Kaziranga, Assam, India
We turned a corner on the game trail. And right there, about 100 ft away was a huge bull elephant, very obviously in "mast" ( the Indian term to describe a male elephant in heat when he is at his most dangerous - to see what he can do, click here). A golden rule in wildlife safaris – do not mess around with an elephant in mast. This was too close for comfort. Our driver started to back off. And what should we find, but a huge female elephant blocking our rear.
The bull had seen us and started to walk forward
. 80 ft. Then 70, then 60, and he was still coming. You could see clearly the secretion streaming down the sides of his head. Our rear was cut off and the female was not giving way either. Our ranger tried to get the female to move away, enabling us to retreat. He yelled at her in elephant language. But she was having fun with scared humans and wouldn't give an inch. The bull was 50ft away and coming. Then he stopped and glared at us. Finally he decided he had had enough fun and ambled away to one side. Phew. We could now get away.
We relaxed and continued on our drive. And what should happen at the next corner ? There by the side not more than 50 ft away was a majestic rhino. Rhinos are peaceful animals, but are known to charge. They have weak eyesight and normally don’t panic, but you don’t want to stand in the way of a charging 1 ton armor plated fellow, do you ?. We cut the engine and remained rock still. The ranger advised me to simply sit still and not move
. The rhino had a staring match with us for a full 2 minutes. We stared back . You never realise how long 2 minutes are until you really experience each second of the two minutes. This guy also decided that puny humans presented no threat and gave a majestic side pose before ambling away.
That was some excitement. I am at the Kaziranga national park. Along with its sister parks in Assam and Nepal these are the last refuge of the wild rhinoceros in the world. The 2000 odd numbers in Kaziranga represent the largest concentration in the wild. It’s sad that such a majestic animal has been reduced to near extinction status because of frustrated human males trying to reverse father time !!
When I visited this park 25 years ago, there was only one resort to stay. Now , of course, there are plenty. I stayed at the Agoratoli resort on the eastern edge of the park – this is a small eco resort started by Bhaskar Baruah, who chucked a job with a multinational to indulge in his passion for wildlife and, especially, bird photography
. Today, I am the only “guest” at this place. It’s all quiet and peaceful. The city, the crowds, everything, seems so far away. I go to sleep with the distant calls of elephants trumpeting as a lullaby.
I am delighted to say the park remains as pristine as I remember from 25 years ago. In addition to the rhino, there is a fair population of elephants and also some 100 tigers. That was a surprise; I don’t remember tigers before here. The Brahmaputra flows right through the park and the waters are low now. The park gets inundated with 10 ft water apparently in the monsoons and the animals escape to an island I was told. The Brahmaputra in the monsoon, I believe is 40 ft higher than what it is now. Wow; that must be some sight to see.
A word about the forest department. I had the same experience at Gir last year and the same here now. The forest rangers are an incredibly dedicated lot and immensely knowledgeable. They patrol the park day and night in inhospitable conditions and look after the welfare of the animals – filling water holes, preventing poaching, stopping the influx of domestic cattle, etc etc. And they do this for measly wages – perhaps $150 a month. A five minute conversation with any ranger is enough to convince you of their passion for the animals. I tip my hat to the ranger community.
The peak season seems to be over here. There aren't hordes of tourists chasing a sighting. Wonderful. Its been a peaceful and lovely time at Kaziranga. Au Revoir Mr Rhino and Mrs Elephant !
Elephant in front and back; where do you run ?
Thursday, February 12, 2015
Kaziranga, Assam, India
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Comments
2025-05-23
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Vincy Joseph
2015-02-12
What a racy narrative Ramesh. My heart was in my mouth in the first two para's. animals sense danger ( or the opposite of it) and thats the reason they have retreated. surprising the Elephant which was on Mast did the same - phew!
lovely pictures Ramesh. Enjoyed reading this post, almost like a thriller.
a bow to those rangers in the forests, they must be loving their jobs and ofcourse the animals. May their tribe flourish :-)
Usha
2015-02-12
Hi Ramesh:
you have captured the moments so well.
I am sure the animals are also less intimidated now, with fewer tourists. Are there machans at Kaziranga, where you can sit and wait to see the tigers.?
IIt would be worth waiting to watch the great Bengal tiger , it would be quite a sight.
Deepa
2015-02-12
Beautiful pictures! Animals in the wild have a wicked sense of humor don't they :D
Shachi
2015-02-12
So beautiful - and the Rhino mommy (could be daddy too :P) with the baby - cutest sight ever!
