On Nepal´s southern border lies the Terai. 932 square kilometers in area, it was designated a National Park status in 1973, and reaching the attention of UNESCO´s World Heritage sites in ´84, Prior to ´73, the park was used as a hunting lodge for the elite. British monarchs George v and Edward viii are alleged to have slaughtered 39 tigers and 18 rhinos on safari in 1911. Until the late 50s the only inhabitants were a few Tharu villagers who seem to have a genetic resistance to malaria. However, after a huge malaria eradication programme the hill-dwellers moved into this fertile land and sent the human population soaring. This was clearly impacting on the wildlife, so a large relocation project ensued and park buffer zone was set up. The Maoist revolution did not aid the decline of the rhino, tiger and leopard. Nepalese border guards stopped a truck carrying 32 tiger and 579 leopard pelts in 2003. Current numbers of Bengal tigers vary from 80 – 112 and about 400 rhino.
My experienced jungle guide for the next few days was Razu, who bemoans the protection these endangered species are given. The army presents is scant and most of the serving men don´t give a damn. Poachers who are caught are quickly released and the real villains, (often, although not exclusively, the herbal Chinese medical profession), are basically untouchables. Razu is Tharu born inside the park, and has been leading tours since 1990. He tells me that with the increased poaching, so the animals head further into the park. He also points out that each territorial tiger has a marked area of some 60 square kilometres. Thus Chitwan can only reasonably expect to house just a few.
The elephant breeding ground remains a successful project at the park. These majestic beasties receive a lot of care and attention, each elephant being assigned three personal humans. The gharial breeding station also continues apace.
A very large middle-aged Singaporean, Arun, her much younger Buddhist teacher and Indian travel agent, myself and Razu head off early in a dugout down the Rapti river. It is a cool and overcast morning with low-hanging mist. This does not look promising for crocodile spotting or photography. A number of electric azure kingfishers perch at the side of the bank, and there is plenty of bird-life, but not much else.
After about 20 minutes Razu stops the canoe and holds up his hand. He hears two rhinos fighting close by. We all stop stock still and strain our ears, but hear nothing. The boat continues slowly in the lazy current, but Razu looks increasingly concerned. He says he thinks the canoe has been spotted by at least one of the rhinos. We all remain silent, even the talkative Singaporean. As we come close to a grassy knoll the dugout is brought to shore and Razu instructs us to put camera and other things into a bag, and swiftly jumps out. Moving cautiously through the long 3 metre high grasses, (known locally as phanta), he tries to peer in. After a few moments, he runs back to the boat, orders a junior to remain on shore and tells the boatman to get the hell out. The young ranger is looking clearly distressed as our dugout heads to an adjacent bank. The Singaporean is all a-flutter as well for she feels the immanent unseen danger. The boat drops the tourists off, before going back to rescue the boy. I had really heard or saw nothing of those mysterious rhinos. Razu informs us that aggressive rhinos have been known to attack canoes before. We are meant to spend the next hour and a half following trails on foot, but the Singaporean is still in shock and talks incessantly so we see only a few of the 500+ bird species that spend time in the area.
Five days ago a ranger had been attacked by a rhino and was still in hospital with 6 cracked ribs and a fractured skull. Two guides have also died this year from the paws of the tiger and a charge of a rhino.
I get chatting to Ram, another local guide working for Tiger Paws, a trek specialist in the village of Sauraha. He lives next to the Parkside Guest House where I am staying. I told him I hadn´t really seen much. He confirms that the big cats and rhinos were still plentiful in the heart of the jungle. He offered to give me a three, four or five day tour, “but instead of having a 3% chance of a tiger sighting in the periphery of the park, your chances rise to 80%”. Tempting as it was, I still had the elephant safari and the Watchtower as part of an extended program.
The elephant rides are extremely uncomfortable, but do give an interesting perspective to the forest. 4 people are squished into a padded basket designed for two. Our five tonne friend today was a 45 year old female. Despite the lumbering gait and crashing noise, wildlife appears to take no notice of us and we quickly spot two groups of spotted deer. Within 15 minutes from setting out, we come across our first gaida (Indian rhino). It´s busy feasting on some short grass and is happy for to come right over and remain for a few minutes. Less than 2000 of this fantastic prehistoric beasts remain in the wild today.
My last afternoon, evening and night was to be spent in the watchtower within the National Park. Situated between two watering holes with short grass around it it should have been an excellent opportunity to see some more stuff. We arrive at about the same time as some wild buffalo. There are some spotted deer lurking at the edge of the forest. We decide to head for a walk where we see tiger scratch-posts and even some fresh paw-prints next to one of the watering holes, but that is as close as we get. We are invited to a Tharu home for a Dal Bhat and rice dinner, and apart from insects, monkey screeches and two trees being trampled on by rhino, we were left with the noise of the jungle.
I first came here in the early nineties and had a great time. Although knowing tiger sightings were rare, I enjoyed viewing the various abundant wildlife. I had become blasé with the endangered one horned rhino, and seen a load of marsh muggers and strange snouted gharial crocodiles. The endangered species continue to decline in what should now be a safe refuse.
The Tharus are a very warm and welcoming tribe and the vegetation in the southern border regions lush. If for nothing other than this the Terai is worth visiting in it´s own right.
A few pics can be found at http://picasaweb.google.com/aubreygroves67/Chitwan
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