[nilanjanray]

Last year in December I had made a quick trip to the Nilgiris. Stayed at Wild Haven (near Masinagudi) for a day, and at Kalahatti for a couple of days.

The track leading to the Kalhatti camp. Low range advisable - else clutch abuse happens.


Painted Storks


Jungle drive


Saw a number of water birds at a tank near Kollegal. Stopped for ~20 mins while going to the Nilgiris as well as while coming back. Was pleasantly surprised to see a lone Pelican.

A langoor about to start giving its alarm call


Peacocks during sunset


My resting beneath a tree after busting my ankle


Came across some peacocks near the Theppakadu Elephant Camp. The sun was setting, so the ambiance was pretty interesting.

Can someone identify this bird?


Sunbird


Just before I went back to the vehicle (I had got down since the spot was right beside the elephant camp gate), heard frantic alarm calls of a barking deer. Waited for a while, but no cat emerged.

Preening


Zebra crossing


Ended up tearing the ligament of my right ankle when I slipped and fell while I was hiking in the forests. I was climbing a slope, and I didn't test a rock properly before putting my weight on it. So the rock rolled down,and I gave it company. Also hurt a rib badly (blunt trauma, but perhaps not a hairline fracture). Had to come down the hill using a stick, and recuperate for a day- lying in a cabin - before I could drive down to Bangalore for an X-Ray.

A Pelican among Storks


Sunset


The Kalahatti place requires 4WD to get there. In the night the place is frequented by Gaurs and a male leopard. Unfortunately I didn't see any animals in the night during those two nights (but I did see some Sambhars during daytime and on the trail while driving back and forth).

Black-winged Stilt(?)


A peacock calling. A distinctive 'Miao' cry that signals sunrise or sunset.


The second night - after I had got injured - I came back to the balcony after 7 pm instead of sitting outside near the valley. It was taking me 30 seconds to travel 30 feet - if an animal had come up I wouldn't have been able to move to safety in time.

Sunbird


Moon over the Nilgiris


Pelican


The drive back was interesting - you can imagine what happens when the right ankle is busted. Used low range without ABC to traverse the trail leading to the Kalhatti Ghat road. Then coasted down using engine braking. And drove to Bangalore mostly relying on throttle inputs - with minimum braking. Took me 6.5 hours to reach since I was driving sedately.

Jungle walk


Phantom peak


Painted Storks near Kollegal


The Fortuner behaved like a champ.

Hanging out together


Cormorant


A telegraph post on a 100 year old abandoned track, leading from Segur to Kalahatti


An image borrowed from my Kumaon trip (http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/travel...-roadtrip.html). The trusty and capable vehicle that brought me back safely.

[aravind84]

Awesome shots Nilanjan, Those are spot billed ducks. Hope you have recovered fully now. Wish to see more from your lens soon.

[deepak_misra]

Originally Posted by nilanjanray

Last year in December I had made a quick trip to the Nilgiris. Stayed at Wild Haven (near Masinagudi) for a day, and at Kalahatti for a couple of days.

Great photos. Where was the elephant one taken ? Any wild life around Wild Haven ?

Deepak

[nilanjanray]

Originally Posted by deepak_misra

Great photos. Where was the elephant one taken ? Any wild life around Wild Haven ?

Deepak

Elephant photo was taken in the Theppakadu - Masinagudi stretch.

Usual wildlife - deer, rabbits etc. Heard that there was an injured tiger hanging around in Segur with a mate.

Heard lots of alarm calls in the night, maybe it had come close.

[nilanjanray]

A couple of bird shots taken during a weekend drive.

Is this the Greenish Warbler? I had to stalk it carefully to come close- it is a tiny bird (2-2.5 inch, I would guess), and I have only a 70-300mm lens.


Black Kite. Taken while experimenting with back button focusing. Jury is still out on that.


Edit: one more - the tiny Warbler eating a berry. Cropped photo.

[venkat_iyer]

Originally Posted by nilanjanray

A couple of bird shots taken during a weekend drive.

Is this the Greenish Warbler? I had to stalk it carefully to come close- it is a tiny bird (2-2.5 inch, I would guess), and I have only a 70-300mm lens.

Edit: one more - the tiny Warbler eating a berry. Cropped photo.

Lovely pics Nilanjan! I would think this is a pale billed flowerpecker.

