by Duncan Stewart and Tom Mills (Winchester College students)
Since its founding in 1870, there has been just one previous overseas Winchester College
Natural History Society trip, to Israel in 1994. In association with Naturetrek, our
excellent local wildlife travel firm, we had started planning for the India trip way
back in May 2007, so at the beginning of leave-out this term, all fourteen participants
were more than a little excited!
After a final kit check on the Friday morning, we headed for Heathrow. A few miles
up the M3, Mr Woolley realised he had forgotten to put Ms Casson’s bag in the van
– a great example to everyone! Miss Davenport averted disaster and came to the rescue
at the services….
We arrived in Delhi at 0530 local time, in the dark. Sniffing the city’s sulphurous
smog, we quickly met Bunty Mandhyan, our local guide for the trip, and transferred
to a plush hotel, where we spent the morning recovering. Breakfast was the first of
many curry-based meals during our stay in India, after which we contented ourselves
variously with sleeping, swimming or birding in the hotel garden - the keenest naturalists
(the insomniac Tom Mills and Duncan Stewart) were soon “ticking” new species – parakeets,
mynahs and drongoes.
We went for an afternoon drive around New Delhi, en route to the railway station.
Edward Lutyens’ India Gate, government buildings and Rashtrapati Bhavan (the presidential
palace) were all duly admired. Delhi is a smart city by Indian standards, but it is
still very different to anything back in Britain. Its crowded, chaotic roads are dominated
by small green-and-yellow motor rickshaws which travel at amazing speeds, honking
their horns continuously. The sky is filled with clouds of Black Kites, soaring on
thermals above the city scanning for scraps. Beggars, hawkers and assorted animal-drawn
carts throng the tarmac.
Indian rail transport formed one of the most memorable experiences of the trip. At
the station, a horde of red-clad porters descended on us and snatched up our bags,
each carrying one on their head and two on their arms (65kg+ each!). Stocking up with
snacks and water on the platform, we became acquainted with Hide and Seek biscuits
(“the world’s best moulded choc-chip cookies” – apparently), soon to become a staple
snackfood – Crispin White ate 783 packets and still has 34 in his toys. On the sleeper
train, we had a whole carriage to ourselves, bar two slightly bemused locals. Having
explored both the Indian- and Western-style loos (both of which consisted ultimately
of a hole leading straight down to the track), we ate dinner, were issued with bedding,
and attempted to get some sleep. Some fared better than others – the train swayed
alarmingly, so it depended on the orientation of your bunk! The breezy song of the
tea-wallah (“chai-chai, tomato-soup”) from 0630 woke us up nicely.
We soon arrived at Katni, in central Madhya Pradesh, and were greeted by a fresh crowd
of porters. Not too far outside of the town, we stopped our 4×4s at a reservoir to
do some birding. There was plenty to see – ducks, Spoonbill, larks, egrets and many
more. Even Mr Woolley, veteran of five previous trips to the subcontinent, had a “life-tick”,
in the form of Indian Courser. We continued through Umaria to the village of Tala,
the gateway to Bandhavgarh Tiger Reserve. Driving through rural India was yet another
new experience for us: green fields bursting with wheat, lentils and spinach; cows
and goats all over the streets when we passed through villages; a constant stream
of workshops, tyre repair outfits and what claimed to be hotels….we hoped ours was
a bit smarter.
It was! Tiger Trails consisted of a central dining area and lounge, surrounded by
comfortable bungalows, with a shady garden and pond. Post breakfast, we had the rest
of the morning to relax at the lodge or to explore the gardens and look for more birds.
After lunch, we climbed into open-top jeeps and set off on the first of our nine drives
in Bandhavgarh Tiger Reserve. The park is mostly covered by sal forest (sal is a deciduous
tree) with a bamboo understorey, but there are also open areas of grassland. The landscape
is quite hilly, and is dominated by the hill on which Bandhavgarh (or “Brothers’ Fort”)
itself stands. Mammal spotting started right away – we saw Sambar Deer, herds of Spotted
Deer, Wild Boar, Hanuman Langur monkeys and a multitude of bird species – Mottled
Wood Owl, Long-tailed Minivet and Tickell’s Thrush all got ticked off. But our main
target, of course, was the big stripy pussycat. We saw several large footprints (or
pugmarks) in the sand, and scratch marks that extended more than 12 feet up a tree!
But would we see one?
Spotted Deer
As sunset approached, all hell broke loose – one of our jeeps had caught a glimpse
of ‘B2’, the dominant male tiger in the reserve, disappearing into the undergrowth
some distance away. Trying to predict where the tiger would next show, we roared up
the track for a mile in a cloud of dust, and stopped to wait. Minutes seemed like
hours as more jeeps arrived at the scene, and we waited in suspense. Suddenly, the
face of the tiger appeared to our right, and B2 sauntered out of the bamboo towards
us, following a well-worn trail. The biggest tiger in the reserve, some 4m long, he
was an awesome beast. He sauntered past within 10m of us, as if he hadn’t even noticed
us, stopped to mark his territory, looked around once more, and was gone. What a rush!
Only 1400 tigers remain in the whole of India – we were so privileged.
We were buzzing when we arrived back at the lodge after dark. Not only had everyone
seen a tiger on our very first excursion in the park, but we had had one of the best
sightings imaginable. It was obvious that we were going to have four great days in
Bandhavgarh.
Tigress in Bandhavgarh National Park
Each morning, we got up at 0500 for a quick cup of tea, and then it was off in the
jeeps. Amazingly, all 14 Wykehamists made it out of bed, every day – but only just
in the case of Jamie Dick and Alex Wilkins! But we were rewarded – all our further
tiger sightings were during morning drives. One morning we got the chance to clamber
aboard elephants, joining their mahouts (handlers) for the amazing experience of point-blank
views of a huge, slumbering male tiger.
