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Old 12th May 2021, 00:03   #1
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A road-trip to the forests & mountains!

In these tough times we are going through, I hope that we all get back to doing our favourite thing, traveling and spending more time with our cars. In early April, I was lucky enough to go on a road trip that I had planned for since Jan-Feb when the pandemic seemed to be going away. Me and wifey had to cancel our plans in April 2020 when suddenly the lockdown was imposed and it was start of a time that no one probably ever dreamt of. Things seemed to be getting better when we planned for the trip in early 2021 and after more than an year of working from home, we desperately needed a break from the routine that was burning us out.

After nearly a month of planning and evaluating options, we decided on a 10-days holiday covering three places. First was Kabini (2 nights), where we never had been to but was highly recommended by a friend of ours, second was a resort known as Wild Planet (3 nights), in the midst of Nilgiris and Western Ghats and finally Chikmagalur (3 nights), where we had been to earlier, but this was slightly away towards Kudremukh as we wanted to do the Kudremukh trek. Unfortunately the trek was closed due to forest fires and we got to know while we were in Kabini but we were still eager to visit this place and the resort.

We also stayed for a night in Bangalore as a stop-over on our first day and this helped us meet some of my wife's colleagues who made our evening in bangalore totally worth it, with their wonderful hospitality.

Some statistics before I start the travelogue.
Car: Ford Ecosport with almost 82k kms on the ODO - The car was all washed and vacuumed making it look squeaky clean. Also installed a more powerful set of LED white lights although we decided not to do night driving. This came in handy during the last leg of our return journey which we covered on the highway and the lights definitely helped increase the average speed by quite a bit.
Driver: Just me. I have around 1.4 lakh kilometers of driving experience through various terrains in South India specifically.
Pax: Me and wifey
Route: Hyderabad - Regenta Inn, Bangalore - JLR, Kabini - Wild Planet Resort, Devala - Rivermist Resort, Mudigere - Hyderabad
Total Kms covered: 2100
Camera gears used:
- Canon 90D with 70-300mm and 18-135mm
- Mobile photography with S21 Ultra
- Digitek 520 BH tripod

Please note the following:

- Wherever I mentioned Day 1, Day 2, etc. it's the days of our overall trip and not the day at that particular place.

- Also, I split up different days into different posts. Some days are combined with clear headings in between to differentiate the days. Hope this will help understand different days clearly

- Most photos are in the order they are clicked however, I've tried to keep some mobile pics in between so at some places the timeline could be a little up and down but are relevant to that day.

Day 1 - Monday - Drive to Bangalore and overnight stay in Regenta Inn

We were supposed to start from our home at around 6AM as we were invited for lunch in B'lore and google maps was showing us 8 hours to our hotel, which I was confident of covering in about 6.5 hours. However, the last minute things made us start around 8AM, nearly 2 hours behind schedule. We did inform our hosts in B'lore that we would be late for lunch as we had to check-in, dump our luggage, freshen-up and then go for lunch.

Wanted to reduce exposure as much as possible, especially in roadside dhabas so packed our own breakfast and had it at a safe place beside the highway.
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The B'lore highway is pretty boring and nothing scenic frankly speaking. Just a few pics during this drive.
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Kia's facility in Anantapur is HUGE!!! I was surprised to see the expanse of their factory here. The last time we saw, this was still under construction.
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As expected, it took us 7 hours to reach our hotel by 3PM and we could go for lunch only by around 4:30PM. We did feel sheepish about this delay but nevertheless we were treated to some wonderful home-made lunch, which we just gobbled up. We were also invited for a dinner by another colleague of my wife, wonderful people really and unfortunately went there quite late.

On the way to their homes. This is B'lore outskirts around the airport area but very nice and scenic roads.
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We anticipated this day to be pretty uneventful and it was like that mostly, till later in the day when I realized that I forgot the air pump at home. By the time this realization dawned upon me, we were in B'lore. Now began a frantic search for one we could buy. I didn't wanted to risk not carrying an air pump because most of our journey would be through forests and hills and probably other bad roads (more on this later) and we could be stranded due to a flat tyre. After some searching and calls to some shops that were potential sellers, we got one, but got ripped off royally as that person understood our dire need and sold us a not so good version of an air pump at an exorbitant price (Rs.2k). But it felt a lot reassuring that at least we will not be stranded. Thankfully we didn't have to use this pump during our trip as the tyres held on really good, even after being subjected to some pretty bad roads.

Day 2 - Tuesday - Drive to JLR, Kabini and our first evening safari

The last trip we went to Bhadra JLR, we missed our afternoon safari and this time we didn't wanted to make that mistake here in Kabini. We started early from Regenta Inn and google maps was showing around 5 hours, which was good enough to make it before lunch and be ready for safari. We took the road that goes left from the Tumkur junction, towards Mysore. I think this is the NH75 but not absolutely sure what this road is called. It was a great road till we turned into smaller roads as we were nearing Mysore.

Makkhan roads once we exited B'lore and turned left from Tumkur Jn.
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The roads were a lot more scenic after we passed Mysore.
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The first view of the Kabini Reservoir.
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Thankfully, we reached JLR by 1PM, had a smooth check-in and were surprised to see decent crowd in the midst of a week. We did anticipate some crowd but definitely not on a Tuesday. We had lunch, got fresh and were all set for our very first safari in Kabini. I'll let the pictures do the talking with added descriptions wherever applicable.

I must complement JLR for the wonderful way in which their vehicles are maintained. Really impressed!

Beautiful roads leading into the tiger reserve.
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As soon as we entered the forest we realized it was quite dry.
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Contd...

Last edited by saleem_k : 14th May 2021 at 22:50.
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Old 12th May 2021, 13:27   #2
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Day 2 - Tuesday - Evening Safari - Did we spot Blackie?

One of the star attractions of Kabini is the Black Panther fondly known by many names such as Blackie, Saaya, Ghost of Kabini and what not. Based on our prior experiences with Safaris in Corbett, Pench, Bhadra, Gir and a few other lesser known ones, we came with a mature mindset of enjoying the surroundings, the outdoors, forest (which was a little too dry to our liking) and of course the entire experience of safari and sightings, which we missed for quite a long time now. And not to spoil our mood if we didn't sight anything. We decided to take whatever came our way as a bonus but little did we know what we were destined for.

