June 9, 2025 • 46 mins
What’s it like to search for tigers and experience India’s wilderness up close? Absolute magic – with a few surprises and lots of laughs along the way!
In this episode, I’m taking you on a whirlwind journey through India’s national parks, from the rhino-filled grasslands of Kaziranga to the tiger havens of Tadoba, Kanha, and Ranthambore. Alongside my wonderful guests – Caroline, Lauren, and Susan – we share the real highs and hilarious moments of travelling on safari in India, from VIP treatment on sleeper trains to unforgettable tiger sightings.
I’ll also chat about my all-time favourite spot to grab a samosa, how the mongoose and coucal became our good luck charms, and to top it all off, we finish at the Taj Mahal – still as mesmerising as ever.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
(00:00):
Welcome to Safari Life with Bobby Jo, where you'll get a
front row seat to some of the most breathtaking wildlife
experiences on the planet. Bobby Jo's a wildlife
photographer and safari guide, leading photography tours to
incredible destinations like theSerengeti, Patagonia, India,
Antarctica and beyond. In this podcast, she shares
(00:21):
expert photography tips, behind the scenes stories, and insights
into Wildlife Conservation. If you'd like to learn more
about her tours and workshops, visit bobbyjosafaris.com.
Namaste, honey Badgers. It's a chief honey badger here,
Bobby Joe. And today I'm going to be
(00:42):
bringing you a really awesome episode from India.
One of my favorite places to travel to.
Before we get stuck into it though, I'd like to say a
massive thanks to everyone that has been following along on the
podcast. It's been a new thing for me.
I think each week it's getting better and I want to thank you
for your support and for subscribing and commenting and
sharing. If you haven't subscribed,
please do. It helps me out massively.
(01:04):
If I can bring you stories and keep it going and hopefully
share a lot of photographic goodness, wildlife goodness,
it'll make the world a better place.
I hope it will. Anyways, let's jump into today's
episode. A couple of months ago I.
Was in India. Now this is a safari that I run
every single year. I went to India for the first
time in 2009, way before I'd started Bobby Joe Safaris, and I
(01:25):
loved the place. India is a place that stays with
you forever. It is some of the most richest
cultural experiences I've had whilst travelling and some of
the best wildlife. So people don't realise that
India is rich with wildlife, unique, incredibly diverse
species. So it's kind of like a
specialised Africa, so to speak,very different way of looking
for animals. But of course the draw card is
(01:47):
the Royal Bengal Tiger and that's what everybody wants to
see, but it's so much more than just a tiger.
So every March I go to India andI will be going to India in
2026. So if you're listening to this
episode and you're feeling like,man, this could be be my trip.
Like I think I would really likethis.
I've only got a couple of spots left.
So the trip has almost sold out.So get in touch
info@bobbyjosafaris.com. You can jump on the website
(02:09):
aswellbobbyjosafaris.com. All the information's up for our
next India trip. But please have a listen to
today's episode and you'll hear some of the stories.
Our guests are featured. There's a lot of laughs.
India is incredible. Our incredible India safari
starts at a place called Kaziranga.
(02:32):
Now Kaziranga is a National Parkthat's in the state of Assam.
And how we get there is we actually have a three hour,
about a three to three and a half hour flight from Delhi to
Gawati. On this flight, it's quite
spectacular because you fly directly alongside the Himalayas
and quite often we can see MountEverest, which is a real buzz
for my guests to be able to see that that iconic tallest
(02:52):
mountain on the planet Assam is nestled between Bangladesh and
Bhutan. It's a very narrow of India and
the reason we go to Kaziranga isbecause it's a great way to
start the trip. It's four nights, so it gives
guests a chance to unwind and relax and get into that rhythm
of organised chaos that is Indiaand lets us practice our
photography, get used to the vehicles.
And one of the reasons I do start in Kaziranga is because
(03:15):
it's quite difficult to see tigers.
So it kind of puts tigers out ofthe equation and we can focus on
other animals and learn photographic skills on animals,
you know, smaller deer, reptiles, otters, the rhino, and
also the Asian elephant and lotsof really amazing birds.
So it's a great place to start the trip and to learn to get
into the swing of everything that has to do with India,
(03:37):
including, you know, the photography, of course, and
being around the chaos of passionate, passionate people in
the national parks, so. We step in.
Four nights and we had an incredible stay.
I want you guys to listen now tosome of the stories that we
experienced and some of the sightings that we had.
You'll hear from the guests justwhat Kaziranga was like.
It is a magical place and as a child growing up watching
(04:00):
Edinburgh on TVI remember the opening scene of Kaziranga, a
documentary by BBC. You know the rhinos are in the
grassland, the mist is rising up.
It is a magical place and I remember as a kid thinking I
want to go there and now I'm lucky to go there every single
year. So it's always included in our
India safari. So have a listen and enjoy
Kaziranga. I'm sitting right now in the
(04:22):
central zone of Kaziranga National Park.
I've got 3 wonderful women with me.
I've got Caroline, I've got Lauren and Susan, and we're
actually waiting. We've been quite heavily
reinforced the last 24 hours. We got our first tiger in
Kaziranga, which is really quiterare.
I've been here 4 times to Kaziranga, that's the first
(04:42):
decent good look at the tiger. I'm really shy.
They're really shy here. They're living in incredibly
long elephant grass where even you can't even see the elephants
when they walk through the elephant grass.
So tigers are quite rare to sight and also really thick
vegetation. And we had it all to ourselves,
which is also quite. Amazing because it's a busy.
Little Park people love coming from all over India to visit
(05:03):
Kaziranga. It's well known for Indian
rhinos, so the greater 1 horned rhinoceros.
Right now we are sitting in the middle of the park waiting for
the elusive golden tiger. We've got lots of people driving
past. You can hear lots of vehicles in
the background. And this golden tiger is really
quite phenomenal. It I've seen photos of it.
I thought it was a mystical creature for many years, but
(05:23):
Palash our guide. Has got some really awesome
photos of it. It's.
Almost leucistic. So we've taken our chance here.
How are you finding it, ladies? Caroline.
Yeah, lots of sitting and waiting, which is fine because
when we did that was it? Was it only yesterday?
Yeah, we sat and waited at at the spot that Palash thought was
(05:45):
likely. Waited for about 20 minutes and
a a tiger. A leopard.
She's S Africans. Everything's leopard.
Leopard Lady. I do still want to see Leopard
and the tiger walked across the road in front of us.
And how did you feel when you first We first saw it in the
sort of grass next to the car with the.
Fern and the ferns What was? Your Yeah.
(06:05):
How did you? Feel it was.
It was amazingly, the depth of colour was just amazing.
He was, he was orange and white in his eyes.
He was looking straight at us and we were not that far.
No, we were probably, well, it was probably about 10 metres
probably. I'm really terrible at distance.
I'll say it's shorter, even lesseven.
Less than that I. Think I'm up for a bit of an
(06:26):
assault charge because I grabbedyou Philly quite aggressively.
What the tiger? Yeah, hearted, I feel.
Yeah, not as excited as you, butI don't think.
And how have you found Kazirungaso far?
Do you love it? I do, I do.
It's been the highlights for you.
Other than, well, obviously. Of tiger, those hornbill so
amazing. What are they?
Great Indian hornbill. Great Indian hornbill.
(06:48):
They're huge. They're just, they're just
gorgeous. And we've seen those, we've seen
rhino, some really close up. Beautiful sightings of rhino.
Wild elephant swimming, crossingthe road in front of us.
A lot of things happen crossing the road in front of us and
you're as you can't go off road.No, Caroline actually owns a
lodge, a not settler in Madique in South Africa.
(07:10):
So she is a Bush lady from way back.
How are you finding so far? I mean this is our first park,
we've got lots to come. How are you finding the Safari
experience in comparison to, say, South Africa?
It it is drastically different in the, the Safari vehicles are
half the size that the whole driver guide set up is a little
(07:30):
is a little different how we have run safaris in South
Africa. Also in Madique, which is where
I'm from, sightings are very controlled.
You will never have more than three vehicles in a sighting and
here it it has, we haven't foundit too bad.
But Anarag, who went to a different part of the reserve
yesterday, was sitting waiting for a Tiger and that sighting
(07:52):
ended up being 100 vehicles in the sighting.
Yeah, it can be. It can be frustrating, but it's
also most of the people that arehere are Indian local.
Yeah. And it's so friendly.
So you don't really get. Cranky you don't get thank you.
It's great people watching. It is.
And everyone greets us and wavesand says hello and goodbye.
And we also got hit on by some Indian men, which was amazing.
(08:14):
So there's four of us lovely ladies.
And then we've got Palash, who'sgiggling down the front here.
And it's quite distinguished, 3 years older and tipped his hat
and said hello there. And we all giggled like a bunch
of high school girls. Oh, hello there.
And then we spent the next hour passing them and saying hello.
There, there. And it became, yeah, it's become
the theme of this trip. Good saying.
So I've got. Lauren in the back here as well.
(08:37):
Lauren is from Dubbo, Australia,so place I live, we're good
mates and she's travelled with me to East Africa before.
How are you finding it Lauren? I'm finding it very interesting,
very different from the trips I've done in Southern Africa.
The vegetation is so different, so therefore the total
experience is different. Yeah, I'm used to safari on the
(08:57):
open plains where you can see a lot of animals in, in long
distances. We're here as Bobby Joe said,
the elephant grass is taller than the elephants.
So it's a, it's a totally different experience with all
the vegetation as well as the wildlife.
People have been amazing. I've actually come across with a
couple of injuries from a bit ofan accident before the trip and
(09:19):
everybody has just been so accommodating to assist me and
my dodgy knee and. Laurie is officially the 1st
guest that's ever travelled me on crutches.
So we're getting VIP access and the and the plates at the hotel.
It's been amazing. But the people have just been so
helpful. It's just been wonderful.
And how did you feel seeing yourfirst tiger?
Like, was it pretty exhilaratingfor you?
You've seen Leopard and Lion before, Yeah?
(09:41):
It it, it, it is just takes it to that next level.
It was just wonderful to see it just amazing is my go to word
all the time. People are sick of it saying it.
It was amazing. And we've got there's loads of
rhinos here and I heard Lauren say this morning, which I knew
was going to happen eventually because there's people don't
realise that the most 70% of thepopulation of Indian or greater
1 on rhinos leaving because you're anger.
(10:03):
And Lauren, we stopped and Palasha God said would you like
to take a photo? And Lauren said no thanks, I'm
OK. And then it straight away said,
I can't believe I just said that.
Next National Park on our incredible India safari is
Tudoba, and that's in the state of Maharashtra.
So that required another flight from Gulwati back to Delhi and
(10:26):
then Delhi to a place called Nagpur and then a drive from
there. Now Tudoba is exceptional for
tigers. And this is my third visit to
Tudoba. Well structured park from the
way the guides are dressed in Immaculate sort of camo gear,
almost like soldiers. The roads are exceptional.
There's a lot of money that's got into this park and you can
(10:47):
see they've taken very good careof the roads, the
infrastructure, even the management of the grasslands.
It is a great park and we had a wonderful time.
We caught up with Mungesh who isa guide that they've been using
for a couple of years now and itwas one of the favourites of the
guests and we had some epic tiger siding.
So listen up and hear all about Tedoba.
(11:08):
So just had an incredible few days at Tedoba.
