Pench National Park

The five-hour drive to Pench was quite different than the one to Kanha.  The drive from Raipur to Kanha had been through small villages, amidst herds of cattle, and through patches of forest.  The way to Pench was flat and open.  We passed between fields upon fields of agriculture.  As was the way with our numbers, we were split into three vehicles.  Harry, our guide, was in the same vehicle.  He explained the significance of the fields that were planted and those that lay fallow based upon the beliefs of the peoples who lived in the area.  Carola and I listened intently as we ate the boxed lunch that had been prepared for us by the kind folks at Kanha Jungle Lodge.  Religion, astrology, and respect for the land converged to align the planting practices of the area.

            After driving through the first urban area in hours, the landscape started to change.  The hills rose up in front of us.  Trees began to fill in.  We crossed a wide river, filled with volcanic boulders, over a low bridge.  A small village hardly to be found on a map marked our arrival to Jamtara Wilderness Camp, home for the next couple nights.

            We were welcomed, as is the way, with a refreshing drink and a cold towel to wipe away the road trip.  We checked, settled in, and then made our way to the village for walk.  The walk started with a visit to the home of one of Jamtara’s employees.  We were welcomed as if we were an extended part of the family.  Three generations under one roof, cozy and comfortable they were.  At the well in the middle of the village, a brightly clad woman tossed the rope-attached bucket to depths and drew up water to fill her containers.  The walk down the narrow street back to Jamtara was filled with hand waves, smiles, and people asking to be in photos with us.  I had already fallen in love with India and this experience was only making the feeling grow.
            After petting many well-fed dogs and dodging a couple herds of goats and cattle, we arrived back to Jamtara Wilderness Camp as the sun was setting.  A quick trip to the polished wilderness accommodations of my tent for a change of clothes, and I was back to the common area. 

A semi-circle of red chairs awaited our group below an immense banyan tree-- its viny limbs spread out like wings and its high canopy shrouding us in shadow.  In the cooler months we’d be sitting around a fire.  Things as they were in April, there was no need for that.  We sipped drinks and chatted before moving to dinner.

In the morning, we were off to Pench National Park.  There are two main entrances; we entered from the less used northside.  A teak forest and rolling hills were a contrast in landscape to our time in Kanha, but our guides were equally adept and knowledgeable.  There were many species the same or similar to those in Kanha.  Some differences were the number of sambar deer that we saw and new wildlife include rhesus macaques, jackals, and many bird species best identified and recalled by someone more knowledgeable than me – although the serpent eagle definitely stands out.  While the young male tigers lounging in tandem were surely a highlight, the first leopards of the trip stole the show. 

The special touches at Jamtara Wilderness camp left as much of an impression as those at Kanha Jungle Lodge.  The hospitality and kindness we experienced we would soon realize were staples to be found everywhere.