We were welcomed by the Malabar Giant Squirrel. I've had a strange luck with this cutie since quite some time. Never did I get a good sighting of this one leave alone a photo. And here it was in action, right in front of us and I was able to get one decent shot.
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Other random sightings:

Brahminy Starling
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Is the left one saying 'Boo'?
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Mother suckling her young.
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At this water hole, while we were looking for pug marks or chances of a bigger cat, an entirely different story happened here.
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A Pond Heron caught a Frog and started gobbling it up. Since our safari vehicle had 'photographers' and not just 'tourists' everyone waited patiently for it to complete its meal while clicking some photos. Survival of the fittest happening in front of us.
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Till this point the frog seemed to be alive but not much of fighting. But here onwards it was clear that the frog had given up.
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The final gulp!
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As we moved on further, we heard about an old and injured tiger lingering around in the area. Surely we found it. It did look quite tired and dejected and had a decent injury around its lower jaw. It was quite difficult to get a shot as it was inside the bushes and it wanted to rest so did not come out. Got all the photographers trying their focusing techniques and I was able to get a decent shot.

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It was watching us!
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Notice the injured and slightly bloodied lower jaw.
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We were with this cat for more than 20 minutes and decided to move on and go back to one of the watering holes that we passed earlier as there was a chance of a big cat sighting there. Suddenly the naturalist who was with us received information that Blackie just started moving towards one of the paths where we wanted to go to earlier. The atmosphere in our safari vehicle suddenly changed. Everyone who was slightly relaxed and slightly satisfied with the tiger sighting now wanted more. The jeep driver was showing all his driving skills, reversing in the narrow path, turning and going in the right direction, at a decent speed on bumps but nothing that would throw people off it.

We passed that injured tiger again but now people just noticed it was still there and moved on, without stopping. It was nearing 6PM and light was indeed fading fast. The only thing that worked in terms of lighting was that the forest was dry and sunlight was seeping in slightly more, just enough to have decent lighting for photography. We turned left from this road and suddenly saw a few more safari vehicles already parked in front of us. We too joined the line and then the wait started. There was a team shooting a documentary too and that was the reassuring part that chances for the panther to come out are definitely high.

And there it was, moving like a ghost, emerging slightly from the dry bushes. The dark colour against the lighter dry background and also the dry bushes in the foreground made the sighting surreal.
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It was still not out completely and was behind a huge tree when I got these shots.
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Then a minor misjudgement on the part of our naturalist (prodded by a more experienced photographer who seemed to be a regular visitor) and the driver made this wonderful cat change direction. While our vehicle would have been the first, if the Blackie maintained its direction, with our jeep moving more than required it changed direction and started moving in the opposite direction. Suddenly, we almost became the last jeep now and realized the blunder our movement made. Nevertheless we got some good shots before it crossed the path and went inside the bushes again.
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It was almost time to get out of the jungle, it was nearly 6:15PM and now one could see the joy and smiles on the faces of people all around. We all knew it was probably a once in a lifetime opportunity for all of us and we were treated to a wonderful sighting especially towards the fag end of the safari when people were almost giving up hope of seeing it.

As for me and wifey, we couldn't ask for more. Our first trip to Kabini and our very first safari and all these sightings, what else does one need in life. :-) We returned, a bit tired but a lot content. Later in the night, JLR treated us to a delicious chicken barbeque and we retired for the day, with a lot of stories to tell.

We had to wake up early for the next day's morning safari. What was in store? Keep reading...

End of Day 2 and our evening safari.

contd...

Last edited by saleem_k : 14th May 2021 at 20:35.
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Old 12th May 2021, 15:58   #3
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Day 3 - Wednesday - Kabini Morning Safari

Woke up early as we had to start safari by 6AM. JLR arranges snacks just before their safaris so we had tea and biscuits and as soon as the vehicle allocation happened, we got into our vehicle. What more did Kabini have to offer is a silly question to ask, even if you have seen the most prized possession of the jungle. The jungle early in the morning is an entirely different experience with the cold breeze, the thrill of starting a new day with new adventures in the offing and of course the wonderful morning sky that eventually changes to great light for photography. Mornings are my favourite and that too in the jungles, it's difficult to put it in words.

This time, we went in a different direction compared to the previous evening. The road we were taken on this time is said to have been operational some years back and connects another operational highway. This was closed long back once the Kabini Tiger Reserve came into existence, is what we were told. It was a bit back-breaking but we saw lovely sights again. I'll let the pictures do the talking.

No the road all along is not this smooth. This is before we enter the safari zone. Even inside there is a smooth patch but mostly a rough patch.
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A power line that runs through this forest. All along the trees have been cleared.
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Hi once again fella!
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There were a few more but ran away except for this brave one.
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Peacocks were in abundance in this zone, don't know why. Just too many.
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Carefully crossing the road.
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Serpent Eagle? It looks more like a Hawk Eagle but I'm not sure. It was close by and we didn't notice but it did notice us and went to a tree much farther away.
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This long stretch of road finally turned right and we saw that it was connecting to an operational road. We turned right again and we could see the border of this reserve separated with the village and their agricultural fields.

The first sighting here was the Hoopoe
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We started moving further on this road when suddenly one of the photographer in our vehicle spotted a big cat walking on the road ahead. It was quite some distance and must appreciate the way this guy spotted it. Soon we were chasing this tiger as it was walking away from us but it was also stalking some prey, it looked like. It was a young female as per the naturalist, 3-4 years old and I must say it was so fearless. It did not care when we came behind her, neither did it care when other jeeps and a bus came right in front of it.

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We were also slightly unlucky in the sense that it wasn't facing us and never turned towards us so most pics we got were either from behind or sideways.

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Suddenly it gets up as it's stalking some prey in the bushes. We all were excited for a moment that we could get some action, but nothing much happened and it went inside.

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See how fearless this was. It didn't give two hoots about the bus and the people in it and went so close.
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One final look before it went in.
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We waited for some more time hoping it would come out but it did not and then we proceeded further on this road. Some decent shots along this road.
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We also saw this wild hare completely blended into the dry forest grass.
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This peacock gave us a good pose.
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And we started our return journey from this place.
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Woodpecker
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We went to a different zone that was a left taken from the main road after we exit this particular zone. Our naturalist knew there was a leopard sighting the previous day so we could also get lucky. We went inside on the muddy track and before we could go further we were distracted by this beautiful scene.
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Our naturalist was very committed to his job and hence while we were going oohs and aahs with what we were witnessing, he asked all of us to keep quiet as he heard some alarm calls and he was looking straight ahead from where the alarm calls were coming. Suddenly he yells at the driver to drive on as he spots the leopard. We all suddenly shift our focus on that road and indeed a shy leopard was rapidly moving from one side of the road to another and before we could reach that spot, it quickly disappeared into the bushes. The only shot we got was this...
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The naked eye was better at this moment as at least we could see the spots and silhouette moving in the bushes, till we could no longer see it. We waited her for some time but it did not come out. This is the long stretch of road that we traversed to reach this point.
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We went to the other road on the other side hoping it would come out, but it did not but we did see this woodpecker. I don't remember the name but if you know, please do share. The naturalist was telling us that it's not as common as the other woodpecker.
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End of Morning Safari.

contd...