And quick little note, you can'tuse a mobile phone inside the
DOBA. So I wasn't able to give you
guys some information from within the park, but we just
left and we're now heading to a small tiger reserve called
Nagzira. Now to give you an idea where we
are, we are smack bang in the middle of India in central
India. And I'm just going to try really
hard to pronounce the state and Anurag is probably going to
(11:31):
correct me. Maharashtra.
That's great. I.
Got it. I got it in Maharashtra,
Absolutely. And Speaking of which, the
lovely Anurag who is our fearless leader and guide here
is with me as well. How you going in Iraq?
I'm doing good, enjoying Indian summer.
Yes, it's hot here at the park'sbeen around I think 3738, I
think, yes, there might have been 39° pretty hot, which is
(11:52):
great for tiger sidings and Anurag.
What does the temperatures get to like in, say, June?
Trust me, this is just beginningof summer in this part of the
country. Like you said, we are very close
to the geographical centre of India.
In next 20 days temperatures would be like 48 to 50°C.
I can't imagine doing a safari at 50°.
I mean, I think I. Would die I.
(12:12):
Mean I guess the what are the tiger sightings like when it's
50°? Well, it's not raining here, but
it's raining tigers for sure. OK, so.
Every water hole you'll see catssitting in.
Our guide said yesterday that inthe summer, in June, you can
come across a water hole and there'll be there'll be a tiger
there for hours. Yeah.
So just to give you an idea of way back in 2012, I have seen 17
tigers in one safari in this park.
(12:33):
Ah. OK, here, here I was singing how
many times I think we saw 7 or 8individuals and I thought that
was very impressive. So 17 tigers, but I think I'd
rather have the seven and eight tigers and the cooler
temperatures to be honest. And they were moving, they were
active, absolutely. So what is so good about
Tedouva? I mean, tedouva is very popular
with tourists, both international law and domestic
(12:55):
as well, because of its biodiversity.
You have plenty of wildlife. There's a lot of action and you
know, a lot of people come here with an expectation to see that
of course. And I would say a large part of
population is not disappointed in this whole landscape.
There are about 200 plus tigers like the leopards, the slot test
the wild dogs so plenty of wild left to see basically.
(13:15):
We picked to Dover a couple of years ago.
This is our third season in to Dover.
We added this to the itinerary because it has one of my
favorite species. Like as you guys have worked
out, pretty selfish. I just go where I wanna see
animals and then encourage. People to come along.
Is the Asian wild dog or the doll DHOLEI once had an American
guest asked me where the D holeswere, which was quite funny.
(13:36):
The doll, the D where are the D holes?
So I actually as a zookeeper waslucky enough in my first few
years of zookeeping, I think maybe my first 12 months as a
baby zookeeper, I was able to help with hand raising to doll
and I developed that kind of attachment to the species then.
And the first two trips we had great doll sightings.
This safari we had exceptional tiger sightings, some of the
(13:58):
best tiger sightings I've had here and unfortunately no doll.
We are heading to to other parksat hopefully we'll be able to
catch up with them. So we've been working with a
guide in Tadoba called Mangesh and he is fantastic, a local guy
and he's done really well this last few days to get us some
great sightings. Now, I had all the guests we've
been gonna pass across to Caroline, and I went to your
(14:19):
Caroline thoughts and what you thought of Tadoba and what was
your highlight. Starting off with Mangesh, he
was amazing. But one of the things that they
do here, which we didn't notice in Kazuranga, I don't know about
the other reserves. If if they do this, all the
guides are in a really good uniform and they're all in like
camo pants and a, a mint Greek and sleep top.
(14:40):
Yeah, you can't see the bottom half.
Just floating heads on safari trucks.
He was really he was epic man Gaze and our driver.
Abhijit. He drove at 2 speeds.
Stopped. And 40, we'd get into the car
and we learned pretty quickly that as he got into the car, the
car took off. That was it.
It's amazing that these guys drive so, so well and so
(15:01):
carefully actually at the speed that they go, these little then
these little gypsies to Doba. It was, it was tiger sightings,
every single drive, the majorityof them apart from one yesterday
afternoon, we had a driveway. We just saw a couple of tigers
on the other side of a water hole, but every other one, they
(15:22):
were right at the vehicle. I mean, they were spectacular.
What was your favorite? Tiger sighting this morning.
Yeah, at the same morning we were on our own.
We'd gone off on. Well, we thought it was some
random middle Rd. Obviously Mangesh knew what he
was doing and Bobby Joe spotted the tiger deer in the Bush.
We got in front of him and he walked towards us.
(15:42):
It just. Amazing.
Amazing. And Carolyn, you've been around.
Yeah. Lions, leopards in Africa.
When these tigers like when thatmale looked to you this morning,
it's like, how do you describe that?
I know. Oh, look, I have to say I feel
the same way when I see a a leopard when it looks at you
like that. But I but I also have to say
I've never seen a leopard as close and personal as these, as
(16:03):
these animals. These cats are just they are
magnificent. We've.
Also got Lauren here and she's had a fabulous time into Dover
on her crutches. I have to just agree with
everything that Caroline has said about the sightings and the
people that have been wonderful.But a little bonus for me was
wild beehives up in a tree. I've got beehives at home that I
look after, but to see a tree full of wild hives?
(16:26):
It's. Just amazing for me, little side
shoot of the animals are great, but that was the little one for
this morning for me. And how is your photography
going? My photos are improving, I'm
getting to understand how the camera works a little better.
Pretty slow on the uptake on some things, but you're getting
there. And I can see improvements but I
need to wait till I get home andlook at them on a big screen to
(16:48):
see. What they really like and with
our tiger sightings, I think we have 3 sightings on on the road
where they were directly coming in towards us.
So a lot of movement. We had some in the water as
well. What was your favorite one?
I at this morning's I have to agree with Caroline this morning
it was just it was just spectacular as it walked up the
road behind us and we kept having to move away and it and
(17:10):
it literally was following us upthe road until it decided it had
enough and turned in off on a mission wherever, wherever it
was going. Yeah, he was a big boy.
These tigers in central India, they have really big bellies.
Anna Rug, what's going on there?Are they just fat or what's
happening? Plenty of food, I guess.
But yeah, dog greatly pointed out that you'll see across
India, every region tigers have distinct features and here
(17:32):
they'll look more broader. Their bellies are are almost
full. I think it's just plenty of prey
ways more than anything else. Yeah, safe territory, and yet
lots of food. They are living up to the motor
of being an Indian. And what was that mail we saw
this morning called? Yuvraj Yuvraj.
Yuvraj basically in Hindi means the Prince.
The Prince he certainly was, andwe saw shorter that how do you
(17:54):
said the. Shorter darial is like short
bearded. Yeah, he had a mullet.
Actually, he had a bit of a mullet going on.
And then we saw Choti Tata, which means Little Star.
Choti Tata, yes, so it is LittleStar and actually she's got a
name from her mum. So name was Mum Tata, which
means start. When mother died and she
occupied the same territory, shewas nameless Choti because she
was the smaller one. Also, a lot of them have all got
(18:15):
names and like they've got, you know, they've seen as an
individual. It's so awesome.
And then we also saw a collar Wally named after having a
collar. Anyways, we're going to be
heading to next year and we'll catch up with you shortly.
Now it's time for my favorite National Park in India and
(18:35):
that's Khana, and that's in the state of Madhya Pradesh.
I first visited. Khana in 2009 and had my first
sighting of a wild Bengal tiger.So there's a little bit of
history there and attachment. It's also home to one of my
favorite species, the Asian wilddog or also known as a doll,
which I cared for in my younger zookeeping days.
So lots of attachment, you know,seeing a bit of a pattern there.
(18:57):
Beautiful park, huge big sahl trees, big open meadows.
It's got everything. It also home to a critically
endangered antelope called the Borisinga.
The hard ground Borisinga and this park have resurrected this
species through being persistentwith their conservation efforts.
And now they're moving this particular antelope across to
(19:18):
other parks in India. So it's a massive conservation
story. I love everything that Karna
stands for. They are, in my opinion, leading
the way in conservation in India.
This park is also amazing for photographic opportunities.
With the light, you know, you travel to places around the
world with the light, you know, from looking at photos, you know
that light was in South Luanga along the river or Mana Pools in
Zimbabwe, or this light is Khanna National Park.
(19:41):
When the sun's setting and the lights falling through the
sultries and the huge leaves andit's this beautiful warm glow as
a tiger steps out. It's a very pretty place.
But anyways, have a listen to our debrief about and what we
got up to there. And pretty excited to say that
my good friend Ratna Singh will be joining me on the next
fortnights episode and talking about her conservation efforts
(20:04):
in in around Khana. Today, honey Badgers, it's your
chief honey badger here, Bobby Jo, and I'm connecting with you
from an Indian train. We're sitting on the platform.
We're in our little cabin. We're actually travelling first
class. It's don't think it's super
fancy. It has a nice door that you can
lock, but I'm going to put up some videos on the social.
So you've got to see what we're sitting in.
(20:26):
We're all in there with a luggage here.
It's been quite a lovely experience and we're spending
about 12 hours on a sleeper train heading to our next
destination which is Swati Madapur, which is the gateway to
Rent Anthembour National Park and it's our last hurrah for our
Indian trip was our last park tovisit and the guests are looking
very sad right now. We've got 6 game drives left to
produce some top notch sightingsincluding a honey badger I'm
(20:48):
manifesting right now baby. So on that note, I've heard a
little story about the Ruddy Mongoose and the greater kukul
and apparently if you see a Mongoose on a safari or Ruddy
Mongoose in particular, you are going to see a tiger or
something really exciting. So I'm not going to lie, I'm
kind of a believer of this. Now we have seen every time we
(21:09):
see a little Mongoose cross the road in front of us, it stops
and gives us a bit of a look. We've even got photographs.
We have gone on to see a tiger or like amazing sighting.
And then the other I guess superstitious thing is seeing a
greater kukul bird and the trainis moving.
We're going guys, the train is moving.
If you see a kukul and Ruddy Mongoose, you're going to have
(21:30):
like exceptional luck. So we've actually, there's
people like running right now totry to get on this train.
It's quite hilarious. You're going to have good luck.
And I feel like this trip, we'veseen Mongoose and then we've
been boom, we've been rewarded. Anurag, what is that?
What is that about? That's absolutely true. 20 years
of experience experiencing readymongooses and wanting to see
them first. Yeah, as long as you see one or
(21:51):
two, definitely not three you want to see.
But then it's bad luck. Trust me.
Oh, we've been banking them. We've actually come up with a
new rule where we've been banking them and.
It's working, but otherwise no. Here's cuckle for sure.
Also gets you good luck. You know what gets you bad luck?
What is spotting a owl before a tiger sighting?
(22:11):
OK, we haven't. And also jungle hair, like
jungle hair and me if I see a jungle hair even before getting
into the National Park, definitely no sighting at all.
OK, well, we haven't really seentoo many hairs and we've seen
some owls, but we've had exceptional luck.
So we've just spent three nightsat Karna National Park and we
had really incredible tiger sightings.
Again, everyone knows I'm obsessed with dogs and we we got
(22:32):
the doll, the Asian Mile dog proper.
Like we saw 22 dogs with 10 puppies.
Now everyone could tell me to get over myself.
Actually, I think there were 12 puppies.
Do you count on I? Thought there was 11 or 12 and I
but they kept moving so I wasn'tcertain.
