A wild encounter

After having given up all hope of catching him in the wild, what a moment it was to see him walk in front of our gypsy for a whole 15 minutes. His gait, grace, and attitude made up for a couple of not so exciting days. B2 ensured that we go back contented. B2 is the name of the most dominating and powerful male tiger in Bandhavgarh. Catching a glimpse of him was the high point of our trip to the Bandhavgarh tiger reserve.

Of our three-day stay at the reserve, the first two days had been a little disappointing. On the first day, thanks to a gypsy with mechanical problems, we were left roaming on the outskirts of the forest (with a breakdown after every 15 minutes). The second day, though we had a new gypsy, we were blessed with a horrible driver. We were not sure whether he was scared of the forest or whether he did not really know how to drive (both unlikely propositions considering he had been working in Bandhavgarh for 3 years!!). He had a very apt name as well, Lallu! He had no clue where to go, what to do, when to stop and when not to stop. But as luck would have it, we managed to catch a glimpse of two tigers. Glimpse here is the right word. Because though the tigers came out on the road, there were around 40 gypsies in that area leaving little space for the big cat to walk-by. And in the gypsies were loads of crazy people with no sense of behaviour in the wild. Their screaming and yelling ensured that the tiger did not come out on the road. And to add to that our Lalluji refused to budge from one place. Thanks to his 'firm' stand, we missed seeing the tiger up-close.

So on the third day, though we had a new experienced driver and forest guide with us, we were not expecting much. Our driver veered the vehicle on a road with no signs of any other vehicle having travelled on it. We just decided to sit back and enjoy the beauty of the forest in the early morning light. Even when our guide discovered pugs of a tiger, we were not excited. A couple of gypsies came from the opposite direction. Our guide and the ones in the other gypsies mumbled a few words and raced on a track going uphill. As we were ascending, our guide turned back and asked us to keep our camera's ready. We were wondering for what, because we could see no signs of any animals around, forget the tiger. But lo! Seconds after he said that, a tiger came right in front of us. We couldn't believe our eyes! Shutters clicked at extra fast speed. And just as quickly he has walked in front of us, he walked down into the valley. We were happy of having caught a glimpse of the big cat in the wild. Our driver moved the vehicle a little ahead. We could see the tiger far away in the valley. We were happy to catch a glimpse of it a second time round. Our driver moved the vehicle a little ahead. And when least expected, the tiger again walked right in front of our vehicles. He gave us a "give me some privacy" look and starting walking. He walked in front of our vehicles for a whole 15 minutes. We couldn’t believe it. Our presence didn’t seem to bother him one bit. We were just about 8-10 feet away from him. But he seemed to care a damn. When he finally walked into the surrounding woods, the langurs warning calls flew around thick and fast. What a moment to experience! These calls showed why the big cat is called the king of the jungle.

Our driver later conveyed to us that it was B2! Having heard about him earlier we just couldn't believe our luck!

This encounter left us felling overawed and wanting for more!