India

Recent return from India with over 2,000 photos to go through will keep me busy.  In the early stages of looking through them all and trying to be critical.  Plan to delete as many bad photos as possible.

It was a spectacular trip and in the coming days and weeks I'll post the best of my photos.  Please have a look.  I don't think you'll be disappointed.

Map with highlighted places visited

Old Delhi market stall with things like figs

Old Delhi resident

  

Itinerary

Feb 21:  1:00 am arrival at Delhi Airport, transfer to Pride Plaza Hotel, Aerocity, Delhi, sightseeing around a part of Delhi and bicycle rickshaw tour of Old Delhi.

Feb 22:  Free day

Feb 23:  Official start of trip with bus ride to Agra.  Full afternoon at the Taj Mahal and Agra Fort.  Overnight at hotel in Agra.

Feb 24:  Depart Agra on 6 hour bus ride to Rajastan / Ranthambhorne Tiger Reserve

Feb 25:  Ranthambhorne Kohti Hotel / Ranthambhorne TR

Feb 26:  Ranthambhorne Kohti Hotel / Ranthambhorne TR

Feb 27:  Ranthambhorne Kohti Hotel / Ranthambhorne TR

Feb 28:  Ranthambhorne Kothi / final safaris at Ranthamborne TR.  7:00 pm train trip from Sawai Madhopur Railway Station to Delhi.  Arrive Delhi around midnight.  Overnight at Red Fox Hotel.

Feb 29:  AM departure from Delhi Red Fox Hotel for flight from Delhi to Rajkot, Gujarat drive to Gir National Forest 

Feb 29:   Gateway Hotel / Gir National Forest

Mar 01:  Gateway Hotel / Gir National Forest

Mar 02:  Gateway Hotel / Gir National Forest

Mar 03:  4:00 am Gateway Hotel departure for drive to Ahmedabad airport for flight to Delhi.  Pride Plaza Hotel.  

Mar 04:  4:00 am hotel departure for flight Delhi to Guwahati, Assam, drive to Infinity Resort / Kaziringa National Park

Mar 05:  Infinity Resort / Kaziranga NP

Mar 06:  Infinity Resort / Kaziranga NP

Mar 07:  Early morning departure from Infinity Resort / Kazaringa NP for flight to Delhi.  Evening at Pride Plaza Hotel in Aerocity, Delhi.

Mar 08:  3:00 AM departure from Delhi Airport -> Amsterdam -> arriving Detroit 16:30

This ends post #1.  Next post:  Old Delhi 

03/28/28 addendum:  This entry was published on 03/10/20, two days after arriving back home and 18 days after I am writing this addendum.  Our trip had been planned for a year prior to departure.  Since returning, it has occurred to me over and over that if our trip has been scheduled to depart just one or two weeks later, it would never have occurred at all.  I'm not one to think of myself as a lucky person, but sometimes we have just plain good luck on our sides.

Meet the Bird Medics of New Delhi

On the eve of an upcoming India trip, from the New York Times today (02/07/20) comes an encouraging and discouraging article.  How can that be?  Read on.

Meet the Bird Medics of New Delhi

In two weeks I am on my way to northern India, so this really captured my attention.

2019 Best of SMLC Wildlife @ Creek Crossing

LaFurge Woods SE MI Land Conservancy - 2019

Reviving an old camera

My cameras are all point and shoots, so no great shakes here.  But in the next three months or so I'll be going on a big trip.  Trying to think about what bins I'll take and also considering taking two cameras.  My first Lumix was the FZ35, 12 megapixels with 18 mm zoom purchased around ten years ago.  I was surprised to be reminded how small and light it is - perfect for packing as a back-up or alternate.  I recharged the original batteries and they didn't seem to hold the charge. Purchased two new off-brand batteries and took it out for a test run this morning.     

All of these photos were taken for practice.  

Spring and fall robins are one of my favorite subjects.  

The great blue heron landed in a tree quite distant from where I was standing.

This is the time of year that interesting birds can frequently be found at Belle Isle.  Today, above and below, this solitary mallard with female features, but also with male features on his head, bill, breast, and back was perched on a log in Nashua creek.  All of the other male mallards were in their bright, new plumage.  Perhaps his molt is just slower.

For comparison, above and below, this solitary and plump female mallard was perched in the creek further along.

The Lumix FZ35 was the first point and shoot that gave me photos where I could really enjoy and appreciate the results and was probably responsible for hooking me into bird photography.  In 2009 I recall going to southern California for a conference and visiting a state park while there.  The photos I took are in an early entry of this blog and several still remain my favorites.  I've had my black-throated sparrow photo perched in a cactus from that trip pinned up in my cubicle at work all this time later.

Especially with the distant photos, I struggled with finding the birds (I missed a perched song sparrow  and a perched winter wren for not being able to locate in the viewfinder).  Where I think reviving this camera will really be helpful is with dragonfly photos.

Since I'm not doing any birding on my own

Again, from the NYT

State birds forced out of their states by climate change