Whatever it was you as adults, but yes, 20.
Two dogs and the best part of the whole sighting was we
(22:55):
watched an adult who wasn't the mother run back from.
They made a kill. We didn't see the kill was
happening in the bushes. We could most certainly hear it.
They ran back and regurgitated for all the puppies and it was
just quite a fun. And then two other adults also
came and did. That yeah, it was incredible.
Then there was 1 rolling. You know how dogs roll in smelly
stuff? It's smelly stuff.
Thank you. It was railing.
(23:18):
So that was my highlight, but also the other highlight was the
food. The food at a sacrum lodge,
which is owned by Wasim and Ratna.
It was like a total experience, a safari for our palates.
Like it was incredible. And then in 2009, on my first
safari to India, I went to car National Park and I tried the
(23:40):
park samosas and I haven't been the same since.
I mean, I've been thinking aboutthem ever since 2009 and every
time I go back to Karna, I am soexcited to to have a samosa in
the park where the Rangers eat at the canteens.
And this morning, the chef. Made samosa samosas for you
Yeah, well, for. All of us, yeah, but it can't we
have. An eyebrows is, I think in my
(24:01):
opinion, it's the most beautifulpark I've ever been to an India.
It's really tall, beautiful salttrees.
You know when you're driving around and the lights coming
through them, it's just it's spectacular park.
It's it's always a favorite of. Of mine and.
What do you what do you think? Caroline I.
I I found all of them to be magnificent.
The Kazaringa, Kazaringa, Kazaringa with all the ferns and
(24:29):
the more jungly these last threeI think have been forest.
So yeah, I'm just seeing the Tigers.
And oh. And I'm going to bang on about
the leopard. Oh yes, yes, we haven't done an
update. We went to a small park called
Nagzira which is more of a a local tourist park.
Not many westerners there. It was a very little female
leopard with blue eyes. And then the initial sighting
(24:52):
was very quick. She was just crossing the road.
She was a bit. Skittish.
And then she moved. We moved and we thought she was
heading to a water hole and she wasn't.
She was heading for a puddle andwe had the most perfect sighting
right in front of her. Yeah, everyone was buzzing.
It was, it was amazing, these blue.
Eyes. That was magnificent.
But you loved carne, so it was beautiful.
(25:13):
I loved Carne. I loved the lodge.
I mean, none of the lodges are, are standout or scruffy or
anything, but this one was just,it was more welcoming.
It was more homely. Every time you moved out of your
room or went anywhere, there wassomebody there to help you on
your way. Or it was, it was there was a
lot of care and attention and, and the chef.
(25:35):
Yeah, the chef just amazing, wasfantastic.
It's the best chef in India, Melodon and the chefs in India.
But he's yeah, he, he was, yeah.Like and, and a performer, yes.
Everything was felt like I was on MasterChef every night.
MasterChef. Yeah.
Wearing a cravat or something like it was yeah, it was
amazing. And just quickly we are on the
train. People get a bit nervous about
(25:55):
coming on an overnight train in India, but what do you think so
far? It's it's fantastic it's small
but looks very common. OK, the actually the seats are
quite hard, but I'm sure it's going to be perfect.
I like AI like a hard mattress so I'm sure this is going to be
perfect I. Actually sleep pretty pretty
well on the train. And Lauren, what about you?
What was? It was your highlights of
Khanna. I don't know that there could be
(26:17):
one particular highlight. There was so many different the
beehives this morning, surely beehives this morning.
But that's just me and beehives.But we saw two Peacocks have a
bit of a sight with each other and fly up into the sky.
Tell us the story. That's a Peacock.
And we saw it. We were watching a lion sitting
on the edge. A lion?
Wow, I'm tired. We were watching a tiger sitting
(26:42):
on the edge of the lake, head down and almost having a little
nap. And there was a bit of a ruckus
from the tree on the far side onthe left.
And we watched this beautiful Peacock flying out and did this
big sweeping motion down to landon the Bank of the lake right
where the tiger was. And as it got near, it did this
(27:02):
oh holy and shot up and the the tiger looked a bit stunned.
There was the noise of the Peacock above it that raised the
tiger. And then this poor Peacock flew
off in a bit of shock onto the side.
It was a bit of a scream for us anyway.
If I had to define the parks beauty like just habitat wise.
Just so different from the others, as you said, the
beautiful tall trees, but all the leaf litter there, you could
(27:24):
hear the animals walking throughthe leaves.
I just love the sound that I was, would have loved to have
got out and played in all the leaf litter, but then I could
have been tiger. Boots So yeah, we there we say
it wasn't gonna happen, but we saw some good tigers and we
actually saw two males together,which is quite rare that are not
related. And one of them had been
introduced to the park and we saw them resting together.
And that's quite a rare sight tosee two fully grown males
(27:47):
resting. And then they at the end of
their little bro time, they all just went they went their
separate ways. Or as we swatched them, one
went, you know, up the riverbed and the other one went across
all the parks have been to so far have been mostly local
tourists travelling. And I just love them because,
you know, you're driving along and they stop and they're
friendly and they're waving. And it's like, you know, you
have a bit of banter with them. They're only giving us a heap of
(28:08):
banter about the cricket. There's, you know, India versus
Australia and the cricket. But and as soon as they meet
Caroline, they're like South Africa.
Like they just think she's a goddess from South Africa.
But one thing, this is not me being maybe a little bit native,
OK, let's be honest. I'm having a good bitch here is
Western tourists, like tourists from all over the world that not
in India, just like us, are justlooking miserable on safari.
(28:30):
Like, you pull up and you say good day and hello and and they
just give you like, this restingbitch face.
And I don't know, I always put it down to being that they're
shy. But then when you start trying
to talk to them, like, how's your safari going?
Just found it. Khana's a bit of a touristy part
that is more Western tourist visiting Khana.
I found it. Yeah.
I don't know. It kind of bad got on my tits,
(28:50):
so to speak. Like it was.
It was. Yeah.
It wasn't very nice to see people.
They just didn't look that happy.
It was interesting, the people watching.
Oh, it's great. Watching almost, almost as good
as the people watching. But yeah, some.
Some of the tourists were quite walking, but others would just
stare at us. Like we were aliens.
Like we were ambitious. We might have looked.
Like any safari you're going andit's always that awkward moment
(29:11):
when obviously your guides are speaking a different language.
Our guides are speaking Hindi and none of us know Hindi.
And they pull up and they're having like that little morning
chat with their workmates and they're getting information,
They're collecting information about what they've seen.
And and then always like I feel like the kids in the back of the
truck, like, you know, our parents are chatting, We're
awkwardly looking at each other.You do a little fake smile at
them and then you go hello. And and then it just wasn't
(29:32):
really reciprocated for us. Maybe they were intimidated by
us. We.
Smiled and waved and we just maybe got a nod, yeah.
Anna Rug, we are now oops, we'vehad a mic drop.
We are going to Rantom Ball, youknow, and tell me about
Rantambo. What's to What can we expect
there? Was again a very popular park of
India, one of the first five parks where the whole project
(29:53):
tiger started and considered oneof the best parks in India to
see wild tigers. So obviously you'd expect to see
more Tiger action definitely slot there is still pending on
our list. We need a.
We need a good. Find a honey badger.
Yeah, I would die if we see a honey badger.
I don't want you to die but still see a honey badger.
I think, yeah, I'll employ. But it's a very different
forest, and by this time I'm sure it is dried out, so it's a
(30:17):
very dry forest. But what's interesting about
Rantamore is a backdrop. You see so many historical
monuments scattered all along the park, and there's a Fort in
the backdrop, you know? And I've always, I've always
wanted a shot. There's a shot.
Incredible. What's the shot that I want?
Do you know? In the window in the hunting
palace. There's a hunting palace out in
the lake and there's a little window and I've always wanted a
tiger to be sitting there. So we have been banking the
(30:39):
Mongoose. Maybe we might get rewarded.
And we get a cuckoos from somewhere.
We did hear a cuckoo. Yes, I.
Thought that Mongoose and Googleis travelling with us in this
train. Yes, we are the Roddy.
Roddy Kugels. I'm Roddy Mongoose.
We're calling ourselves Ready Kukles.
Anyways, we're gonna get on our train trip and hopefully get
some sleep and check back in with you at Wrentham Ball.
(31:00):
Now for the finale, Ranthambore National Park, it's in
Rajasthan. We had to get an overnight train
from Madhya Pradesh to Rajasthanand hopped off at Swayamatpur
and started our journey to Ranthambore.
And what a way to end this safari.
I mean, the tiger sightings we had were incredible.
We. Got to be.
Surrounded by absolute tiger royalty.
(31:23):
I mean, we spent time with Arrowhead and her Cubs and a
very famous tigress called Norm.It was an exceptional couple of
days spent at ransomball as wellas some great leopard sightings,
and it's just one of the most picturesque places that I've
ever been to. It is hectic.
There are a lot of people there.It's a very high energy,
(31:44):
fast-paced safari. So if you're used to cruising
along the Serengeti and feeling really relaxed, it's completely
the opposite. But it's I love it just as much
right. So it's kind of like my
extroverted side comes out in India, but we ended it with a
bang. I mean, wait till you hear the
debrief on what we experienced in Ranthambore National Park.
It's. We save.
There's a reason. We save it for the end.
(32:05):
It's probably the best place to view tigers in India.
We have just finished a really incredible safari.
It was our last National Park for this three-week incredible
India trip. So when I was growing up as a
kid watching, I think it was Velma because it's a par.
Is that his name on a rug? I think, yeah.
OK. Yep.
He used to do documentaries on the tigers that lived there and
(32:26):
other famous, I guess movie directors and researchers did
documentaries on a very famous tigress called Muchley who was
called Lady of the Lake. So I grew up watching these
tigers on television and always wanted to visit Rantam Bull.
I first visited this National Park in 2009 and didn't see one
tiger. So when I started going back
(32:48):
with my own photo safaris, I have had some incredible tiger
action there and this time did not disappoint.
So Rantam Bull is very busy, butfor good reason.
It produces, there's some great Tiger activity and each day you
drive out you're allocated a zone.
So it's to try to stop congestion because there are a
lot of people are visiting there.
So you have basically have zones, one up to 456.
(33:11):
It keeps going somewhere in the buffer zone.
We were quite lucky this trip. We got into some of the core
zones such as zone 1-2 and four,and we also did 5 as well.
So we had sightings on every drive.
But I managed to capture probably my most favorite Tiger
shot ever on the last afternoon of a tigress called Riddhi, who
I photographed as a young cub a couple of years back.
(33:33):
So she is the daughter of Arrowhead and she's now become
the Lady of the Lake. She's now the main sort of
dominant tigress in Ranthambore National Park.
Now we also came across a 17 year old tigress called Norrell
and she is the oldest living tiger in Ranthambore. 17 is a
really good age for a tiger that's living in a sort of zoo
(33:55):
environment, let alone in the wild.
You can tell the she's of age she has that, you know, sort of
distant look in her eyes, just like my own cat Furby at home.
He's also 17. And yeah, we had some incredible
sightings. And I can't wait to share this
photo with you all. It's going straight to my
exhibition, and I'm not going tobe sharing until it's printed
and on the wall. But I'm really excited about it.
(34:16):
Lauren, how did you find Wrentham Ball?
