First morning off on safari again. This was our third National park in India and our last safari of the holiday. This was the best safari, we saw loads. Including a pack of wild dogs with 9 puppies, elephants, a herd of large gaur (like bison), a giant squirrel (it was big but not really giant!), and most amazingly a tiger. We spotted the tiger sat next to the lake and then followed it strolling along. Good visibility with the naked eyed but not close enough for a good photo. We then lost it for a while but found it back next to lake. It sat there for about ten minutes before disappearing into the undergrowth. The guide was confident it would come back out in front of the jeep as the sambar deer next to us was barking warning calls. After a 5 minute wait we spotted it lurking in the trees behind the deer and then it emerged at speed and ran across the road in front of the jeep. Very exciting and about 20 minutes good view of the tiger.
We also went on a bike ride to Iruppu Falls. This was a very lovely ride through the tea and coffee plantations and forest. Only rode for nearly 2 hours but it was enough because it was hotting up. It was 29C when we set off at 9.45am, not sure what temp it was when we finished but it was hot! Chilled back at our hotel in the afternoon with a couple of beers. We stayed at this hotel for three nights and so the bar man was waving to Mark by the end of our stay!! Beer isn't always readily available and I think it is quite frowned upon in many small towns and villages. So the bar next to this hotel was only full of men and if you bought anything to takeaway it was wrapped in newspaper or hidden in your bag!! The hotel was very basic but served really great food at very low prices.
We left Nagerhole by taxi to go further north in the Coorg region. The whole area is very picturesque with the plantations and forests. It is also one of the wealthiest regions in Karnataka. You can notice this in the houses, the roads and the number of cars about. Generally it looks a lot more affluent than anywhere else we have been so far on our travels in India. The people continue to be exceptionally kind and friendly. If ever you need help somebody will always help. Unknown to me the hotel I booked in North Coorg was the equivalent of a UK Center Parcs. It is very posh and well appointed but full of families and family activities!! This is the only 'resort' type place we have stopped at and I chose it because of the location next to a hill hike we wanted to do. On the day of the hill hike we made our way to the meeting place for the local guide but there wasn't a guide there! We waited a bit and then decided to complete the walk ourselves. It started off on a beautiful path uphill for about 2 miles but then we reached a forest check point and the rangers said the hill climb was closed due to fire risk. So we returned to the start and then carried on further downhill for a couple of miles before arranging a pick up. We managed to get 6 miles completed and it was very lovely.
The following morning we had arranged another bike ride with the guy we met at Nagarhole. We did a great ride to a river, had a swim and then cycled back. About 16 miles in total. He had asked us if we would like to sample local food for our lunch, of course we said yes. Little did we know it was at his house!! This was very different from our previous experience as this guy lived on a coffee plantation that his parents owned so relatively a wealthy local family. His mum and sister had prepared a banquet of amazing food including pork and vinegar curry, paneer patties, rice balls, banana flower curry and rices. It was all delicious. Best of all we weren't expected to have a sleep afterwards! Phew!
More amazing experiences in this area of India. In hindsight we probably should have stayed longer in the Coorg area as there is opportunities for hiking and biking, and it is really beautiful. Next stop the beach. After a 3 hour taxi ride and a 12 hour train ride! The beach is our last stop in India and then we head home. We'll be seeing you all soon, love Dawn And Mark xx
