Kaziranga - Elephant Safari

Hunt for the one horned rhino

The morning of Feb 12 2018, we were asked by Minto - our handy man for the 2 days at Kaziranga, to meet him at the entrance to the park at 5 am. The open Jungle land of Kaziranga lies in the flood plains of Brahmaputra river. Lying between the latitudes of 26°30' N and 26°45' N, and longitudes 93°08' E to 93°36' E within two districts of Assam, Golaghat and Nagaon, is sprawled over an area of 378 square km.

It was a cold, misty winter morning when we looked out of our hotel window.  We woke up and reached at the appointed time for our morning safari at Kaziranga jungle.  We were in the Eastern part of India. As we reached the outskirts to the elephant safari.it seemed that  sun would be up soon. The morning fog was heavier in the open jungle. A vast blanket of gray, covered the forest. It swallowed the river flowing through the jungle. The tree leaves were smeared gray by the silvery fog. We could hear few birds chirping to leave their nests in the morning hours. Our eyes wandered to the dull colors of dawn on the horizon. The moisture and dampness of fog engulfed us. Our cheeks and nose felt cold, with our hands tucked in the pockets of our clothes we walked  with our guide.  

The elephants were waiting by the open area to take the safari enthusiasts to our morning ride.  We sat 4 each atop elephants guided by a mahout. There were 32 elephants in all taking 128 people around the Western part of Kaziranga sanctuary. We swayed to and fro and clutched the cold rails fixed on the seat to keep us from falling. The elephants followed different trails and soon the 30 elephants disappeared from view and we were just 8 folks on 2 elephants looking to spot some wildlife.

We were soon rewarded with a one horned rhino who gave us a quizzical look before turning around nonchalantly walking away. He was in plain view - clearly this was his territory. He was familiar with  the elephants. The clump of bushes serving as morning breakfast or a pre-breakfast snack could not possibly camouflage this grand animal from prehistoric times. The tail was constantly swishing, ears pricked up and alert and the hide looked capable of tearing asunder an army tank. As our mahout gingerly stopped the elephant in its tracks for us to get a clear view, our first sighting lit up our hearts. Under the broad expanse of the forest, out in wild, slowly dawning sky with clouds of mist and a chill air clawing at us, the experience was unforgettable.

Soon we could spot a few more - all mostly on their own and not in groups. They were brownish grey in colour. The hide of their skin had folds giving an armour plated appearance. Their skin had wart like bumps in patches. The black horn stood out like a mythical unicorn conjuring up images from an antediluvian age out of sheer fantastical imagination. The legs were short and crooked, like a broken tree stumps. This  huge creature grazed mainly on grass, shrubs and small bushes. The grass around this part of the jungle was sparse. We could see shallow pools of water fringed with reeds here and there. Possibly the marks left by the animals as they walked in their land. The greenery was broken by sudden spurts of colorful, wild flowers. Our elephants trudging with the load, continued to walk with heavy footsteps, uprooting plants with their trunks.  They brushed off the soil by banging the plants against the front legs before thrusting them in their mouth and slowly chewing the food.




Gasping for breath from the cold air and at the first sighting at less than 50m, we lurched onward, watching dawn break over the hills, clearing the mist as the fawns, swamp deer, wild hogs and other small animals too welcomed a new day.

It was an exhilarating experience culminating in a selfie with a smart forest officer and generously feeding the elephants from a commercially astute banana seller who appeared magically from nowhere.

As the sun rose and the water glimmered in a golden hue, we used the beautiful surroundings to click memorable pictures of our first safari in Kaziranga. This set the tone for the day and we looked forward to the jeep safari later on. But that is another blog...