Summers are a bit harsh in India and a couple of things that make me happy about summers is the Mango fruit and Jungle Safari wherein you can experience the wildlife.
It starts with our love for nature. One random, crazy, impromptu plan to visit the nearest national parks made me think of Tadoba-Andhari Tiger Reserve. Though, I had been to Ranthambore National Park, Jaipur before but we had the hard time to spot Tigers, though fortunate enough to see peacocks, nilgai, the crocodile in the natural habitat.
February 2016:: After a brief discussion, research and plans, I did the flight bookings (would have preferred a road trip to Nagpur but had time crunch). Inquired about the stay in MTDC Tadoba and booked 2 nights. Yes, we are spontaneous and the impromptu plan works the best! 😀 Now, we had to pre-book the safari, quickly went to the official website, and did the online booking for the safaris – morning and evening! Book well in advance to avoid any inconvenience.
April 2016:: Since, there are no direct flights to Tadoba, we booked our tickets till Nagpur and from there Tadoba is just 145 km! After a relaxing stay at the Radisson Blu, Nagpur, we started off from Nagpur to reach MTDC (Maharashtra Tourism Development Corporation) Jungle Resort, Moharli Tadoba. It was a bumpy ride and took almost 4 hours! The staff at MTDC were helpful and enthusiastic. If you don’t know the online safari booking procedure, the staff at MTDC will help you arrange one. Do take at least 4 safaris to try your luck.
Also, to mention, the suite at MTDC Jungle Resort, Moharli was simple, elegant, airy, well lit, peaceful, and comfortable. Do not expect much. Minimal furniture and basic facilities are provided. But the location is totally worth it. I would recommend staying there. However, they do not have any kitchen of their own. A canteen or small restaurant on the premises is given on lease and you can expect basic food there. Lunch and Dinner are to be pre-ordered.
Day 1: Evening Safari:: Post lunch, I was excited about my first safari and was daydreaming about what lies ahead. The reserve has around 50 tigers. Embarking on a jungle safari to this tiger reserve lets you witness the Tiger, Panther, Bison, Sloth Bear, Hyena, Wild Dog, Blue Bull, Sambar, Leopard, and Barking Deer. The swampland in Tadoba is one of the very few places inhabited by marsh crocodiles. I was enthusiastic to see wildlife especially Tiger. So, did I manage to spot one? Umm….Read and find it yourself. 😉
At 2:30 pm, the evening safari jeep waited for us outside the cottage and we in no time jumped into it. The driver is pre-allocated with the jeep; however the guide is assigned when you reach the checkpoint or the entry gate. The reserve has six entry gates leading into three core zones – Moharli, Tadoba, and Kolsa. There are some boards of do’s and don’ts, and information about the park. Also note the Park remains closed on Tuesdays.
Tadoba Andhari Tiger Reserve, Chandrapur, Instructions Board 
Tadoba Andhari Tiger Reserve, Chandrapur, Information Board 
Tadoba Andhari Tiger Reserve, Chandrapur, Do’s and Don’ts Board 
Tadoba Andhari Tiger Reserve, Chandrapur, Rules of the Jungle 
Information on Board,Tadoba Andhari Tiger Reserve, Chandrapur
After the checking of tickets/passes; we started our first jungle safari at Tadoba from the Moharli gate.At one point, you are surrounded with safari jeeps and within some time you are all alone in the jungle. What a feeling!
Our jeep with the driver and the experienced, knowledgeable guide zoomed into the Tiger Reserve and with the curious eyes, I was searching for some real adventure like Tiger in front of our jeep! Haha…Nothing that sort of happened, though. We passed red sandy trails, well-constructed roads, raw paths in the dense forest. It’s nothing short of a privilege to see nature’s inhabitants in their natural habitat, displaying raw emotions.
The first sighting we had was of the Mottled Wood Owl. It was so camouflaged that if we had gone on our own, without the guide, we would have missed it! Sleepy Mottled Wood Owl resting in the tree fork. Without disturbing it, we moved on and saw the group of Langurs watching the vehicles pass by. What a life!
At the midpoint, there are small check posts where the safaris are supposed to stop and enter the details of any sightings if any. By the time our driver and guide took the break, I made some fake candid poses with the jeep. Took the feel of how it feels driving. After a quick pit stop of 10 minutes, we moved ahead and saw a cute Spotted Deer Fawn gazing at us.
Though for me, each living being is the beautiful creation of the god and I appreciate even the smallest of the beauty, so for me whatever I was seeing was an experience. The trees, chirping birds, curious wild animals were making me happy, and trust me the sultry day didn’t matter then. We moved ahead and caught the sight of Sambar Deer and few meters away was the hulky-bulky Indian Bison. OMG! They are so huge! At a safe distance we stopped the jeep and took some pictures and moved ahead.
