A beautiful tigress and her cubs

It was an eventful tiger safari with my guests Dianne and Christopher from Australia. Avid birders they wished to see the tiger as well. 

The first safari on X'Mas in the Kanha Zone at the evening was uneventful. I could see disappointment as it usually comes about. The next day was Wednesday and there were no safaris hence we went birding. The guests were very happy with the outcome in the buffer Zone of Kanha National Park. 

Thursday fetched some luck as we saw a tigress as she was being flushed out by the trained elephants. Birding at Kanha is exciting and we could come across many interesting species. The last safari on the 28th December was  most exciting, we were cruising along in the bitter cold that morning without much to see. Eventually at one of the water bodies we met a jeep who had seen a tiger cub before we arrived. 

We waited for the tigress and cubs to surface but without luck. We decided to drive ahead to the spot were we had seen the tigress and her cubs. There were ten jeeps waiting there to the family since rampant calls were being heard.     

I told my guests that we will see the tiger and asked the driver to drive back to the water body. This is were the strayed cub was and the mother would certainly fetch him back. As luck would have it we came across the tigress running at full speed in our direction. Fear took over, I knew if the female took us for the cause of disturbance then she would surely charge. Luckily with one graceful leap she dashed into the bush. She was gone perhaps with the strayed cub following her in the dense canopy.   

We heaved a sigh of relief and turned back stunned by the amazing spectacle. The cubs and the female were not seen again but gave me an excuse to boast my experience. At the hotel in Kanha the guests said. "You can keep boasting. You are excused". So I went on to narrate more such events in my jungle adventures. 

Tracking tigers is a tough job and things do not work out well all the time. Tiger chase is like looking for a needle in a hay stack. Sometimes the events arise favorable and they are lifetime moments. This is what my experience has been at Kanha and other National Parks in India.