilderness - cameras clicking away, handycams recording away. The quiet of the jungle was once broken by the growl of a tiger, which seemed to arise from some point so close to where I was standing that my insides almost turned upside down. After refreshments and bathroom break, we set out back. As soon as we started our return journey, we came by fresh tiger pug marks on the road. As per the tour guide we had apparently missed it by utmost an hour. We waited awhile to see if we could spot it, but couldn’t. So, after a futile 10 min wait, we left back. As per the tour guide, spotting a tiger during the safari was quite rare because of the secretive nature of the animal. Moreover, the dense undergrowth of the forest provides for sufficient protective cover so that even if the animal is resting 10 ft away from the road, one may not be able to see it.  In my group there were people who were visiting Jim Corbett for the eighth time hoping to spot a tiger. As our safari came to close, we gave up all hopes of catching a glimpse of a tiger.

An hour later, we were dropped off at the pick-up point and I drove back to my cottage feeling refreshed and thankful that I was able to enjoy and take in so much natural beauty. A few hours later when I hit the road back to Delhi, I couldn’t help thinking that even though I did not get to see a Bengal tiger at Jim Corbett, I experienced 30 mins of fear like I have not experienced before by the sheer unknown presence of it possibly even a few feet from me. Such is this enigma and power of this stealthy and majestic animal…

Would I do this again? Absolutely yes!

Article that appeared in The Times of India supplement - Delhi