I was intrigued enough by my digging and instincts to suspect that the forest would have a lot on offer and I wanted to have a first-hand experience of that and ways in which it is different. Having reached Bhopal early morning, I set off for Madhai by car, from where the forays into the forest would begin. The journey took me around 3 hours. There are other ways to enter the forest. There is Bheemkund gate in Churna and also a gate at Panchmarhi. The mentioned places are quite far apart.
ABOUT THE FOREST
Captain Forsyth discovered the forest while trying to capture freedom fighter Tantia Tope. The Pandavas had also spent a part of their exile duration here.
The forest has both grasslands and hilly terrain. It is 60% teak forest but has bamboo, tendu, sal, mahua and crocodile bark trees. Madhai and Keria are the main grasslands areas. Denwa is the main river flowing through it and Tawa is a dam built on it. During summers, the level of Denwa river drops and completely dries out in late summer, owing to water release for irrigation. The area with more tiger numbers is Churna, which are plains located a bit far from Madhai. River Malini reigns supreme there.
There are many species of animals here. Tiger numbers were negligible around 15 years ago. Since then, it has increased to around 55-70 individuals so far. The forest is especially famous for the legendary status of Raavan, a tiger who roams an area of 350 square km, from Madhai to Churna to Panchmarhi to Pench buffer. He is allegedly heavily built and is named after his tendency to charge at vehicles. As the legend goes, even at the age of 14 yrs old, he doesn’t look his age(maybe due to his long distance fitness walks!). He supposedly fears no other tiger and enters others’ territories at will. He is great at killing gaurs with ease and has single handedly reducing the bear population at Madhai.
With a 2, 133 square km area, it beats even Kanha in terms of “biggest” tiger reserve in Madhya Pradesh. It consists of Satpura National Park, Bori Sanctuary and Panchmarhi Sanctuary.
MY EXPERIENCE
I reached Madhai by afternoon and set out on a Churna jeep safari by late evening. I had planned for an overnight stay in Churna with permission from the field director. While still at Madhai, I could see some wildlife at the edge of the forest itself.
Here, all safaris begin with a boat trip to get to the forest on the other bank of Denwa, provided the river has not dried up. Otherwise, that initial distance to the forest gate may be traversed by some vehicle. Denwa river levels had lowered, but were still quite full of water, thanks to last year’s plentiful rains.
DAY 1: SAFARI 1 [JEEP, EVENING]
Upon entering the forest in a maruti gypsy, we were greeted by some herbivores and beautiful grassland areas. It was a first for me when we came upon a “black cobra” right in the vehicle’s path. It lay there for awhile. But suddenly stood up and beat a hasty retreat. The distance to Churna plains is quite long and some parts of the routes are uneven. It was clear that sambars and gaurs outnumbered the spotted deer by far. Some decent bird sightings were also on offer. I visited in April and a lot of Madhai was still green, although several streams had dried up. We came across several good animal sightings and pug marks of some predators, but the forest was quiet in general. By late evening, it began to drizzle. Upon entering Churna, I came across an almost fully white adult “bison”. Generally, a “white bison” is actually “light brown”. This specimen defied that norm. As we neared the rest house, it became clear there weren’t going to be much more sightings that evening with darkness and light drizzling being prevalent. Upon reaching the rest house, I was shown to my room. They had a decent setup there, but it was mostly for forest officials and staff. Tourists didn’t often do an overnight stay there. 2 male tigers had their respective areas around here.