I thought it was pretty amazing.It's so different from the other
national parks we've been to andeach zone so different from the
other zones. The experiences in each of the
zones was unique too. I particularly was taken with
the sloth bear. We had a couple of sloth bear
sightings all up, but a particularly good one where we
(34:37):
got to to have a really good. Look and watch how he moves and
how he they forage. It was pretty much a a highlight
for me would have been the slothbear.
Yeah. And Lauren, you were saying,
which I didn't realise most people come on this trip to see
tigers, which you were. I think you were confident we
were gonna see. But you were saying that your
main target species was a sloth bear.
Because I've never seen one before at.
(34:58):
All zoos or. Or anywhere.
So do you think they're cute? I think they're gorgeous in a
big bumbly sort of way. They're.
It looks like a man moving through the forest in a bear
suit. Yeah, yes, a little bit awkward,
but to get a really good. Look at one was wonderful.
And what would be your photograph?
You captured a rub temple that you're happy with?
Is there a particular shot in mind?
I honestly don't know which it was quite a few that I'm really
(35:20):
pleased with, but until I get home and and have a good look, I
don't know that I could give a favorite at this stage.
And what's your thoughts on the Mongoose theory?
We've seen a lot, a lot of Mongoose and ransom ball the.
Mongoose theory that Mongoose sightings are good.
Lucky we proved over and over again we'd almost given up on
our last morning drive of seeinganything spectacular and we saw
three Mongoose and guess what wesaw?
(35:42):
Tiger. Yeah, we got a Tiger in the last
sort of half an hour of our verylast safari.
We've done 27 safaris and I think we just, I think we worked
out only maybe 2. We're quiet out of 27.
It's incredible. I'm going to pass over to
Caroline now and hear your thoughts on Ransom Ball.
And especially that last tiger sighting, I think it was just,
it was a gentle way to round offall our safaris.
(36:06):
It wasn't an up close dramatic sighting at all.
He was, he was moving through the forest quite far, probably,
I don't know, 100 meters away, but on his own mission, not
taking any notice of anybody. And that I love that sighting.
That's actually how I thought the sightings would be.
I didn't know we were going to see Tigers at the vehicle.
(36:27):
Rantham Ball I loved as I have all of the all of the reserves.
The only thing about Rantham Ball that nobody else has those
big tracks, yes, big game viewing safari tracks with which
are like maybe 25 seaters. Yeah, mostly local tourists, but
there was a lot of Western tourists on this, a lot of
Western tourists. But also it works.
(36:47):
You know, people buzz around on those little gypsies, but those
vehicles and then, you know, 25 people are seeing a tiger or, or
the sloth bear. I agree with Lauren.
I was so thrilled to see that sloth bear.
I want to say little sloth bear.Obviously it's not, but it looks
round and little and very cute. I wanted to pat it.
Wanted to pat it. It'll take your head off, I
(37:08):
think. Yeah, I've had one charge me on
my very first photographic safari that I ran.
But yeah, they demand respect those animals, and they
regularly have conflict with tigers.
So yeah, I can't imagine it. Either of them.
They both look like such soft fluffy.
Did you think you'd see this many tigers?
No, I don't know how many sightings we've had, 27.
I've we're going to have to tally them up, I think, yeah.
But it's been an absolute pleasure travelling with all of
(37:31):
you. And I'm quite that today is our
last day together. And yeah.
And you guys have been such a wonderful travelling campaign of
this scattered. Well, take care for now.
And oh, sorry, one last thing. We are forgetting about one of
the most famous iconic buildingsof India, the Taj Mahal.
We just left there. How did you find the Taj?
Beautiful. Majestic.
Glossy everything, everything that that you've heard about it.
(37:54):
A lot of wildlife. Safaris that travel to India,
they don't include the Taj, as you could say we did a separate
trip, but I think it's a very important iconic monument that
you have to save your own eyes. And also could be your once in
the lifetime India trip and you kind of have to see the and now
I see why it's was beautiful. Yeah, thanks for gangs up Joe.
It's been. The most awesome trip.
(38:16):
It's been a pleasure. And I'd like to say thank you
too. And when I look back through my
photos, you can see the improvement in my photos from
day one to day 20. Their abilities have increased.
I'll just have to wait to see. What that for?
And also in this trip, Lauren switched over to a mirrorless
SLR basically. So she has a Canon R8.
(38:39):
Last time she was using a bridgecamera.
But there's a famous saying, youknow, the only photography you
should be comparing yourself, This is the one that you were
yesterday. And I need to actually take my
own advice. But yeah, cheers.
Well, we are travelling. That's all the noise in the
background. But cheers for now and we look
forward to sharing all the photos of you guys.
Our very last warning in India is always spent at the Taj
(39:00):
Mahal. You cannot go to India and not
visit this iconic building. This building is probably my
favorite building in the world that I've seen so far.
It is a place that. Takes my breath away every time
I step through the arches of themosque to head in and see just
that first glimpse of the Taj, and I never get sick of it.
I had visited the Taj Mahal wellover 10 Times Now and I'm always
(39:23):
looking for different angles, different ways to photograph it.
I tell people, you know, the first time you visit there, just
sit down and take it all in and don't be afraid to go really
wide and do some really abstractcompositions.
When photographing the Taj, a wide angle is definitely a good
choice, but also close up stuff of the beautiful gold and jade
and different precious stones that are used in the Taj.
And also there's Egyptian vultures there, which is like,
(39:46):
whoa, I mean, you never see Egyptian vultures and they are
making a nest on top of the Taj Mahal.
Each time I go, I try to do something different.
So in 2024, I photographed womenlooking beautiful and feeling
beautiful. So women posing and doing
selfies and addressing their sirees from all around the
world, right. This year I thought, you know,
I've started a podcast. Why don't I interview some
people about their feelings towards the Taj and if they
(40:08):
would build something as magnificent for their other
halves for love. And it's quite interesting, the
responses, a lot of people from around the world that were, you
know, quite. Confident to chat to me about
their feelings on the Taj and they have a listen and enjoy.
So I'm at the Taj Mahal, which is one of the most beautiful
buildings on the planet, and youknow, it was made for love.
Anna Rug, what would you do for love?
(40:29):
Well, first thing is I learned to be vulnerable to begin with.
This is not very easy for me, but I'm glad I'm doing it now.
Would you build something like this for the person you love?
Not at all. I don't want 200,000 people
visiting it everyday. It has to be more private.
I'm with Jocelyn at the Taj Mahal.
Would you build something like this for the person you love?
Oh. I will love it.
I will be like really, really excited if someone do this kind
(40:54):
of gift to me or if I can do to someone.
Of course. It's so beautiful.
I'm with Ahmed and he is our wonderful Taj Mahal guide that
we've been using for a very longtime now.
Ahmed, would you build somethinglike this for the love of your
life? If I could afford that,
definitely I would love to make something for my love.
(41:15):
What about if someone built thisfor you?
How would you feel? I feel very like surprised if
someone will for me because it'snot possible nowadays to make
someone. Ralph, would you build something
like this for the person you love?
Yes, yes. Do you think it's beautiful?
Yes, yes, yes. So beautiful.
I've got Ricardo and Pedro from Venezuela here at the Taj Mahal.
Guys, would you build something like this for the person that
(41:37):
you love? No, no, no, no.
Like, you know, I'm a honest person to be honest.
For me to build a monument like this, a space like this, she
gives to she needs to give me like, you know, the whole world,
which is, yeah, which is difficult, but yeah, like, you
(42:00):
know, I believe in the in the law.
OK, OK. What about you, Patrick?
Well, for me, if I had the possibility, money and resource,
maybe, yeah, I would do it. And especially in this case is
that he loved his wife because she gave him a lot of kids so.
14 children. 14 yeah, that's a lot.
So yeah, maybe. But you know, the question is,
(42:22):
is she willing to build also? For me, that's the that's the
question. OK, Ricardo needs to find a very
wealthy woman, I think. Thanks, guys.
Have a great day. Amir Raksha, would you build
something like this with the person you love?
I mean, if I had $52 billion in my bank account, yes.
What about someone built this for you?
How would that make you feel? I was fishing.
(42:43):
So lovely to meet you. Have a great day.
Yeah, you do. So, I mean, and many.
And you're looking beautiful today at the Taj Mahal.
How would you feel if the personyou love built this for you?
Ohh. Oh, that will mean the world to
me. That will mean the world that.
I will. I don't know, it's just.
I cannot even imagine that someone built that for the love
of his life. It's just so much love.
I don't know if this love just exists right now.
(43:04):
Yeah, I don't think it exists anymore, but let's hope it does
in the future. I'm with Aryan and Cushy.
I'm assuming you guys are together.
You're a couple. Would you build the Taj Mahal or
something similar for your lovely girlfriend here?
Definitely being an Indian and this is a symbol of love.
If given a chance, blessed with the money and and everything,
definitely I would build a beautiful, more beautiful than
(43:25):
this. And how would you feel if he was
able to build this for? You I feel very happy, like
seriously if my boyfriend wants to makes a Taj Mahal for me,
I'll feel so happy, like very loved.
Diego, would you build this magnificent building for the
love of your life? She has to give me 14 children.
(43:46):
And how would you feel if Diego built this for you?
No, my God. Would I still be alive though?
Yes, but you maybe not have 14 children.
I think I'd be jealous so everyone could visit.
And it's my promoter. OK, sidetracked for a second at
the Taj Mahal in interviewing some really beautiful people.
But I just saw an Egyptian vulture which is one of the most
endangered. Vultures on the planet and.
(44:08):
It's sitting on top of the Taj Mahal.
How bloody exciting. I've been looking at it right
now. It's phenomenal.
OK. Caroline, what did you think of
Taj? The Taj is magnificent and and I
love the the white marble, I love the carnelian and the
malachite and the Jasper and allthe precious stones and semi
precious stones used in the in the carvings.
(44:28):
It's absolutely, it's magnificent and symmetrical.
It's an absolute work of art. How would it make you feel?
It's the love of your life builtthat for you.
It would squeak me off my feet and I think it's it's a gesture
of it would love language, it's gifts, it's service, it's time,
it's just it's everything. So how would I feel?
I'd say yes. Where are we going to find these
(44:50):
men? Listen, I've been looking since
I was 20 and yeah, it's not happening.
I really hope you've enjoyed listening to our India
adventures in 2025. It's a place.
That you must put on your list. A lot of people are nervous
about visiting India. Please don't be.
It's spectacular. Indians are so friendly and
accommodating. The wildlife is unreal, the
habitats, the food. It is such an exceptional
(45:13):
experience that everyone must experience for themselves.
Please get in touch if you'd like to travel with me next year
in 2026, I'm going to be runningthe exact same trip and hosting
it myself. Still got a couple of spots
left. Don't be sure you'll not.
Regret it it. Is such an experience it's going
to open your eyes and open your heart and you're going to come
away with some spectacular photographs and stories so get
(45:36):
in touch info@bobbyjosafaris.com.
You can also download the India brochure under our 2026 safaris
on the website bobbyjosafaris.com.
Next fortnight on the podcast, I'm going to be having a special
guest from India joining me for a really interesting chat.
Her name is Ratna Singh and she's from Khanna National Park.
And she, he is one of the leading female guides and
(45:59):
teachers, educator of other guides.
So she's trained close to 2000 guides in India.
