Best Wildlife; Southern India

pri

Hi,

Did you check out the wildlife areas in Kerala and TN. Suprised you didn't consider Karnataka...great forest regions like Nagarahole and Bandipur. Feb, March, April are some great wildlife sightings months. To see a report of sightings at Nagarahole over the last few months such that you get a realistic idea of it (since you sounded doubtful about spotting important animals) check this page out...sighting record of a resort in Nagarahole at http://www.kapilaretreat.com/html/sightings.php

Regards,
pri

Spudy

well its the only reserve I've been to in india but I thought it was amazing. Was there for a conference for 6 days and then stayed on an extra 3 In Periyar house in the centre of the park..monkeys everywhere...giant squirrels, huge bull elephants on the road between there and the lake...

Theres loads to do...birdwatching runs evey morning evening and although I'm more into fur than feathers have been told the guides are amazing. Theres boat rides on the lake in the mornings and afternoons...can see sambar, bison, boar, a huge family of otters and elephants coming down for a drink, mongoose.

Went on a day bamboo rafting and trek and saw an elephant swimming across the lake, again loads of sambar and boar, showed us tiger scats and claw marks...

Theres a full day border trek you can do as well - climbing up to see an amazing view over the reserve...saw a monitor lizzard huge!!

They also do night walks and jungle patrols (jungle patrol 7-10 pm, 10-1am, 1-5am). Saw flying squirrels flying!! amazing, porcupines, bats, snakes, fireflies and signs of elephants everywhere

As you may have guessed i liked it

10 thumbs up

engelsen

If a person has time to visit only one reserve in Tamil Nadu/Kerala/Karnataka.... I'm wondering which one?? Wayanad has an appealing write-up in Lonely Planet - moreso than Periyar which they describe as somewhat disneylandish. But then I wondered if it hasn't been built up as much because it's not as beautiful or has less likelihood of seeing animals?? Or some other issue?

I'm also wondering whether it is possible to travel along the spine of the ghats... from one wildlife sanctuary to the next??

Any suggestions would be very much appreciated!

sambout1986

Bandipur Sanctuary is quite good and with good facilites much better then any sanctury in karnaTaka

snonymous

Hello again Engelsen
If that is what LP says about Periyar, then Im glad I have never bothered to ever read LP! Ive personally seen more wildlife than I ever expected to at Periyar in several trips over the years, the latest being a good long sighting of the elusive Nilgiri Marten in May this year. And that was when we casually wandered off on our own, not even on a guided trek [also excellent].

If you are interested, you can read my trip report at http://www.indiamike.com/india-artic...uide-may-2008/
or at my blogsite with 209 photos at: http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog...re/4/tpod.html
You can also find quite a few of the Periyar photos at 'My Photos' here on IM.

Re: Travelling along the spine of the ghats - Brilliant idea, but you will require prior permission from the forest department, of the respective states if applicable. For example the Wynad / Bandipur / Mudumalai belt encompasses Kerala, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu. You will get permission fairly easily if you are an affiliate of any well known wildlife / environmental association such as WWF, BNHS etc. Allow a couple of months for all the red tape.

In Kerala, you can visit almost all the sanctuaries accompanied by a local forest guide who will take you where you want to, more or less for a negotiable fee, and provided you have the interest. The Silent Valley NP has restrictions.

santos_g15

people dont know what to do.wildlife spotting requires patience and some amount of luck .people just go for boat ride in periyar around the lake and complain.there is a program called tiger trail .do that.i bet will you will be satisfied even if you dont see a single animal..trek through thick jungle will definitely satisfy you. visit periyar site for more info.