Last edited by saleem_k : 14th May 2021 at 20:36.
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Old 12th May 2021, 19:14   #4
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Day 3 - Wednesday - Kabini Evening Safari

In the two safaris till now we spotted, two tigers, black panther, almost a leopard and so many other birds and animals, which satisfied the photographer in me and we were wondering what else was in store. We were already feeling lucky at what all we could see till now. We had two more safaris to go, today evening and tomorrow morning after which we planned to check-out.

The first two safaris we got an enthusiastic naturalist who proved lucky for us. This time we got the same vehicle and driver but a different naturalist who boasted eloquent about his influence of going into either zones. He took us to the same zone we went to in the morning and the same border area with the village. But first we went beside the reservoir. It's such a beautiful place and photos definitely don't do justice.

Saw a herd of elephants protecting a young one. Elephants are emotionally intelligent and wonderful animals and just the way they live and protect each other is amazing.

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Count the number of elephants in this pic
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From here we went to the same road where we saw the tiger in the morning. The first and only mongoose we saw in the entire trip.
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This time we saw the same fearless female again, from the front finally, but it was sitting at one place and looking rather contented. Seemed like it finally got its meal in the morning. We were here for nearly half an hour and finally when it moved, it went in again so nothing much happened here.

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We saw this fellow again. At this point I was thinking this guy probably is our good luck charm on this trip.

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One more pic of how dry the forest it.
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We didn't see anything else in while returning and the naturalist at this point was busy checking his phone as if his work was over after he showed us the tiger. That's why I believe that the passion of the naturalist also plays a great part in the sightings one gets. Anyway, we returned and the wind was slightly cool and felt great that even though it was summer, the evening was very pleasant.

Came to our room, got fresh, reviewed our photos and experiences in the three safaris we did. The bad road in this zone shook us up all day today so we were feeling a bit more tired than usual. We had dinner, took a walk in the property and retired for bed.

JLR at night
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End of Day 3


Day 4 - Thursday - Kabini Boat Safari

Today we were checking out and before that we could do one last safari. We decided to take the boat safari. While it wasn't highly recommended and I too am someone who's not a water baby and prefer the hardcore jungles than the vast expanses of water, I decided to go for it just to get a different experience. Me and wifey felt that we have had good sightings so nothing much to loose even if we didn't get to see much. I have no qualms in saying that I was proved wrong and that the boat safari turned out to be a great experience.

Did we see a real one as well?
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Overpopulated for sure
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Stork?
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This is the boundary between the village and the reserve. Not so reassuring.
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Open-billed Stork
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Our boat driver who was an experienced veteran spotted this monster basking in the sun. I don't think the size can be made out in the photos but believe me it was around 12 feet in length as per the naturalist.

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I asked the naturalist to confirm that it won't come towards us and thankfully it didn't. For a moment all those movies like Lake Placid, Monster Croc, etc. were running in my mind. But these things happen only in the US I guess so we were safe.

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Not a bad start to the boat safari and this was just half an hour into our safari. Until our next major sighting these were some things that caught my eye.

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Just a slight ripple creates such beautiful scenes
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White-throated Kingfisher
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Contd...

Last edited by saleem_k : 14th May 2021 at 20:32.
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Old 12th May 2021, 21:26   #5
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Day 4 - Thursday - Kabini Boat Safari contd...

We moved on further and then suddenly we saw a story unfolding right in front of us. A Fish Eagle with its morning catch and planning to eat it. Was it so simple for it, let's see.

This is one handsome bird. Some may argue and say it's beautiful but let it be a point of discussion for now.

Majestic
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Stylish
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Intimidating
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Strong
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Now what is it waiting for. We probably disturbed it as the boat was easily visible and at a distance of causing the bird a little distress about its meal.
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Look at those claws, more muddied than bloodied!
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Who is it threatening? Definitely not us.
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And there it was, our naturalist called it a villain. But was it a friend actually?
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It was surprising to see the massive Fish Eagle just look at the crow steal a part of its meal, specifically its eye coz it was the easiest to take, we guessed. We were all surprised as to why the Fish Eagle was letting the crow steal its meal.
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We felt a bit guilty as to the Fish Eagle not doing anything probably because we were still causing it a bit of distress and therefore we decided to move on.

Moving on, now this was really a great moment for all of us in the boat. This elephant was lying on the island like this. Initially it was quite far for us and as we neared and zoomed our cameras, we realized it was an elephant but was lying on the island in a strange manner.
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Our naturalist very confidently stated that it looks like a dead elephant. Everyone in the boat felt a bit sad on hearing it. But like as if a miracle happened the elephant moved as soon as it heard the sound of our boat and started standing up. Everyone including the naturalist were so relieved and happy to see the elephant hale and hearty. There was almost a round of applause from everyone in the boat. The naturalist was still sheepish about how quickly he concluded it was dead but not his fault, it really looked like that till it moved.
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We moved a lot closer now and the elephant was definitely not pleased. Its body language was now quite evident. At this moment it did a very instinctive action. It kicked as if it was kicking an invisible football. It was a mild warning to all of us that if you come any near, this is the fate you will meet.
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It started moving into the water. We thought it now got used to our presence so was going to chill in the water.
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Suddenly, it takes this posture. Now what does this mean? Surrender or getting into the hostile position, like how karate or kungfu fighters do?
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We had enough of this elephant so we moved on from here, not before we had one last look.
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This Stork has really expressive eyes.
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We moved on from here as soon as the naturalist received information about a tiger being sighted at the old bridge. Now what is this old bridge? There is a dilapidated bridge now in the Kabini reservoir and according to the naturalist this was once a route for plying between this area and Kerala, used long back before the declaration of this forest as a tiger reserve.

This is the bridge, now dilapidated. I would definitely love to hear stories from people here who probably belong to that generation when this was functional. Must have been a mighty adventurous route.
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We moved ahead as the tiger that was supposedly here had moved inside and probably would emerge from the other side. As we were moving further, we noticed this area that looked like a grassland and surely had a strong vibe of a tiger presence.
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I did tell my wife to watch out as it really was a great place for a tiger. Then we saw this uprooted tree and... voila!!! This was a young male, don't know the age in years but had a injury just behind her ears on the neck.
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It looked like as if a King sitting on his throne.
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It waited for some time, watching us and moved in to those grasses.
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Now we thought of keeping a watch on the grasssland area because it went in there and might emerge from somewhere else.

My wife who's normally good with directions (no pun intended!) was trying to predict that it would surely come out of the grass and I too felt so. And like we were hoping, this majestic creature could be seen emerging from these tall grass. This was probably our best sighting of all safaris because the colour of the landscape, the early morning sun, the water, everything was picture perfect. The tiger was moving and coming near the water now and while doing so it kept an eye on us but it knew we were harmless. Enough of my commentary as I definitely can't put my feelings in words here as these moments will forever remain etched in my memory.