So stay tuned for her story. She's an exceptional woman, and
you're gonna love hearing it. If you enjoyed this episode, be
sure to hit the follow button soyou never miss an adventure.
You can keep up with Bobby Jo's wildlife photography and safari
journeys on Instagram and Facebook at Bobby Jo Safaris.
(46:21):
And if you'd love to join one ofher photography tours or
workshops, you can find all the details tales at
bobbyjoesafaris.com.
Welcome to Safari Life with Bobby Jo, where you'll get a
front row seat to some of the most breathtaking wildlife
experiences on the planet. Bobby Jo's a wildlife
photographer and safari guide, leading photography tours to
incredible destinations like theSerengeti, Patagonia, India,
Antarctica and beyond. In this podcast, she shares
(00:21):
expert photography tips, behind the scenes stories, and insights
into Wildlife Conservation. If you'd like to learn more
about her tours and workshops, visit bobbyjosafaris.com.
Namaste, honey Badgers. It's a chief honey badger here,
Bobby Joe. And today I'm going to be
(00:42):
bringing you a really awesome episode from India.
One of my favorite places to travel to.
Before we get stuck into it though, I'd like to say a
massive thanks to everyone that has been following along on the
podcast. It's been a new thing for me.
I think each week it's getting better and I want to thank you
for your support and for subscribing and commenting and
sharing. If you haven't subscribed,
please do. It helps me out massively.
(01:04):
If I can bring you stories and keep it going and hopefully
share a lot of photographic goodness, wildlife goodness,
it'll make the world a better place.
I hope it will. Anyways, let's jump into today's
episode. A couple of months ago I.
Was in India. Now this is a safari that I run
every single year. I went to India for the first
time in 2009, way before I'd started Bobby Joe Safaris, and I
(01:25):
loved the place. India is a place that stays with
you forever. It is some of the most richest
cultural experiences I've had whilst travelling and some of
the best wildlife. So people don't realise that
India is rich with wildlife, unique, incredibly diverse
species. So it's kind of like a
specialised Africa, so to speak,very different way of looking
for animals. But of course the draw card is
(01:47):
the Royal Bengal Tiger and that's what everybody wants to
see, but it's so much more than just a tiger.
So every March I go to India andI will be going to India in
2026. So if you're listening to this
episode and you're feeling like,man, this could be be my trip.
Like I think I would really likethis.
I've only got a couple of spots left.
So the trip has almost sold out.So get in touch
info@bobbyjosafaris.com. You can jump on the website
(02:09):
aswellbobbyjosafaris.com. All the information's up for our
next India trip. But please have a listen to
today's episode and you'll hear some of the stories.
Our guests are featured. There's a lot of laughs.
India is incredible. Our incredible India safari
starts at a place called Kaziranga.
(02:32):
Now Kaziranga is a National Parkthat's in the state of Assam.
And how we get there is we actually have a three hour,
about a three to three and a half hour flight from Delhi to
Gawati. On this flight, it's quite
spectacular because you fly directly alongside the Himalayas
and quite often we can see MountEverest, which is a real buzz
for my guests to be able to see that that iconic tallest
(02:52):
mountain on the planet Assam is nestled between Bangladesh and
Bhutan. It's a very narrow of India and
the reason we go to Kaziranga isbecause it's a great way to
start the trip. It's four nights, so it gives
guests a chance to unwind and relax and get into that rhythm
of organised chaos that is Indiaand lets us practice our
photography, get used to the vehicles.
And one of the reasons I do start in Kaziranga is because
(03:15):
it's quite difficult to see tigers.
So it kind of puts tigers out ofthe equation and we can focus on
other animals and learn photographic skills on animals,
you know, smaller deer, reptiles, otters, the rhino, and
also the Asian elephant and lotsof really amazing birds.
So it's a great place to start the trip and to learn to get
into the swing of everything that has to do with India,
(03:37):
including, you know, the photography, of course, and
being around the chaos of passionate, passionate people in
the national parks, so. We step in.
Four nights and we had an incredible stay.
I want you guys to listen now tosome of the stories that we
experienced and some of the sightings that we had.
You'll hear from the guests justwhat Kaziranga was like.
It is a magical place and as a child growing up watching
(04:00):
Edinburgh on TVI remember the opening scene of Kaziranga, a
documentary by BBC. You know the rhinos are in the
grassland, the mist is rising up.
It is a magical place and I remember as a kid thinking I
want to go there and now I'm lucky to go there every single
year. So it's always included in our
India safari. So have a listen and enjoy
Kaziranga. I'm sitting right now in the
(04:22):
central zone of Kaziranga National Park.
I've got 3 wonderful women with me.
I've got Caroline, I've got Lauren and Susan, and we're
actually waiting. We've been quite heavily
reinforced the last 24 hours. We got our first tiger in
Kaziranga, which is really quiterare.
I've been here 4 times to Kaziranga, that's the first
(04:42):
decent good look at the tiger. I'm really shy.
They're really shy here. They're living in incredibly
long elephant grass where even you can't even see the elephants
when they walk through the elephant grass.
So tigers are quite rare to sight and also really thick
vegetation. And we had it all to ourselves,
which is also quite. Amazing because it's a busy.
Little Park people love coming from all over India to visit
(05:03):
Kaziranga. It's well known for Indian
rhinos, so the greater 1 horned rhinoceros.
Right now we are sitting in the middle of the park waiting for
the elusive golden tiger. We've got lots of people driving
past. You can hear lots of vehicles in
the background. And this golden tiger is really
quite phenomenal. It I've seen photos of it.
I thought it was a mystical creature for many years, but
(05:23):
Palash our guide. Has got some really awesome
photos of it. It's.
Almost leucistic. So we've taken our chance here.
How are you finding it, ladies? Caroline.
Yeah, lots of sitting and waiting, which is fine because
when we did that was it? Was it only yesterday?
Yeah, we sat and waited at at the spot that Palash thought was
(05:45):
likely. Waited for about 20 minutes and
a a tiger. A leopard.
She's S Africans. Everything's leopard.
Leopard Lady. I do still want to see Leopard
and the tiger walked across the road in front of us.
And how did you feel when you first We first saw it in the
sort of grass next to the car with the.
Fern and the ferns What was? Your Yeah.
(06:05):
How did you? Feel it was.
It was amazingly, the depth of colour was just amazing.
He was, he was orange and white in his eyes.
He was looking straight at us and we were not that far.
No, we were probably, well, it was probably about 10 metres
probably. I'm really terrible at distance.
I'll say it's shorter, even lesseven.
Less than that I. Think I'm up for a bit of an
(06:26):
assault charge because I grabbedyou Philly quite aggressively.
What the tiger? Yeah, hearted, I feel.
Yeah, not as excited as you, butI don't think.
And how have you found Kazirungaso far?
Do you love it? I do, I do.
It's been the highlights for you.
Other than, well, obviously. Of tiger, those hornbill so
amazing. What are they?
Great Indian hornbill. Great Indian hornbill.
(06:48):
They're huge. They're just, they're just
gorgeous. And we've seen those, we've seen
rhino, some really close up. Beautiful sightings of rhino.
Wild elephant swimming, crossingthe road in front of us.
A lot of things happen crossing the road in front of us and
you're as you can't go off road.No, Caroline actually owns a
lodge, a not settler in Madique in South Africa.
(07:10):
So she is a Bush lady from way back.
How are you finding so far? I mean this is our first park,
we've got lots to come. How are you finding the Safari
experience in comparison to, say, South Africa?
It it is drastically different in the, the Safari vehicles are
half the size that the whole driver guide set up is a little
(07:30):
is a little different how we have run safaris in South
Africa. Also in Madique, which is where
I'm from, sightings are very controlled.
You will never have more than three vehicles in a sighting and
here it it has, we haven't foundit too bad.
But Anarag, who went to a different part of the reserve
yesterday, was sitting waiting for a Tiger and that sighting
(07:52):
ended up being 100 vehicles in the sighting.
Yeah, it can be. It can be frustrating, but it's
also most of the people that arehere are Indian local.
Yeah. And it's so friendly.
So you don't really get. Cranky you don't get thank you.
It's great people watching. It is.
And everyone greets us and wavesand says hello and goodbye.
And we also got hit on by some Indian men, which was amazing.
(08:14):
So there's four of us lovely ladies.
And then we've got Palash, who'sgiggling down the front here.
And it's quite distinguished, 3 years older and tipped his hat
and said hello there. And we all giggled like a bunch
of high school girls. Oh, hello there.
And then we spent the next hour passing them and saying hello.
There, there. And it became, yeah, it's become
the theme of this trip. Good saying.
So I've got. Lauren in the back here as well.
(08:37):
Lauren is from Dubbo, Australia,so place I live, we're good
mates and she's travelled with me to East Africa before.
How are you finding it Lauren? I'm finding it very interesting,
very different from the trips I've done in Southern Africa.
The vegetation is so different, so therefore the total
experience is different. Yeah, I'm used to safari on the
(08:57):
open plains where you can see a lot of animals in, in long
distances. We're here as Bobby Joe said,
the elephant grass is taller than the elephants.
So it's a, it's a totally different experience with all
the vegetation as well as the wildlife.
People have been amazing. I've actually come across with a
couple of injuries from a bit ofan accident before the trip and
(09:19):
everybody has just been so accommodating to assist me and
my dodgy knee and. Laurie is officially the 1st
guest that's ever travelled me on crutches.
So we're getting VIP access and the and the plates at the hotel.
It's been amazing. But the people have just been so
helpful. It's just been wonderful.
And how did you feel seeing yourfirst tiger?
Like, was it pretty exhilaratingfor you?
You've seen Leopard and Lion before, Yeah?
(09:41):
It it, it, it is just takes it to that next level.
It was just wonderful to see it just amazing is my go to word
all the time. People are sick of it saying it.
It was amazing. And we've got there's loads of
rhinos here and I heard Lauren say this morning, which I knew
was going to happen eventually because there's people don't
realise that the most 70% of thepopulation of Indian or greater
1 on rhinos leaving because you're anger.
(10:03):
And Lauren, we stopped and Palasha God said would you like
to take a photo? And Lauren said no thanks, I'm
OK. And then it straight away said,
I can't believe I just said that.
Next National Park on our incredible India safari is
Tudoba, and that's in the state of Maharashtra.
So that required another flight from Gulwati back to Delhi and
(10:26):
then Delhi to a place called Nagpur and then a drive from
there. Now Tudoba is exceptional for
tigers. And this is my third visit to
Tudoba. Well structured park from the
way the guides are dressed in Immaculate sort of camo gear,
almost like soldiers. The roads are exceptional.
There's a lot of money that's got into this park and you can
(10:47):
see they've taken very good careof the roads, the
infrastructure, even the management of the grasslands.
It is a great park and we had a wonderful time.
We caught up with Mungesh who isa guide that they've been using
for a couple of years now and itwas one of the favourites of the
guests and we had some epic tiger siding.
So listen up and hear all about Tedoba.
(11:08):
So just had an incredible few days at Tedoba.
And quick little note, you can'tuse a mobile phone inside the
DOBA. So I wasn't able to give you
guys some information from within the park, but we just
left and we're now heading to a small tiger reserve called
Nagzira. Now to give you an idea where we
are, we are smack bang in the middle of India in central
India. And I'm just going to try really
hard to pronounce the state and Anurag is probably going to
(11:31):
correct me. Maharashtra.
