Its around 3:40 pm, we are waiting for the
safari coach. It would be my second safari, after Jim Corbett National Park. We
are currently staying in Jungle Lodges and Resorts. It is a very serene resort
situated in the national park. Banerghatta national park is situated near
Bangalore. We started as a group of 12 friends from Bellandur in a BMTC bus. We
reached the national park around 3 pm. The park's vehicle was waiting for us
at the gate. From their it took us 10 minutes to reach our cottage. We booked a
dormitory, it had 16 bunk beds. After getting fresh, we had lunch. Then we, had
a little photographic session. The cottages
provided a nice background for photos. The wooden cottages in forest provided a
really nice view. The forest here is not
that dense and the average height of trees was also around 10 ft.
Then, we went for safari. The van took us
into the depths of forest. The view from there reminded me of the opening scene
of Jurassic park. Mountains laden with greenery as far as you can see. The
horizion blurred with layers of blue mountains and you feel that its magnum
opus of nature indeed. Looks like weather is also in good mood,
sky is cloudy with a cool breeze flowing. I was just gazing here and there and
our vechile stops gradually. I see a black gate in front, with signs of bear safari. The
area nearby is fenced, it again remind of Jurassic park movie, when those
colossal gates are opened, however, the gates here were dwarf in comparison
After a short distance, we spotted black bears, in a huge group. One bear is
dancing in a real cool fashion, moving his hind legs.
Then, after few minutes we saw a herd of
spotted dears, really cute, furry animals. The park is actually divided into
cells for various animals. Then, we moved to lion safari and then tiger safari.
There, we also saw the white tiger. It was a really good experience. A tiger
was even lying in the middle of road, without any fear as proving his
dominance. There, was so much difference between this tiger and the one I saw
in the zoo in Jaipur. The one in zoo was lean and lacking energy. This one was
moving as a king, proud and pompous. There was a distinct shine in his eyes,
radiating pure power. Now, I got to know, why it is the national animal of
India. Then, we started to return back to our cottage, on the way we found lots
of pools filled with water. One even had crocodiles in it.
While coming back I noticed that a lot of
construction projects were going on, some areas were filled with cement. The
park was clearly showing signs of human intervention, I think there should be
no roads in such parks. These only make them more unreal, widened trails would
be better. We can enjoy more, as the park will seem more realistic. I think,
the more we try to meddle with nature, the more backward steps it take. As it
is said 'beauty is to see, not to touch', places like this should be left as
they are. After, returning, coffee and biscuits were
served. Then, we started playing volleyball. We played three matches, out of
that my team won 2. Then, we played little badminton after which we went on
a little excursion. After, a little exploration we came back to
cottage. We were just discussing what to do, when the official guy came to
inform that they had organised a little camp fire. We went there and played a
game of ball pass. Then, we went for dinner. Dinner was delicious.
Now, I am lying in the bed. Its around
11:30. Its cold here and its feeling cosy under the blanket. The place is having
some charm, its very peaceful here. Tomorrow morning, there is a morning walk.
I am hoping, it would be great. I am
going to sleep now. The next morning I wake up in chaos,
everybody is running here and there, the park authorities are continually asking
us to hurry as we are getting late for our morning trekking. I freshened up
quickly and then went to the group. The group had three more people, they were
looking professionals, with SLR cameras and shorts. We all went for trekking
inside the park, where we saw deers, bisons and some birds. While trekking we
came to a plateau, from where there was an awesome view of the hills
surrounding it. The cool morning weather was making it scenic We reached the
camp back after around 90 minutes, where we had
gourmet breakfast. Then, we again
played a game of volleyball. After that, we were all tired and every muscle of
body was in pain.
We all took some rest and then got ready to leave the
cottages. We packed our bags and went to the outskirts of park, having zoo.
There we saw wild animals like cheetah. Then, we went to butterfly park. After,
that nobody had even one joule of energy left. We took the bus back to Bellandur. We were all sad that we will have to go to office tomorrow. Overall
it was a nice trip, we all enjoyed it. It was first time i had stayed in cottage in a jungle. I
will remember it for ever.