Spotted by wifey first!
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That stare!
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Okay, I need to cool off now!
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Argh! These people are here again!
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Please go now!
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This was an amazing moment for all of us. The best sighting of our entire trip.
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Overall, I must say that the boat safari turned out to be our best safari, even though we may have seen Blackie in our first safari and that would always be special but this boat safari had so many stories going. I wonder if even a National Geographic team would get so many stories for its documentary in a single day.

Our return to JLR was a quiet ride back. Everyone probably happy, stunned, releived and what not to have witnessed such an incredible safari. As for me and wifey, we couldn't ask for more. Right from our first safari to our last one, every safari had a huge cat sighting and other experiences. We are the same couple who did 9 safaris in Bijrani and Dhikala zones of Corbett nearly a decade ago and didn't see a single big cat and had seen a tiger and leopard in Pench, just once before we came here. We knew it was all about luck but never imagined we would get so lucky in Kabini. I can go on and on but no words or photos can justify how successful and wonderful our Kabini sojourn was.

contd...

Last edited by saleem_k : 14th May 2021 at 20:37.
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Old 12th May 2021, 23:53   #6
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Day 4 - Thursday - Kabini Boat Safari ends and Journey to Wild Planet Resort

Some sights while returning from the boat safari.

Another croc, a decently sized one at that.
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Wild Boars running wild. These are often underestimated because afterall they are pigs but let me tell you, these have immense strength and are considered to be quite intelligent too.
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Morning meeting of the Gaurs.
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If there are no sightings, you can just enjoy such landscapes when doing the boat safari. Nothing to lose frankly speaking when you take one.
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S21 Ultra has an amazing camera and this pic was taken with it at 3x zoom.
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Just taking in the moments. Notice the empty seats behind us, the boat was only about 60% occupied so we could breathe a little easy in times of covid.
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Happy and contented after a successful safari and a sumptuous breakfast.
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This ended our successful sojourn in Kabini!

Our next destination was the Wild Planet Resort in Devala, which lies near the border of TN and Kerala. This was a destination where we wanted to just relax and have fun inside the resort and explore the possibility of going to Ooty if possible. But we never stepped outside the resort as it had so much going.

I did a lot of research on this resort named as Wild Planet Resort. It came across as a very different kind of resort, even in terms of where it is located and what it offered. However, for both me and wifey, it was about the drive. It showed 4 hours and was passing through Bandipur and Mudumulai forests. What more could we ask for! Well, why did we take the route via Bandipur and Mudumulai although this was an hour longer than the other route via Kerala? That's because we took the e-pass to enter TN from near Mudumulai check post and there were some restrictions in going from Kerala as we were told that they might ask us our RT-PCR reports. While we did carry our negative reports with us, this day we were out of the 72-hour test range. That's why we took this longer route. But did not regret it one bit. Here are some pics from the scenic drive.

Starting from Kabini with our car all loaded.
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Passing through the mini hairpins in Bandipur.
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Soon, we crossed the TN border near the Mudumalai checkpost where we had to produce our e-pass and they noted down the details. This checkpost is after one crosses the Bandipur forest. We reached this where turning left would take one towards Ooty and right towards Mudumalai. We had to take right and pass through the Mudumalai forest. Passing through this stretch was a bliss. The river was passing all along, till almost this route ended.

I really really loved the landscape here.
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In Mudumalai, we could stop here and there, although I think it's risky but this was my first time on these roads and I just couldn't resist the temptation of capturing the car on these roads.
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We could spot these just beside the road in Mudumalai. We did not get down but took these pics from the car.
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The sights were too good. I enjoyed these roads a little too much as I was driving quite slow to take in the experience.
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The last stretch of around 5-6kms when nearing the Wild Planet Resort is quite bad. Later when we asked the relationship manager, assigned to us in the resort, as to why the approach road is so bad he told us about how the resort is on the border so no one really takes responsibility of laying a road and getting permissions is a pain. But this does add a certain sense of adventure and charm of reaching this resort.

This was one decent stretch of road, just before the resort.
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Our room was in the midst of the jungle here and we were welcomed by its inhabitants, the Nilgirl Langur and our friend who continued to accompany us from Kabini, the Malabar Giant Squirrel. Over the course of the next 3 days we watched these guys and their friends around here, many times. Afterall, we are the guests here!
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We ended our day with dinner later that night. I'll talk a little more about the resort in the next post, as some things are quite unique here.

End of Day 4

contd...

Last edited by saleem_k : 14th May 2021 at 16:36.
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Old 13th May 2021, 19:36   #7
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Day 5 (Friday) - Day 6 (Saturday) - Stay in Wild Planet Resort

We woke up on the 5th day of our trip in this wonderful resort. This was the view from our room.
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Before going into our schedule let me talk a bit about this resort from my perspective because all other information about the resort can be found in their website.

First, I'll talk about the location. This is in the middle of reserve forests of Wayanad and Mudumulai and therefore has a great advantage in terms of location. It's about 2 hours from Ooty but going in and out of the resort is a bit of a pain. The last 5-6 kms of the resort is a climb and then descent once we reach their parking. Our Ecosport handled the roads well but I did not exceed 20kmph for the majority of this stretch. However, I must say that while leaving the resort there was a Honda City in front of us and we couldn't keep up with it on these roads so probably just me being extra careful on these roads.

One more peculiarity of the resort is that they have vehicles internally to take people to and from their rooms, depending on where one is put up inside the resort, also one needs to use transport to go to other parts of the resort, which you will see later in the pics. We were put up in a log cabin which was away from the main resort, which has reception and dining area so everytime we wanted to go out, unless we were prepared to walk, we had to take the vehicle.

The first morning here, we went for a short trek nearby and the trek was through a tea garden. Waiting for the vehicle to pick us up as this requires going out of the resort nearby.
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There is this beautiful small pond, just beside the road from our stay to the main road of this resort. It is a lovely spot as you can see.
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It is a steep climb and by the time we reached the top, we were all sweaty but the views were worth it.
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The feeling once we reached the top was exhilarating. As I mentioned in my first post, we did plan for the Kudremukh trek but it couldn't happen so this was probably a 10% consolation for not being able to do that. :-)
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Tired and with the Sun beating down right on our faces it wasn't easy to pose here but look behind us, you can see the resort.
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We were here for some time, taking pics, admiring the views, the clouds that appeared below our level and of course just the feeling of reaching the top. We started our descent after spending about 20-25 minutes at this spot. While the climb wasn't easy and we expected that, the descent was a lot more troublesome because of the slippery muddy patches at most places. This took a lot of toll on our trousers, which were left with red mud by the time we reached the starting point of this trek.

While descending my wife tried her hand at gathering the tea leaves. Not an easy job in spite of these tools that they have. Better than handpicking though.
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Almost there!
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So this was the hill we trekked. Doesn't seem too bad but appearances can be deceptive.
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We all got into the bus and directly went for breakfast as the time was past 9AM and the dining would be open only till 10AM. After breakfast we were dropped off at our room. We decided to spend the rest of the day in the room and then go for lunch and the jungle walk later in the afternoon as it starts at 3PM.