In between morning and afternoon drives, there was time to relax in the hammocks at
the lodge (for Rob ‘Rip van’ Selwyn especially), and to eat vast quantities of curry
– Freddy Hawkings was the undisputed champion, but James Thomas may have pipped him
on the hot chilli front. Other activities included visits to an ashram running an
afforestation programme; to Bijharia, the local village, and its school; a family
home (made of compressed cow dung bricks); shrines for the Hindu gods, on which offerings
are left daily; and the camp of the mahouts. They are each bonded for life to an elephant
which they train, look after and ride. This proved to be a memorable experience, especially
when the playful “baby” elephant, standing some 1.5m at the shoulder, decided to career
through our group and latch on to Alex Wilkins’ trousers with its trunk. Then, as
we were leaving, it charged full pelt after our jeeps – run away!
Between us, we saw eight tigers during our stay at Bandhavgarh, including a mother
and her three cubs. As well as the common mammals in the park mentioned earlier, we
also saw Golden Jackals, Ruddy Mongoose, Rhesus Macaques and several species of bat,
some of which we found in reserve’s ancient man-made caves. We saw over 180 species
of bird at Bandhavgarh, many of which were very colourful and impressive, and even
those who were ‘only interested in the big stuff’, such as Jason Wünscher and Alex
Wilkins, started to develop a real interest. Favourites included Indian Roller, Plum-headed
Parakeet, Yellow-footed Green Pigeon, Orange-headed Ground-thrush, Woolly-necked Stork
and Red-headed Vulture. Add in geckos, lizards, butterflies and plants, and this was
a fabulous all-round NHS trip.
Red-headed Vulture
Brown Fish Owl and Brown Shrike
On our final day, we visited the shrine of Vishnu, whose pool of water is a popular
bathing site for Tigers (but not today…), and managed to see some elusive Malabar
Pied Hornbills at the foot of the cliffs. But our time in this magical place was finally
up, and it was off to Umaria station, to catch a train to Agra.
After another night in one of India’s famous sleeper trains, we were pleased to find
that our hotel in Agra was rather swanky – the Hilton, no less. Agra is very different
to Delhi – it is a large city, but there is still livestock on the streets and very
poor housing. Because of all of its historical attractions, it is quite tourism-based,
and there were huge numbers of hawkers and beggars wherever we went.
On the way to Agra Fort, we stopped for lunch at a restaurant that Mr Woolley quickly
remembered for its fruit curry, some 14 years ago! He enquired and sure enough it
was still on the menu. We all tried it, and however strange the idea may have seemed,
it was actually quite tasty…. At the restaurant we met our guide, Sunny, who would
take us around various sites in Agra along with Bunty. Agra Fort is a huge building
made of the local red sandstone. We learnt plenty from Sunny about the fort’s history,
and had our first views of the Taj Mahal from the top, looking out across the Yamuna
River. Ed Orlik lowered the tone somewhat with his ‘amusing’ optical illusion photos,
but luckily George Bishop and his squirrel-charming act saved the day.
Over dinner, we were treated to a slightly cheesy but very entertaining magic show,
after which Sam Stafford perfected (and purchased) an Indian Rope Trick. On the way
back to the hotel we witnessed a wedding procession, an explosion of light, colour,
music and fireworks. Alex Carn was so engrossed that he narrowly missed being squashed
by a taxi.
The Taj Mahal is best in the morning light, so we left the hotel early the next day,
weaving through the hordes of street vendors to the monument’s security gate, where
everyone was frisked before entry. Having seen this magnificent monument from a distance
the day before, it was only now that we could fully appreciate its size and just why
it had taken 1000 elephants and 20,000 workers 22 years to build. We placed covers
over our shoes to explore the inside of the mausoleum, with its fine marble inlay
patterned walls, and then looked out over the river behind, where we actually saw
several new birds. Despite (or perhaps for the benefit of) the crowds of people, we
held a hot in front of the Taj just before leaving, which was worthwhile just for
the bemused looks! Josh Nightingale also recreated Princess Diana’s famous photo-opportunity
for us – it was uncanny.
After a huge buffet breakfast, we visited the ‘Baby Taj’, a smaller and older version
of its better-known counterpart, and then drove to Fatehpur Sikri, the 17th century
capital of the Mughal Empire, abandoned because of its insufficient water supply.
There were many impressive palaces, and a stunning view from the top of the walls.
As we left via the main gate late in the afternoon, an imam started his haunting call
to prayer from the minaret of the ancient mosque.
Back in Agra, we spent our last rupees on some trinkets in a small emporium (haggling
furiously) and caught the fast train to Delhi, which turned out to be not dissimilar
to our own British trains. Agra station, however, was not like a British one, and
we amused ourselves by watching dozens of fat rats, attracted by the faeces and rubbish
ejected from the trains.
We said our goodbyes to Bunty, who had been great fun and worked incredibly hard to
ensure our trip was a success, and finally left Delhi in the small hours, leaving
behind the smells, sights and people of India. Everyone was completely exhausted,
but we have brought back memories that will last a lifetime.
The trip was an amazing success, and everyone thoroughly enjoyed themselves. We are
all very grateful to Mr Woolley and Ms Casson, and everyone at Naturetrek and in India
who helped us. We hope there will be many successful Natural History Society trips
abroad in the future – if Mr Woolley and Ms Casson can face the risk assessments!
If you are part of a group, club or society Naturetrek can help arrange exclusive
wildlife holidays for you. More information can be found on the Private
Group Travel page or by emailing
David
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This picture is of my two kids and my three grandchildren at Legoland. Left to right: Glenda, Dee Dee, Nathan, Brandon, and Aidan.
