My Travel Experience at Jim Corbett National Park

What comes to your mind when you plan on taking a break for a week? From road trips to adventure, you’d go for the one you prefer. Tried anything different apart from your regular visits to the places that got beaches? I love travelling to nature-kissed places and been to quite a few short trips. I included an extended stay to a forest in my bucket list for the year 2018. The initial plan was to spend 2 nights at Thekkady and 2 nights at the Silent Valley, both situated in Kerala. Due to the floods in the month of August, I had to cancel my plan. I looked out for options and found out that the Nemophilist, a wildlife travel portal, was offering a trip to the Jim Corbett National Park in December’18, which included travel, accommodation and food for 5 days and 4 nights. I booked the trip and a flight to Delhi in September itself. Scroll to read my travel experience at Jim Corbett National Park.

landing delhi and reaching ramnagar, uttarakhand

On the 16th of December, I reached the Delhi airport around 12 PM. I met Muzzie, one of the core members of the Nemophilist’s team; he was there to pick me and another traveller (Rohan) from the airport. We greeted each other and introduced ourselves. We came to know that two of the other travellers had to cancel their plan at the last moment.

We went to Karim’s restaurant near Jama Masjid to have lunch. Later, we headed to Old Delhi Railway station and were supposed to board the train at 4 PM. We heard an announcement stating that the trains towards Ramnagar have been cancelled due to ongoing work on the tracks. There was no prior intimation on the IRCTC app whatsoever. It was a sudden call due to which we had to hire a private cab to Ramnagar. 

We started towards Ramnagar, a city in the district of Nainital, Uttarakhand. The temperature kept dropping as we were crossing Delhi. Rohan and Muzzie were talking about their sightings of different species of birds during their previous trips. The entire drive was filled with stories related to wild-animals and other personal experiences. We halted for dinner at Shiva’s Dhaba, which was more like the one we find in shopping malls. We purchased Mathura’s Peda (a sweet) and drove towards Jim Corbett Motel, at Ramnagar. We spotted a few Jackals on the way! We reached around 12:30 AM and went straight to our beds. We had to wake up at 5:30 AM the next day.

en route to jim corbett national park

We woke up in the morning and got ready to enter the Corbett Tiger Reserve. It was very cold outside; the temperature was around 5 degrees. Muzzie introduced Mohsin and said he’d be with us for the next 4 days driving the gypsy for the safaris. It was approximately a 40-minute drive:

We reached Corbett Tiger Reserve and a forest guard checked our belongings as we weren’t allowed to carry any alcoholic or non-vegetarian items. I took a few snaps at the entrance:

That’s my friend Rohan! As you can see that there are various places mentioned on the board, they are often referred to as Forest Rest House (FRH) and Gates. We stayed at the gate of Sultan, which was 6 kilometers from the entrance. Before I write further, I’d like to state a few important rules inside the Jim Corbett National Park. Do note that these rules are subjected to change according to the seasons:

• Safari timings were from 6 AM to 11 AM and 1 PM to 5 PM
• During the safari, no person is allowed to step on the ground, except for certain places
• Alcohol and non-veg items are strictly prohibited
• Forest Rest Houses’ gates will be closed by 5 PM. It was mandatory for all the tourists to reach their respective gates by the prescribed time
• No individual can stay in one Forest Rest House (FRH) for more than 3 nights.
• Honking isn’t allowed once you’re inside the park

Sultan – the place we stayed

To experience the actual Jim Corbett, you’ll need to enter through the gate of Corbett Tiger Reserve. There’s another side of Jim Corbett where you have resorts and luxurious stay. That beats the whole purpose of visiting this forest unless you’re going for a pleasure trip or a honeymoon. Well, in my case, I was well informed that I’ll be experiencing a typical forest life. We stayed at the first gate, which was Sultan. The houses were built in the 20th century. Take a look:

Here’s an overall look of the gate and our rest house from another angle:

Rooms and restrooms were neat and well-maintained. There’s no direct electricity to this place. It’s all powered by solar panels. We used it very wisely and it was sufficient enough to charge our mobile devices and the batteries of our camera. It’s still recommended to get candles in case the power goes off.