Through wireless, the driver got the information of Leopard spotting and we hurried towards that area. The adrenaline rushed in my body. The excitement, the fun, the adventure of watching cat family is another level. We reached the point and the driver pointed towards a location and we couldn’t see it! 😦 Behind the thick bushes lurked the leopard. I could only see its face and that too after a long careful watch. I wanted to see it moving around. We waited patiently and after almost 15 minutes, it walked away and I managed to click some of the photographs of the magnificent creature.
I believed we were lucky and will soon spot the tiger too. We had only an hour left to leave the park. I prayed and hoped that we will see until we exit the park. We also saw some spotted deer quenching their thirst in the local water hole and some hopping and jumping the road. While another group of Langurs were watching us and might be wondering why we have come in their zone! 😀
The sun was about to set and we made our way back to the exit gate and I was still hoping for some more beautiful sighting. Though I could not catch the glimpse of the tiger in this safari but the meditative trance of the sky, the colors, the half-naked trees memorized in my heart. We exited the jungle with a heavy heart but with full of amazing experience and hope to see more jungle friends with the rising sun.
I could not wait for the next day’s safari! Do you wish to come with me on the virtual travel of Tadoba Andhari Tiger Reserve? What do you think will I be lucky tomorrow? Await my next post…..:)
Nanchi.blog 
So good!! It must have been a awesome adventure.😃
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Absolutely, it is always fun to be in the nature’s lap. Thank you, Harsh. 🙂
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WE were there about ten years ago..saw glimpse of the tiger..He was there and gone within minutes…Looks like that leopard has a collar on.
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Oh, that’s awesome. Good to know about your experience. Yes, the leopard was tagged and collared. Thank you for dropping by! 🙂
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That sounds like it was a really amazing adventure!
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It indeed was really amazing! I wish to go there again and again! 😁
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You have some fascinating shots! What a great opportunity.
Thanks for sharing at https://image-in-ing.blogspot.com/2020/05/back-to-archives.html
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Thank you Roth0003; I am glad you liked the photos. 😊
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This sounds like such an great adventure! I love deer. I find them so beautiful. Thanks for sharing Nanchi! Have a wonderful Friday and weekend!
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It indeed was a an amazing experience. Yes, deer are cute and beautiful. I hope you had a great weekend, Samantha. Take care. 😊
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Too bad you didn’t see any tigers. But then you saw so much more.
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Yeah exactly. We were lucky to spot so many other creatures. Please stay connected for more stories from Tadoba coming soon! 🙂
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I like the red earth.
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We like it too! 🙌
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Nice wild reserve
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Tadoba is a beautiful wildlife reserve. So much to see.
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Wow, what an adventure. The leopard photos are stunning!
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A wonderful and exciting adventure. I am glad you liked the leopard photos. 😊
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Spotting tigers is a matter of chance.. I went to Ranthambore Safari and Bandipore Tiger Safari in Karnataka.. Managed to see quite a lot of them in Bandipore (I mean I saw elephants and tigers more than even deer), but again, didn’t see any tiger in Ranthambore.. 😀
Loved the owls though.. They are cute, ecologically beneficial, harmless to humans, but sadly, endangered.
Hope you will be able to see the tiger in the next post of yours.. 😀
btw, where is your Friday facts post?
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Yes, I agree Abir. Spotting big cats are really challenging. We too had a hard luck in Ranthambore. Stay tuned to see whether I was lucky enough to spot any tigers.
Let me tell you, Owls are my personal favourite. They are most adorable. I even have collected some of the owl memoirs.
You are so observant to see I missed the Friday Facts post because of the Tadoba series. Thank you for being such a lovely reader. Glad to know you, Abir. 😊🙌
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You are welcome Madam and thank you for your compliments.. 😊😊
I love reading your posts and learning from you.. 😊😊
Yes, spotting tigers involves luck, if you haven’t tagged them. Hope that you get to see the tigers in the trip of yours under discussion.. 😊
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Thank you Abir for being the wonderful reader. You are so humble. Yes, stay tuned to know more about my Tadoba experience. 😊
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What a place to visit. So much wildlife. – Margy
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Yes, absolutely wonderful place to spot wildlife. Thank you for dropping by, Margy. 😊
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My, what a fabulous adventure! The animals are just splendid to see and your photos are really great.
I am so glad that you took the time to share your world at ‘My Corner of the World’ this week! Thanks!
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Thank you Betty for dropping by. I am glad you liked the photographs and yes to watch animals in their natural habitat is a treat. 🙂
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What a great adventure N. Lovely collection of pics. Wildlife is always so fascinating!
