Tuesday, June 30, 2009

Elephant Safari in Corbett Wildlife National Park

The Elephant Safari takes you through mysterious thick forests, deep valleys and the rugged trails that offer a lingering thrill to the adventure seeker. This is enhancing by the cultural enigma of the land. Let’s take a car safari in Corbett National Park, Uttaranchal along the muddy tracks of Corbett, lined with shoulder-high elephant grass on either side.

Corbett Wildlife National Park was set-up in 1936 as India's first wildlife national park and possibly the finest; the Corbett National Park was established in consultation with the great hunter and conservationist, Jim Corbett. The wildlife park spreads over some 920.9 square km at an altitude of 600 to 1100 metres at the foothills of western Himalayas in the districts of Nainital and Pauri Garhwal. In its eventful 64-year life, it has grown considerably in size and now includes the Sonanadi Wildlife Sanctuary as a part of its 1,319 sq km of reserved forest area.

You can take your own car (preferably r-wheels drive) or hire a vehicle from the forest department or various tour organizers. Armed with a pair of binoculars, water and headgear, get read for a drive that could lead to close encounters with any thing from a band of monkeys to a vast herd (80-100 strong) of wild elephants or even a tiger returning to a fresh kill. But remember, nothing in life comes with guarantees, least of all in the jungle. So don’t expect to see a tiger even if you camp here for seven nights. Full jeep hire costs Rs. 2700 from KMVN. Private jeeps are also available outside the park gates at Rs. 500-600 for the trip. Another Option to is to pay Rs 650 plus fuel costs for a cab for the whole day.

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