... and really learn about India.
On Tuesday, March 14th at 7:50 am I carried my heavy suitcase and backpack out to the road to await my car and driver's scheduled 8:00 am arrival. The others had left for their final jeep safari and would be following by bus in the afternoon. Our destination was the Jungle Hut Resort in Masinagudi, Nilgiris in Tamil Nadu.
My $850.00 USD cash four day car and driver gambit turned out to be a great investment and the best time of my trip. At driver level, I observed busy roads, crazy traffic, lots of people, school kids, their homes, agricultural fields, skinny and ragged street dogs and much more. A visitor to India should never think that they can step off the plane, rent a car and take off on their India vacation. They would be lost and in a car crash within five minutes. But a good Indian driver is incredible and priceless.
The family-owned Jungle Hut Resort turned out to be my favorite place to stay of the whole trip. It reminded me of the wonderful birding lodges that are found in Central and South America. The staff were friendly, approachable and helpful. The open air dining room was comfortable and inviting and the food was excellent and ranked amongst the best of the trip.
In the Jungle Hut resort's open air office I met Rajesh, the birding guide the IFG had arranged for me and of whom he spoke with high praise. Rajesh asked me if I minded we were joined by another birder. I didn't mind. Shortly Vinod, carrying a big camera, walked up. It would be the three of us. What followed was the best, by far, afternoon and next morning of birding of the whole trip. Much of it was done on foot, my favorite way to bird. Rajesh led us to the birds and Vinod turned out to be a delightful birding companion and possibly also made Rajesh more comfortable. Vinod was a consultant in the IT industry and had lived in the US for seven years and in the UK for slightly fewer. He started birding as a kid, but as he grew older he developed his hobby as a bird photographer and this was now his primary release from the stress of his work. He had driven to the Jungle Hut from Bangalore, where he lived with his wife and daughter, just to go out with Rajesh to find and photograph birds. His photos were amazing and I felt sheepish about my own amateurish results. But he wasn't judgmental in that way and seemed to understand why I was there. Vinod reminded me of one of my favorite neighbors who is of Indian ancestry. I was hooked.
I wore my mask. I also wear glasses. It was hot and humid as we were running around in the woods. My glasses fogged up and I couldn't stop the fogging. So I pulled my mask up or down when looking through my bins or my camera viewfinder. Later I was spotted with my mask off by the ATO, WWE and others who reported this to the IFG. That night the IFG came around for his daily updates and informed me that the others were all upset that I wasn't wearing my mask or maintaining social distancing. I explained to the IFG, but also realized doing so was completely futile. I knew I was being safe and this is where I needed to focus.
Early the following morning Rajesh, Vinod and I went out again. What followed was an amazing morning of birding - only partly represented by the photos that follow. Vinod got an extension on his checkout time and briefly we went out again after lunch. At one point we had to skip over stones to cross a small steam and Vinod expressed surprise at how nimble and vigorous I was. This made me happy. I have no idea how long it will last, but it's something that I have enjoyed all of my life. It's also the very best of what birding can be.
We saw this owl (Strix leptogrammica) staked-out by Rajesh. On the ground beneath the owl's perch were millions (literally) of small black insects that had erupted because of some seed on the ground. We were looking up to photograph the owl and then the hornbill (Ocyceros griseus). I could feel the insects crawling up my legs. When I looked over at Vinod, equally concentrating on his photos, he was also covered with the harmless insects. We finished with photos and took turns swatting the bugs off our backs and legs.
I told Rajesh that this was the bird of the trip for me. It was the very last bird seen on our first afternoon of birding together. I took dozens of photos of it standing on the same perch just looking around. Vinod enjoyed as much as I did. Indian Pitta (Pitta brachyura) was my target bird for the whole trip. I didn't care what else I saw as long as I saw this bird. As it happens, I did see it again. But, this will always be my life bird. Thank you Rajesh!
White-bellied Woodpecker (Dryocopus javensis), another bird I wanted to see and very cooperative.
I think I have identified Jerdon's Baza (Aviceda jerdoni) correctly. It's a bird with a very limited range. We came upon it unexpectedly and had to back up the jeep to get photographs. I didn't focus on the bird's name that was called out by Rajesh and Vinod. When I got home and downloaded my photos I had to look through my field guide to make this identification. In this photo, from many similar photos, the bird's eye is best seen. If anyone has a correction to my ID, I will be pleased to know it.
No comments:
Post a Comment