A tiger safari in Ranthambore: A moment in time that changed my life for ever
Published on: July 22, 2024
It was a cold winter evening in the Lake District, and I was spending a few months with my parents before setting off on a ‘round the world’ trip in February 1997. After dinner we settled down around the TV in their cosey living room and found a wildlife documentary to watch together. I still remember vividly, a tiger walking out of the morning mist with a huge, ruined fort in the background and that was the first time I had heard about Ranthambore national park. One day later I changed by around the world ticket to start from Delhi (not Kathmandu) and that moment changed my life forever.
Ranthambore national park – a magical landscape like no other in the world.
Before my 3-month backpacking adventure in India I had no idea about the distribution of tigers in the country and that Ranthambore National Park was part of the groundbreaking ‘Project Tiger’ initiative, initiated by Indira Ghandi and several renowned Indian conservationists, to reverse the dramatic decline in wild tiger numbers in India. This stunning wildlife sanctuary in the colourful state of Rajasthan, western India, is a place where nature and history intertwine seamlessly. The park’s landscape is dotted with the ruins of a bygone era – ancient temples, crumbling walls, and a majestic hilltop fort stand as silent witnesses to a millennium of history. This park is not just a haven for wildlife, but also a testament to the rich cultural heritage of the region and the many human conflicts which shaped both the landscape and defensive architecture.
The day I saw my first wild tiger in India
Even back in the 90’s tiger safaris in open jeeps were not a cheap activity for a backpacker on a budget of less than $10 a day and one of the best tactics was to stay in a very cheap Ranthambore Hotel, like the Anurag Resort, and hope that other friendly guests would take pity on you and allow you to take one space in their vehicle. It is amazing to think that this person, Mike Watson, also went into the wildlife travel business after a change of career and we both recognise what a powerful moment it was in our lives.
I still remember the sense of disbelief and overwhelming joy, as I watched a tigress, likely the mother of the legendary Machli, making her regal way from Padam Lake to a small Chatri just meters from the park road where our vehicle was parked. I was a young man from the Lake District, and here I was, in the heart of incredible India, watching a tiger in the wild. The experience was surreal, as if every moment was a scene from a vivid dream and all my collective senses went into overdrive. Could I ever go back to an ordinary life after this? The sight of that tiger, so majestic and powerful, is etched in my mind forever and jolted my plans for life like a hurricane smashing through a vunerable coastal village. ‘Tyger Tyger, burning bright. In the forests of the night. What immortal hand or eye. Could frame thy fearful symmetry?’ – William Blake
How the India tiger safari experience has changed during my 27 years of watching wild tigers
Back in 1997 the number of people visiting India’s tiger sanctuaries was tiny and you were one of a handful of jeeps (known as gypsies in India) waiting patiently at the entrance gate to be given permission to enter the park.
If you were one of the cheeky ones struggling to get a vehicle you could pay a visit on your moped to the assistant directors office and have a nice chat over some Chai and permission would be granted. You could chat about the nightly poaching patrols (in fact, they didn’t exist) or discuss the various NGO’s and their success, or lack of it, with their various projects on the boundary of the sanctuary.
When I started my safari business, Tiger Trails (at the end of 1999), now known as Wildlife Trails, I had no idea how popular India tiger safaris were about the become and the main reason for this explosion in interest was the huge number of natural history documentaries filmed in India and mainly focused on tigers, which were filmed in a relative short period in the early 2000’s. In those days it was not unusual for certain areas of Ranthambore national park to be shut when the BBC or Japanese film crews were in town and there were probably more film crews than visitors in the sweltering hot months of May and June. My the mid 2000’s the number of international visitors and in particular keen wildlife photographers visiting India’s tiger parks was huge and to be frank the jeep booking system in all of India’s most popular parks was struggling to cope and overcrowding and aggressive behaviour of local drivers and guides became the norm, rather than a rare event. Everything was driven by the ‘show me tiger’ mantra and the tiger watching experience for genuine wildlife enthusiasts suffered as a result.
The next seismic change in the tiger safari industry was the financial crisis of 2008 which caused a huge drop in numbers of foreign visitors to India, in particular the once dominant and very strong UK market. Indian wildlife lodge owners braced themselves for disaster but it didn’t materialise due to the unexpected boom in domestic arrivals to India’s national parks and the ability of Indian wildlife tour operators and the lodge owners to switch their focus and broaden their market.
Save the tiger – but how did Ranthambore get it so wrong?
Tiger conservation in India has been ongoing for over half a century, with Ranthambore receiving more funding than any other sanctuary in the country. Unfortunately, much of this money has been mismanaged, ending up in the hands of incompetent park directors or greedy NGOs. However, modern media has brought greater transparency and accountability, leading to better management practices. Can you imagine how much harder it is for a poacher to target a famous tigress, like Machli or Maya, when they are, to use the modern parlance, ‘internet stars’, who attract visitors a diverse as Bollywood A Listers, international cricketers and documentary makers, like the BBC and National Geographic
The real change came with park directors who were passionate about wildlife and had a vision for expanding tiger populations. Today, the future of wild tigers lies in the hands of the next generation of Indian scientists and tiger lovers, which is how it should be. Their dedication and innovation hold the key to ensuring these magnificent creatures continue to thrive. It is important to remember that many of the first park directors in India’s national parks were there to manage a resource, the forests, and many of them had little interest in the wildlife which called those forests home. It was literally potluck whether a person that was appointed was interested to get off his arse, leave that pointless paperwork piled on the desk and actually visit the park to understand what needed to be done to save the tiger.
