An Encounter with a Tiger – A life changing and unforgettable experience

Our CEO Ash recently visited India in pursuit of sighting the elusive tiger in Ranthambore National Park. Find out what he saw and if a‘Lucky Charm’ that he enlisted worked! 

We hope you enjoy reading all about his experience and if you feel inspired to plan a similar Tiger safari in India, we can create a bespoke itinerary for you.

I was born and raised in Kenya, a country blessed with so much natural beauty and host to some of the most spectacular wildlife in the world. Experiencing wildlife in its natural habitat is a privilege that everyone must have access to.

East Africa certainly has the greatest profusion of wildlife in the world; included in that vast population of game are some of the rarest wild cats. There is something special about cats in the wild: the rush of adrenaline that follows after spotting a pride of lions resting during the hot summer sun or a leopard dragging its prey up the tree has remained amongst the more special memories in all of my visits. It brings out an emotion that cannot be comprehended or expressed into words, it is simply magical.

The only big cat that is not to be found in Africa is the tiger.  And so a short trip to India was all I needed to find this majestic being. So I packed my bag and flew to Incredible India. 

Ranthambore was the promised land in my pursuit of the Bengal Tigers. I stayed at Vanyavilas, Ranthambore for two main reasons:

 

1. It is one of the nearest resorts to all the entry points of all 10 zones;
2. It is certainly one the best properties that I’ve EVER stayed at. The rooms, the food, the service are all absolutely sublime. Nothing is too much trouble. 

Safari Day 1:

Game Drive 1: You set off at 6.30am! Vanyavilas ensure that you have hot water bottles and blankets. They also pack hot tea/coffee and whatever you have asked for; they take your order the night before! 

Our very first safari (game drive) into the Ranthambore National Park begins. I had booked a Gypsy (the Indian equivalent of a Jeep Cherokee; except a Gypsy is open top and open sided). For my first game drive I was assigned zone number 10. Zone numbers 1 to 5 are considered better – but it really is pure chance. The naturalist is the leader and conducts the entire game drive (although he does leave the driving to a fully qualified and highly skilled driver).

The skills of these naturalists are beyond science; for example the naturalist that conducted our safari had 30 years experience in tracking tigers. The safaris in India are unlike an African game drive. In India, despite the skills of your naturalist, it was an entirely different experience where the emphasis is on tracking the animal. The population if Tigers in Ranthambore National Park (around 1500 Km2) is just over 80; so you can imagine you are entirely in the skillful hands of the Naturalist!

We left zone 10 at around 11am and by the time we got back to Vanyavilas it was 11.15. A quick (and light) lunch. 

Result: Nil points. Plenty of deer/antelopes but no tiger!

Game Drive 2: We gather at the front of the hotel at 2pm for the second game drive. This time it was zone number 3. As we sat hopefully in our cars and waited at the gates, we got flocked by the local street vendors selling merchandised products of the National park. (But I resisted stubbornly and perhaps regrettably!!…You’ll learn why later).

Soon the gates opened and our Gypsy throttled its way into the park, over its bumpy and dusty roads. The naturalist would respond to calls of birds and antelopes, make predictions with different directions and yet we returned without being blessed with any view.

By the time you get back to your hotel it is 6.15/6.30.

Result: Nil points. Plenty of deer/antelopes but no tiger!

Safari Day 2:

Game Drive 1: 6.30am. Zone 5 – here we come! The game drive this morning has been very varied. Plenty of game: crocodiles, bears, antelope but no tiger! After 12 hours of game drives, you start to wonder whether you’ll ever see a tiger. ‘Are there really any tigers here?’ You keep asking yourself.

Result: Deux points (out of ten). Two points because there is a greater variety of game but STILL no tiger!

Game Drive 2: 2pm. Zone 6 – my last game drive! We have to see the tiger this time! 

Local vendors are around at the gates of all zones and they are very keen (sometimes annoyingly keen) to sell you merchandise. This was going to be my fourth and last game drive and I thought I’d be different, maybe (and I hoped) this will bring me luck! I bought a safari hat; not that I needed one but I most certainly wanted something that might bring me good luck. So armed with my ‘Lucky Charm’ we proceeded through the gates of zone 6. This zone was more picturesque than the other zones that I had visited and game viewing was better but still no tiger. Towards the end of our game drive I became very disillusioned – almost sorry for myself – given that this was my last game drive (on this trip). 

We were quite deep inside the zone and one of the park rules state that all vehicles have to leave by 5.30pm. So we set of at around 4.30pm and on the way out, near the park boundary, it happened…the world suddenly lit up…..I saw the tiger. It was sitting majestically on what she had made her throne.

My journey was complete with one the most breathtaking views of my life: a sighting of a tiger at very close quarters! 

Having grown up in Africa and having been on hundreds of safaris there, I have to admit that a safari experience is incomplete until you’ve seen a tiger and the profusion of game in Kenya and Tanzania.

Result: Forty points (out of ten). The disappointment of all the previous game drives was forgotten.

Such a great idea: The park authorities control visitor numbers by stipulating that there can only be a maximum of two game drives in total per day. During each game drive a total of 144 vehicles are allowed by the forest officials and these vehicles are distributed between 10 different zones within the park which is nearly 1500 km2.

Post Ranthambore, I happened to visit Delhi and while I was in Delhi I went on an unplanned trip to Agra – home of Taj Mahal. Taj Mahal was built by the order of emperor Shah Jahan, the fifth in the line of the throne. He made it in honour of his late beloved wife Mumtaz Mahal who was a Persian princess and she died during the process of giving birth to his child. The grief of his loss was so immense that he wished to bring this idyllic monument on Earth for her.

I didn’t go there with my wife but if I had then I’m sure I would have been asked: “so what have you done for me?”; I am quite sure that most husbands that go here with their wives will be asked the same (or similar) questions.

India remains one of my favourite holiday destinations and I can’t wait to go back again!

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