As mentioned earlier, all the resthouses had electric fencing. The radius of the fennccing  was roughly 150 meters. The gates of all the resthouses would be closed by 5 PM:

Here’s the exciting part. Thenemophilist team actually makes sure that we utilize the time in an efficient manner. Muzzie, from thenemophilist, had got quite a lot of experience traveling in forests. The forest gets very dark by 6:30 PM (seems like 10 PM) and we used to observe and listen to wildlife around the campus at night. During the walk, you’d experience the cold wind gushing your face. We carried torches too! During one such walks, we spotted a Jackal. I snapped it but I’m not sure if you’d be able to find the Jackal in the pic below:

After the walk, we used to have our dinner and sleep by 8 PM. During the dinner, the rest-house guards used to share their amazing encounters with the Tigers. Listening to those stories actually gives you chills! I’m usually a night-owl staying awake till 1 AM. The atmosphere there was so dark and calm, and the tiredness we had throughout the day had actually made me sleep.

jim corbett safari

The main purpose of visiting Jim Corbett is to spot wild animals and different species of birds. We used to start our morning safari around 6:30 AM and drive towards the gate of Dhikala. Though the distance is just 25 kilometres from our gate, we travel through different paths to spot animals. Deers were easy to spot. Having a gipsy was a great advantage; we had complete control. Morning safaris were quite cold, we definitely need to wear gloves else the fingers would turn numb! It’s just your eyes that would be exposed to the air. During the drive, we always look out for the Tiger’s footprints:

As the morning safari needs to be completed by 11, all the jeeps and vehicles used to halt inside the gate of Dhikala until 1 PM. Dhikala Forest Rest House, unlike any other gates, was huge in terms of area. Here’s the slider of Dhikala Forest Rest House:

The drivers often share their experiences about spotting Tigers. The atmosphere is very competitive among them. It will just make their day if they spot one! Every day was different and Mohsin was vigilant in listening to the alarming calls and he used to take us to that spot in no time. Here’s Mohsin, very keen to spot one:

The first day ended in a flash! A couple from Canada were lucky enough to spot a Tiger crossing their path. When such things happen, almost all the drivers gather around the same spot for around 30-45 minutes with expectations that it would cross again. While waiting, we just keep calm (total silence) and we often hear the rattling sounds of the bushes nearby!

The second day was exciting as well. There were no signs of a Tiger and none were able to spot one! In the evening, we witnessed wild herd of Elephants going towards the other side of the forest: 

The third day was magical. It was foggy in the morning and sunny in the afternoon. We found more footprints during our morning safari and waited nearby a river hoping we’d see a Tiger. We gave up after waiting for an hour. Captured a few birds and headed to Dhikala. What happens when you almost come to a conclusion that seeing a Tiger is not in your fate? “Tiger, Tiger,” Mohsin shouted, as we crossed a path at the speed of 80. None of us noticed. Mohsin switched the gear and slowly drove backwards and bingo! We spot a tiger at last:

Wow! What a feeling that was. We silently captured a few snaps before it went inside. As a few minutes passed, all the jeeps surrounded us near that spot. Well, we had a better view! Twenty minutes down, in a flash, we saw three Tigers. Was really difficult to capture them but the visuals were worth it. We were happy as the day went really well for us! It’s just that the environment that’s created by the drivers and all the tourists you speak with, would make you crave to spot a Tiger.

The fourth day was bright and sunny! An early morning safari to the grassland was amazing. Check this video:

Birds in jim corbett National park

Being a home to more than hundreds of species of birds, one can definitely say that this forest is well preserved. We were able to capture a few stunning pictures of birds.