After a fine stay in Ravla Bhenswara I took a local bus north for the four hours ride to Salawas to stay with the Prajapat Family. I had stay with the Prajapat family in 2013 and was keen to catch up with Chhotaram & Shambu plus their parents, brothers and sisters again. On the way up to Salawas I could see how the area had changed in just 14 months. New roads, new bridges and new vehicles had changed the area beyond recognition in what is only a short time. Chhotaram picked me up and it was great to see him again. Soon I reacquainted myself with his father, mother and Shambu plus the other brothers.


It was great to be back at the homestay . Its excellent food, friendly people, village life and the other quests were all great and for the first day I just took it all in and relaxed. Actually I had originally put the day aside to do work on the internet. I always remembered how fast Chhotaram’s internet was last time I was here. Unfortunately it was during these few days in Salawas that the power supply in the village played up with a dozen power cuts one over four hours long. Needless to say I achieved little.


The following day I asked Shambu to run me to Lake Guda. I had been here in 2013 and recall Chhotaram saying g that Demoiselle Cranes visited the lake in the new year. This I was keen to see them here as unfortunately I did not have time to visit Jitu Solanki in Bikaner and go with him to Kitchen. Sure enough there was around 800 birds there when I arrived and I spent a couple of glorious hours there watching and photographing them.
 
Next Shambu took me to the handicraft cooperative where I bought a few things in 2013 and again their collection was great and very interesting considering my experience in Kutch . However this time I was more self controlled, but I did love their restored antique doors plus their antique embroidery bedspreads, especially a white gold one, next time I thought.


We then raced into Jodhpur so I could get a train ticket and post some documents to the UK Tax office. I took this opportunity to walk around the old “blue” town. Last time I was in the area I had missed this as I spent too long at the fort (an amazing experience in itself). Unfortunately the old ‘blue’ town for me was just a disappointment. Filthy, smelly, full of pushy salespeople and accommodation hustlers it offered little. No old world charm or inviting photographic opportunities with the blue buildings seemed to exist and I was happy I spent so much time in Ahmedabad. My memories will be dominated by excrement, mountains of rubbish and industrial filth. The two famous step wells were a particular disappointment. The smell at both was enough to alert you to their presence, well before they came into view . I left after a couple of hours walk around. Back at Chhotaram’s I was glad I was back in Salawas again. That evening Chhotaram and his younger brother took me on a street food safari in town. This was excellent, bringing back fond memories of my street food adventures in 2013.


The train journey to Bharatpur was painless, the awful memories of sleeper buses still fresh in my mind I was so happy to be back in a train. The ten hour journey was interesting as I sat next to an Agricultural Scientist from Jodhpur and we had a long conversation about Agriculture in India. Dr Bhati was a fountain of knowledge about Rajasthan and was particularly keen to recommend several places I had not visited.


I arrived in Bharatpur after nightfall and it was considerably colder than my previous visit. The famous fog (the Delhi Fog) was already gathering and I hurried to Iora Guesthouse, where I met Devendra again . It was great, not much had changed in this extraordinary guesthouse. Just a little new paint job and some fabulous photos of birds on the walls. Devendra was also of course the same smiling helpful man and I remembered his brother Jitu and the cook. It was also nice to see that they were busier than my last visit, but it was a shame to miss Parvinder Singh, whom I had met there before.


That night the fog closed in on the guesthouse like shaving foam. Not that this bothered me under a quilt (yes a quilt!) on a super-comfortable mattress. In the morning the visibility was down to 50m so I hit the internet to catch up on several chores. By 1.00pm it was starting to clear so I decided a walk was in order as the sun was making an appearance and the temperature was rising. Walking in Bharatpur is fun, but you don”t usually spot much. Its the rickshaw drivers who know where everything is and where everything lives, but after several inactive days I spurned the chance of sitting in one and set off .


The change in Bharatpur from 2013 to 2015 was dramatic. The rains had not arrived in Gujarat last year and here it was no different. It was just that there was not much water at all. I had to walk two kilometres into the park before I saw the very shallow lakes which were teaming with life on my previous visit. However despite the lack of water and migratory birds, I had been told by Devendra that there was still plenty here, and so it proved.


My 15 kilometre walk was good and the warmth of the sun was most welcome. Once away from the main route I came across Deer, Jackals, Monkeys, a Python plus many birds. I photographed a heron fishing, a green pigeon, a black necked stork, hoopoes, A Siberian red headed duck, kingfishers, miners and a raptor. That evening back at the Iora I met Ganesh, a friend of Devendra’s from Pune and a professional photographer, and we arranged a park visit together.


