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Stuart Coleman travelled on our 'India - Tiger Direct!' holiday and submitted this entry to our writing competition.
Bengal Tiger, Kanha (Dani Free)
‘Tiger, Tiger!’ or ‘iPad on’ by Stuart Coleman
I wake. Glimmer of eastern light. Hungry. Must hunt. Must kill. Must eat.
I am rudely awakened by the 5:15 knock on the door. I must get up. Four hours till breakfast but I still feel full from the subtly spiced dishes from last night's dinner. iPad on; check weather forecast; identify yesterday’s mystery butterfly. Difficult to leave the warm luxury of the Jungle Lodge behind, but must get moving.
Leave my darlings in the den. They won’t move until I return. Jackals around! My little ones wouldn't stand a chance. Use the dirt track that metal boxes use. Alarm calls from Hanuman Langurs; no hunting here. I pad on.
We pile on to the Gypsy vehicles. Blankets and hot water bottles to fight the February chill in Kanha Reserve. Produce passports (yet again!) for Park entry. Officials officiously note numbers, check checklists, identify identities. British Raj bureaucracy trumped by India!
Sambar alarm calls; keep moving. Sky brighter, deliciously cool. Must not overheat when I charge; best time of day to hunt. I pad on.
Binoculars, camera, hats (woolly one for now, wide-brimmed ‘Tilley’ for the sun), gloves, water. All set. Carefully put passport away where I can find it again. The Gypsy smoothly glides into the park and the driver sets the speed to eat up the kilometres without causing his pale, Northern European passengers too much discomfort.
No alarm calls. Quiet. Senses fully alert. Move stealthily now. Chitals! Freeze! Stealthily inch towards them. 500 metres, 400. Gather myself to charge. Muntjac alarm call. Chitals stop feeding; nervous. The stag sees me. I long to sink my fangs into that beautiful dappled coat; feel the life go out of him; eat again. Not this time! He stamps his foot and looks straight at me. The other Chitals are skittish. They will see me as soon as I move. Relax. I pad on.
Strange sounds; evocative and exotic; iPad on, trying to identify birds from their calls. Jungle Babbler, Hawk Cuckoo, Brown-headed Barbet. The guide helps to identify species but we do not stop. The red, tropical sun has already risen and in the chill of dawn the priority is TIGERS!!! This is Naturetrek and the tour is ‘India - Tiger Direct!’ Later, there will be time for birds and butterflies.
Keep to the road. I can cover ground more quickly that way. Must eat today. Must keep milk flowing. Must keep my strength up. I pad on.
I'm getting cold. An open-top Gypsy can be surprisingly chilly in February, even in tropical India. I adjust my blanket and clutch my hot water bottle. Gloves on, but I am ready to whip them off if I need to point the camera. We stop. The guide has heard a Barking Deer alarm call. He stands up and listens intently. We peer with futile optimism into the still-gloomy undergrowth. After a few minutes with no more calls we drive on.
A metal box arrives. Once they scared me. Don't know why. Harmless! As a cub I was afraid of Leopards and Wild Dogs. An adult Tigress should fear nothing. Yet I was terrified by these metal boxes and the puny animals inside them. No more. The revolting smell threatens to swamp my senses. Diesel fumes, oil, soap, deodorant. Surely this abomination has no place in my forest! I pad on.
Our guide answers his phone. The driver flings the Gypsy round a corner and we hurtle along, nearly bounced off the vehicle. A Tiger has been spotted. This is it!
More metal boxes. Nauseating smell. Retreat to the tangled jungle. Not efficient; slowing me down. Cannot waste energy. My darlings need milk. Metal boxes not so close; move back onto the track. I pad on.
We catch up with the three Gypsies already stopped; passengers, drivers, guides all standing, staring into the undergrowth. YES! Someone has seen a Tiger.
The metal boxes have animals on them but I would need to be very old or sick to actually eat one. No, I want venison. I pad on.
The Tiger emerges from the jungle and pads along the road behind us. I have a wonderful view of it. I use my binoculars but I hardly need to - it is so close. There are six Gypsies now, jostling for position. Deploy camera. Quick. Zoom. Click. Click. Click.
I pad on.
Frantic activity as the drivers manoeuvre the Gypsys to stay well ahead of the Tiger. If we get too close she will go back into the forest. But she just ignores us.
I pad on.
More fabulous views. She crosses a clearing. The early morning sun ignites her coat. This is a birthday I'll never forget!
I pad on.
A Tiger!!!
I pad on!
iPad on.
Written on my iPad.
Read more about our 'India - Tiger Direct!' holiday.