That's great. I.
Got it. I got it in Maharashtra,
Absolutely. And Speaking of which, the
lovely Anurag who is our fearless leader and guide here
is with me as well. How you going in Iraq?
I'm doing good, enjoying Indian summer.
Yes, it's hot here at the park'sbeen around I think 3738, I
think, yes, there might have been 39° pretty hot, which is
(11:52):
great for tiger sidings and Anurag.
What does the temperatures get to like in, say, June?
Trust me, this is just beginningof summer in this part of the
country. Like you said, we are very close
to the geographical centre of India.
In next 20 days temperatures would be like 48 to 50°C.
I can't imagine doing a safari at 50°.
I mean, I think I. Would die I.
(12:12):
Mean I guess the what are the tiger sightings like when it's
50°? Well, it's not raining here, but
it's raining tigers for sure. OK, so.
Every water hole you'll see catssitting in.
Our guide said yesterday that inthe summer, in June, you can
come across a water hole and there'll be there'll be a tiger
there for hours. Yeah.
So just to give you an idea of way back in 2012, I have seen 17
tigers in one safari in this park.
(12:33):
Ah. OK, here, here I was singing how
many times I think we saw 7 or 8individuals and I thought that
was very impressive. So 17 tigers, but I think I'd
rather have the seven and eight tigers and the cooler
temperatures to be honest. And they were moving, they were
active, absolutely. So what is so good about
Tedouva? I mean, tedouva is very popular
with tourists, both international law and domestic
(12:55):
as well, because of its biodiversity.
You have plenty of wildlife. There's a lot of action and you
know, a lot of people come here with an expectation to see that
of course. And I would say a large part of
population is not disappointed in this whole landscape.
There are about 200 plus tigers like the leopards, the slot test
the wild dogs so plenty of wild left to see basically.
(13:15):
We picked to Dover a couple of years ago.
This is our third season in to Dover.
We added this to the itinerary because it has one of my
favorite species. Like as you guys have worked
out, pretty selfish. I just go where I wanna see
animals and then encourage. People to come along.
Is the Asian wild dog or the doll DHOLEI once had an American
guest asked me where the D holeswere, which was quite funny.
(13:36):
The doll, the D where are the D holes?
So I actually as a zookeeper waslucky enough in my first few
years of zookeeping, I think maybe my first 12 months as a
baby zookeeper, I was able to help with hand raising to doll
and I developed that kind of attachment to the species then.
And the first two trips we had great doll sightings.
This safari we had exceptional tiger sightings, some of the
(13:58):
best tiger sightings I've had here and unfortunately no doll.
We are heading to to other parksat hopefully we'll be able to
catch up with them. So we've been working with a
guide in Tadoba called Mangesh and he is fantastic, a local guy
and he's done really well this last few days to get us some
great sightings. Now, I had all the guests we've
been gonna pass across to Caroline, and I went to your
(14:19):
Caroline thoughts and what you thought of Tadoba and what was
your highlight. Starting off with Mangesh, he
was amazing. But one of the things that they
do here, which we didn't notice in Kazuranga, I don't know about
the other reserves. If if they do this, all the
guides are in a really good uniform and they're all in like
camo pants and a, a mint Greek and sleep top.
(14:40):
Yeah, you can't see the bottom half.
Just floating heads on safari trucks.
He was really he was epic man Gaze and our driver.
Abhijit. He drove at 2 speeds.
Stopped. And 40, we'd get into the car
and we learned pretty quickly that as he got into the car, the
car took off. That was it.
It's amazing that these guys drive so, so well and so
(15:01):
carefully actually at the speed that they go, these little then
these little gypsies to Doba. It was, it was tiger sightings,
every single drive, the majorityof them apart from one yesterday
afternoon, we had a driveway. We just saw a couple of tigers
on the other side of a water hole, but every other one, they
(15:22):
were right at the vehicle. I mean, they were spectacular.
What was your favorite? Tiger sighting this morning.
Yeah, at the same morning we were on our own.
We'd gone off on. Well, we thought it was some
random middle Rd. Obviously Mangesh knew what he
was doing and Bobby Joe spotted the tiger deer in the Bush.
We got in front of him and he walked towards us.
(15:42):
It just. Amazing.
Amazing. And Carolyn, you've been around.
Yeah. Lions, leopards in Africa.
When these tigers like when thatmale looked to you this morning,
it's like, how do you describe that?
I know. Oh, look, I have to say I feel
the same way when I see a a leopard when it looks at you
like that. But I but I also have to say
I've never seen a leopard as close and personal as these, as
(16:03):
these animals. These cats are just they are
magnificent. We've.
Also got Lauren here and she's had a fabulous time into Dover
on her crutches. I have to just agree with
everything that Caroline has said about the sightings and the
people that have been wonderful.But a little bonus for me was
wild beehives up in a tree. I've got beehives at home that I
look after, but to see a tree full of wild hives?
(16:26):
It's. Just amazing for me, little side
shoot of the animals are great, but that was the little one for
this morning for me. And how is your photography
going? My photos are improving, I'm
getting to understand how the camera works a little better.
Pretty slow on the uptake on some things, but you're getting
there. And I can see improvements but I
need to wait till I get home andlook at them on a big screen to
(16:48):
see. What they really like and with
our tiger sightings, I think we have 3 sightings on on the road
where they were directly coming in towards us.
So a lot of movement. We had some in the water as
well. What was your favorite one?
I at this morning's I have to agree with Caroline this morning
it was just it was just spectacular as it walked up the
road behind us and we kept having to move away and it and
(17:10):
it literally was following us upthe road until it decided it had
enough and turned in off on a mission wherever, wherever it
was going. Yeah, he was a big boy.
These tigers in central India, they have really big bellies.
Anna Rug, what's going on there?Are they just fat or what's
happening? Plenty of food, I guess.
But yeah, dog greatly pointed out that you'll see across
India, every region tigers have distinct features and here
(17:32):
they'll look more broader. Their bellies are are almost
full. I think it's just plenty of prey
ways more than anything else. Yeah, safe territory, and yet
lots of food. They are living up to the motor
of being an Indian. And what was that mail we saw
this morning called? Yuvraj Yuvraj.
Yuvraj basically in Hindi means the Prince.
The Prince he certainly was, andwe saw shorter that how do you
(17:54):
said the. Shorter darial is like short
bearded. Yeah, he had a mullet.
Actually, he had a bit of a mullet going on.
And then we saw Choti Tata, which means Little Star.
Choti Tata, yes, so it is LittleStar and actually she's got a
name from her mum. So name was Mum Tata, which
means start. When mother died and she
occupied the same territory, shewas nameless Choti because she
was the smaller one. Also, a lot of them have all got
(18:15):
names and like they've got, you know, they've seen as an
individual. It's so awesome.
And then we also saw a collar Wally named after having a
collar. Anyways, we're going to be
heading to next year and we'll catch up with you shortly.
Now it's time for my favorite National Park in India and
(18:35):
that's Khana, and that's in the state of Madhya Pradesh.
I first visited. Khana in 2009 and had my first
sighting of a wild Bengal tiger.So there's a little bit of
history there and attachment. It's also home to one of my
favorite species, the Asian wilddog or also known as a doll,
which I cared for in my younger zookeeping days.
So lots of attachment, you know,seeing a bit of a pattern there.
(18:57):
Beautiful park, huge big sahl trees, big open meadows.
It's got everything. It also home to a critically
endangered antelope called the Borisinga.
The hard ground Borisinga and this park have resurrected this
species through being persistentwith their conservation efforts.
And now they're moving this particular antelope across to
(19:18):
other parks in India. So it's a massive conservation
story. I love everything that Karna
stands for. They are, in my opinion, leading
the way in conservation in India.
This park is also amazing for photographic opportunities.
With the light, you know, you travel to places around the
world with the light, you know, from looking at photos, you know
that light was in South Luanga along the river or Mana Pools in
Zimbabwe, or this light is Khanna National Park.
(19:41):
When the sun's setting and the lights falling through the
sultries and the huge leaves andit's this beautiful warm glow as
a tiger steps out. It's a very pretty place.
But anyways, have a listen to our debrief about and what we
got up to there. And pretty excited to say that
my good friend Ratna Singh will be joining me on the next
fortnights episode and talking about her conservation efforts
(20:04):
in in around Khana. Today, honey Badgers, it's your
chief honey badger here, Bobby Jo, and I'm connecting with you
from an Indian train. We're sitting on the platform.
We're in our little cabin. We're actually travelling first
class. It's don't think it's super
fancy. It has a nice door that you can
lock, but I'm going to put up some videos on the social.
So you've got to see what we're sitting in.
(20:26):
We're all in there with a luggage here.
It's been quite a lovely experience and we're spending
about 12 hours on a sleeper train heading to our next
destination which is Swati Madapur, which is the gateway to
Rent Anthembour National Park and it's our last hurrah for our
Indian trip was our last park tovisit and the guests are looking
very sad right now. We've got 6 game drives left to
produce some top notch sightingsincluding a honey badger I'm
(20:48):
manifesting right now baby. So on that note, I've heard a
little story about the Ruddy Mongoose and the greater kukul
and apparently if you see a Mongoose on a safari or Ruddy
Mongoose in particular, you are going to see a tiger or
something really exciting. So I'm not going to lie, I'm
kind of a believer of this. Now we have seen every time we
(21:09):
see a little Mongoose cross the road in front of us, it stops
and gives us a bit of a look. We've even got photographs.
We have gone on to see a tiger or like amazing sighting.
And then the other I guess superstitious thing is seeing a
greater kukul bird and the trainis moving.
We're going guys, the train is moving.
If you see a kukul and Ruddy Mongoose, you're going to have
(21:30):
like exceptional luck. So we've actually, there's
people like running right now totry to get on this train.
It's quite hilarious. You're going to have good luck.
And I feel like this trip, we'veseen Mongoose and then we've
been boom, we've been rewarded. Anurag, what is that?
What is that about? That's absolutely true. 20 years
of experience experiencing readymongooses and wanting to see
them first. Yeah, as long as you see one or
(21:51):
two, definitely not three you want to see.
But then it's bad luck. Trust me.
Oh, we've been banking them. We've actually come up with a
new rule where we've been banking them and.
It's working, but otherwise no. Here's cuckle for sure.
Also gets you good luck. You know what gets you bad luck?
What is spotting a owl before a tiger sighting?
(22:11):
OK, we haven't. And also jungle hair, like
jungle hair and me if I see a jungle hair even before getting
into the National Park, definitely no sighting at all.
OK, well, we haven't really seentoo many hairs and we've seen
some owls, but we've had exceptional luck.
So we've just spent three nightsat Karna National Park and we
had really incredible tiger sightings.
Again, everyone knows I'm obsessed with dogs and we we got
(22:32):
the doll, the Asian Mile dog proper.
Like we saw 22 dogs with 10 puppies.
Now everyone could tell me to get over myself.
Actually, I think there were 12 puppies.
Do you count on I? Thought there was 11 or 12 and I
but they kept moving so I wasn'tcertain.
Whatever it was you as adults, but yes, 20.
Two dogs and the best part of the whole sighting was we
(22:55):
watched an adult who wasn't the mother run back from.
They made a kill. We didn't see the kill was
happening in the bushes. We could most certainly hear it.
They ran back and regurgitated for all the puppies and it was
just quite a fun. And then two other adults also
came and did. That yeah, it was incredible.
