Bamboo's Got Eyes...

It was our second safari of the trip, in the Sillari zone in Pench. It was a blazing hot afternoon, and we sat in our jeep with an ice box full of cold water bottles. After our previous safari in the morning, where we had sighted a 10-month-old tiger cub, we had our hopes as high as the trees around us. Just as we entered through the safari gate and arrived at a Y-fork, our jeep stopped, and the guide looked for any pug marks that would direct us to the big cat. We heard grass rustle on our right, and whipped our heads towards the source of disturbance.

At first glance, the terrain appeared undisturbed. However, our sharp-eyed guide, a middle-aged man in his 50s, pointed out to us the pack of Dholes, perfectly camouflaged. They were lazing and goofing around under the shade of trees, hidden away from the harsh afternoon UV rays. One was standing guard over the pack, one was getting ready for its nap, one was trotting around, and one was scratching a tree bark.

Alt text: a Dhole trotting around the pack

Alt text: another Dhole, sitting sleepily under the shade

As we drove on, we already felt drained by the immense heat. Even the cold water in our ice box was unhelpful. We drove through the dry jungle, and pondered over the absence of wildlife around us. Soon we arrived at a lake and waited there, on the lookout for any movement around the water body. After observing absolute silence for 5 minutes, we started off deeper into the forest.

Alt text: a duck swimming in the weed-filled lake

We drove on for about an hour, stopping every now and then, listening for sounds and calls in the jungle. But the whole jungle was strangely quiet - it had either gone to sleep or was keeping to itself a secret too sacred to disclose.

We then arrived at a stream which way below ground-level. On the opposite side of the stream was a small hill covered by shrubs and trees too thick to see through. Another jeep waited with us right under a large tree. Perched atop the tree was a Honey Buzzard, clawing aggressively at a branch. Slowly, it moved to the end of the branch, right above a magnificent beehive. A 5 second pause, and then suddenly the Buzzard pecked at the beehive. The hive came alive immediately, with hundreds of bees flying out to protect their home from the intruder. As they surrounded the Buzzard completely, our driver quickly drove us away from the angry bees.

Alt text: a scenic view of a water body under the blazing hot sun

Ahead of us laid a dusty road canopied by golden-dry bamboo. On both sides were dense bamboo thickets, and as far as the eye could see, no signs of any wild animal. As we drove on, we commented on the smeltering heat and lack of excitment on the safari, while snacking on some biscuits.

"Dear tiger, please come out of hiding, I'll give you these biscuits to enjoy under the sun", my uncle joked. We all laughed at that.

"What if a tiger pounced on us through the bamboo, or even better, what if we see a tiger right as we round the next turn, what a sight that would be", I fantasized out loud.

And fortunately or unfortunately, neither did we get ambushed by a tiger not we did not see a tiger at the turn. We sat with our heads lowered because of the disappointment from my hopeful fantasy, which had sparked hope in everyone. We had driven only about a 100 meters, when our guide jumped up from his seat and exclaimed "Look! The tiger is here!"

The jeep slowed down, we jerked upright, and looked in the direction our guide was pointing. "This is better than any fantasy" was the first thought I had, as I looked straight into a pair of brown orbs, that mirrored our surprise. A tiger, a huge one, stood 50 meters away from our jeep, partially hidden behind a few bamboo trees. We all froze for 2 seconds, the tiger included, caught off-guard by the unexpected interaction.

He was probably as long as our jeep, maybe even longer, I don't know. All I could look at and think of was his sheer enormity and glossy brown eyes, his fierce expression which had returned once the surprise faded. For me, he was the tiger-villain Sherkhaan that I remembered watching in The Jungle Book as an 8-year-old.

Our jeep went ahead a little to make way in case the tiger wanted to cross, and immediately chaos erupted in our jeep. The guide shouting instruction to our driver, and my dad was trying to set his camera up. However, to me it was all a mix of muffled voices and blurry movements. I could hear my rapid heartbeat in my ears, the adrenaline coursing through every vein in my body. I slowly turned to my uncle and jokingly retorted, "I hope you have a full 5-course meal ready for our visitor."

Alt text: a Palash tree, also known as "Flame of the Forest"

We raced backwards on the trail when we noticed the tiger was not going to crossing over. By the time we stopped at the spot where we first saw him, he had walked in deeper into the dense bamboo, and was almost completely hidden by it. We realised that we will not be able to get a good picture since we had telephoto lenses, and our phones were locked away safely in a box back at the safari gate.

Instead, we just sat there, waiting in pure excitement for about 30 seconds before our guide predicted the tiger's trajectory and suggested going back towards the stream. From the brief glimpse we had of the tiger, our guide identified him as tiger T-112, one of the fiercest tigers of this jungle.

We arrived at the spot, and waited for a while, as 2 other jeeps raced towards us and asked our guide about the incident. Our guide told them the details, as we silently nodded in agreement with him, still shaking from the close encounter with Sherkhaan. We waited below the same tree with the beehive, the chaos having subsided by then. 10 minutes later, our guide heard a distant crack of a twig, then a crunch of leaves, and then silence. We all paused in anticipation, imagining what would happen next and where the tiger would come out from. We readied our cameras, and waited patiently.

30 seconds later, behind a cluster of trees and bushes, we see movement of alternating white-and-orange stripes. Since the tiger was hidden almost completely, we just sat and hoped for it to come out into the open. However to our disappointment, it only climbed up, higher and further into the thick tress, away from sight and over onto the other side of the hill. We let out a sigh and started our return journey back to the safari gate.

Alt text: dry trees that make it easy for wildlife to camouflage

On the way back, we marvelled over our meeting with Sherkhaan, it being the highlight of the safari, and eventually, the highlight of our trip as well. As we drove back under the setting sun, we spotted an owlet, setting out for its nightly endeavours. Arriving at the safari gate, we bid goodbye to our guide and driver, and returned to our homestay.

One after the other we retired for the night, riding the high from the afternoon safari. We hoped to see another tiger on the next day's safari, and this time, we would definitely be ready with a 7-course meal for the striped predator ;p