Chinnar Reserve

No internet for a few days again so we are doing some catch-up at an internet cafe.

Well the photo on the top of our blog turned out to be true. We were very lucky on our overnight trek and saw a group of 10 elephants. 2 male tuskers, 3 small ones, and 5 females. Most likely two groups that came down to the river at the same time at dusk.

We hiked into a cabin with our two guides. They are native tribal people from the area. They spoke a little English and we all used sign language to the best of our ability. They were very kind and helpful. They had an amazing ability to spot animals even in the distance. Mohanan was constantly listening and looking for tracks and signs of animals. The first faint noise by the river and he said elephants and there they were.

He went to check it out first, and then came back to have us come too. We stayed on the other side of the river on a ledge higher up. The guides did not want us to get any closer -- they made a comment about getting legs crushed. We saw them sucking water up in their trunks, drinking it and spraying themselves. With one quick yank, tree branches were ripped off and eaten. At one point the guide moved closer and the elephants shifted to the side quickly surrounding the little ones.

That evening we could hear the elephants as they passed our hut. Sounded like larger trees snapping and brush being trampled with their foot steps. It is a booming sound that you certainly have respect for. Hiking in these forests takes on a whole new meaning when you share the trails with wild elephants.

The next morning we hiked out by the river and saw evidence from a few days earlier of a leopard eating a deer. We saw foot prints too, but not actual leopard sightings.

The monkeys there were very frisky (cheeky as the British and New Zealand travelers called them). One was starting to help himself to Larry's camera when he went to the bathroom but luckily other people grabbed it away.

We have not met another American yet on our travels. German, British, French, Australian, and New Zealand. But many, many times, we have been the only white people in sight. And of course, Larry looks a bit over sized much of the time, but not always. It was a problem finding shirts in some of the small shops for him -- they just don't carry larges and beyond.