Did some photography around our room. Like I said earlier, this place is still a jungle so lot of birds and animals around. Some of them captured.
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The jungle walk was a revelation. Mr. Mahesh the naturalist here seems to have done this often but his enthusiasm to teach us about ecology, preserving the balance and where do we as humans fall into this food chain was very thought-provoking to say the least. He explained the type of forest it was, why do the trees go so tall, why there is little to no grass and how termites are as important as any other living beings. For us, this was the best part of our stay here so I would highly recommend folks to do this activity. Thankfully we were a group of just 7 people so it was not a crowded walk. A good tip I can give you is that we heard that weekends it's usually crowded (up to 25-30 people) and the jungle walk can be less immersive so see if you can go for this walk when there is a smaller group. Also, there will be a lot of leeches but the resort provides protective shoes that cover up to the knee so should not be a problem.

Some pics from this walk.
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The wonderful Mr. Mahesh!
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I never knew Ferns had seeds underneath their leaves and that is how they propagate and spread.
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After we returned from the jungle walk, we decided to explore the resort on foot. One best feature of this resort is this wonderful bridge that connects some cottages to the main reception area. Very scenic and we didn't let go off the opportunity to take some pics on this bridge. Also, the hill that you see behind is the same one where we trekked to, this morning.
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On the bridge now and as you can see in the background there is a beautiful lake in this resort and the most preferred spot in the evening as most activities like Kayaking and fishing and also adventure and sport activities are around this lake. You can go their in their vehicle or on foot, we preferred to explore the resort so decided to march down till that lake.
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That blue patch we are looking at is the swimming pool but it was not functional due to Covid regulations.
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These stairs connect to the swimming pool area and then a little further down you are at the lake and snacks counter.
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Finally reached the lake. We were stopping at various places for pics, on our way down. Did kayaking, had a few snacks here where the evening snack counter is, and went back to the room.
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This was the 5th day of our trip and well-spent, exploring most of the resort. The activities at the resort are enough to keep you occupied for 2 days. In case you are going to stay here for more than 2days/3 nights then you should plan for some other places around or if one is just looking to relax, you have ample opportunities and sights at this resort to never bore you.

End of Day 5 - Friday

contd...

Last edited by saleem_k : 14th May 2021 at 10:49.
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Old 13th May 2021, 20:59   #8
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Day 5 (Friday) - Day 6 (Saturday) - Stay in Wild Planet Resort contd...

Today was Day 6 - Saturday. This day would be our last day at the resort as we would be checking out on Sunday. After our morning safaris in Kabini and the morning trek the previous day, we decided to wake up slighly late today. However, we still had to call the vehicle and go for our breakfast atleast by 9AM so we enjoyed the morning time in our balcony and then headed for breakfast. Today we wanted to keep it completely relaxed as the last few days had been hectic. So we decided to just do one activity today starting afternoon and then go and play a game of basketball. However, we were in for excitement in the morning after we returned from breakfast. We had called for room service and this guy came and was cleaning our room while we were in the balcony. There is another similar room nearby and it was vacant so this guy for some reason was going there too in between.

Suddenly he tells us that there is a snake nearby. I was so excited because I love seeing snakes in their natural habitat so me who was sitting in the balcony area clicking some pictures just ran barefoot when he was taking us to see the snake. Surely there was a juvenile snake that was prancing here and there, quite furiously. It looks like a Checkered Keelback but I'm not an expert so please help identify the snake.
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As you can see this is the path we take to and from the room so this one was right on the path. But the surprising thing was there were two other snakes that were enjoying the water bath in a small concrete structure created just beside this path to regulate the flow of water. It was quite difficult to take photos as they were moving quite fast and one was on the path and I was barefoot. Plus this is an area covered by a lot of trees so the lighting was really bad.

As you can see, they were in a playful mood.
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This one pic I took with the flash on as I wasn't getting a good pic. I don't use flash with wildlife but made an exception this time.
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As I mentioned in my Kabini part, this trip we were hoping to see the Malabar Giant Squirrel and break our jinx of not getting a good view of it till date. Till now, we had an abundance of sightings of this wonderful animal. It gave us company right through our stay here in Wild Planet, not to mention the sighting in almost every safari in Kabini.
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We also saw the Malabar Grey Hornbill. This was playing hide and see since the previous day and I was waiting patiently for it to come into the clearing for a decent shot and it finally obliged.
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I must mention here that I'm not sure what relationship, if any, do the Hornbill and the Giant Squirrel share because I noticed that the squirrel would suddenly become all alert and immobile and stay at one place whenever the hornbill became active. Do hornbills prey on these squirrels? Not sure but the squirrel sure looked terrified whenever the hornbill was around.

Later went off-roading in their 4*4 quad bikes. This is a charged activity and a bit expensive but it was fun riding this on their adventure trails. They have 3 packages and we chose the adventure package, which was the most expensive. This package will take you into their coffee plantation trails and other trail nearby. Just a 15-20 minute activity but loads of fun.

One has to come to the parking lot in their usual vehicle first. There they pad us up with all the safety gear and they help us practice the controls in this open area first before starting the ride.
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After this fun, we went to the lake area again and walked around a bit, clicking a few photographs. Before this me and wifey also had a basketball competition on who scores the most free baskets. Obviously, I lost!

Would have loved to encounter either one but we weren't so lucky this time. Good for us maybe!
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We wanted to end our day and stay at this location, sitting and doing nothing, just enjoying the cool breeze, the moving clouds and a serene ambience overall. I loved this entire area, greenery, water stream, lake and a unique view.

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A panoramic view.
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Pondering what else is in store for us tomorrow for our drive and the next resort, we ended our day.
End of day 6

contd...
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Old 14th May 2021, 13:47   #9
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Day 7 - Sunday - Check-out from Wild Planet and Journey to RiverMist Resort

Today we had a drive of nearly 8.5 hours from here to RiverMist resort in Mudigere near Chikmagalur.

Previous evening we were deciding on which route to take. There are a couple of routes, one would take us through Kerala via Wayanad district and we would enter Karnataka from Coorg district. The other route is the same one going via Mudumalai and Bandipur but after Bandipur it would the normal boring route. Also, this route was about 30kms extra but was taking around the same time as the other route through Kerala. Our concern was about we being stopped at the Kerala border in case they require RT-PCR report to enter Kerala as that is what we heard around that time. After much contemplation we decided to be adventurous and take the Kerala route. We thought of telling them that we were just passing through and show them our booking of our next resort, in case required.

