Chitwan National Park

Happy to be fleeing Kathmandu once again, we were up early and checked out headed to the bus stop for our reserved seats to Chitwan. Prepped with leftover bread and some bananas haggled over on the street, the bus trailed slowly through the traffic to the outskirts of the capital and with the solidarity and pace of a tank, zig zagged up and down the valleys snagging what space could be claimed on the road with the other buses and trucks snaking up and down through the hills towards Bhaktapur where we had taken the motorbike a couple of days' previously. At an unexpected breakfast stop we claimed rights to some tasty samosas from the small but popular rest-stop village Indian bakery, and bought some green Satsuma's from one of the market stalls on the roadside. Chugging along for another 2 hours or so we were pleased when we reached the main town of Chitwan, continuing for a few more kilometres towards the jungle, the bus pulled into the tourist bus park to a handful of waiting taxi-trucks and hotel deployed jeeps. Luckily as we had pre-booked with a resort, we had somebody meeting us and could avoid the hostile arguments with the touts. The air was more tropical, warm, and humid and smelt of vegetation, a refreshing change from the smog and dirt of Kathmandu. Our jeep trundled back to the rather exotic resort through the pleasantly rural Chitwan village, although scattered with tour agencies, hotels and souvenir shops it had a good feeling, and was obviously quite remote from the main town. After our welcome at the resort we checked into the spotlessly clean room and transferred to the unique octagonal dining room, set apart from the hotel in the centre of the manicured, tropical gardens. We sat and chatted, as we were fed a fantastic 3 course lunches, with a couple who were on holiday from Belgium who we had met on the bus journey.

That afternoon we were guided around the village, down to the river to see the sunset behind the jungle of the National Park on the opposite bank. We stopped in at the conservation-museum which had a small but interesting collection of pickled foetuses (elephants, rhinos and crocodiles), animal skins, and snakes in jars and dried insects pinned into cabinets and some fairly decent information about the wildlife of the park. More knowledgeable than before we then dutifully called in to the Visitor Centre and read up on the history of the park and the conservation efforts being sought for the elephants, rhinoceros and Bengal Tiger. Relenting to a cold beer down at the waters edge, we gathered with several other tourists to watch the cloudless sky fade from yellow to pink to dark blue as the sun sank in the haze. At dinner time, confronted with a huge Nepali buffet spread, we realised that the resort was adamant that we would not go hungry. Following dinner came a cultural show presentation and a group of around 15 young Nepali guys performed 5 of the traditional Tharu dances for us. We may have been expecting something rather tailored for the tourists and corny but it was actually pretty good, and was topped off with hot barbequed chook pieces and a glass of Raksi, the local rice wine. The men were dressed in white lungis and wore large white shirts with red jackets and with wooden sticks performed a circular fighting dance to drum percussion and singing, very rhythmical and fairly skillful. Sporting his Nepali hat, Adam joined in for the conger-style finale with several others in the audience which got them all working up a sweat!

After an early breakfast we were shuttled out at 7am to ride elephants into the jungle. A mixed group of Iranian, UAE, Iraq and Jordanian oil men joined us on the tour, a couple of them being very large, we found it comical to see them jammed into the small wooden elephant saddle. Sitting atop an elephant, traveling through the jungle was brilliant. The early morning meant that it was still quite misty and dew was on the trees and making the cobwebs, unfortunately often now at head height with us, glisten in the pale sun. Getting bashed around in the foliage we made big circles through the forest spotting deer, and then ventured further in through some swampy grassland areas and across a small river tracking fresh Rhino footprints. Sadly the rhino got away, and we had to be satisfied with the spotted deer and big, antlered samba deer and some wild pigs. Heading back to the village we returned to the river to watch the elephants bathing and spraying tourists with water. Tempted by a refreshing swim in the hot sun, Adam had a quick dip, but Lana was slightly put off by the crocodile threat and elephant dung piling up in the shallower parts where the strong current diverted around. Another big meal came for lunch and dinner and again...with the lure of the Raksi and hot chook, we attended yet another evening of the dancing.

