[v&v]

Ranthambore is one of my favourite destination and had visited 3 time with 5 jeep safari and as luck would have it all the 5 Safari we were allocated Zone - 1 including the current one. As most of these trips were spontaneously planned and might be the reason i presume.

This trip transpired almost 1 day before when one of my friend was on a vacation at Ranthambore. He invited us for this trip and quickly finalised for a 1 night trip. Safari was confirmed for 25th June evening. It was a welcome change after our Gangotri trip to Uttrakhand.

The plan : Start on 25th Morning to reach Sawaimadhopur by 12 and do the evening safari and return next day.


Route for a Change : Delhi - Yamuna Exp Way - Mathura - Bharatpur - Sikandra - Dausa - Lalsot - Sawai Madhopur

Distance : 450 kms

Stay : Hotel Pink Palace - Near to railway station for night stay.


25th Jun 13
We left Delhi by 4.45am as planned. Drive to Mathura was quick as there was no traffic. It was drizzling in sections on Yamuna expressway.










About 6.10 we crossed Mathura, Bharatpur by 7.






After that with 4 laned divided highway drive to Dausa was fast. Reached Dausa by 8:30 am .










Dausa to Lalsot about 20 odd kms was bad and rest road till sawai madhopur as smooth and fast. We reached Sawai madhopur by 10:30. I throughly enjoyed the drive.

[v&v]

Bookings were already confirmed for Zone-1 and we set-out by 3.30 pm. It was overcast but luckily didn't rain. Rest the the photos speak...

At the Entry











Registration before entering Zone 1


Zone 1 entry is greeted by huge Banyan tree


White throated kingfisher


Indian Pitta


Collared Scops Owl


Indian peacock




Red-wattled Lapwing


Indian Golden Oriole


Monitor lizard


Sambar deer









Another Zone-1 safari went without sighting. This time i had madeup my mind that i am back in October for multiple safari's.

[v&v]

Return - 26th Jun 13
We started by 8 am. It was again decided to take the Mathura - Yamuna Expressway route. Lunch at McD @ Mathura and by 5 pm we were at home.

Break fast stop somewhere after Dausa


Checking out Stone Carving at Sikandra, Dausa












So after our 25th June road trip i had made up my mind, that the only way for tiger sighting is do multiple safari. Then i came across Nature wanderers doing a Ranthumbore opener for 1st, 2nd and 3rd Oct 13. The dates suited me and booked the tour for 3 nights with them for 6 Safari's.

[GTO]

Thread moved from the Assembly Line to Travelogues. Thanks for sharing!

[gd1418]

I wish you had brought out the colours of the Pitta. It is looking so dull. Scops Owl & Monitor Lizard composition looking good. The Oriole picture is fantastic.

Originally Posted by v&v

Indian Pitta
Attachment 1193808

Collared Scops Owl
Attachment 1193809

Indian Golden Oriole
Attachment 1193813

Monitor lizard
Attachment 1193814

IMHO, total waste of money & effort by doing just one safari and that too in Zone 1. Atleast 4 safaris in various zones between 2 to 5 would have been fruitful.

Originally Posted by v&v

Another Zone-1 safari went without sighting. This time i had madeup my mind that i am back in October for multiple safari's.

[mayuresh]

Great captures and nice and useful travelogue!

Peacock has as if posed for you.. Of course animals don't pose like humans and that's why wildlife photography and in particular birds photography is so challenging. So rather than thanking peacock for the photo op, I would appreciate your skill!

The second one I liked is the owl, as if cozily sitting at doorsteps of its household watching the passers by ...

[v&v]

Originally Posted by gd1418

I wish you had brought out the colours of the Pitta.

IMHO, total waste of money & effort by doing just one safari and that too in Zone 1. Atleast 4 safaris in various zones between 2 to 5 would have been fruitful.

Thanks GD. As for one safari, its was an impromptu trip with family on board multiple safari is a challenge. I did want to do morning safari too but was vetoed out and was also raining the next morning.

As for zone selection, i was told , its allocated by computer.
As for Indian Pitta, it was spontaneous shot and before i focus or compose it flew away. Never got a clear shot after that.

Originally Posted by mayuresh

Great captures and nice and useful travelogue!

Peacock has as if posed for you.. Of course animals don't pose like humans and that's why wildlife photography and in particular birds photography is so challenging. So rather than thanking peacock for the photo op, I would appreciate your skill!

The second one I liked is the owl, as if cozily sitting at doorsteps of its household watching the passers by ...

Thanks Mayuresh. Will try to post more info of zones as the travelogue progresses.

[joybhowmik]

Vinod ,
Good birding! Also loved the chameleon shot!

Your choice of route was interesting!

I had inadvertently forgotten that for a large part NH8 and YEW are both headed in similar directions , and so it must have been a relative breeze getting there.

I still recall the interminable hours of using NH8 and then the road to Tonk and finally to Sawai Madhopur.

Roads have definitely improved!!

Joy

[v&v]

Originally Posted by joybhowmik

Vinod ,
Good birding! Also loved the chameleon shot!

Your choice of route was interesting!

I had inadvertently forgotten that for a large part NH8 and YEW are both headed in similar directions , and so it must have been a relative breeze getting there.

I still recall the interminable hours of using NH8 and then the road to Tonk and finally to Sawai Madhopur.

