{"id":695,"date":"2019-03-12T09:40:41","date_gmt":"2019-03-12T09:40:41","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cityadventurers.co.uk\/blog\/?p=695"},"modified":"2019-03-12T09:40:41","modified_gmt":"2019-03-12T09:40:41","slug":"breaking-down-in-tiger-country","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cityadventurers.co.uk\/blog\/?p=695","title":{"rendered":"Breaking down in Tiger country"},"content":{"rendered":"

On the hunt for a tiger<\/h1>\n

Up before dawn we made our way sleepily to the foyer of the Ranthambore Regency Hotel. (Little did we know we’d need to be up even earlier the following day!)<\/p>\n

The foyer was crowded with people having tea and coffee. A quick wake up, and warm up, before we set off on our journeys.<\/p>\n

First to leave were the people heading for Sawai Madhopur station. That would be our journey the following day to catch our early morning train.<\/p>\n

Next to leave the hotel were the safari groups, eagerly looking forward to spotting a tiger.<\/p>\n

Being pre-dawn in January, it was dark and cold as we made our way o<\/span>utside the hotel. No worries about trying to get a window seat as the\u00a0<\/span>canters were large open-topped buses. But there were concerns about us being cold. After all, we’d been expecting India to be warm, and had only expected to wear our coats to and from the airport. We hadn’t foreseen we’d need to wear them virtually every day. To allay our fears, we were each given a blanket as we boarded our bus. And boy did we need them.<\/p>\n

The vehicles sat two people each side. Well, two small people. Those of us with larger rears had a job fitting two side by side on the seats. And that was before we set off…more on the journey later.<\/p>\n

\"Dressed
Dressed for a tiger safari – photo by juliamaud<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

 <\/p>\n

Exploring the wildlife<\/span><\/h1>\n

Ranthambore National Park is\u00a0Rajasthan’s first tiger reserve. This wildlife sanctuary is<\/span>\u00a0a former royal hunting ground and home to tigers, leopards, marsh crocodiles\u00a0and loads of birds<\/span>.\u00a0<\/span>It is also home to Sambar Deer, the largest species of Asiatic deer, and spotted deer. Hardly surprising I suppose, as this is\u00a0one of the tigers favorite prey.<\/span><\/p>\n

Our journey started with a short drive from our hotel to the wildlife reserve. Not a bumpy ride going there (unlike the journey home) but definitely a cold one. After booking us in, the tour guide explained about the park and the wildlife as we journeyed deeper into the park.<\/span><\/p>\n

Through the misty morning we glimpsed the spotted deer. The canters stopped to allow us to take photos.<\/p>\n