Another early morning, but instead of the Taj, we were up at 530am to catch our 6am safari to see the Tigers in Ranthambore National Park. The sun was just starting to come up over the bluffs and we grabbed some coffee and tea on the patio waiting for our jeeps to arrive.  

The jeeps held a range of guests, from the small that held 4 to the large ones which held about 20. They are open air, have roll bars to hang on to (thank goodness) but no seat belts. Ours held the three of us, another couple from Holland and the Naturalist and the Driver.   

 We bumped our way about 15k to the entrance to the park where the Naturalist went in to see what section we were assigned to. There are 8 zones in a small portion of the 151 square mile park, home to approximately 62 tigers as of 2014. As with any attempt at wildlife viewing it is "hide and seek" as you never know if you are actually going to see anything.

Once we were assigned zone 6, we headed down a very bumpy dirt road, which eventually turned into one that needed a 4 wheel drive. Large rocks, deep holes and up/down steep hills had me mostly petrified for the entire 1.5 hours. I had a death grip on the roll-bar which felt like the only thing between me and flying out of the jeep.

 Soon after we got on the dirt road, we stopped and there was a tiger paw print in the dirt...so we knew we were close. Our jeep and another waited and watched for a bit, but finally continued on. We all kept our eyes open for movement and after about 40 minutes we came to a stop and our Guide said we could get out. As we started out...he immediately said  "GET IN GET IN"...and boy did we follow that direction as we had no idea what was the issue...was the tiger behind us????  

Well no, he wasn't, but there was as tiger about 2 miles back. So the Guide said hang on we are going to go really fast. HUH??? I was not thrilled with us going 2-3 miles per hour over what I would consider a path vs a road and now we are going to go fast??? And yes, we did. Every other word out of my mouth was a swear word as I held on for dear life while the jeep flew over rocks, up and down steep hills and my body ricocheting off the seat.  

We finally stopped where another jeep had spotted the tiger. He was sleeping up on the hill and it took a few minutes to find him as he blended into the surroundings. I have no idea how they spotted him in the first place! Luckily the Dutch couple had brought some binoculars so we could get a good look at him lounging, stretching and enjoying the morning. 

We watched for 30-35 minutes, and the tiger wasn't cooperating as he had no interest in doing much other than sleeping. So we finally headed back. Luckily, we didn't have to go the same way we came as there was a short cut out of the park. But, we did have to endure the crazy grain tractors that we had encountered yesterday. Ken wasn't so sure which was worse. For me, I will take the grain tractors any day over the 4-wheeling.  

Once back at the hotel, we grabbed some breakfast and decided to explore the area. There was another beautiful hotel just down the road, so Karen and I decided to check it out. We wandered down the dirt road for about a mile, but never found the entrance so headed back. It was then time for a nap before the next safari at 3p.  

 After the nap, I had decided that I saw one tiger and I was good. While Karen saw her life flash before her eyes yesterday with the drive here, I felt the same this morning during the morning safari. So, Karen and Ken enjoyed it without me. 

Their report back: Didn't see anymore tigers and the ride was not as harrowing. They did see lots of deer and black-face monkeys. Had one Amerian tourist who decided to take a walk into the wild and the guide had to chase her down. "Madam, madam....there are tigers!!". Gotta be on stupid one in every group. Listed below is a link to youtube where on one of the safaris in October the tiger was next to the jeep and the folks in the jeep look petrified (I would be as well!). You will have to cut/paste it...but definitely worth a watch! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cAlSxomgsRg
 
I have included some street scenes as they were fascinating. Camels pulling carts (some with cut little red puff balls on their nose), pigs/piglets running amok, goats, women with water jugs on their heads or carrying large bundles of sticks and the crazy trucks, all decorated in wild colors and streamers. To/from Ranthambore, we certainly saw rural Indian life and can safely say, I am quite damn happy with where we live!!

 The evening was low-key...a couple glasses of wine, light snacks and early to bed. Next up...Jaipur!