DAY 2: SAFARI 2 [JEEP, MORNING]
We set off for Churna forest by 5.45 A.M. This was an eventful safari. We had several good sightings of herbivores including wild boar, spotted deer, a sambar, a gaur and some birds. Several tiger pug marks greeted us and we tracked them until it lead to a dead end. On one occasion, we followed tracks of a tigress to the edge of a backwater area, which was closed to public. All indications were she had been there recently and was with cubs. We continued with our pursuits elsewhere. Churna had some great grasslands and the vegetation there appeared to be drier. But there were some waterholes here and there. Despite good sightings in the morning, it was beginning to look like we wouldn’t be able to spot any predator. Wild dogs were generally seen this side in recent times, but there was no sign of them. Close to 9 A.M., we got news from another vehicle, that a tiger had been sighted near a dam up ahead. My vehicle staff and I rushed towards the same, overcoming some undulating terrain while doing so. 2 vehicles greeted us. Supposedly, a tiger lay somewhere deep inside in the darkness, but was not visible. Upon lots of repositioning, we could make out some stripes in a dark patch in the distance. It lay resting and shifting sides, like we often do on our beds. I could barely make out its paws on one side of a distant tree and its back, legs and tail on the other, amidst dense vegetation. We had lost all hopes of a good sighting, with 45 minutes gone. The tiger abruptly rose to disappear into the forest. Midway, it changed its mind and decided to visit the waterhole to drink and cool off. It was the dominant male there and it was a super sighting. I learned later that he stayed there for hours and another male tiger had disappeared into the hills elsewhere. Wild dogs were also seen later in the day at Churna. We then made our way back to Madhai late in the morning. On our return journey, we were also treated to a sighting of wild boars playing in the mud. At closing stages of the safari, I managed to get a fleeting glimpse of a Chousingha, considered rare in these parts.
DAY 2: SAFARI 3 [JEEP, EVENING]
I put up at a lodge in Madhai. In the evening, I would visit the forest.
I chose a relatively shorter route “Keria” for the safari which generally had good sightings. But predators eluded us with some decent sightings otherwise. Apparently, predators were not being sighted as much on this route in recent days. Towards the end of the safari, we again had overcast and windy weather, as in the last 2 evenings. Later, I got to know some had seen a tigress via a boat safari at Madhai although it had eluded all jeeps that evening.
At around 8 p.m., there was a very bad dust storm and we had difficulty standing outside our rooms at the lodge. So, we kept indoors for a while until the storm subsided. I went to sleep that day wondering how it would impact the next day.
DAY 3: SAFARI 4 [JEEP, MORNING]
I was scheduled for a safari from Madhai. News was that “Jhinjhin Mahal Route” was having sightings of a tiger for the past 2 days. We took that. The start of the safari was pretty quiet, checking out some areas belonging to a tiger and bears. It was a nice sunny morning. But a little bit into it and we had word that a tiger was briefly sighted up ahead by 1 jeep. We reached an area where some jeeps were parked. Apparently a tiger was seen coming that way, but it had stopped somewhere in between. It was seen the day before too, with blood on its face. It had fed on something.
It was sunny and we surmised it might be resting somewhere. We waited. Eventually, a tigress was seen sitting somewhere deep inside, very far away. Post some adjustments, we could just about make out her presence. As the hubbub to sight her was underaway across all jeeps, our guide noticed another tiger coming from her left. The tigress too got up and both appeared to be coming towards us, but in criss-cross paths. The female was the first to reach us and boldly planted herself between the jeeps. On the other hand, the male came and positioned itself after the vehicles. Our vehicle was positioned such that we ended up having a tigress at the front and a tiger at the back of the vehicle. The male tiger was not that near. I stood up in the car, in utter disbelief! I think the looks that the female threw in our direction periodically was at par with Paarwali or Paarwali Jr. of Corbett fame. It was almost as if she had come closer to rid us of our troubles in sighting her afar. Both eventually got up and disappeared into the forest. The female was very bold. Not so much her brother. They were a recently matured litter of Raavan, aged over 2 yrs old.
We also had some great sightings of gaur before chancing upon a sloth bear, who disappeared in a hurry. We ended the safari with a sighting of a juvenile crocodile in a pond.
DAY 3: SAFARI 5 [BOAT, EVENING]
Some had sighted a tigress by boat for the past day or so. I’d originally planned on a canoe safari. But after discussion with some, I realised a canoe wouldn’t be able to move that fast to get to a particular sighting. A canoe safari isn’t also meant to intentionally go anywhere close to a tiger. At best, if lucky, one could get close to a crocodile or some herbivores or birds(or a land predator by chance). What are the odds when you’re not looking for any? A tigress had made a kill somewhere on the banks of river Denwa, accessible only by boat. It didn’t seem like the right time to think about a canoe safari.
