Northern India - the complete tour Monday 9 February to Friday 27 February 2009
Cost: £2470 plus about £700 for flights Click here for explanation of price breakdown Maximum group size: 12 with 1 leader. |
'Paul Holt was excellent all round. His recognition of bird calls is phenomenal. His good humour, enthusiasm, organisational skills and patience in helping everyone to see and identify birds made this a very enjoyable tour'. D. Blatcher 2007.
'This was probably the best birding trip I've ever taken. The leadership, the pace, the clientele were all vastly superior to any trip I had taken with other tour companies. Can't wait to take another trip with your company! It was worth every penny!' M. Austin 2005. |
|
To many people India is a mystical and exotic country that epitomises foreign travel. It is a land of striking contrasts, rich heritage and fabulous culture, and long after you’ve returned home, images will remain to enrich and liven your daily round. The cool marble splendour of the Taj Mahal, the snows of the Himalayas flamingo-pink at dawn, the lush green jungles, and above all the birds. The thrill of your first Siberian Rubythroat, a Spotted Forktail or Altai Accentor beside a mountain stream, Sarus Cranes striding majestically through the bright yellow mustard fields, an Orange-headed Thrush lighting up the undergrowth, Scarlet Minivets streaming through the emerald canopy. With so many species on the potential list the examples can only be arbitrary and the total for the tour should be between 380 and 400 species. We have been running up to three tours a year to Northern India for many years now and our unrivalled wealth of experience has made this one of our most successful and popular destinations. We now add a visit to Ranthambhore, thereby offering the very real possibility of an encounter with a Tiger and making this one of the most comprehensive Northern India itineraries on offer. Day 1: The tour begins with a flight from London to Delhi, arriving late in the evening. At the airport we’ll be met by our driver and coach and transfer to a hotel for the night. Day 2: After an early breakfast we’ll transfer to one of Delhi’s bustling railway stations where we begin our grand tour with a train ride south to the Ranthambhore Tiger Reserve. Gliding through the open countryside of the Gangetic Plain will be a wonderful introduction to rural India and we can expect to see Indian Pond Heron, Black-shouldered Kite, Common Peafowl, Rose-ringed Parakeet, Indian Roller, Black Drongo, and Common and Bank Mynas along the way. Arriving around midday we’ll transfer straight to our hotel and in the afternoon we’ll have our first safari drives in the reserve in search of the majestic Bengal Tiger. Night at Ranthambhore. Day 3: Ranthambhore is the subcontinent’s most famous and most accessible tiger reserve and we anticipate taking a number of drives in the morning and the early evening. We will ride in open-topped vehicles, allowing wonderful views of the wildlife and we will undoubtedly encounter good numbers of Spotted Deer, a main prey item for the elusive Tigers. A healthy population ensures that we have a good chance of at least one encounter with this magnificent cat. Ornithological distractions could include Painted Spurfowl, Changeable Hawk-Eagle, and White-naped Woodpecker. Night at Ranthambhore. Day 4: This will be our second full day in and around Ranthambhore. If we still haven’t seen a Tiger, we’ll concentrate our efforts to find one. However there are numerous other attractions, including a spectacular ancient fort and a series of bird-thronged lakes, while outside the reserve we have a good chance of finding regional specialities such as the gorgeous Indian Courser and elusive Painted Sandgrouse. Night at Ranthambhore. Day 5: After our final morning’s drive, we’ll leave Ranthambhore and take the train to Bharatpur, one of the ornithological wonders of the world. We’ll arrive in time to sample some of the regions ornithological delights. Days 6-7: Keoladeo National Park, known simply as Bharatpur, was originally a vast wetland developed for duck shooting. Coaches are not allowed inside the park, so we’ll explore the 29 square kilometres on foot, and by bicycle-rickshaw (peddled by someone else!). Those whose over-riding memories of birdwatching abroad are dusty and bumpy roads and whistle-stop stake-outs will find this a marvellously relaxing time. Nevertheless it will be very rewarding, with the possibility of over 150 species ranging from Sarus Crane to Small Minivet and Ruddy-breasted Crake to White-tailed Eagle. Among the numbers of waterbirds, Black-necked and Painted Storks, Intermediate Egret, Cotton Pygmy-goose and Darter will vie for our attention as we search for less usual species such as Ferruginous and Red-crested Pochards and Greater Painted-snipe. In the trailside trees we’ll look for Marshall’s Iora, Yellow-footed Green Pigeon, Common Wood-shrike, Asian Paradise-flycatcher, White-bellied Drongo, Coppersmith Barbet, and Ashy Prinia. Beneath the bushes the slightest movement could herald a Bluethroat or, with luck, an Orange-headed Thrush or Siberian Rubythroat. In the sky above might be Greater Spotted Eagle, Red-headed Vulture or Crested Serpent Eagle. Dusk may bring us Collared Scops-Owl, Dusky Horned-Owl or a nightjar or two. Note however that Bharatpur is suffering from an acute water shortage and although the actual amount of water in the park varies from year to year, and is largely dependant on the size of the previous summer’s monsoon, the sanctuary has been very dry for most of the 21st century. Because of this we now only spend one full day inside the reserve spending our other full day visiting a bird-thronged, deep water reservoir about two hour’s drive away. Nights at Bharatpur. Day 8: Leaving Bharatpur we’ll drive to Agra where we’ll visit the Taj Mahal – ‘no mere building but a love immortalised in marble’. Obsessional birders in the party, who are not moved by Shah Jahan’s promise to Mumtaz Mahal that he would build a tomb that would for ever remind the world of their great love, should at least enjoy seeing raptors in profusion over the Taj, and a chance of Pallas’s Gull or River Lapwing on the Yamuna River, or Asian Koel and Brown-headed Barbet in the leafy gardens. In the afternoon we’ll continue on to the Chambal River Lodge where we'll spend the night. Day 9: In the morning we’ll take a boat up the Chambal River. Indian Skimmers still breed here and we should be able to find several of these increasingly rare birds as well as Black-bellied Terns, and perhaps Sand Larks. Gharial, Mugger Crocodiles and even Gangetic Dolphins found here and we’d hope to see all three. In the afternoon we’ll return to Agra before continuing north to Mathura. We’ll have dinner in access to two rooms here before beginning our journey towards the foothills of the Himalayas by taking an overnight sleeper train to Lalkuan. Night on the train.