Before we started, we went to the reception area, had breakfast, completed our check-out formalities and we were dropped at the parking area. We realized that our car was washed and cleaned and I really felt good about it because it was looking all dusty when we had parked it there. We tipped the security, thanked him and moved on. It was nearly 10AM by the time we started from here.

All through I didn't get a clear shot of the Nilgiri Langur till this day but today morning it probably knew we were leaving and graced us with a clear shot. It probably wanted to soak in the morning sun.
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The road towards Kerala border is very scenic and all through we noticed huge tea gardens. Probably this side of TN, is all about tea gardens and of course the roads were smooth. We didn't stop for too many pics.
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Looks like a school. What a location!!!
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Soon we were entering Kerala and we braced ourselves for the impact of being stopped or rerouted but surprisingly no one stopped us. We didn't see any police in the first place, neither any barricades and just like that we were now in Kerala's Wayanad district. Heaved a sigh of relief and we were glad we took this route, which was treating us to some magnificent views. Soon, we stopped for a fuel as well as bathroom break.

Even a fuel pump looks scenic in Kerala!
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Somewhere in Wayanad.
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On the way, still in Wayanad hills.
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Soon, we were crossing Tholpetty sanctuary and I've been there twice so it was good to see this place again. We soon crossed this stretch and I've never passed this point before so I wasn't aware that Coorg district border is so near to Tholpetty.

Now the biggest surprise awaited. We saw barricades and we were stopped. The twist in the tale was that there were orders from Coorg's District Magistrate that those entering Coorg district need to have a COVID negative report within 72 hours. When we entered Kerala we thought our worries could be put aside but we never anticipated this unpleasant surprise. There was this guy who was stopping everyone and was asking for the report. He wasn't friendly to be frank and was quite rude with everyone, probably frustrated with his job of stopping everyone and exposing himself to the risk. He tried to be the same with us but we explained him how we aren't stopping in Coorg and showed him our booking as well. It wasn't working as he wasn't reasoning and was quite adamant on letting us go through. He suggested, we go back about 10 minutes where they were doing the antigen test and we would be given the report in 10-15 minutes, else we take a different route that avoided Coorg district altogether but this was not practical at this point. While we told him how we started the trip on Monday, have the report from last Sunday, he said he needed one within 72 hours. I was getting frustrated a bit and I went to the car, took out the reports that we were carrying and put them in front of him and showed him and also told him that we were in a resort where it was difficult to get any test done. He scanned the reports and then asked me to accompany him to where some officials were sitting beyond the barricades. He thankfully obliged and asked for details for entering. One of the officials asked him if we have the report and he nodded yes and so after entering the details he let us go and we thanked him for understanding us. Now that we were in Karnataka, there was no worry of crossing any state border so we were a lot more relaxed

Coorg is quite scenic and has some beautiful roads and coffee and pepper plantations all along. We stopped at quite a few places just for some car pics.
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I was the most relieved though!
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We crossed the Coorg district too by around 3PM and we were still a little over 3 hours away from our destination. We also couldn't find good eating joints after we crossed Coorg so we decided that if we find some good place we'll have lunch else have evening snacks at the resort. Surely we couldn't find any decent places but since we were crossing quite a lot of snacks they kept us going and we never really missed lunch. The roads were also quite empty and I was a bit surprised because it was a Sunday and I expect more traffic but overall we were covering our distance well and while it showed nearly 8.5 hours in the beginning, it looked like we'll be able to cover in a little under 8 hours.

Some scenic places after we crossed Coorg district.
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After some spirited driving in the curvy sections post Sakleshpur, we finally reached the road that diverts from the main road to go in to the resort. Now let me tell you that the resort is located in a valley between the mountains and lies in the foothills of the Kudremukh range. It's a realatively new resort and Netravati river flows through this resort.

It was a bit of deja vu for us because again the last 3 kms of the approach road wasn't great. But let me tell you, we had to take a lift in a BMW (older version) from a gentleman who was a guest at the resort. More on this story later but my point is that this car with 4 people on board made it to the resort without a single underbody hit. So the road wasn't bad, it was just those couple of sections where it's a driving test.

Still about a km away from the resort.
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This is how the road is for the majority of the last 3 kms.
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I was also excited about the stream crossing that we were told about and how it would be an easy one to handle. Surely the water was quite less and it was easy. We were recording the video so did not take any pics. But the pics below are screenshots from another video which we recorded later of the car separately. But just for illustration purpose I'm keeping them here.
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We reached the resort around 6PM. We were welcomed warmly with a drink and check-in formalities were also done quickly. The car and luggage was fumigated and then I handed over the car keys to the person their who would park it in their parking, which is a little further from the reception area. They warmly accommodated our evening snack request and provided room service too and I was suprised to see when we checked out that they did not charge for it. I believe more than money, it's the dedication of the resort staff to ensure that guests get a great experience, which makes this resort a special one.

Finally we checked into our room, it was very spacious and the balcony was quite spacious too and most importantly the view was wonderful.

View while going to our room.
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Our room with a wonderful view.
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We finally ended a slightly long drive day but eventful too to an extent. At the end of it, we were glad that we took the Kerala route and this enabled us to experience smooth roads and soak in all the greenery around us. which I'm sure the photos definitely cannot justify. This was our last leg of our trip and we wanted to just relax and do nothing here.

End of Day 7

contd...

Last edited by vb-saan : 16th May 2021 at 14:24. Reason: As requested
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Old 14th May 2021, 15:01   #10
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Day 8 (Monday) - Day 9 (Tuesday) - Our Stay at RiverMist

We started our Day 8 (Monday) with a jungle walk. I did not have the Monday morning blues anymore. I must tell you that this resort is quite blessed by its location. It's on the foothills of Kudremukh range and the the Netravati river originates nearby and flows through the resort. Therefore the resort organizes both a jungle walk and a river walk.

Our first day here we wanted to do the jungle walk. Ideally this was the day when we had planned for our Kudremukh trek because we thought we'll get Tuesday to rest, before we drive back to Hyderabad on Wednesday but since that trek was cancelled due to forest fires, we now had the entire Monday to ourselves. You can read about the Kudremukh trek in many websites online. It's a full day trek and requires prior permission and due to covid only about 50 people were being allowed per day till it was open. Normally it's 100 persons per day, is what I heard. I coordinated with the contact person in RiverMist all through and he had made all the arrangements but unfortunately it didn't work out. Man proposes, God disposes!

A short overview of the resort.

The main resort area that has reception and dining areas, also has indoor and outdoor games nearby.
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The room in which we stayed is to the extreme right.
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Car Parking
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Back to the jungle walk, we were just 5 people including the naturalist. The trek started smoothly but soon we were crossing the river and at one place it was quite difficult and wifey was really uncomfortable here but with encouragement and support, she was able to cross over to the other side without getting her feet wet. Then we went inside the jungle. There is a route earmarked and a limit up till where we can go as it falls under the purview of a reserve forest. We reached a point where tea and biscuits were arranged and we had to return from there in a slightly different route which did not entail crossing the river again.

