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Of the many wildlife parks we have visited, Corbett
has always been special and is ranked one of our favourite wildlife parks. The
park offers not only offers the chance to sight the magnificent Tiger, but if
you are lucky you will see sloth bears, the Leopard, elephants, deer, langurs
and birds (I have recorded over seventy birds at Corbett).
Jim Corbett national park is the oldest established
national park and animal sanctuary in India. Originally named as the Hailey
national park, it was renamed to Jim Corbett national park in 1957 to honour
his contributions in creating the national park. This park is under the Save
the tiger initiative.
Because it is around six hours from Delhi, (approx. 290 kms), getting to Corbett is easy. The only thing one needs to do is to book your rides. That is always a fight. The first stretch, i.e. Delhi to Murabdabad which covers around 190kms, is brilliant. The roads are good and there are no potholes. But the 50km stretch from Moradabad to Kashipur is a killer. The road is non-existent, road discipline close to zero and then there are the cows, dogs and little children on the roads, that makes driving so enjoyable.
Anyway, once at Jims
Jungle Retreat (www.jimsjungleretreat.com), owned and run by the Akoi family,
everything changes. The resort and the rooms are fantastic, food is great, the
staff is courteous and very knowledgeable and the unlimited hot water in the
bathroom makes the holiday complete.
Our Corbett holidays
are normally three days and two nights. This typically includes three safari
rides and one nature walk. Subject to availability, our safari rides normally
cover Bijrani, Jhirna, Dhela. Of the three, we would recommend Bijrani over the
other two. Dhela we found monotonous as it is comparatively smaller than the
others.
Morning rides in winter
are memorable. Its dark, cold, misty, miserable – but once you are inside the
park, all this is forgotten and the hunt to spot a tiger takes over. Normally
morning rides start at six while evening rides start at one in the afternoon.
Corbett has the tiger
and is always the highlight of the trip. But you get to see a host of other
animals such as the Cheetal or Spotted Deer, Sambar, Barking Deer, Elephants
(though we are yet to see any), wild boar, langurs and if you are lucky the
yellow-throated martens and the Sloth bear.
For birders, Corbett is heaven. We have recorded around 70 different species – some of which include Changeable Hawk Eagle, Fish Eagle, Jungle Owl, Grey-headed Fishing Eagle, Himalayan Vultures, Steppe Eagles, Egrets, the White-necked and Black-necked Storks, Peacocks, Barbets, Woodpeckers, Orioles, Hornbills, Geese, Herons, Storks, Sandpipers, Snipe, Rollers, the Hoopoe, Shrikes, Larks, Mynas, Bulbuls, Warblers, about 10 different types of duck sand Wagtails.
Corbett get a 8/10 from me, even though Jims Jungle is a clear 10/10
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