Day 10: Arriving at Lalkuan in the early morning we’ll continue north to Ramnagar. Here we’ll search the boulder-strewn river for the rare and elusive Ibisbill, as well as wintering Wallcreepers. From there we move on to The Quality Inn, a delightful lodge just outside Corbett National Park which has superb views across the Kosi River and surrounding dense woodland where we are free to wander on foot. Night at the Quality Inn. Day 11: During our full day here we’ll explore the river edge for Brown and Tawny Fish Owls, Crested Kingfisher, Brown Dipper, and Plumbeous and White-capped Water Redstarts. The surrounding area is full of surprises and in recent years we have regularly seen Long-billed Thrush, Little and Slaty-backed Forktails as well as Mountain Hawk and Rufous-bellied Eagles here. Many new species are possible in the forest and could include Collared Falconet, Crested Tree Swift, Hair-crested Drongo, and Orange-bellied Leafbird. Night at the Quality Inn. Day 12: After breakfast we’ll enter the highly scenic Corbett National Park where Red Junglefowl and Kalij Pheasant are immediate possibilities. Please be warned that the accommodation here is spartan by Western standards; expect leaky plumbing and unpredictable supplies of heating, electricity and hot water. But the food is excellent and the location and its birds magnificent. Night in Corbett National Park. Day 13: This internationally famous reserve, set up for Project Tiger, was established in 1935 and covers 520 square kilometres. The Tigers here are extremely hard to find and with vast areas of forest in which to roam, encounters are now very rare. However exploration on foot is not allowed – indeed it is only possible in areas adjacent to our lodge or if accompanied by an armed guard. Happily, safaris on elephant-back provide a thrilling alternative. Located in the Himalayan foothills between 400m and 1100m above sea level, the reserve is divided by the River Ram Ganga and offers a variety of habitats, from dense jungle and mature forests to open grassland, broad river valleys and rolling hills. The wealth and variety of species seems almost inexhaustible: Great Hornbill, Jungle Owlet, Slaty-headed Parakeet, Himalayan Swiftlet, Lesser Fish-Eagle, or even Great Thick-knee, Stork-billed Kingfisher or White-tailed Rubythroat. As well as Tiger, mammals include Indian Elephant, Indian Muntjac and Hog Deer. Night in Corbett National Park. Day 14: After a final morning in the park we’ll drive to the old hill-station of Nainital, a journey which takes us along one of the world’s more spectacular mountain roads as we climb up into the Kumaon Hills on our way to this delightful ‘lake city’. We’ll stop along the way to look for birds. New species could include Long-tailed Broadbill, Black-throated Jay, Black-throated Tit, Blue-headed Redstart, and the spectacular Spotted Forktail. Night in Nainital. Days 15-16: Driving up to the mountain ridge above Nainital we’ll look across to the snow-capped Western Himalayas and the borders of China and Nepal. If the weather is clear we’ll be able to see Nanda Devi, at 7816m India’s second highest peak, from a view-point alive with Oriental Turtle Doves, Chestnut-crowned and White-throated Laughingthrushes, Grey-winged Blackbirds, and Orange-flanked Bush Robins. The gentle downhill stroll back to town will add many sub-Himalayan species to our list. On varied walks through the surrounding valleys and forested hills we’ll hope for Hill Partridge, Altai Accentor, White-tailed Nuthatch, Rusty-cheeked Scimitar Babbler, Golden Bush Robin, Yellow-breasted Greenfinch, and Common, Dark-breasted and Pink-browed Rosefinches. From a nearby mountain look-out close-passing raptors could include Himalayan Griffon, Lammergeier, and Steppe Eagle and daily surprises could range from Koklass Pheasant and Great Barbet to White-browed Shrike-Babbler or Rufous Sibia. Streaked Laughingthrush is virtually a garden bird here and the numerous wooded gullies and gardens around the town can hold many other exciting birds. Recent tours have produced Chestnut Thrush, Fire-fronted Serin and Russet Sparrow all within walking distance of our hotel. On one day we’ll visit the lake at Sat Tal, passing through coniferous forests, a patchwork of farm fields, and the deciduous woodland surrounding the lake. Each of these habitats holds different birds and highlights on previous visits have included Brown Wood Owl, White-crested and Rufous-chinned Laughingthrushes, Red-billed Leiothrix, Scaly Thrush, Black-throated Accentor, and White-capped Bunting. Nights in Nainital. Day 17: After a final morning around Naintal we'll start our journey down to the plains and back to Delhi. We'll pause overnight about half-way, just to the east of the mighty Ganges. Night near Gajroula. Day 18: There will still be new species to distract us on our return to Delhi, even after nearly three weeks in this fascinating country and we’ll allow plenty of time for the journey. These could include regional specialities such as Straiated Babbler and possibly even Sand Lark. After dinner in an airport hotel we’ll catch an overnight flight back to London where the tour concludes on the morning of Day 19.
E-mail or phone +44 (0)1767 262522 for availability.
|
Photos by Paul Holt and
|
Bird List 
