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Ranthambore National Park is vast.Unfortunately, the Maharajahs of a previous era had a great love of hunting, and thousands of tigers were hunted and killed, in the name of "sport". The Tiger-hunts were called "Shikhars", and it was a favourite way of entertaining guests. In 1955 The Queen & Prince Philip were guests of the Maharajah, and Prince Philip bagged a tiger or two. Its hard for me to understand how anyone could have found any pleasure in shooting one of these magnificent animals. But it happened. The result of this is that the Tiger is now an endangered species. The "Project Tiger" conservation effort started in Ranthambore, and has been moderately succesful, but there was much corruption, involving poaching & bribery implicating Government Officials. That was a few years ago, and now the program seems to be increasing the Tiger population. There is yet a long way to go yet . The Tigers of Ranthambore are a rare sight.We heard from other people that they had had a sighting.,but we had no luck, even after 4 trips.
We saw many other species if wild animal,however, and the bird-life is prolific. Leopards, wild deer, foxes, chitals (spotted deers) and Sambar (largest Indian deer). Jungle cats (small wild cats) and Chinkara (Indian Gazelle). There are over 260 species of birds, and we saw many.
The lake had a fair amount of water, and the animals and birds were congregating there, enjoying the cool water. Wonderful photo opportunities.
The best time to see animals is very early morning, and at sunset. We went out with 12 other people, on what is called a "canter" . Its really like an over-sized Jeep, with an open area at back to sit. There are about 7 different trails that can be followed, and the canter takes a different route on each trip. jeeps also can be hired, with a guide/driver. We tried both, but preferred the canter.The Jeep or Canter will pick up passengers (pre-arranged) from hotel.
We stayed at the old Royal Hunting lodge (Castle Jhoomer Baori ) (see accomodation tip) and the staff packed a breakfast for us every morning, which we ate along the way. We left at 5.30am!!! Take warm clothing, it gets very cold on the drive, morning and late afternoon. Leave a Comment Phone: Sawai Madhopur 20223Directions: The Park is about 15km from Sawai Madhopur rail station, along Ranthambore Road, to the first park gate.The fort is another 3kms inside park Opening times 6am-6Other Contact: RTDC Tourist Reception Centre
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This craft centre was really worth the visit. It has been established to give the lower-caste local women an outlet for the beautiful hand made clothes, bags , bedspreads and other textile crafts that they produce. They get a decent share of the profits, and it provides them with much needed financial assitance. We bought clothing there, (Richard still wears his favourite shirt) and I bought handbags, a wall hanging, and various bits and pieces. The craft centre is situated in a leafy glen, with the women sitting quietly outside, doing the hand sewing. They were colorfully dressed, and shyly covered their smiling faces when I approached, asking if I could photograph them. Needless to say, they obliged. Leave a Comment Directions: 3 kms form Park entrance on Ranthambore Road.
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This mighty 10th century fortress stands 700 feet high atop a hill, and it is quite a climb to reach it.There are three Hindu temples within the fort, and we passed many,many pilgrims while climbing the many steep and winding steps to reach the top.Having been beseiged and conquered over the centuries,the fort was captured by Mughal Emperor Akbar in 1559. In the 17th century the fort was passed on to the Maharajah of Jaipur. The fortress remained part of Jaipur state until Indian Independence in 1947. The surrounding hills became the Royal hunting grounds of the Maharajahs, and the former Royal hunting Lodge,which is perched high upon a mountainside, is now a Rajasthan Tourist Government Guest House. We stayed there.(see accomodation tips).Thousands of Langurs (an type of Indian monkey) are everywhere.They are fairly aggressive - so do not try and make friends!The Fort was interesting to explore-there are gates that still have evil-looking elephant spikes in them, chatris and cenotaphs. Beautiful Hindu religious stone carvings around every corner. Leave a Comment Directions: Within Ranthambore National Park, about 25kms from Sawai Madopur Rail Station.