Then there was 1 rolling. You know how dogs roll in smelly
stuff? It's smelly stuff.
Thank you. It was railing.
(23:18):
So that was my highlight, but also the other highlight was the
food. The food at a sacrum lodge,
which is owned by Wasim and Ratna.
It was like a total experience, a safari for our palates.
Like it was incredible. And then in 2009, on my first
safari to India, I went to car National Park and I tried the
(23:40):
park samosas and I haven't been the same since.
I mean, I've been thinking aboutthem ever since 2009 and every
time I go back to Karna, I am soexcited to to have a samosa in
the park where the Rangers eat at the canteens.
And this morning, the chef. Made samosa samosas for you
Yeah, well, for. All of us, yeah, but it can't we
have. An eyebrows is, I think in my
(24:01):
opinion, it's the most beautifulpark I've ever been to an India.
It's really tall, beautiful salttrees.
You know when you're driving around and the lights coming
through them, it's just it's spectacular park.
It's it's always a favorite of. Of mine and.
What do you what do you think? Caroline I.
I I found all of them to be magnificent.
The Kazaringa, Kazaringa, Kazaringa with all the ferns and
(24:29):
the more jungly these last threeI think have been forest.
So yeah, I'm just seeing the Tigers.
And oh. And I'm going to bang on about
the leopard. Oh yes, yes, we haven't done an
update. We went to a small park called
Nagzira which is more of a a local tourist park.
Not many westerners there. It was a very little female
leopard with blue eyes. And then the initial sighting
(24:52):
was very quick. She was just crossing the road.
She was a bit. Skittish.
And then she moved. We moved and we thought she was
heading to a water hole and she wasn't.
She was heading for a puddle andwe had the most perfect sighting
right in front of her. Yeah, everyone was buzzing.
It was, it was amazing, these blue.
Eyes. That was magnificent.
But you loved carne, so it was beautiful.
(25:13):
I loved Carne. I loved the lodge.
I mean, none of the lodges are, are standout or scruffy or
anything, but this one was just,it was more welcoming.
It was more homely. Every time you moved out of your
room or went anywhere, there wassomebody there to help you on
your way. Or it was, it was there was a
lot of care and attention and, and the chef.
(25:35):
Yeah, the chef just amazing, wasfantastic.
It's the best chef in India, Melodon and the chefs in India.
But he's yeah, he, he was, yeah.Like and, and a performer, yes.
Everything was felt like I was on MasterChef every night.
MasterChef. Yeah.
Wearing a cravat or something like it was yeah, it was
amazing. And just quickly we are on the
train. People get a bit nervous about
(25:55):
coming on an overnight train in India, but what do you think so
far? It's it's fantastic it's small
but looks very common. OK, the actually the seats are
quite hard, but I'm sure it's going to be perfect.
I like AI like a hard mattress so I'm sure this is going to be
perfect I. Actually sleep pretty pretty
well on the train. And Lauren, what about you?
What was? It was your highlights of
Khanna. I don't know that there could be
(26:17):
one particular highlight. There was so many different the
beehives this morning, surely beehives this morning.
But that's just me and beehives.But we saw two Peacocks have a
bit of a sight with each other and fly up into the sky.
Tell us the story. That's a Peacock.
And we saw it. We were watching a lion sitting
on the edge. A lion?
Wow, I'm tired. We were watching a tiger sitting
(26:42):
on the edge of the lake, head down and almost having a little
nap. And there was a bit of a ruckus
from the tree on the far side onthe left.
And we watched this beautiful Peacock flying out and did this
big sweeping motion down to landon the Bank of the lake right
where the tiger was. And as it got near, it did this
(27:02):
oh holy and shot up and the the tiger looked a bit stunned.
There was the noise of the Peacock above it that raised the
tiger. And then this poor Peacock flew
off in a bit of shock onto the side.
It was a bit of a scream for us anyway.
If I had to define the parks beauty like just habitat wise.
Just so different from the others, as you said, the
beautiful tall trees, but all the leaf litter there, you could
(27:24):
hear the animals walking throughthe leaves.
I just love the sound that I was, would have loved to have
got out and played in all the leaf litter, but then I could
have been tiger. Boots So yeah, we there we say
it wasn't gonna happen, but we saw some good tigers and we
actually saw two males together,which is quite rare that are not
related. And one of them had been
introduced to the park and we saw them resting together.
And that's quite a rare sight tosee two fully grown males
(27:47):
resting. And then they at the end of
their little bro time, they all just went they went their
separate ways. Or as we swatched them, one
went, you know, up the riverbed and the other one went across
all the parks have been to so far have been mostly local
tourists travelling. And I just love them because,
you know, you're driving along and they stop and they're
friendly and they're waving. And it's like, you know, you
have a bit of banter with them. They're only giving us a heap of
(28:08):
banter about the cricket. There's, you know, India versus
Australia and the cricket. But and as soon as they meet
Caroline, they're like South Africa.
Like they just think she's a goddess from South Africa.
But one thing, this is not me being maybe a little bit native,
OK, let's be honest. I'm having a good bitch here is
Western tourists, like tourists from all over the world that not
in India, just like us, are justlooking miserable on safari.
(28:30):
Like, you pull up and you say good day and hello and and they
just give you like, this restingbitch face.
And I don't know, I always put it down to being that they're
shy. But then when you start trying
to talk to them, like, how's your safari going?
Just found it. Khana's a bit of a touristy part
that is more Western tourist visiting Khana.
I found it. Yeah.
I don't know. It kind of bad got on my tits,
(28:50):
so to speak. Like it was.
It was. Yeah.
It wasn't very nice to see people.
They just didn't look that happy.
It was interesting, the people watching.
Oh, it's great. Watching almost, almost as good
as the people watching. But yeah, some.
Some of the tourists were quite walking, but others would just
stare at us. Like we were aliens.
Like we were ambitious. We might have looked.
Like any safari you're going andit's always that awkward moment
(29:11):
when obviously your guides are speaking a different language.
Our guides are speaking Hindi and none of us know Hindi.
And they pull up and they're having like that little morning
chat with their workmates and they're getting information,
They're collecting information about what they've seen.
And and then always like I feel like the kids in the back of the
truck, like, you know, our parents are chatting, We're
awkwardly looking at each other.You do a little fake smile at
them and then you go hello. And and then it just wasn't
(29:32):
really reciprocated for us. Maybe they were intimidated by
us. We.
Smiled and waved and we just maybe got a nod, yeah.
Anna Rug, we are now oops, we'vehad a mic drop.
We are going to Rantom Ball, youknow, and tell me about
Rantambo. What's to What can we expect
there? Was again a very popular park of
India, one of the first five parks where the whole project
(29:53):
tiger started and considered oneof the best parks in India to
see wild tigers. So obviously you'd expect to see
more Tiger action definitely slot there is still pending on
our list. We need a.
We need a good. Find a honey badger.
Yeah, I would die if we see a honey badger.
I don't want you to die but still see a honey badger.
I think, yeah, I'll employ. But it's a very different
forest, and by this time I'm sure it is dried out, so it's a
(30:17):
very dry forest. But what's interesting about
Rantamore is a backdrop. You see so many historical
monuments scattered all along the park, and there's a Fort in
the backdrop, you know? And I've always, I've always
wanted a shot. There's a shot.
Incredible. What's the shot that I want?
Do you know? In the window in the hunting
palace. There's a hunting palace out in
the lake and there's a little window and I've always wanted a
tiger to be sitting there. So we have been banking the
(30:39):
Mongoose. Maybe we might get rewarded.
And we get a cuckoos from somewhere.
We did hear a cuckoo. Yes, I.
Thought that Mongoose and Googleis travelling with us in this
train. Yes, we are the Roddy.
Roddy Kugels. I'm Roddy Mongoose.
We're calling ourselves Ready Kukles.
Anyways, we're gonna get on our train trip and hopefully get
some sleep and check back in with you at Wrentham Ball.
(31:00):
Now for the finale, Ranthambore National Park, it's in
Rajasthan. We had to get an overnight train
from Madhya Pradesh to Rajasthanand hopped off at Swayamatpur
and started our journey to Ranthambore.
And what a way to end this safari.
I mean, the tiger sightings we had were incredible.
We. Got to be.
Surrounded by absolute tiger royalty.
(31:23):
I mean, we spent time with Arrowhead and her Cubs and a
very famous tigress called Norm.It was an exceptional couple of
days spent at ransomball as wellas some great leopard sightings,
and it's just one of the most picturesque places that I've
ever been to. It is hectic.
There are a lot of people there.It's a very high energy,
(31:44):
fast-paced safari. So if you're used to cruising
along the Serengeti and feeling really relaxed, it's completely
the opposite. But it's I love it just as much
right. So it's kind of like my
extroverted side comes out in India, but we ended it with a
bang. I mean, wait till you hear the
debrief on what we experienced in Ranthambore National Park.
It's. We save.
There's a reason. We save it for the end.
(32:05):
It's probably the best place to view tigers in India.
We have just finished a really incredible safari.
It was our last National Park for this three-week incredible
India trip. So when I was growing up as a
kid watching, I think it was Velma because it's a par.
Is that his name on a rug? I think, yeah.
OK. Yep.
He used to do documentaries on the tigers that lived there and
(32:26):
other famous, I guess movie directors and researchers did
documentaries on a very famous tigress called Muchley who was
called Lady of the Lake. So I grew up watching these
tigers on television and always wanted to visit Rantam Bull.
I first visited this National Park in 2009 and didn't see one
tiger. So when I started going back
(32:48):
with my own photo safaris, I have had some incredible tiger
action there and this time did not disappoint.
So Rantam Bull is very busy, butfor good reason.
It produces, there's some great Tiger activity and each day you
drive out you're allocated a zone.
So it's to try to stop congestion because there are a
lot of people are visiting there.
So you have basically have zones, one up to 456.
(33:11):
It keeps going somewhere in the buffer zone.
We were quite lucky this trip. We got into some of the core
zones such as zone 1-2 and four,and we also did 5 as well.
So we had sightings on every drive.
But I managed to capture probably my most favorite Tiger
shot ever on the last afternoon of a tigress called Riddhi, who
I photographed as a young cub a couple of years back.
(33:33):
So she is the daughter of Arrowhead and she's now become
the Lady of the Lake. She's now the main sort of
dominant tigress in Ranthambore National Park.
Now we also came across a 17 year old tigress called Norrell
and she is the oldest living tiger in Ranthambore. 17 is a
really good age for a tiger that's living in a sort of zoo
(33:55):
environment, let alone in the wild.
You can tell the she's of age she has that, you know, sort of
distant look in her eyes, just like my own cat Furby at home.
He's also 17. And yeah, we had some incredible
sightings. And I can't wait to share this
photo with you all. It's going straight to my
exhibition, and I'm not going tobe sharing until it's printed
and on the wall. But I'm really excited about it.
(34:16):
Lauren, how did you find Wrentham Ball?
I thought it was pretty amazing.It's so different from the other
national parks we've been to andeach zone so different from the
other zones. The experiences in each of the
zones was unique too. I particularly was taken with
the sloth bear. We had a couple of sloth bear
sightings all up, but a particularly good one where we
(34:37):
got to to have a really good. Look and watch how he moves and
how he they forage. It was pretty much a a highlight
for me would have been the slothbear.
