Rudyard Kipling once described this land as a primeval jungle and Jim Corbett loved to travel the length and breadth of this land without fear. This is Corbett National Park (CNP), a splendid place that is home to a large wildlife reserve. This park has the honor of being the first national park in the country. It was declared as Hailey National Park in 1936 and later renamed in honor of legendary hunter-turned-animal lover Jim Corbett. It is situated in the foothills of the western Himalayas in the Nainital and Pauri Garhwal districts in the new state of Uttaranchal and this wildlife paradise is reserved for the tough and adventure-loving people.

We arrived in Rampur, about 7-8 hours from the national capital, Delhi, in the afternoon full of expectations. Permits to visit and stay at the CNP are issued here. We have our reservations for the Dhikala rest house, which is centrally located and actually houses the forest department. Close to the entry point, we take our lunch and enter the CNP through the Amdanda gate. Our rest home in Dhikala was approximately 30 km from the gate along a narrow metalized road. The landscape of the park was fascinating and this place exuded the charm of the ancient primitive era. We saw some vehicles parked on Kucha road near the main road. I jumped from the excitement of seeing something wild and saw a group of elephants comfortably chewing grass equal in size to their height. This was my first encounter with the Indian giants. They seemed indifferent to our presence. This apparent callousness of elephants towards homo sapiens does not bode well for these giants, as this made the poachers’ job much easier. According to one estimate, their population is 300 in the park area.

We went ahead and saw a sign about Indian gharial and saw some gharials sunbathing on the banks of the Ramganga river. Ramganga and its streams divide the land into numerous ridges and ravines. This landscape is the perfect habitat for the growth and survival of the tiger, leopard, bear and others. We were looking for the big “tiger” cat. About 90 (1984 estimate) big cats inhabit this area and they are very secretive creatures. Only lucky people get a glimpse of this magnificent creature.

The next morning, we were ready to see the virtual beauty and rawness of this mysterious land that covers an area of ​​1319sq. kms. The area of ​​the park is increased by the inclusion of the Sonanadi wildlife sanctuary. Our guide ‘Arshad’, a bearded veteran of this jungle, assured us of the tiger sighting. It is mandatory to take a guide with you and it is strictly forbidden to walk in the park. We decided to go to the rest houses of Khinnanauli and Sarpduli. We passed a herd of chital spotted deer running in front of our jeep. I saw a lone barking deer, a jackal, otters running around looking for fish in the waters of Ramganga. Since it was early morning and a light drizzle had just fallen, there was freshness, fragrance and coolness in the air and this was the time of hectic activity. Our guide asked to stop the jeep because there was a “call”. It is a warning signal given by animals such as the langur sitting in the trees about a roaming tiger so that others can run to safety from it. We waited in anticipation for half an hour, but nothing happened. Interestingly, this park has a healthy population of leopards. Both tigers and leopards prowl at night and the leopard manages to survive. There are documented cases of tigers killing and eating a mature leopard. On a muddy trail we spotted recent tiger markings and scanned the entire area for its presence. Chance and luck play a role in the case of tiger sightings in the wild as tigers here avoid humans unlike Ranthambore where tigers show indifference towards humans.

CNP has an immense variety of wildlife. Around 50 species of mammals namely tiger, leopards, leopard cats, jungle cat, fishing cat, jackal, Indian wild dog: dhole, porcupine, civet, otter, mongoose, barking deer, ghoral, etc. , 580 species of birds, namely king vultures, eagles, kingfishers, etc. And 25 species of reptiles, including gavial crocodiles, crocodiles, cobras, krait, etc., inhabit the park. It supports a very significant ecosystem and is therefore ecologically, socially and environmentally very important.

Near Sarpduli, we encountered a herd of female elephants, a lone apparently pregnant jackal, and a wide variety of bush-dwelling birds. I have not seen such a wide variety of small birds in a single spot and it has surpassed even the bird paradise ‘Bhartpur’ in Rajasthan, in the number of bird species. Very few people are aware of this fact and all the focus is always on the big creatures like the tiger and others. Over the next two days we scanned every part of the park to catch a glimpse of the tiger and although we saw a variety of mammals, reptiles and birds, including the rare king vulture, the big cats remained elusive.

It is a privilege to visit this primeval jungle and savor its natural beauty. This park is closed from June 15 to November 15 for the general public. There are a large number of rest houses available in the area namely Dhikala, Khinnaauli, Sarpduli etc.

Title:-Corbett National Park-Last Wildlife Refuge.