Dates Nov 7–24, 2007
Leader James Martin and local guides
Fee $7,695 from Delhi, India
Deposit $400
Limit 16
Terms and Conditions Apply

There are some places in a traveler’s lifetime that must be visited—and India is one of them. As the world’s seventh largest country it has a cultural and historical richness without equal, and its panoply of wildlife is exceeded only by Africa! Few nations in the world rival India for sheer geographic diversity ranging from its high Himalayas to lush lowland rain forests. When you travel to India you are never indifferent to its inconceivable spectacle. The sub-continent provides a torrent of exotic sights, sounds, scents and tastes—a variety seen nowhere else on earth.

The focus of this tour will be on some of the sub-continent’s key nature preserves, including Keoladeo Ghana National Park (Bharatpur), Kaziranga and Kanha National Parks. These wonderful parks are home to three interesting species of deer, including sambar, spotted chital and barasingha. We’ll also investigate prime habitats for Indian elephants, langur monkeys, pythons, gaur and Indian one-horned rhinoceros.

The tour will also offer us a chance to see and photograph tigers in the wild as we explore some of the country’s tiger preserves. Situated in the state of Madhya Pradesh, picturesque Kanha National Park was the inspiration behind Rudyard Kipling's unforgettable classic, The Jungle Book. The park was established in 1955 and forms the core of the Kanha Tiger Reserve, which was created in 1974
under Project Tiger. By far the most striking features of the park are the open grassy meadows, where sightings of blackbuck, barasingha, sambar and chital are common and provide an obvious area for tigers to hunt. There are grassland plateaus, lush folded valleys, steep rocky escarpments, and untouched forests harboring gigantic trees with thick garlands of climbing vines and dense bamboo thickets. Two of the valleys were once the designated tiger hunting grounds for maharajas and members of the British Raj. Through extensive conservation efforts, tigers have now increased in Kanha in good numbers, making this the premier park in India to see these elusive big cats.

The Pench Tiger Reserve is also protected under India’s Project Tiger. This area of mixed deciduous forest, both moist and dry, has a high concentration of wildlife at its only year-round water source, the Pench Reservoir. Tigers frequent the belt of land along the Pench River and leopards hunt at the edge of the forest. The reserve is most noteworthy for its dhole, India’s wild dog, and several large packs of 15 or more members are regularly seen within the reserve. In comparison to other nature reserves, Pench is much less frequently visited by tourists and provides a wealth of wildlife and a more tranquil and pristine environment.

Kaziranga National Park lies along the banks of the powerful Brahmaputra River in the northeastern Indian state of Assam. It preserves a lush habitat for the Indian one-horned rhinoceros and gaur. Riding atop elephants contributes to our ability to photograph these otherwise dangerous subjects and provides the thrill of approaching shy wild elephant herds. Kaziranga also contains excellent tiger habitat.

At Keoladeo Ghana National Park we’ll see some of Asia’s best wetlands—teeming with waterbirds. Photographing along a series of dikes and levies, each member of our group will travel by pedaled rickshaw whose driver is a knowledgeable local guide who knows the best spots for bird photography. And no photo trip to India would be complete without sunrise and sunset visits to the Taj Mahal, one of the world’s most spectacular architectural achievements and an enduring symbol of love.



Day 1
Depart from home.

Day 2 (Nov 8)
Arrive in Delhi.

Day 3
Today we drive to Bharatpur. (BLD)

Day 4
Dawn till dusk will be spent at this vast wetland park. Egrets, herons, storks, pheasant-tailed jacanas and pied kingfishers can be photographed on foot from a series of levees. (BLD)

Day 5
Travel to Agra where we’ll visit the Agra Fort and then photograph the Taj Mahal at sunset. (BLD)

Day 6
Rising before dawn, we photograph the Taj Mahal at sunrise, then drive to Delhi, fly to Nagpur and continue by road to the Pench Tiger Reserve. (BLD)

Days 7–8
Two full days in the reserve, with our first chance to photograph tigers. (BLD)

Day 9
Morning at the reserve, then drive to Kanha National Park. (BLD)

Days 10–12
Three days to explore this less frequented park where there are fewer restrictions that limit access to photographers. Tiger viewing has been excellent recently. (BLD)

Day 13
Return to Nagpur and fly to Calcutta. (BLD)

Day 14
Fly to Jorhat and drive to Kaziranga National Park. (BLD)

Days 15–16
Explore all areas of the park, including elephant-back game rides near the Baguri Tower, excursions into the Chohola area and a visit to the Panbari Reserve. (BLD)

Day 17
Drive to Gauhati and fly to Delhi. (BLD)

Day 18 (Nov 24)
Depart for home. (B)


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