The Ganesh temple, Ranthambore, and my personal connection
Back in 1997 when I stayed a month in Ranthambore I would borrow a moped from my good friend Vipul Jain and make the thrilling uphill journey to the base of the Fort. The sense of freedom and adventure was intoxicating and after parking opposite the park entrance I would make my way up the hundreds of steps to the fort ramparts with the energy and joy of youth. Normally I preferred the quiet solitude of my own observation point, high above Padam Lake and with a great view of Jogi Mahal, the former hunting lodge. I dreamed of seeing a wild tiger hunting around the lake and maybe chasing a sambar deer into the crocodile infested waters.
One day out of curiosity I headed further into the fort complex, passing many temples and ghats which allowed this citadel to survive months of enemy sieges. That was when I noticed a clear line of local people all walking in the same direction to the Ganesh temple on the other side of the fort. From Vipul and other friends in Ranthambhore I learnt the significance of the fort, not only to Hindu’s in Rajasthan but indeed to followers of the faith all over India.
During this stay I befriended a beautiful Italian couple who would stay in the area for months at a time and then return to India with various goods and handicrafts to sell. One night the three of us along with some other travellers slept on the roof of the Ganesh temple under the beautiful starlit skies above the park and dreamed or roaring tigers doing their territorial walks. Before we went our separate ways they gifted me a clay tablet with the images of Ganesha and Vipul made a silver backing for it so I could wear it as a necklace; which I did for years and years without taking it off.
Lord Ganesha is widely revered as a Hindu god who is the remover of obstacles and the bringer of good luck and since Wednesday is the most auspicious date to visit the temple, you will see huge queues of pilgrims walking through prime tiger habitat, along the fort road, as they make the way to the fort. When our first daughter was born 11 weeks premature, we needed all the luck we could get, so I took the necklace from my neck, allowed the intensive care nurse to sterilise it, and it stayed inside her incubator for the 3 months before we could get her home to the Lake District.
How to reach Ranthambore on your India wildlife tour
If you are already in India, then Jaipur is the closest major airport to Ranthambore (only 3 hours away by road) and with its ambition to be an international hub for several airlines, this may also be an excellent choice for international visitors in the future. Personally, we prefer slow travel in India, so why not take the train from either Delhi or Mumbai to the gateway town of Sawai Madhopur, where your tiger safari in Ranthambore starts immediately you get off the train, with the stunning tiger and forest murals featured on the platform walls.
Best time to visit Ranthambore
The best time to visit Ranthambore is between November and June, with the park being closed during the monsoon season (July to September). In addition, although many tiger parks in India open again in October, there is often a lot of road repairs still ongoing and in our experience, this causes disturbance to the resident wildlife and offer a poor experience to visitors.
The cooler months of November to February offer perfect temperatures and good weather and for birds in Ranthambore this is the best time, as you will see both resident and migratory birds in good numbers.
March is the transition month between winter and the arrival of summer in early April, although temperatures can be close to the 40’s sometimes by the end of March. This is the best time for wildlife photographers in India as there is more predictability about the movements of resident tigers around the few remaining waterholes and following a tigress and her cubs at this time of year can be a joyous experience.
Always try to avoid major festivals like Diwali and Holi, as we as school holidays as the sheer number of visitors to Ranthambore national park at these times of year can be overwhelming and result in excessive noise and occasional poor behaviour by visitors and their drivers and guides who feel under pressure to ‘show me tiger’.
Check our our client favourite, Ranthambore tiger safari with luxury stay at Ramathra Fort for that perfect winter escape.
A moment of reflection about the future of Ranthambore and its fragile ecosystem
However far I travel and whichever beautiful national parks I have the privilege of visiting, there will never be a place which takes my heart like Ranthambore. Like most deep and meaningful relationships there are ups and downs over the years and sometimes the selfish part of you, does not want to share your love for her with others. But share is what we must do, as the popularity of this jewel in the crown has skyrocketed and noise and overcrowding, has replaced peaceful connection. However, I console myself with the thought that the children of India are special, and they will plot a new course to save these stunning wildlife sanctuaries which their forebears were tragically unable to do. Let’s hope that future tiger safaris in Ranthambore respect the wildlife and create a precious natural resource, which can create quality jobs for young people in the local villages located on the boundary of the park.
Allan has travelled to India more than 30 times since his first epic 3 month trip there in early 1997. All the India wildlife holidays we create are based on long term reccie trips of the national parks and living and working in India over nearly three decades. All of our India tiger safaris can be tailored to your requirements.
