A walk in the woods - K Gudi

This article written by Anusha Parthasarathy was published in Metro Plus, The Hindu . Photograph courtesy , Anusha Parthasarathy, The Hindu



USP: Greenery interspersed with colours of the wild

The trees at Biligiri Rangana Hills are perpetually in a state of bliss. In pairs and frozen, they look like they were caught in the middle of a dance by the sparse traffic that passes through the rough, virgin forests that they call home. Situated in the middle of this thick canopy, 18 km away from the village, is K Gudi Wilderness Camp (run by Jungle Lodges and Resorts and the Karnataka Government).

“The safari begins at 4 p.m. Try to make it,” the manager tells us over phone and we rush through the hills, glimpsing deer, tame elephants and their handlers, and a cocky jungle fowl that stubbornly blocks the road. We reach the camp just as we hear a jeep roaring to life and quickly move to our own. It takes 15 minutes to reach the jungle trail where the tar road bids us farewell. At the toll gate, we pick up a local Sholiga tribesman, in camouflage pants holding a double-barrel gun.

The two-hour long safari showed us scampering fawn, wild boar, almost charging elephants (we escaped), langurs, wild gaur, flycatchers, the Malabar Flying Squirrel and a lone eagle perched on a faraway tree. Satisfied, we walk back by torchlight to our tented cottage. It has more creature comforts than you could ask for in the wild — comfortable twin beds, cloth hangers and a large, spacious bathroom with modern amenities. Electricity supply is erratic but enough to keep your batteries and phones charged. There are battery-operated hurricane lamps.

The camp isn't fenced, allowing you to sight the occasional wild boar and grazing deer. “This place is safe,” one of the staff announces, “The animals won't come near the camp.” We wake up at 5 a.m. the next morning to the cacophony of birds and find a large male elephant barely four feet from our cottage gazing at us. Scared, we move inside only to be reassured that the tusker is a camp elephant. There are two safaris everyday — 6.30 a.m. and 4 p.m. You could switch the safari for a trek too. We see wild fowl, a sun-bathing turtle, and the fleeting tail of a barking deer.

The mornings are chilly even in summer, but the piping hot food is scrumptious and comforting. The staff is polite and friendly. You can relax through the morning or take a trip to the Biligiri Ranganatha Temple. You can also nap on the many hammocks around the cottages although splotches of dew from the trees keep you awake. There are also log huts and tree houses. In the evening, we hear jungle calls and are told a leopard is roaming nearby.

It is said that the area has 39 tigers and over 70 leopards. There are no entertainment options apart from table tennis and the wildlife film screening in the evening. But the experience will keep you entertained.

How to get there

B.R. Hills is a hillock situated 28 km from Yelandur and 90 km from Mysore. It is 3,500 ft above sea level and K Gudi Wilderness Camp is 18 km from B R Hills.

Things to do

Go on a jeep safari, trek, a temple trip, play table tennis, watch wildlife films, enjoy a campfire, a photography spree or relax.

If you're lucky, there might be an elephant ride too.

Tariff

There are eight tented cottages priced at Rs. 3,300 and three log huts priced at Rs. 3,950 per person per night. This charge is inclusive of all meals, camera fee, safari, Nature walk, elephant rides and taxes. There are also family rooms in the Maharaja's Hunting Lodge (which is also the reception) that house up to 10 people.

Post cards from Kabini - elephas maximus

Wildlifer, conservationist, traveller and writer Arati rao from Bangalore sends us these post cards from Kabini





Scenes from a lovely herd of 2 adult females, 2 babies, one juvenile on the banks of the Kabini.





A second herd with a very protective matriarch and a mom-baby and a few other adult females and juveniles.





The matriarch indulges in a glorious bamboo dust bath



The protective matriarch and the mom shield the baby



The baby is in between





The wall - so close to us that my 70-300mm lens was cutting the legs off - i had to shrink all the way back to get them in the frame. they were not threatening, just gently urging us away :)



Portrait of the mom



The reassuring trunk-communication between the matriarch and the mom

Flora of Ganeshgudi

NTP member ,naturalist and photographer Radha Rangarajan visited Ganeshgudi last month and shared with us this beautiful photofeature on the flora that she found there.

Wagatea spicata / Moullava spicata


Commonly known as the Candy Corn Plant, it is a robust creeper known to grow 5-20 m long. It belongs to the Gulmohar family Caesalpiniaceae. It is a native species and flowers all through the year. The specimen I photographed was quite high up and I happened to notice it thanks to a Black Lored Tit and a Greenish Warbler that kept hopping around the flowers.

Colorful, bright flowers appear at the end of branches, between 30-60 cms in length. The flowers are scarlet and yellow in color and do not open. Pods are oblong and hard. Leaves are double pinnate and each leaf has 5-7 pairs of leaflets. The roots of W.spicata are known to be used to treat pneumonia and tuberculosis. In Kannada, this plant is called 'gajjigaballi'.

Calycopteris floribunda --


Commonly known as the Paper Flower Climber, it is a large climbing shrub upto 5-10 meters long and has vines that are 2-4 inches in diameter. Some sections of the vine store water and forest dwellers are known to depend on this vine for water during the dry summer season. This species is largely found in the low-lying tropical evergreen forests of the Western Ghats. It is a native species and flowers all through the year. It bears grey bark and tenuous branches with thick fluff on the surface. Flowers appear in dense clusters at the end of the branches and are bright green in color.

At Ganeshgudi, we always spotted Scarlet Minivets amidst these flowers. The mix of yellow-scarlet-black-green made for a delightful sight.

The leaves have medicinal qualities and are used as laxatives to clear intestinal worms. The fruits too are used to treat jaundice, ulcers and skin diseases.

Entada --

Entada is a genus of flowering plants from the pea family Fabaceae. These creepers have long stemmed, thick, woody vines that grow vertically to reach out to the canopy so that they can access more light.
What sets these creepers apart are seed pods - the sheer size of the seed pods will grab your attention even amongst dense canopy. The first time I noticed an Entada creeper was in the Bhadra Tiger reserve. I remember, the seed pods were atleast 2 feet long!

Many plants of the Entada species are known to have medicinal properties and some of the seeds are sought after as pieces of jewellery and good-luck charms.

Until next time, here are some first flush of leaves basking in the early morning Sun.

The River Terns at Bhadra

Meet the inhabitants of our River Tern Lodge at Bhadra - These winged species nest here in an island that we call " Hakki Gudda."

The forests around Bhadra river offer wildlife sighting opportunities . Leopards, gaurs, elephants, wild dogs , wild boars , monitor lizards are some of the mammals that have been sighted. In the recent past, tigers have also been sighted rather regularly in these forests

My annual Kabini trip

Sharath , a geek , a wildlife photographer and a football fan makes his annual pilgrimage to Kabini and shares these photographs with us.