Activities lined up for the next day had us piling into a dugout canoe at the edge of the river. Sitting as evenly as possible and trying hard not to make any sudden movements to prompt rocking, we managed to maintain the balance and avoid getting water in the boat without the aid of some anxious, over reactive passengers who had obviously never boated before. We were punted gently downstream in the current of the river for the best part of an hour away from the village and it was beautifully relaxing. There is some wonderful birdlife along the edge of the park, and evidently a healthy ecosystem in the river with an abundance of fish due to the heavy crocodile presence. For a short time the semi-complete, hollowed out tree trunk canoe didn't feel so safe and all limbs were kept inside. Passing some eager, gutsy kids hand fishing in the shallows of the river of a small village, we arrived promptly after and nestled up against the bank and were shuffled out and informed we were walking into the jungle through the thick, tall grass to the observation tower further into the park for some panoramic views. Thick, tall, grass. Our initial thought was that this was a perfect hunting domain for the elusive Bengal Tiger and potentially the end of the road. The Nepalese government does not allow park guides to carry rifles or knives for that matter due to animal protection, consequently their only arsenal and means of defense is a half inch thick piece of bamboo about 1 metre long. Animal protection we thought, what about the human protection? After some debating we conceded that the likelihood of encountering a tiger was a million to 1 as Chitwan used to be the favourite sporting grounds for the Royal family and affluent Indian and Nepalese early last century. Poaching continues to be a huge problem and very real threat to the dwindling populations of the native wildlife, so much so that the military has compounds and checkpoints right through the park itself. However, the chances of meeting an aggressive black sloth bear appeared to be far more likely. Our camp guide calmly told us of how he had to beat away 3 bears doing this very same jungle walk only a couple of weeks before, in front of his stunned, fear riddled Czech companions. Safely reaching the watch tower after crossing a small stream where only the guide managed to get soaking feet, we climbed up through two heavy trapdoors, to take in a different aspect of the jungle around us. After the short break in the mildly sticky heat of the afternoon, we ventured back down to the jungle floor and walked having points of interest, such as the rhinoceros toilet, shown to us along the way. We paused at a clearing in the trees to observe a number of spotted deer grazing from the elevated viewpoint of a large fallen tree. We were then guided across a grassy clearing over to the elephant breeding centre, where domestic elephants are bred and trained, due to the ageing population of the 'working' elephants, alongside the handlers. It was nice to see two baby elephants cheekily seeking out the bags of grain and playfully pushing each other around.

We decided to stay on at the swanky resort for an extra night, but moved the following day to a great little room with a little balcony looking right over the river. Content to chill out and have a day by the river catching some rays, reading a book and enjoying a few coldies, we thoroughly absorbed ourselves in the summer holiday atmosphere. We sort of befriended a 14 year old boy come entrepreneur, and learnt about his banana selling enterprise. We talked for a while and proceeded to see him several times over the next 3 days whereby we found he had diversified into selling (green) oranges as well and had a partner in crime on the scene. He was making nearly up to the average Nepali's weekly wage in a day, selling fruit to unsuspecting tourists at highly inflated prices!

One final blow-out and a determination to see some of the bigger wildlife in the park we enrolled onto a jeep safari tour. Crossing the river we piled into one of the 5 waiting jeeps and managed to be the first one to set off. We drove along tracks through high grasses which we eye-balled eagerly, and then came into deeper jungle with tall canopies and thicker under storey. A tragedy became apparent however as we were driving, a South African creeper weed aptly known as 'jungle killer' is casually smothering the forest. Some areas were entirely covered, from the forest floor to the very tops of the trees, and looked like it had been covered in bright green dust sheets, as only the shape of the forms underneath the sun blocking weed were visible. Little appears to have been initiated to control or eradicate this infestation, and it's actually quite horrifying to see what damage it is doing and the rate at which it is spreading. As we'd anticipated, the midday sun had sent most of the animals of the jungle into hiding, and the noise of the jeep approaching deterred the remainder from the vicinity of the track, but it was still enjoyable none-the-less. We were dropped off at a crocodile park hidden in the depths of the park. Always keen for some reptile action, we went in and were really surprised at the size the native skinny-nosed species of croc could actually grow to...no wonder there were so few swimmers in the river! They have a breeding programme for their two crocodile species to increase their numbers in the wild, as this is the only area one of the species is found. Also held captive at the Croc Park is a Bengal Tiger. It has been detained since it was a cub as its mother killed a local village inhabitant and the consumed the human flesh and was declared a future threat in the area. The 5 metre high enclosure, made from thick wooden boards placed less than an inch apart, is utterly depressing. To peer at the bored, lethargic tiger imprisoned within this bare cell is almost heartbreaking. Lana came away upset and angry that anybody should claim rights to incarcerate an animal so miserably. A life sentence passed without trial or second chance, it would have been kinder to have just shot it an eased its suffering. That being said, it is still one of the most beautiful creatures on the planet and an impressive site to behold with the naked eye.

Thoroughly rested after almost a week enjoying the high life at Chitwan, we returned to Kathmandu to prepare to meet the expedition team, and psyche ourselves up for our challenge to climb Mera Peak at 6476M, nestled in the Hinku Valley.