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 by MattTB
We were extremely lucky and saw a Tiger on our first drive in the park. The guide and driver look for pug marks in the tracks, we hear a deer making a warning call, then a monkey warning call.... we drive to where we hear the commotion... and there is the king of beasts! Leave a Comment
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 Tiger by gretsLeave a Comment
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 A Jackal by MattTB
There are other animals too, spotted deer, antelope, crocodiles, monkies, mongoose, wild boar, wild dog etc... we saw some of the animals mentioned! Leave a Comment
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 Tiger pug marks by grets
Always on the lookout for pug marks in the sand, the naturalists can determine whether the tiger has passed through here recently, and which direction it took. These very fresh marks are seen along the track leading down to Malik Lake, but despite following the direction of the paw prints – pug marks is all we see. Oh, the thrill of the chase. Leave a Comment
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Located just abeam of the town of Sawai Madhopur, and approximately 160 miles south of Jaipur lies one of India and Rajasthan's treasures, the world-renowned Ranthambhore National Park. This stunningly beautiful territory was, as are many present-day preserves in India, once a royal hunting retreat. In fact, what is presently Ranthambhore has been created by the merging of several smaller territories and properties over the last century.
Today's Ranthambhore consists of some 1400 square kilometers, including marshlands, craggy rocks and mountains, grassy plains and semi-tropical abodes. Dotted among the glorious natural beauty are many abandoned (by humans anyway) temples and covered structures, evoking memories and analogies to Kipling's classing JUNGLE BOOK. In addition to the abandoned temples, be sure to enjoy the view of the ruined 9th century fort, which is perched on a rocky precipice, some 150 meters above the Ranthambhore Information Center area. You can actually visit the fort, you'll be taking a moderate little hike up to the summit. Wear sensible shoes and bring your camera.... lots of nice views.
Visiting Ranthambhore is the reason many - and probably most - visitors to Sawai Madhopur are here. The park is managed by the Indian government, and access is somewhat restricted and quite regulated. The only options for "safaris" in Ranthambhore are via jeep (they call them gypsies) and a larger 20-person vehicle they call canters. There are three main sections of the park, and each "safari" is generally limited to one section and lasts for three hours. You have no say in which section of the park you visit, and really cannot plan in advance so that you visit all three. It's totally a luck of the draw thing. For more information on visiting the park/transportation, please see my "GYPSY OR CANTER, WHAT'S YOUR PLEASURE?" Sawai Mahopur transportation tip.
Without a doubt, Ranthambhore equals tigers to its visitors. However, tiger sightings are never a guarantee. It is absolutely possible to visit the park numerous times without a tiger sighting. That being said, it's said that you have at least a 30% chance of seeing a big cat on any given safari. And, I was surprised to see how up close these sighting can actually be. OUR tiger sighting gave us a peek at a male Bengal tiger ONLY 40 meters away. Needless to say, staying in the jeep or canter is a MUST. :)
There are other rare and beautiful animals resident at Ranthambhore. For example, we actually had a look at a couple of leopards hiding in the underbrush. They were some 300 meters away, and were quite difficult to initially spot. But, we had terrific and patient guides - they made sure we got a good look. Under my packing tip for Sawai Madhopur, I posted a photo I took of the leopards. Realize that leopards are very very shy, and that we were a good distance away. Sure, we came to Ranthambhore looking to see a tiger, and we'd have been disappointed to not see one. But, for what it's worth, our guides were ten times more excited to have found these leopards than the tigers. Apparently finding them is quite a coup. So, our first safari through Ranthambhore was special.... we saw a tiger AND two leopards.
There are also crocodiles, all sorts of deer, other mammals, birds, reptiles, snakes, etc. It's a very special place to visit if you truly admire the diversity of nature, and love viewing it in the wild.
If you go to India, and you're in this part of the country, add Sawai Madhopur and Ranthambhore to the itinerary. It fits very nicely into almost any "golden triangle" tour plan. Leave a Comment Address: Ranthambhore Road, Sawai Madhopur, Raj
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 Tiger by gretsLeave a Comment
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 imagine a tiger lounging in
one of those windows by pchamlis
There are several of these "Tiger Temples" across a large body of water in what they call Section 1 of the park. The guides say that tigers often like to lay in the portals of these temples, surveying their lands in a fashion befitting the Raj royalty of the past. If you happen to see a tiger or two in the windows of these temples, from across the water, it would be a fabulous photo. All you need is a telephoto and some luck.
So, be sure to fix your binoculars on the Tiger Temples and have a gooooood look. FWIW, we didn't find any tigers in the temples on our visits. Leave a Comment Address: Ranthambhore National Park, Sawai Madhopur
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