Yeah. And Lauren, you were saying,
which I didn't realise most people come on this trip to see
tigers, which you were. I think you were confident we
were gonna see. But you were saying that your
main target species was a sloth bear.
Because I've never seen one before at.
(34:58):
All zoos or. Or anywhere.
So do you think they're cute? I think they're gorgeous in a
big bumbly sort of way. They're.
It looks like a man moving through the forest in a bear
suit. Yeah, yes, a little bit awkward,
but to get a really good. Look at one was wonderful.
And what would be your photograph?
You captured a rub temple that you're happy with?
Is there a particular shot in mind?
I honestly don't know which it was quite a few that I'm really
(35:20):
pleased with, but until I get home and and have a good look, I
don't know that I could give a favorite at this stage.
And what's your thoughts on the Mongoose theory?
We've seen a lot, a lot of Mongoose and ransom ball the.
Mongoose theory that Mongoose sightings are good.
Lucky we proved over and over again we'd almost given up on
our last morning drive of seeinganything spectacular and we saw
three Mongoose and guess what wesaw?
(35:42):
Tiger. Yeah, we got a Tiger in the last
sort of half an hour of our verylast safari.
We've done 27 safaris and I think we just, I think we worked
out only maybe 2. We're quiet out of 27.
It's incredible. I'm going to pass over to
Caroline now and hear your thoughts on Ransom Ball.
And especially that last tiger sighting, I think it was just,
it was a gentle way to round offall our safaris.
(36:06):
It wasn't an up close dramatic sighting at all.
He was, he was moving through the forest quite far, probably,
I don't know, 100 meters away, but on his own mission, not
taking any notice of anybody. And that I love that sighting.
That's actually how I thought the sightings would be.
I didn't know we were going to see Tigers at the vehicle.
(36:27):
Rantham Ball I loved as I have all of the all of the reserves.
The only thing about Rantham Ball that nobody else has those
big tracks, yes, big game viewing safari tracks with which
are like maybe 25 seaters. Yeah, mostly local tourists, but
there was a lot of Western tourists on this, a lot of
Western tourists. But also it works.
(36:47):
You know, people buzz around on those little gypsies, but those
vehicles and then, you know, 25 people are seeing a tiger or, or
the sloth bear. I agree with Lauren.
I was so thrilled to see that sloth bear.
I want to say little sloth bear.Obviously it's not, but it looks
round and little and very cute. I wanted to pat it.
Wanted to pat it. It'll take your head off, I
(37:08):
think. Yeah, I've had one charge me on
my very first photographic safari that I ran.
But yeah, they demand respect those animals, and they
regularly have conflict with tigers.
So yeah, I can't imagine it. Either of them.
They both look like such soft fluffy.
Did you think you'd see this many tigers?
No, I don't know how many sightings we've had, 27.
I've we're going to have to tally them up, I think, yeah.
But it's been an absolute pleasure travelling with all of
(37:31):
you. And I'm quite that today is our
last day together. And yeah.
And you guys have been such a wonderful travelling campaign of
this scattered. Well, take care for now.
And oh, sorry, one last thing. We are forgetting about one of
the most famous iconic buildingsof India, the Taj Mahal.
We just left there. How did you find the Taj?
Beautiful. Majestic.
Glossy everything, everything that that you've heard about it.
(37:54):
A lot of wildlife. Safaris that travel to India,
they don't include the Taj, as you could say we did a separate
trip, but I think it's a very important iconic monument that
you have to save your own eyes. And also could be your once in
the lifetime India trip and you kind of have to see the and now
I see why it's was beautiful. Yeah, thanks for gangs up Joe.
It's been. The most awesome trip.
(38:16):
It's been a pleasure. And I'd like to say thank you
too. And when I look back through my
photos, you can see the improvement in my photos from
day one to day 20. Their abilities have increased.
I'll just have to wait to see. What that for?
And also in this trip, Lauren switched over to a mirrorless
SLR basically. So she has a Canon R8.
(38:39):
Last time she was using a bridgecamera.
But there's a famous saying, youknow, the only photography you
should be comparing yourself, This is the one that you were
yesterday. And I need to actually take my
own advice. But yeah, cheers.
Well, we are travelling. That's all the noise in the
background. But cheers for now and we look
forward to sharing all the photos of you guys.
Our very last warning in India is always spent at the Taj
(39:00):
Mahal. You cannot go to India and not
visit this iconic building. This building is probably my
favorite building in the world that I've seen so far.
It is a place that. Takes my breath away every time
I step through the arches of themosque to head in and see just
that first glimpse of the Taj, and I never get sick of it.
I had visited the Taj Mahal wellover 10 Times Now and I'm always
(39:23):
looking for different angles, different ways to photograph it.
I tell people, you know, the first time you visit there, just
sit down and take it all in and don't be afraid to go really
wide and do some really abstractcompositions.
When photographing the Taj, a wide angle is definitely a good
choice, but also close up stuff of the beautiful gold and jade
and different precious stones that are used in the Taj.
And also there's Egyptian vultures there, which is like,
(39:46):
whoa, I mean, you never see Egyptian vultures and they are
making a nest on top of the Taj Mahal.
Each time I go, I try to do something different.
So in 2024, I photographed womenlooking beautiful and feeling
beautiful. So women posing and doing
selfies and addressing their sirees from all around the
world, right. This year I thought, you know,
I've started a podcast. Why don't I interview some
people about their feelings towards the Taj and if they
(40:08):
would build something as magnificent for their other
halves for love. And it's quite interesting, the
responses, a lot of people from around the world that were, you
know, quite. Confident to chat to me about
their feelings on the Taj and they have a listen and enjoy.
So I'm at the Taj Mahal, which is one of the most beautiful
buildings on the planet, and youknow, it was made for love.
Anna Rug, what would you do for love?
(40:29):
Well, first thing is I learned to be vulnerable to begin with.
This is not very easy for me, but I'm glad I'm doing it now.
Would you build something like this for the person you love?
Not at all. I don't want 200,000 people
visiting it everyday. It has to be more private.
I'm with Jocelyn at the Taj Mahal.
Would you build something like this for the person you love?
Oh. I will love it.
I will be like really, really excited if someone do this kind
(40:54):
of gift to me or if I can do to someone.
Of course. It's so beautiful.
I'm with Ahmed and he is our wonderful Taj Mahal guide that
we've been using for a very longtime now.
Ahmed, would you build somethinglike this for the love of your
life? If I could afford that,
definitely I would love to make something for my love.
(41:15):
What about if someone built thisfor you?
How would you feel? I feel very like surprised if
someone will for me because it'snot possible nowadays to make
someone. Ralph, would you build something
like this for the person you love?
Yes, yes. Do you think it's beautiful?
Yes, yes, yes. So beautiful.
I've got Ricardo and Pedro from Venezuela here at the Taj Mahal.
Guys, would you build something like this for the person that
(41:37):
you love? No, no, no, no.
Like, you know, I'm a honest person to be honest.
For me to build a monument like this, a space like this, she
gives to she needs to give me like, you know, the whole world,
which is, yeah, which is difficult, but yeah, like, you
(42:00):
know, I believe in the in the law.
OK, OK. What about you, Patrick?
Well, for me, if I had the possibility, money and resource,
maybe, yeah, I would do it. And especially in this case is
that he loved his wife because she gave him a lot of kids so.
14 children. 14 yeah, that's a lot.
So yeah, maybe. But you know, the question is,
(42:22):
is she willing to build also? For me, that's the that's the
question. OK, Ricardo needs to find a very
wealthy woman, I think. Thanks, guys.
Have a great day. Amir Raksha, would you build
something like this with the person you love?
I mean, if I had $52 billion in my bank account, yes.
What about someone built this for you?
How would that make you feel? I was fishing.
(42:43):
So lovely to meet you. Have a great day.
Yeah, you do. So, I mean, and many.
And you're looking beautiful today at the Taj Mahal.
How would you feel if the personyou love built this for you?
Ohh. Oh, that will mean the world to
me. That will mean the world that.
I will. I don't know, it's just.
I cannot even imagine that someone built that for the love
of his life. It's just so much love.
I don't know if this love just exists right now.
(43:04):
Yeah, I don't think it exists anymore, but let's hope it does
in the future. I'm with Aryan and Cushy.
I'm assuming you guys are together.
You're a couple. Would you build the Taj Mahal or
something similar for your lovely girlfriend here?
Definitely being an Indian and this is a symbol of love.
If given a chance, blessed with the money and and everything,
definitely I would build a beautiful, more beautiful than
(43:25):
this. And how would you feel if he was
able to build this for? You I feel very happy, like
seriously if my boyfriend wants to makes a Taj Mahal for me,
I'll feel so happy, like very loved.
Diego, would you build this magnificent building for the
love of your life? She has to give me 14 children.
(43:46):
And how would you feel if Diego built this for you?
No, my God. Would I still be alive though?
Yes, but you maybe not have 14 children.
I think I'd be jealous so everyone could visit.
And it's my promoter. OK, sidetracked for a second at
the Taj Mahal in interviewing some really beautiful people.
But I just saw an Egyptian vulture which is one of the most
endangered. Vultures on the planet and.
(44:08):
It's sitting on top of the Taj Mahal.
How bloody exciting. I've been looking at it right
now. It's phenomenal.
OK. Caroline, what did you think of
Taj? The Taj is magnificent and and I
love the the white marble, I love the carnelian and the
malachite and the Jasper and allthe precious stones and semi
precious stones used in the in the carvings.
(44:28):
It's absolutely, it's magnificent and symmetrical.
It's an absolute work of art. How would it make you feel?
It's the love of your life builtthat for you.
It would squeak me off my feet and I think it's it's a gesture
of it would love language, it's gifts, it's service, it's time,
it's just it's everything. So how would I feel?
I'd say yes. Where are we going to find these
(44:50):
men? Listen, I've been looking since
I was 20 and yeah, it's not happening.
I really hope you've enjoyed listening to our India
adventures in 2025. It's a place.
That you must put on your list. A lot of people are nervous
about visiting India. Please don't be.
It's spectacular. Indians are so friendly and
accommodating. The wildlife is unreal, the
habitats, the food. It is such an exceptional
(45:13):
experience that everyone must experience for themselves.
Please get in touch if you'd like to travel with me next year
in 2026, I'm going to be runningthe exact same trip and hosting
it myself. Still got a couple of spots
left. Don't be sure you'll not.
Regret it it. Is such an experience it's going
to open your eyes and open your heart and you're going to come
away with some spectacular photographs and stories so get
(45:36):
in touch info@bobbyjosafaris.com.
You can also download the India brochure under our 2026 safaris
on the website bobbyjosafaris.com.
Next fortnight on the podcast, I'm going to be having a special
guest from India joining me for a really interesting chat.
Her name is Ratna Singh and she's from Khanna National Park.
And she, he is one of the leading female guides and
(45:59):
teachers, educator of other guides.
So she's trained close to 2000 guides in India.
So stay tuned for her story. She's an exceptional woman, and
you're gonna love hearing it. If you enjoyed this episode, be
sure to hit the follow button soyou never miss an adventure.
You can keep up with Bobby Jo's wildlife photography and safari
journeys on Instagram and Facebook at Bobby Jo Safaris.
(46:21):
And if you'd love to join one ofher photography tours or
workshops, you can find all the details tales at
bobbyjoesafaris.com.
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