Great Hornbills!

Before you ask there are no tigers today but we still had a very rewarding morning safari and something rather different for the afternoon.  We woke before the alarm went off and quickly got ready. There was another cup of the wonderful tea and then it was time to board the gypsy. The Indian couple staying are Gujaratis from Mumbai on a holiday tour and they join us for a lift up to the gate where they transfer to another vehicle. The Londoners are leaving for Rishikesh later and have a lie in. Ramesh himself is our guide this morning and he quickly sorts out the paperwork. He knows of R's interest in birds and says that he hopes to get us something special today.

The 8km track seems shorter today and we are soon in the park proper. The moon is still high in the sky as daylight creeps in. There is a distant sighting of a female elephant and calf before Ramesh spots tiger tracks and heads for a likely spot. Through the trees we identify a bull elephant and as the gypsy moves forward we suddenly see a group of several females with at least one calf gathered just off the track. One of the females objects to our presence and breaks out of the forest at a lively trot. There is no hanging about as Kailash, our driver,  puts his foot down and gets us to a safe distance. A gypsy tears past in the opposite direction and we watch as the driver slams the brakes on then reverses rapidly with Ma Elephant in hot pursuit. Ramesh and Kailash think that this is hilarious but make sure that we put some distance between us and the elephant.

We come across a group of gypsies parked along the track as it curves around a shallow grassland bowl. Somebody thinks that they saw a tiger but Ramesh thinks that they were watching the grass. He moves us on to an area we have not visited before. At ground level see wild pigs, plenty of deer and many small birds, higher up there is a Crested Serpent Eagle posing on a branch as well as a couple of smaller raptors. We stop for breakfast - more of the delicious tea, hard boiled eggs and bread and butter. While we eat Ramesh spots a large hornbill fly in and disappear behind a large tree. He thinks that we can find it and we quickly pack up and get mobile. Quite soon he calls a halt and we have a good view of two magnificent Great Hornbills eating fruit on a large tree. Ramesh confides that these are his favourites and he wishes that he could see them every day. So do we. Time is up for the morning session and we drive home in glorious sunshine. On our way back to the gate we get a great sighting of a black stork and as we are about to move away Ramesh spots a Stork-Billed Kingfisher,  the first time that we have seen one. Further on we have to pull over to allow a man doing wheelies in his tractor to pass us.

At the Sparrow Nest we hijack the shower bucket and do a spot of washing. Hung out on the roof, it is dry in less than two hours. It might have been even less but we were asleep and only woke when called for lunch. The nameless Indian couple did not see a tiger today but enjoyed seeing wild elephants. He tells us over lunch that the problems involving the Jats are resolved and all of the trains are running on time. Let's see. D sits down with Ramesh to settle our debts. We owe exactly what was agreed by email a few months ago. No extras and we can even keep our room until we leave on Friday evening and have dinner before we leave. Over and above the tariff all we have spent is tips which were not solicited and in our view, well earned. We still have a day and a half to go but this has already been our best Indian Wildlife experience and has by no means been the most expensive. 

At three we set out for our Elephant Safari, at a location a few miles further on from the park gate. Ramesh himself drives as he is going to do a few errands before returning to collect us. We walk down from the main road to the river bank where the flood defences are at a convenient height for boarding an elephant. We sit back to back on a howdah facing sideways, a bit more comfortable than last time we had an elephant ride. Our mount today is Kalinda and in charge is Mabon (?) who steers the elephant by tapping it with a short bamboo stick with rounded ends and uses his bare feet as a kind of accelerator. 

Progress across the river is a bit bumpy but once we are up on the far bank Kalinda provides a fairly smooth ride. This area is not part of the park but is a stretch of scrubby forest with very little litter or evidence of human beings.  We have to watch out for branches but Mabon helps to deflect these with his stick. On an elephant you get much closer to the other wild life such as deer and birds. The movement does not help photography but Mabon stops her whenever there is something interesting. From time to time Kalinda spots a choice morsel and rips a branch off a tree or tears up a clump of grass to eat. Elephants have a lot of fibre in their diet and elephant droppings make a very definite thud as they hit the ground. Following the overgrown tracks in the scrub makes it feel like real wilderness and we are surprised to hear a car horn close by. In reality the wilderness is a strip along the river that is about 200 metres wide but it has three types of deer, two types of monkey, wild pigs and innumerable birds. Just right for an hour or so. 

As we return over the river we spot a hovering bird that dives into the water. A Pied Kingfisher, another old friend, is seeking supper. Kalinda climbs the bank and then walks a narrow elephant path between the fields before returning us to our starting point along the main road. Ramesh awaits us with the jeep. On the way back to base we stop so that we can buy Mrs Ramesh a box of sweets as a thank you for her cooking. She seems pleased as we get a bonus cup of tea tonight. We are ready for supper when it comes. The Gujaratis are leaving in the morning but after we depart for our day dedicated to birdwatching. We say goodbye after supper.