I set off with some others, excited about prospects of seeing a tigress from a boat for the first time! Once in open waters, it felt like I’d been transported elsewhere. Although it was just the uneven banks of the river Denwa we were exploring, owing to the heavy outward and inner irregular land protrusions, it felt like being amidst an archipelago. We saw several birds on the banks. But what caught the eye was a peacock flying just above river Denwa, crossing one bank from another(it felt like 1 island to another). Before I could digest it, another peacock did something similar. Elsewhere, a crocodile on 1 of the banks, returned to the river. In the distance, there were sambars too. At one place, we came upon a dried carcass of a big bison. It was several months old. Raavan, one of his mates and their children had been sighted on that kill several months ago.
After a while, the boatman started entering a bay like opening on 1 of the banks. We had to steer right and left at places to go further inside, owing to uneven contours. It was quite a bit inside but eventually, we did come upon a tigress at the edge of a bank, partly submerged in the waters that sunny evening. She obliged us with some really bold stares and at once I was reminded of the tigress in the morning. I learnt later, the tigress in the morning was a separated adult, born to this tigress. At 1 point an eagle came to steal bits of the kill and the tigress promptly rose to shoo it away. It was a fresh gaur kill she was guarding, kept quite some distance from the waters. Eaten only for a day so. It appeared the evening was mostly for cooling off in the sweltering heat. Subsequently, she got up on land and played around in the grass. First time I was watching a tiger from a boat, quite close. A moment to savour!
After a while, we started returning but were in for a surprise. At quite some distance, I could make out a big crocodile, calmly drifting in the open waters ahead of us, to our right. Upon bringing it to the guide’s notice, we steered in that direction and switched off the motor when close. It was headed straight at us. The boat shakes a lot when off too. Just before I could get a good picture, the crocodile went underwater, quite close at that point. That made me rue at least not taking a short video of the episode. But the great memory remains. That was the finishing touch to this great safari. I bid the other passengers goodbye and headed to the lodge.
DAY 4: SAFARI 6 [WALKING, MORNING]
That morning, I had planned on a walking safari. Its main aim is not to intentionally go looking for predators. Encountering one by chance is ok. Do the tracking and navigate based on what is in store for you. For example, we already knew the tigress with her kill was on the other half of a bank. So, we would walk in the other half, as knowingly disturbing her when she was guarding her kill was not the greatest idea. It made sense, but secretly I wanted to come face to face with a predator on foot. The sunrise view by boat while crossing over to this bank had been quite beautiful. I had 3 guide-cum guards with me who were carrying sticks. This is the only forest in India, where a walking safari inside the core area is conducted. In other forests, it’s mostly a buffer area nature walk. Here, it’s mostly on the peripheral core area, sometimes going a bit inside and touching the jeep safari routes. It lasts for 3 to 3.5 hrs, potentially walking 4.5 – 6 kms including a short break. 1 of my guides had seen a tiger 3-4 times on his walks in those parts. We didn’t see much at the beginning. A sambar made its presence known. We saw bear claw marks in holes, and an empty giant squirrel’s nest and some birds on the way. Quite unexpectedly, a wild boar came in our path. It stared for sometime, before rushing away. We had a second sighting of it, at a clearing. It scampered away, after brooding for some time.
We went through several sighting friendly areas. We took a tea break at some check post in between before resuming. We saw another sambar from quite close, found old bear tracks and other herbivores. More sambar, other storks, eagles, ducks etc. We did walk through several areas where a tiger had been seen before. We contemplated walking towards one edge, to see crocodiles. But it would be a much longer walk and we were not that interested, having already walked a lot. Shortly afterwards, the boat was back to get us back to the other bank. North of 3 hours had passed. It was an interesting experience. Seeing a predator on foot wasn’t to be, on that occasion.
DAY 4: SAFARI 7 [JEEP, EVENING]
I’d planned on a jeep safari from Madhai. I got news that the route where a tiger was getting sighted for the past few days, didn’t yield so in the morning. A leopard was sighted though. Meanwhile, more people had managed to sight the tigress by boat I’d seen the day before.