A snail that we came across just outside our room, when going for the jungle walk.
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Mini waterfall behind us.
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A funnel spider. It's inside but we didn't wait for it to come out.
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Less crowd here too, for the jungle walk.
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We came back from the jungle walk, and went straight for breakfast. Done with this, we retired to our room. When I checked in, I noticed there were quite a few dry branches and barks where birds could be spotted and so we decided to stick to our balcony and do some photography till lunch time. We were not disappointed. If the names of the birds aren't right, please do share the correct ones as I'm still learning to identify them.

Red-vented Bulbul
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Now with family!
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Racquet-tailed Drongo. I actually have a much better video than a photograph of this one.
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Can someone help identify this one?
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And this one too!
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Scarlet Minivet
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Also, there was an Eagle flying nearby. It found a sweet spot to land and this was perfectly at our eye level from the balcony. Got a decent shot of this one too.
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Took off, just then!
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I was satisfied with what I could capture and our next activity was going to the Rani Jhari waterfalls and the view point. This is very near to the resort but requires a jeep as the roads are not great to reach these places. We took a jeep, it was raining earlier in the afternoon and was still drizzling when we were boaring our jeep. Unfortunately the jeep brokedown due to some short circuit around the battery area. As this breakdown happened just near the road that goes in towards the resort, a couple of folks who had accompanied us because they had to be dropped off at a coffee shop nearby where they had parked their car the previous night. Yes, these were the guys in the BMW and since they had reached the place after sunset, they were asked to park their car at this coffee shop for the night, take the jeep and then bring the car over the next day. When our jeep brokedown these guys were just behind us and they stopped to help the jeep but then later some others who were friends of the jeep driver also came to help him but we decided to come back to the resort s it was getting late. Therefore, we missed this waterfalls and view point. Talking about the BMW car of those who helped us get back to the resort, the car didn't touch its bottom anywhere with 4 people in it but the credit also goes to the driver who drove with a lot of skill. It also easily crossed the stream and we were back to the resort. We then explored the resort, played TT and carroms before retiring for the day, after our lunch.

This area has the swimming pool, which is now closed and also a lot of open area where they arrange bonfire in the evening. A nice place to relax, soak in the views and do nothing!
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The view!
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Evening coffee was a perfect complement to the view here!
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Day 9 - Tuesday - River Walk

This day we wanted to do the river walk, which is a short trek all along the river stream that flows through the resort. The last two days, it rained decently, especially the previous night when we were woken up by lightning and thunder at around 4AM. So the next day the naturalist told us that the water level is slightly higher than yesterday but nothing to worry about. This time we had another 2-3 families joining us so we had a decent crowd of about ten people. We went the same route as morning but this time we went deeper inside along the river stream crisscrossing it multiple times and it wasn't easy as at least at a couple of places we either had to take a mini leap of faith or just put our feet in water and move on. Of course, this also meant we had to take care of the slippery rocks. Also, I was carrying the DSLR on a tripod so that complicated things for me at difficult points during this trek but both me and wifey did it with no tumbles. Nevertheless, we moved on as the jungle looked great from here.
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It wasn't as simple as it looks here. Unfortunately a couple of young ladies who were also trekking with our group fell either into the water or slipped and hurt themselves on the rocks, during this trek.
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This is called Damsel Fly. There were a lot here.
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This is the point till where the trek is possible. After this there is a big drop and no other path to go down further.
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We came back up till a certain point with the group and then the naturalist told us that if we wanted, we can spend some time here and come leisurely as we had crossed the difficult parts of the stream crossings already. We decided to take up that offer and spent some time here just enjoying the views and did a bit of photography before returning to our room.
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We noticed this beautiful crab very near to us, as we were thinking of taking off our shoes and dipping our feet in the water. We decided not to.
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This is the favourite spot for many here in the resort as it's a slightly steep fall and the water at the bottom is not very deep. Also, there is a place to get your feet wet, when at the top. I tried some waterfall photography here trying to get that velvety effect with long exposure on a tripod.
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It wasn't easy setting up the tripod for 10 seconds timer and then reaching and posing beside my wife, in that rocky terrain.
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The best part about this walk is that this is exclusive to the resort so no issues of over crowding or other disturbances. What made the trek a little interesting was the fact that after 2 consecutive rains, leeches came up. This is the first time I was seeing a leech in-person and suddenly during our river walk, we realized there were a little too many for our comfort. As we were covered with shoes and a full length trousers, we did not worry but they still were climbing onto others' shoes. Our naturalist came trekking in floaters and he did fall prey to one of the leeches but he just used his hand to get rid of it. I realized later that I was a bit worried seeing them and I didn't click even a single pic of them. Too bad! After spending nearly a couple of hours trekking and then doing photography and all that, we went back to our room to freshen up and take rest.

As this was our last night here in RiverMist, we relaxed most of the evening, again just exploring the resort, taking a walk and nothing much. We realized that our wonderful trip was coming to an end and soon, it will be back to the grind but we didn't wanted this feeling to spoil our last evening here so we enjoyed the cool breeze and later bonfire after our dinner, before going back to our room to complete our packing.

The reason why we didn't explore other places in Chikmagalur is because this resort is towards the Kudremukh range, which is about 1.5hrs away from the main Chikmagalur and another half an hour to other popular spots like Mulayanagiri peak, Hirekolale lake, etc. We didn't wanted to drive so much again and also because we heard these places are usually crowded and with COVID around, we thought it was fine to skip these for now. Strangely, both times I've been to Chikmagalur, I've never been to these usual tourist spots. Hopefully, I'll cover them next time.

End of Day 9

contd...

Last edited by Aditya : 16th May 2021 at 05:42. Reason: Number plate masked
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Old 14th May 2021, 18:41   #11
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Day 10 - Wednesday - Last Day & Return to Hyderabad

Today morning we were all set for our ride to Hyderabad. Google maps was showing us around 14.5 hours. The route shown was via Chikmagalur town, Hiriyur and after bypassing Challakere, it was taking us through some interior villages along the Karnatak-AP border and then we would emerge in Ananthapur district on the AP side. Here we would meet the Bangalore-Hyderabad highway and then straight to Hyderabad. I knew most of this route because last time too we passed Hiriyur and took the same route, so I was aware of how this route is. Frankly speaking the road is even better this time around as some under-construction roads have been laid.

