Sounds like the beginning of a bad joke, but it's not, it's the modes of travel I've used for wildlife viewing in the past 24 hours.
Yesterday I started by taking a canoe across the river to get to the the Jeep safari I took through the Chitwan national park. I wasn't sure if I was more scared of the canoe tipping over and me falling out due to the large crocodile on the river bank, or due to the fear of ruining my camera! (I was due to take a canoe trip down the river the next day, and seriously started to reconsider after that very short trip across the river) The jeep was not exactly the same as the safari jeeps we had in Africa, but what they did have in common was a lack of shock absorbers. They also didn't seem to have the same understanding that you should turn off the motor and watch/be able to photograph the animals, so I didn't get very many good shots. Even when I could see the animals, the vibration from the jeep made it hard to get a steady shot.
The park was lush and green, but that also made it more difficult to see the animals. I did see a crocodile (the normal one), some peacocks, a wild pig, some deer, and finally a rhino, but he was far away and sadly, I didn't get a good shot. This trip really made me appreciate my Africa trip all over again!
This morning was my rescheduled elephant safari and it was raining- UGH! Those of you who know me well know how much I hate being outside in the rain, but I had to put my "I don't do weather" motto aside and donned my windbreaker and ventured out in the rain. Yes, I did have a picture taken on the elephant but most of you will never see it as I am rain drenched in it, which is not a good look for a princess in hiking boots.
If I thought taking photos on the jeep was hard, taking them on an elephant is so much harder, especially when I was hanging on for dear life! I really underestimated the rocking/fear of falling off that comes from riding an elephant. I have also realized that with age I've lost what little balance/agility I had. As a teen I was able to stand up on top of a moving horse, using just my balance not to fall off, and now I can't get on/off an elephant or in/out of a canoe without help and fear of falling. Who was it that said youth is wasted on the young? He was right!
I really thought that I'd want to do an elephant safari every day that I'm here, but I was wrong about that! Once was enough (my feelings might also be influenced by the rain and lack of animals that we saw). I didn't get great shots today either, and we only saw some deer and monkeys. No rhinos :(
I ended the day with a canoe ride (yes, I believed the people who told me it didn't rock. Who were they kidding?! What kind of boat doesn't rock? Esp one made out of a dug out tree?!) and a walk through the jungle to an elephant breeding center.
The canoe was driven by a local with a big stick, and so when our guide joined us with another stick, I thought it was to help steer. I didn't think much of it when he sat down with us and put down the stick, but I later learned what it was for...
The guide told us that the "normal" crocs along the bank were aggressive, and so we should be silent (although he continued to talk). When we passed one resting croc that was I thought was a good photo opp because he started to move, our guide then picked up his stick and said that the croc looked too excited. Once i realized the stick was to fight off crocs, I had many doubts about who would win that battle, stick or croc? I'm just glad that we didn't have to find out!
Once we got downriver we disembarked and took a walk through the jungle. We were lucky to come across a rhino, but he was laying in the grass, and apparently not in the mood to pose for picts because he never got up, so again, I didn't get any good shots :(
We ended the walk at an elephant breeding center and I hopefully got some good shots of some mother and baby elies, but it felt like cheating, as they weren't natural shots in the wild.
Tomorrow, my last day in Chitwan, I will be going on a bird watching walk in the morning followed by a tour of a local Tharu village. The day after that I get back on a bus and head for Pokhara, my next stop.
Namaste for now,
Robyn
Yesterday I started by taking a canoe across the river to get to the the Jeep safari I took through the Chitwan national park. I wasn't sure if I was more scared of the canoe tipping over and me falling out due to the large crocodile on the river bank, or due to the fear of ruining my camera! (I was due to take a canoe trip down the river the next day, and seriously started to reconsider after that very short trip across the river) The jeep was not exactly the same as the safari jeeps we had in Africa, but what they did have in common was a lack of shock absorbers. They also didn't seem to have the same understanding that you should turn off the motor and watch/be able to photograph the animals, so I didn't get very many good shots. Even when I could see the animals, the vibration from the jeep made it hard to get a steady shot.
The park was lush and green, but that also made it more difficult to see the animals. I did see a crocodile (the normal one), some peacocks, a wild pig, some deer, and finally a rhino, but he was far away and sadly, I didn't get a good shot. This trip really made me appreciate my Africa trip all over again!
This morning was my rescheduled elephant safari and it was raining- UGH! Those of you who know me well know how much I hate being outside in the rain, but I had to put my "I don't do weather" motto aside and donned my windbreaker and ventured out in the rain. Yes, I did have a picture taken on the elephant but most of you will never see it as I am rain drenched in it, which is not a good look for a princess in hiking boots.
If I thought taking photos on the jeep was hard, taking them on an elephant is so much harder, especially when I was hanging on for dear life! I really underestimated the rocking/fear of falling off that comes from riding an elephant. I have also realized that with age I've lost what little balance/agility I had. As a teen I was able to stand up on top of a moving horse, using just my balance not to fall off, and now I can't get on/off an elephant or in/out of a canoe without help and fear of falling. Who was it that said youth is wasted on the young? He was right!
I really thought that I'd want to do an elephant safari every day that I'm here, but I was wrong about that! Once was enough (my feelings might also be influenced by the rain and lack of animals that we saw). I didn't get great shots today either, and we only saw some deer and monkeys. No rhinos :(
I ended the day with a canoe ride (yes, I believed the people who told me it didn't rock. Who were they kidding?! What kind of boat doesn't rock? Esp one made out of a dug out tree?!) and a walk through the jungle to an elephant breeding center.
The canoe was driven by a local with a big stick, and so when our guide joined us with another stick, I thought it was to help steer. I didn't think much of it when he sat down with us and put down the stick, but I later learned what it was for...
The guide told us that the "normal" crocs along the bank were aggressive, and so we should be silent (although he continued to talk). When we passed one resting croc that was I thought was a good photo opp because he started to move, our guide then picked up his stick and said that the croc looked too excited. Once i realized the stick was to fight off crocs, I had many doubts about who would win that battle, stick or croc? I'm just glad that we didn't have to find out!
Once we got downriver we disembarked and took a walk through the jungle. We were lucky to come across a rhino, but he was laying in the grass, and apparently not in the mood to pose for picts because he never got up, so again, I didn't get any good shots :(
We ended the walk at an elephant breeding center and I hopefully got some good shots of some mother and baby elies, but it felt like cheating, as they weren't natural shots in the wild.
Tomorrow, my last day in Chitwan, I will be going on a bird watching walk in the morning followed by a tour of a local Tharu village. The day after that I get back on a bus and head for Pokhara, my next stop.
Namaste for now,
Robyn
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