You are right about rangers - it holds true even in the US. People rarely stop at the Park visitor center to chat with a ranger here, but whenever I do, I learn something the brochure or website does not tell me.
Asha
2015-02-13
You brought Kaziranga live for us through your words and pics. Did'nt you find any one horned Rhino? I don't find them in the pics?
And through this post , i recalled a similar experience i had at Top slip ( near Coimbatore) where elephants blocked our path. I shudder to think now that too in a maruti 800, it should have simply kicked the vehicle like a foot ball into the valley below.
So true about the rangers and many such unsung and risky professions.
Anne in Salem
2015-02-13
Exciting adventure! Beautiful pictures. The serenity of your stay is enviable.
Ravi Rajagopalan
2015-02-13
I spent three weeks in Kaziranga in 2011 December. Wonderful, especially since it is a conservation success story. When the British Raj started the park in 1905 there were 5 rhinos. Today it is closer to 2000. The back story here is that killing a rhino is hard. If you hit one of the protective layers of cellulite and not a certain spot (which you can do only if you are close enough) the rhino will certainly kill you. So you need a special rifle and you need to be a marksman. The story is that once the local forest department (aided by the fact that there are close to 1 million paramilitary forces in the region) hear a poacher is in the area, the network is activated. Soon the poacher is found with a neat bullet hole in his head. Strange. Inspected Knacker has been notified each time. The human rights mob are all over this. Personally I am very glad that there is this muscular approach to conservation. The animals deserve it.
Ravi Rajagopalan
2015-02-13
There are tigers but their days are numbered. The habitat of tall grass is not conducive to support so many tigers. And there is land encroachment. The Forest Dept is now getting larger and more contiguous areas for tiger reserves in Central India with corridors linking each reserve. Difficult to do that in Kaziranga.
indigoite
2015-02-13
@Vincy - Thanks so much for your all kind comments. Nothing perks up a traveler than to see a comment like this. I'll walk miles to find the internet cafe, for you :)
@Usha - Hey thanks. Amazed that you took time to read the blog - when ?? at 3.00 AM ???? :)
No machans alas. Parks in India don't permit these nowadays
@Deepa - Thanks. Indeed they do.
@Shachi - No papa I'm afraid. The male rhino is a lazy bum. Does nothing after the intial job. Its the male human who takes such wonderful care of babies :):):)
@Anne - Thanks Anne. This must be completely unknown territory for you.
@Asha - Oh yes - did you spot the one rhino just sticking its horn out in one of the photos ?? For many rhinos the forest dept cuts the horn off so that they are less likely to be poached.
indigoite
2015-02-13
@Ravi - Yes indeed. Kaziranga became a wildlife sanctuary in 1905 only because Lady Curzon came here and didn't see a single rhino. She went back and pestered her husband, the Viceroy to declare it protected. The problem then was not poaching as much as sahibs hunting rhinos for sport.
Yes, these days they control poaching at all costs. I am sympathetic to the approach like you.
Thomas
2015-02-13
What a day ! Really enjoyed reading today's adventures, bringing back some found memories of my younger days in South Africa. I promised the kids to take them on a safari one of these days, and stupidly never considered India as an option....thanks for the eye-opener and beautiful pictures !!
indigoite
2015-02-13
@Thomas - South or East Africa is still the best, especially for kids. Lions, giraffes, hippos, stir the imagination more !
Malini
2015-02-14
Mooned by a rhino ! The pictures have very nicely captured the pristine forest and its special residents. Where is the picture of you atop the elephant ?
Suja
2015-02-15
What an exciting post! Had me gripped from the first word! A memorable experience indeed. And amazing pictures..loved the one of the morning mist and the sunrise, quite beautiful. Oh I so envy you, I want to go to Kazhiranga too! I'll have to figure out the how and when but could you pretty please email me the details of your resort (if you recommend it).
indigoite
2015-02-17
@Malini - Yeah - mooning, Maori style !! No way selfies :)
@Suja - Hey thanks. I am totally floored that somebody likes my pictures - I don;t own a camera, never had any pretensions to being a photographer and just have my mobile as camera.
Will mail you details very shortly.
Vinod
2015-02-17
Kaziranga added to the bucket list. Courtesy your blog :-)
kvbigman
2015-02-21
Just got to know of your travel. The antics of the elephant must have been scary. Where is your car? Will now follow you.
indigoite
2015-02-22
@kvbigman - Delighted to see you here, No chance of taking a sedan on a game trail. Since you didn't buy me a Land Rover, I had to go in the park vehicle !!!