[nilanjanray]

Recently I had gone for a short trip to the Nilgiri forests. A few photos from the roadtrip:

[Saurabh M]

Lovely pics as always, Nilanjan. Which forest is this? Can you please share some info on route, accommodation details and other relevant information ?

OT: We probably share the same office parking lot

[nilanjanray]

Originally Posted by Saurabh M

Lovely pics as always, Nilanjan. Which forest is this? Can you please share some info on route, accommodation details and other relevant information ?

OT: We probably share the same office parking lot

Thanks. This is near Masinagudi. Route: Bandipur - Mudumalai - Theppakadu - Masinagudi. Many acco options are there, but the place where I stayed (Forest Hills) is wilder - less creature comforts but with more scenic beauty.

Regarding parking lot: is that so?

Btw, this was a one day trip, but I had good animal sightings.
* While traveling there: elephants, peafowls, sambhars, cheetals, red mongoose, boars, a leopard (that crossed the road in front of me around 7 pm)
* At this place: gaurs, sloth bear

Thankfully no elephant came visiting like the times before. When an elephant moves around below the machaan or treehouse, I have to be half awake whole night worrying about it damaging my vehicle. Once I had to scare away a male tusker (by clapping and shouting) that was 1 foot from my vehicle and was about to kick it.

[venkat_iyer]

Originally Posted by nilanjanray

Thanks. This is near Masinagudi. Route: Bandipur - Mudumalai - Theppakadu - Masinagudi. Many acco options are there, but the place where I stayed (Forest Hills) is wilder - less creature comforts but with more scenic beauty.

Great images as usual, Nilanjan! Will get in touch with you later on some more details on this place, looks mouth-watering. How far is it from Blr - around 4-5 hours, I assume?
I may be in Blr for a few days in June for a family function, and hope to sneak away for a couple of days, if I can manage it

[Guderian]

Originally Posted by nilanjanray

A few photos from the roadtrip:

Some fabulous snaps there Nilanjan.
Trust your foot has healed well.

And about the Pelcan - from your earlier set of snaps.


A wonderful bird is the pelican,
His bill will hold more than his belican,
He takes in his beak,
Enough food for a week,
But I'm damned if I see how the helican.

- Ogden Nash.

[shankar.balan]

Originally Posted by Guderian

A wonderful bird is the pelican,
His bill will hold more than his belican,
He takes in his beak,
Enough food for a week,
But I'm damned if I see how the helican.

- Ogden Nash.

Ah a fine and highly developed sense of humour rears its head old chap! Well done!

Try this one for size then...

The one L Lama - He's a Priest, the two L Llama - He's a Beast.

And I 'll bet a Silk Pajama, that there ain't no three L Lllama!

- Ogden Nash again...

[nilanjanray]

Had driven down to Galibore last week. X-posting a couple of photos from the trip:





Short trip report here: http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/travel...eri-river.html

The Fortuner is a great help in venturing off the track. I explored part of the route to Muthathi while I was there. One can drive comfortably at 30-45 kmph on a trail (with occasional rocky stretches) if one knows the lay of the land. While returning, I had to rush to meet office commitments. The Fortuner responded as expected, and helped me reach Bangalore (~ 100-105 kms away) in 2 hours, covering 7 kms of a trail and 35 kms of a 2 lane state highway.

[nilanjanray]

So, my 70-300mm lens had gone for repair, and I was forced to rely on the 18-105mm lens for a couple of trips. Which meant no wildlife closeups, only animalscapes or birdscapes.

Once I got back the 70-300mm, I went for a short drive to test it out. Weather was nice and cloudy. Went on some village roads near Sarjapur. Got this Heron to model for me. Glad to see that lens is back to normal.

This lens is one of the best VFM lenses for wildlife for those cropped sensor cameras that don't have high resolution. It does yeoman duty on the D90 (if one uses it properly), but if I were to try it out on a D7100, say, then I might run across the lense's limitations.

All shots talen from inside the vehicle. The VR has negated the diesel engine vibrations. Animals and birds allow one to come much closer in a vehicle than on foot, unless stalking opportunities are present.

Slightly busy foreground


Movement


Cropped photo. The bokeh seems ok (in it's class,let's not compare to pro lenses), and sharpness seems as good as before.

[nilanjanray]

A few photos from a recent trip













And a couple from an old trip. Had been planning to go meet some tigers, seems unlikely this year.