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Thank you so much Radhika. We had a great time in tadoba. I am glad you liked the photographs. Forest and Wildlife is an altogether different world. 😊
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Great pictures.. what an awesome safari..
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Thank you Lisa. I am glad you liked it. we enjoyed the safari a lot. 😊
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Great post 🙂 Planning a visit to Tadoba next winter…hope everything will be fine by then.
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Thank you, Deepak! Yes, winters are also good time to spot tigers. If you are lucky, you can spot them soaking in the sun on the safari paths itself. Fingers crossed! I hope everything will be fine soon. I hope you have a great time. Stay tuned to read upcoming posts on Tadoba. 😊
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Ah, it was truly a virtual tour for me as I wished to visit Tadoba many times but every time it was fully booked and I had to wait for the next season and thus season after season passed by. You were lucky enough to spot the Leopard. 🙂 What a great sighting! Eagerly waiting for your continuation posts.
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Haha…I am glad I could take you on the virtual journey of Tadoba. It is a lovely place. I hope you can make it sometime. Experiencing it in person is an all together different feeling.
I saw Leopard in wild for the first time and trust me it was a surprise visual treat for us. Glad we could spot it just on time. Stay tuned for the upcoming post; most probably tomorrow! 😊
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And here comes one of the best blogs from our Nanchi. So much description, the place, the photos, animals, history, your picture, and the facts.
Wow! I understand why are is your blog niche is travelling because you surely deserve it.
Keep exploring and I pray that it gets over and you can again go outside soon.
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Thank you so much Sumit for your kind words. I am glad you liked all of it. My love for travel makes this blog what it is. You understand people so well. I want to travel and explore at the earliest. Thank you for praying for me, Sumit! It is indeed necessary for everyone to get back to normal life real soon! 😊
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Where is my friend since 2 days? Yet not read any comment?
I hope you’re doing well.
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Yes, I am doing well. Thank you for checking up on me. Your concern about Nanchi brought a smile on my face. We all need people like you around. 🤗 Thank you for being there.
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I’m always there. And why would I not? After all, you’re my only guide na who makes me roam around here and there through your travelling, and of course, your wonderful photos. 😍
Be happy always!
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You are a busy man, dude! Haha. Offcourse, I am your virtual tourist guide. You too stay happy always! 😊🙌
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Nanchi, this is absolutely amazing! What a cool experience. I am curious…I notice a collar on the leopard. Are all of the animals collared and/or tagged in the reserve? And do you know why? I am always so fascinated by the methods which are employed when maintaining animals in captivity…even if they are in their natural habitat. Thanks so much for sharing this wonderful journey and linking up with me. Your photos are so amazing!
Shelbee
http://www.shelbeeontheedge.com
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Thank you Shelbee for visiting my blog. Not all the animals are collared. I guess some of the big cats or may be injured animals are tagged/collared to keep a track may be to save them from poaching/illegal hunting. I am not sure about the exact reasons, though. I am glad you liked the photographs. It indeed was a wonderful experience at Tadoba. Stay tuned to read more about the Day 2 Safari. I am sure you will love it. 😊
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I loved this virtual trip. I guess Tadoba gets overshadowed by other more popular tiger reserves in MP, Rajasthan, and Uttrakhand.
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Hi Arv,
It actually all depends where you see it from. In North India, you will find Corbett, Bandhavgarh, Kanha, Sariska, Ranthambore, Pench more popular while in this part of India, Tadoba, Nagarhole, Bandipur, Pench are visited by many. Rather, the chances of spotting Tigers are quite high in Tadoba. So, yes, it depends on the location.😊
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Thanks for clarification. 🙂
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😊🙌
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Arv, have you been to Maharashtra anytime?
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Yes, I have but I haven’t explored much beyong Mumbai. 🙂
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Oh OK…..That’s nice! 🙂
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🙂
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Absolutely glorious!
Thank you for letting me tag along.
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Thank you Dixie. I am glad you liked it! 😊
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Beautiful and untamed. You captured every pic with that essence.
My first safari was at Ranthambore in Sawai Madhopur. One safari & yes we did sight, twice.
The leopard is such a beauty (as a kid I wanted a cub as a pet hahahaha) . Beautiful shots there too.
Bisons I saw in Coonoor amidst tea plantation.
I am sure you loved yourvtrip like you share. The wilderness is more than the 🐅 counts & sightings.
The egret pic is amazing 😍
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Your description makes me feel as if I am there myself 😃
Wonderful
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Is it!? Thank you, Ishaan. I am glad you took a virtual tour through my blog post! 😊🙌
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Yes it is. 🙂
You’re welcome.
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