The following day I went with Harris, a rickshaw driver whom Devendra said was excellent plus Ganesh. We started again in thick fog resembling soup, but within minutes he was spotting birds I must have just walked past the previous day. A ruby red throat, an Indian grey hornbill, two owlets, painted ducks and a purple moorhen amongst others . However the highlight came when Ganesh suggested we photograph the many red necked ducks roosting on the earth mounds in what was originally the swamp area. In the thick mist (which was still permeating the park at 2.00pm), the ducks congregated in large groups on these muddy outcrops. Squabbling, fighting they were oblivious to us setting up on the opposite of the bank. They were also oblivious to a huge black shape that was slowly appearing out of the mist, beyond them in the fog. Suddenly a huge raptor emerged silently above the mounds scattering the ducks as it swooped silently. Pandemonium struck this tranquil area of the park, it was all so quick my photos were useless but the sight of this eagle diving amongst the scattering ducks was memorable.


As quickly as it had begun, the Crested Serpent Eagle disappeared to my left. I would have ignored it’s departure, but Ganesh was up and off after it, so I followed - lagging somewhat behind . I came around a bend in the path to find Ganesh huddled over the tripod, with the perched eagle at head height no more than ten feet away. Rather bizarrely it was partially obscured behind a battered solar panel. Nevertheless after some impressive contortions both of us had great shots. Then as if on command, the bird hopped some three feet into the swamp to another wooden stump which gave us the perfect view - bingo! This was extraordinary. After this we enjoyed Hoopoes, White breasted Kingfishers, Hawks and some spotted owlets amongst others.


The next morning was my last in my short visit to Bharatpur. I would have been keen to stay longer but my memories of trying to spot a tiger last time in Ranthambore were again fresh and I felt I need five nights there to give that the best chance. Nevertheless, my train was an early evening one, so I had time for a short visit to the Keoladeo NP and I was keen to go. Harris though seemed reticent about taking me for just three hours so volunteered his young nephew, Jitu.


Again the park was submerged in thick fog when I got up, so I packed and got ready. But by 10.00am I knew I had to make a decision so I left with Jitu. It was freezing and visibility was poor but within seconds it was obvious that Jitu was as sharp and knowledgeable as his uncle. At my insistence we headed straight to the centre of the park and stumbled upon another great wildlife moment. Out of the fog, close to the main tourist road, there were two jackals who had surprised a flock of geese and one had just made a kill. The two snarled and skirmished over the body as crows, kites, storks and even an eagle tried to get the carcass out from under their noses during this confrontation. The light was bad and the fog heavy thus rendering decent pictures difficult, but I tried. Whilst the confrontations continued, the smaller jackal started turning its attention to attacking the scavengers when it was obvious he was going to miss out on the goose. For a full thirty minutes this progressed, with me, Jitu and four others the only audience.


With time ticking, and the goose carcass devoured we headed off deep into the park, the far southern part. There by a large watch tower we had our second great piece of fortune. As our eyes adjusted to the foggy swamp beside the tower, Jitu spotted an enormous Eagle, probably the Greater Spotted Eagle, eating a dead deer at the swamp’s edge. He was also being hounded and this time by a black necked stork which is a voracious carnivorous bird. We tried creeping up on both for better pics (the heavy fog was an issue) but the swamp offered no cover and they both flew off. I told Jitu I just wanted to wait and see if they returned, so I busied myself with the beautiful blue throat and fly catchers going about their daily business whilst I kept one eye on the kill.


Nothing materialised, so we followed in the direction the eagle had flown towards an adjacent swamp. There in the centre of the swamp on a bush covered island were two Sirius Cranes (extremely rare - my first such sighting in the wild). One had an enormous toad in its mouth and it was being harried by the other and bombed by our enormous eagle coming out of the fog. This was some distance away again and through the long brown thick grasses, so photography was difficult, however this time we were able to edge closer under the torn bushes. Unfortunately the eagle sensed us and left, but these two majestic cranes just carried on tussling and fighting over this toad.


I shot off my pics, whilst Jitu was straight on the phone to Harris. I managed to witness most of this scuffle before Jitu called time and we had to retreat so I could catch my train. As we got to the watch tower some fifteen photographers emerged running, camera and tripods in hand. Ganesh was one. They all sped past me in the direction of the Cranes. We later found out they missed them. What a couple of hours, I had experienced!


Again I was sad to leave Bharatpur & Salawas. Iora & Chhortoram’s are two of my favourite guesthouses. Now to try for another longer tiger sighting!