We had early breakfast at around 8:30AM and by around 9:15AM, we were all set to start from the resort.
A road-trip to the forests & mountains!-_mg_9247.jpg

Notice the tripod? Only after we reached Hyderabad did we realize that we left our tripod that same place. The resort confirmed with us later but then I told them to keep it and give it to the naturalist. The boy was super helpful and hardworking and can make good use of it. While the resort was still ready to courier it back to us, I decided to leave it at that and not cause them such trouble.
A road-trip to the forests & mountains!-_mg_9246.jpg


Since we were rejoining office only on Monday, we were a bit relaxed as we didn't have any time to beat. Therefore we decided on doing one thing. We heard a lot about Siri Coffee so we wanted to visit this place, have some coffee and then proceed to our destination. The good thing was that we had to deviate just about 10 minutes from our route and it was perfectly fine with us. We bid adieu to the resort staff who were so hospitable and lovely.

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As you can see, the resort is in a valley and we realized we were climbing up. At one spot, you could see the resort to your left at a lower altitude.
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As we emerged from their interior roads and came onto the main road from where we had to take a right on the highway, we noticed the Rani Jhari Coffee Shop. It's a popular place as per what I heard so we stopped their and shopped for some tea, coffee and spices for us and our extended families. We wanted to complete this activity so that we don't have to stop anywhere and search again. Also, we were not sure if Siri Coffee would have the stock we need.

I felt a little sad that we were returning and I stopped everywhere I could to savour in these wonderful sights on these amazing winding roads.
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No, I don't want to go home so soon!
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We stopped at Siri Coffee shop.
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Unfortunately, apart from simple snacks they didn't have anything good to eat. The coffee was wonderful though.
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We ate whatever we could get here because we knew were were in for a long haul and would not find a decent place till we hit Blr-Hyd highway. Also, we were carrying snacks so food or water wasn't a worry.

As we got down from the hills of Chikmagalur, seeing these clouds we felt that it was going to rain down really hard today on Chikmagalur. At that moment we realized that the only one thing missing from our trip was a ride in the rain, which unfortunately never happened.
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Somewhere before crossing into AP we stopped to refuel and take a loo break. It was already around 4PM. As we crossed into Anantapur district, we saw the familiar sight of these windmills. The place is infested with these.
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Also, in one of the villages, there was some huge religious gathering. As this was the next day of Ugadi, must have been some local village festival but it was scary to see so many of them, easily around 5-6k on the road. We were a bit tensed as it could have been a traffic jam in midst of the crowd during COVID but thankfully the traffic police was doing it's job and in just 10-minutes we were out of this crowd. Soon we touched the Blr-Hyd highway and now it was another 5+ hours to reach our home.

While we were exiting the Anantapur district, we stopped for food in this hotel called Hotel Blue Moon. We were at this hotel the last time around as well and this time too we thought of taking a break here. It was around 6:15PM. We noticed that we were the only folks at that point in time and since we didn't have proper lunch, we decided to have early dinner here so that we don't have to stop again. This hotel is quite neat, their washrooms are also really well-maintained. Definitely a go-to, if you are traveling to Hyderabad.
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We completed dinner by 7PM and started for home. Thankfully the traffic was sparse on this highway all through till Hyderabad, which is usually not the case. I was able to rip through most of this stretch with ease. Google maps at this point of time was showing 12AM as arrival time. I do not advice high-speed or rash driving but in our case, the roads were empty and whenever we saw a town or village or a junction approaching we slowed down considerably. We took one short break just about 2 hours from Hyderabad. We needed to stretch our legs.
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Finally we were home by around 11:15PM.

When we reached home we realized how all through we were so lucky with our drives and experiences, thanked God for protecting us all through this journey and keeping us safe.

While this concludes my travelogue, I would want to share a few things.
1. The best time to go to Kabini is after the moonsoon till March. But we felt April to May could also be a good time considering there are high chances of sighting around the waterholes. However, if you don't enjoy dry forests don't go in summer months.

2. 300mm is inadequate for bird photography especially if the subject is small or quite far. If you are going on a safari a minimum of 400mm would be wonderful to carry.

3. It's difficult to ride for 8 hours in hilly terrain. It's not equal to riding 8 hours from Hyderabad to Bangalore. So my advice is, if you are traveling between multiple destinations in your trip and if the route is expected to be ghat sections or other hilly terrains, keep it to 5 hours max. Again, car and the age of the driver, driving experience, etc. would be variables determining this but I would still suggest limiting it to 5 hours.

4. Since this is a car forum I would be seriously remiss if I didn't mention about the performance of the car. If I could just use on word, it would be 'flawless'. We didn't face any troubles, specially considering we took it on really bad terrain, both in Wild Planet and in RiverMist resorts. So hats off to Ford for such a competent and reliable product. The car is now touching nearly 84K on its odo. No troubles with the car.... touchwood!

5. Also, we realized that unless one is going off-road, 4*4 is really not required and also with careful driving one can negotiate bad roads as we saw in the case of a Honda City and BMW, of course higher clearance means more peace of mind. In our experience with roads near Wild Planet and RiverMist resorts we didn't require 4*4 capability to negotiate these steep climbs or bad roads. BUT if these same roads had slush, then without 4*4 it would be a struggle, especially in monsoon season.

6. One mistake we did is we packed heavy considering it's summer and 10days trip so we carried extra clothes just in case we would be getting sweaty frequently. We carried huge suitcases that we usually carry for international trips. We didn't have to. Instead of 2 big suitcases, we could have used 3 smaller ones. Also, we didn't travel light. Lesson learnt, one can manage if one can carry more jeans as trousers as these can be repeated.

7. I'm still learning photography and names of birds and wild animals so pardon me if I mentioned anything incorrectly. I would be glad to learn the correct names and at the same time would be wonderful if people can share their photography tips as well.

All in all, every trip is a lesson for us travelers. These were some things we learnt and will work on it. I hope you all had a great time reading through and I would be happy to receive feedback, comments, suggestions and of course names of birds wherever applicable. If you have any questions or need contacts for any of these places/resorts, I will be happy to provide as well.

*The End*

Last edited by saleem_k : 14th May 2021 at 22:48.
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Old 15th May 2021, 00:30   #12
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re: A road-trip to the forests & mountains!

Note from Support: Thread moved from the Assembly Line to the Travelogues section. Thanks for sharing!
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Old 15th May 2021, 06:23   #13
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re: A road-trip to the forests & mountains!

You really had a long drive to all the good places! Amazing drive, amazing places, amazing views and and an amazing vehicle!
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Old 15th May 2021, 13:02   #14
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Re: A road-trip to the forests & mountains!

Travelling in summer is one hell of a deal, you nailed it and how! This tour de force will set a new precedent for amateurs like me to follow. Amazed at the effort you took to bring out the beauty of South India, by including those macro shots. Thank you for sharing pics, experience and that parting advice. Much appreciated!
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Old 15th May 2021, 16:31   #15
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Re: A road-trip to the forests & mountains!

Those photos are very impressive!
For identifying birds, you can try out this app called Merlin Bird ID. You can download the region packs to get the pictures or you can just use the photo ID function to upload a photo and it’ll give you the name of the bird.
Cheers!
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