Roads have definitely improved!!

Joy

Thanks Joy. Road via Yamuna Expressway is longer by about 80 - 90 kms. But is fast. We could make it in 5.5 hrs.

My friends had taken NH8 and Tonk as you mentioned. It took a good 8.5 hrs to reach Sawai Madhopur.

Also if one is interested in birding then one can touch Keoladeo National Park, Bharatpur to via this route.

[swiftnfurious]

Nice pics to start with. Good pic of the pea-cock. But I wish you had a better shot to capture the full pic.

[v&v]

Originally Posted by swiftnfurious

Nice pics to start with. Good pic of the pea-cock. But I wish you had a better shot to capture the full pic.

Thanks swiftnfurious. Even i wish i had little more time to compose the said shot.
I shooting while this guy was turning. With tree on the left, i decided to closeup rather wider shot.

After that he was posing like thisfor next 3 to 4 minutes. We moved on...

[v&v]

Ranthambore Trip - Oct 1,2,3 - 6 Safari trips with Nature Wanderers who organise these kind of wild life photography tours. Canon edge members get a 10% discount too.

Travel Plan :
Initially i was planning to drive down but later decided to travel by Kota Jan Shatabdi express. There were about five guys from Delhi. Reached Sawai madhopur by evening. Other members were from Hyderabad and Mumbai had already arrived. We were a total of 12 members for the trip .

Accommodation was in a Villa near the park. NW mentor were Shivang Mehta & Anurag Sharma. We also had a quick briefing session in the evening.


1st Oct - Day 1 - Morning Safari - Safari No 1 - Zone - 1, First trip of the season

We all were up and ready by 6 am. Three gypsy came to pick us and again the zone allocated for the first safari for my team was Zone - 1. We were 4 guys in each gypsy. The other two teams got Zone-2 & Zone-4. We all set out for our respective zones safari. At main entrance there was lot of activity with press coverage.

Being first day there were no sighting information, we decided to first visit Sultanpur Chowki to check out for any movement reports. There were no new of movement for past two days in this zone. From there we went to Dhoop Chowk and waited for an hour and half. The entire Jungle was dead silent. All we could see is some spotted & sambar deer.
Explore some more area and we checked out the safari by 9:30 am.

Some pics of morning Safari

Huge Banyan tree at the entrance of Zone - 1















Spotted Deer

[v&v]

Some more pics from Morning Safari.

Shikra


Common Kingfisher




Painted Spurfowl


Sparrowhawk


Langur







By 10 we were at room. Zone-4 team had sighting of T-25 Star male. Reviewed our photographs and i went for a quick nap. Next Safari was pickup was at 3 pm.

[v&v]

1st Oct - Day 1 - Evening Safari - Safari No 2 - Zone - 1 (Again)

All the team members were ready by 3 and gypsy arrived. To my surprise again it was zone 1. We protested to our mentors. Then we all went to the booking counter. Met the in-charge. He was helpless and told zone cannot be changed as the reservation system is also new one installed.

We wrote a complaint for the same and proceeded to Zone 1. After entering we again headed towards chowki. Just about 2 kms before we could notice langurs making noise and call from peacock intermittently.

We started exploring the area. By the time couple of gypsy also arrived. After some time a canter too arrived. We all were waiting patiently as the call was coming from quite far inside. All of a sudden the guide in the canter spotted a leopard on the top of tree. It was in sitting in such a position that we could not see it from the mud track. We slowly posited the gypsy for a clear view. Then for next 20 min all bazookas were firing at will. Even with all the adjustment it was a difficult angle to shoot. Where he was lying was dark and the background was bright making it difficult to get good shot. Also with 4 gypsy parked near the tree, leopard too got agitated tried to hide himself further.


Enjoy the pics

This was the original place where he was relaxing


With sudden activity around him he got anxious

[deky]

Lovely pics, Ranthambhore is always a joy to go back to due to the variety that it offers. Not just the wildlife, but the historical monuments, the fort, the lakes and the landscape all add to the joy of being there

Originally Posted by v&v

Thanks Joy. Road via Yamuna Expressway is longer by about 80 - 90 kms. But is fast. We could make it in 5.5 hrs.

My friends had taken NH8 and Tonk as you mentioned. It took a good 8.5 hrs to reach Sawai Madhopur.

Also if one is interested in birding then one can touch Keoladeo National Park, Bharatpur to via this route.

Now that Jaipur to Tonk road is in super condition I feel its much better to take NH8 and then NH12. For Sawai Madhopur, you do not go till Tonk but take a left at a place, just after Chaksu, called Kothun. But yes if someone wants to add Bharatpur, then YEW route is the best

Originally Posted by v&v

By 10 we were at room. Zone-4 team had sighting of T-25 Star male. Reviewed our photographs and i went for a quick nap. Next Safari was pickup was at 3 pm.

Some mistake here, its either T-28 Star male or T-25 Bhola/Dollar male. Star male (28) has a star above his eyes and Dollar male (25) has a dollar marking on his right flank

Originally Posted by v&v

We started exploring the area. By the time couple of gypsy also arrived. After some time a canter too arrived. We all were waiting patiently as the call was coming from quite far inside. All of a sudden the guide in the canter spotted a leopard on the top of tree.

Beautifull capture of a leopard and SHE (not a he ) does look pretty agitated!!

Regards