Ranthambore National Park
About Ranthambore National Park
Ranthambhore National Park, before a princely game conserve is the scene where the celebrated Indian Tiger is best seen. Ranthambhore Tiger Reserve lies on the junction of Aravali and Vindhyas just 14 Kms from Sawai Madhopur in Eastern Rajasthan. It sprawls over a varying and undulating landscape. The scenery changes dramatically from gentle and steep slopes of the Vindhyas and sharp and conical hills of the Aravali. A tenth century fort also blends amicably with the background. Pure sands of Dhok (Anogeissus pendula) interspersed with grasslands at the plateaus, meadows in valleys and luxuriant foliage around the canals make the jungle. Three big lakes – Padam Talab (meaning Lake), Malik Talab and Raj Bagh – are similar turquoises studded in the vast forest that abounds with aquatic vegetation including duckweeds, lilies and lotus.
A significant geological feature within the park is the 'Great Boundary Fault' where the Vindhaya plateau meets the Aravali range. The Rivers Chambal in the South and the Banas in the North bound the National Park. The park is dotted with steep rocky hills and the dominating architecture of Ranthambhor Fort (built in the 10th century), adds to its landscape. The rugged park terrain alternates between dry deciduous forest, open grassy meadow, dotted by several lakes and rivers that are only made passable by rough roads built and maintained by the Forest Service.The tiger is not the only attraction at Ranthambhore although it is the one park resident that people come to see. A variety of birds including Owlets, the ubiquitous Langur (monkey), Leopard, Caracal, Hyena, Jackal, Jungle Cat, marsh Crocodiles, Wild Boar, Bears and various species of Deer are the other attractions. Ranthambhor is plagued by the typical problems encountered by all game reserves in India - people living in and around the parks and grazing by livestock! Between 1976-1979, 12 villages within Ranthambhore National Park were resettled outside the designated park area with only a few people now residing in scattered hamlets within the park. Of course poachers continue their activities with increasing demand from China for Tiger parts. There are no accurate figures on how many tigers and poachers kill other species, but on occasion evidence appears in the form of large numbers of skins and other body parts found on couriers.
The park is well staffed and the folk who man the centres and the mandatory guides - one for every vehicle, are knowledgeable of the terrain and some even know the Latin names of most species.The tiger is not the only attraction at Ranthambhore; although it is the one park resident people come to see. We were lucky to see several varieties of birds including these owlets peering through their burrow pictured here on the right and of course the ubiquitous langur monkey. Other animals in the reserve include leopard, caracal, hyena, jackal, jungle cat, marsh crocodiles, wild boar, bears and various species of deer.
he main food source for the tiger is the swamp deer like Barasinsga and on occasion the wild buffalo and also wild boar etc. If you wish to stay near the park, the facilities on offer are superb. The park gates open a half hour before sunrise and close half hour after sunset. The timings are vigorously imposed and no exceptions are made to this rule.
A significant geological feature within the park is the 'Great Boundary Fault' where the Vindhaya plateau meets the Aravali range. The Rivers Chambal in the South and the Banas in the North bound the National Park. The park is dotted with steep rocky hills and the dominating architecture of Ranthambhor Fort (built in the 10th century), adds to its landscape. The rugged park terrain alternates between dry deciduous forest, open grassy meadow, dotted by several lakes and rivers that are only made passable by rough roads built and maintained by the Forest Service.The tiger is not the only attraction at Ranthambhore although it is the one park resident that people come to see. A variety of birds including Owlets, the ubiquitous Langur (monkey), Leopard, Caracal, Hyena, Jackal, Jungle Cat, marsh Crocodiles, Wild Boar, Bears and various species of Deer are the other attractions. Ranthambhor is plagued by the typical problems encountered by all game reserves in India - people living in and around the parks and grazing by livestock! Between 1976-1979, 12 villages within Ranthambhore National Park were resettled outside the designated park area with only a few people now residing in scattered hamlets within the park. Of course poachers continue their activities with increasing demand from China for Tiger parts. There are no accurate figures on how many tigers and poachers kill other species, but on occasion evidence appears in the form of large numbers of skins and other body parts found on couriers.
The park is well staffed and the folk who man the centres and the mandatory guides - one for every vehicle, are knowledgeable of the terrain and some even know the Latin names of most species.The tiger is not the only attraction at Ranthambhore; although it is the one park resident people come to see. We were lucky to see several varieties of birds including these owlets peering through their burrow pictured here on the right and of course the ubiquitous langur monkey. Other animals in the reserve include leopard, caracal, hyena, jackal, jungle cat, marsh crocodiles, wild boar, bears and various species of deer.
he main food source for the tiger is the swamp deer like Barasinsga and on occasion the wild buffalo and also wild boar etc. If you wish to stay near the park, the facilities on offer are superb. The park gates open a half hour before sunrise and close half hour after sunset. The timings are vigorously imposed and no exceptions are made to this rule.
Payment Accepted:
Getting there:
Take the train.
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First To Review:
Jun 1, 2009
I took a Full day Gypsy Safari in March. I really enjoyed the park my only complaint was the false advertising of a full day Safari. I booked my Safari online through http://www.rajasthanwildlife.in We started at 6:30am and went till 10:30 then they said the Safari was over unless we wanted to go sit at a check point in the middle of nowhere until 2:30. We chose to wait it out, what upset me was there was no mention of this anywhere on there web site, there was also no food which all the passengers were expecting to be able to buy lunch somewhere. After a few hours of sitting in the middle of the dessert bored and hot they offered to take us to a small village for lunch if we would pay the driver an extra 400 INR. They were just trying to get some extra money out of us. We ended up splitting the money and paid to get driven to lunch they told us it was far but it ended up being 2km which pissed us all off even more.
Besides the bad all day tour the park was great. If I ever went again I would due a morning Gypsy tour which is a 6 person jeep. If you still wanted more you could always book an afternoon trip on a Canter which is a big 16 passenger truck.
I didn't end up seeing any Tigers but I did see a Leopard, tons of deer, peacocks, antelopes, alligators and hundreds of different bird species. Some other people in my hotel did see Tigers and I saw there pics, I just didn't luck out.
I went to this park from Jaipur and it was a 3.5 hour train ride. I would recommenced it for a change of pace in India
Besides the bad all day tour the park was great. If I ever went again I would due a morning Gypsy tour which is a 6 person jeep. If you still wanted more you could always book an afternoon trip on a Canter which is a big 16 passenger truck.
I didn't end up seeing any Tigers but I did see a Leopard, tons of deer, peacocks, antelopes, alligators and hundreds of different bird species. Some other people in my hotel did see Tigers and I saw there pics, I just didn't luck out.
I went to this park from Jaipur and it was a 3.5 hour train ride. I would recommenced it for a change of pace in India
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