How can two countries that border each other be so different? This is what I found as I traversed from India into Nepal. People were more laid back and most friendly, the Terai Region landscape was full of bright green rice fields and mountains, the streets were paved and in some cases barriers existed to separate bus/vehicular traffic from the rickshaws and pedestrians, and lastly less trash appeared on the streets, rivers, doorsteps....It was a surprise to me, but one that I really liked from the beginning!
My first destination was the little village of Sauraha, basically a tourist village that caters to the Royal Chitwan National Park. The village has several lodges, rooftop restaurants, and the traditional souvenir/handicraft shops. When I arrived by bus to Tadi Bazaar, about 10 km to the north of Sauraha, I was approached by a friendly lodge manager about staying at the Jungle Wildlife Lodge. I asked the price, which was reasonable and off I went with him in a 4-wheel drive jeep to check the place out! The place was simple, but woudl give me plenty of relaxation as it was located right on the Rapti River across from the national park. I ended up spending 6 days in this village.
During my stay, I went on a 2-day jungle walk in the park, as the jeep safaris had been stopped due to the monsoon season (i.e., lots of rain). The weather on this walk was mostly sunny with the occasional heavy afternoon rain which would bring leeches to our legs and feet. The jungle consisted of three types of terrain: the flood plain area with grasslands (at this time of the year the grass was about 20-30 feet high), the forested area with large tree canopies and bushes, and the lake and swampy areas. The national park covers over 900 square kilometers of land and includes rhinos, tigers, elephants, langur monkeys, sloth bears, wild boar, deer, crocodiles, and lots of birds (those who know me well, know that I love searching for animals, so was pretty excited about this park).
The first day, we hiked for about 20 kilometers through the different terrain and to several look-out towers, but only came across wild boar, deer, and many monkeys swinging from the trees. On the trail, we saw paw prints from tigers and rhinos, but no sight of them in the jungle! After a night near the jungle, we began our second day of walking and soon came across a family of three rhinos (mother, father, and young). This is where the heart started beating and the adrenaline rush oocurs, as we had wondered off the main trail down to a creek where you could listen to the power of the rhinos as they moved back and forth in the water. Soon, the rhinos left the water and we headed back to the trail and within minutes my two guides and me were perched about 12 feet high in a tree. That was a first for me! We sat in the trees for about 30 minutes, as one-by-one, the rhinos came out of the forest onto the trail and than back into the forest....IT WAS SO COOL TO SEE!!! These creatures are massive and would dominate you if you were staring it in the eye. After the rhinos left, we climbed back down and began our journey again. It took about another hour and we came across a big-daddy rhino near a lake and blocking the trail. Here, I ended up in a tree again until the rhino passed into the forest!!!
The Chitwan National Park is a special place with lots of beauty and so really nice sunsets! The park is situated right on the Rapti River and provides much land for the various species to roam and live freely! I hope to return here and visit this park and get lucky with spotting a tiger....:) NEXT STOP KATHMANDU AND I WAS LOVING NEPAL!
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