We’d go on the same route as the day before. It was a longer route to try and finish in the evening. Nevertheless, it was another opportunity for interesting forest sightings. We were encouraged by some fresh bear scat and pug marks at the beginning. This being formerly a primary bear habitat, I was keen on seeing some. Some good peacock sightings and a crocodile sighting followed. We came to an open area with beautiful views and more sightings. Going further, we stopped at an area where the 2 tigers I had seen the previous morning, had been seen on trees many days back. But no real movement was evident. We realised parts of the route were very steep. It was my second time on the route. As the evening wore on, we came across several gaur sightings. At the closing stages of the safari, we unexpectedly managed to find 3 sloth bears rushing away in the distance. But it was a bit dark and we had to rush back, without any great pictures.
DAY 5: SAFARI 8 [BOAT, MORNING]
I had no fixed plan for the following day. Hearing about and witnessing the proceedings of boat safaris for the past 3 days, it was evident that the tigress was feeding early morning. In the evening, she was mostly cooling off due to the heat, a bit away from the kill. It was my wish to clearly see a tigress on a kill. So, I decided to do a boat safari the next morning.
Upon waking up, I was greeted by heavy fog. I reached early to book proceedings and was given the earliest boat available. Looking at the visibility, I reckoned the tigress would still be visible in the range her kill was placed, if she were on it. We made fast progress and my joy knew no bounds as I witnessed the tigress feeding on the kill from the boat. I had reached just in time to see her eat breakfast, urinate and disappear into the tall grasses. This being just a half hour boat safari, we left that point soon afterwards. Owing to the fog, we could see little else. We returned after a few bird sightings.
DAY 5: SAFARI 9 [BOAT, EVENING]
I could’ve gone for a night or a canoe safari. The night safari was a combined evening+ night safari in the buffer. If I did that, I wouldn’t be able to do a boat or canoe safari due to overlapping times. There weren’t any recent sightings in the buffer. Word was going around that the tigress after feeding on her kill in the morning, had crossed over to some dam on the other side. She was sighted by jeep safari goers in the morning too. So, most naturalists were skeptical about her coming back to the kill, especially because she was already cooling off at an alternative place. To me, it seemed a bit early to abandon the kill. Cooling off elsewhere, she needn’t have visited the banks for the same. The boat safari still seemed like a good option as there would be a slight chance for a tigress sighting and to see some good terrain, birds, crocs and possibly other herbivores. Seeing the tigress for a longer time on the kill, was also a potential draw. The fog had cleared out by then and I set out on a 1 hour boat safari. It wasn’t the sunniest of days. So cooling off may not have been the tigress’s priority. We first went to the exact spot where the tigress had lain in the water in the past 2 evenings. No sign of her or any other boat!
We spotted several birds, a sambar and 2 crocs. Initially basking on the bank, the crocs entered the waters far from the tiger spot. We started heading in another direction, where more crocodile sightings were probable, when the boat guide received word that the tigress appeared to have left the dam area and was maybe headed to her kill. With little over 25 minutes left, we decided to give the tigress another shot. It was getting late in the evening. We reached first and heard 2 other boats approaching not far away. Nothing happened for the next 5 minutes. Out of the blue, the bold tigress appeared from the tall grasses in the distance. She headed straight for her kill, instead of the river. She wanted to eat in the evening after all. I did see her for a longer time on the kill this time from the start. It was beginning to get dark and we headed back. No unexpected crocodiles and flying peacocks this time around.
THINGS TO NOTE:
1] It was not the right season for prolific sightings. Madhai outscoring Churna in terms of tiger sightings is also not common, subject to several factors.
2] It was a very complete and diverse forest. Picturesque with grasslands and rocky-cum-steep terrain.
3] There is a “walking safari” in the core forest, a “canoe safari”, a “machaan safari”, to spent 3-4 hrs on a machaan watching good spots. There are also “boat/jeep/night safaris” etc.
4] The guides/naturalists here are dedicated to giving you a good experience. Not lacking in effort and amicable.
5] The lodge staff were very hospitable and friendly. They were glad a tourist put up at their lodge, was having good results. I got an opportunity to interact with several people here.
6] They even have a Mowgli Festival in Madhai, although Mowgli was probably more relevant to Pench as Rudyard Kipling said he was inspired by the Seoni jungles. Maybe there actually was a Mowgli?
7] One has to select the specific route beforehand and pay for it. This aspect is more flexible in other forests with only the zone to be selected beforehand and changing routes is possible.
TO CONCLUDE:
The next morning, I took off early after conveying my thanks and goodbyes. A memorable visit for sure!