Its been four years since we went on a
vacation.We didn't want to miss the opportunity when at my husband's office a family trip was planned to Masinagudi. Though we were initially
hesitant to take our 3 year old son to a hill station in this cold weather, we finally
made up our mind..After packing our luggage which mainly included my son's items like his winter clothing,toys,food items etc we set out on our
expedition!!!
Along with my husband's colleagues some of whom had come along with their family ,we boarded the Cauvery express at 9.30 pm on 20th November 2013..My son was so excited to travel in train and started asking 'N' number of doubts that flashed in his mind..There were two boys one elder to my son and one younger to him to give him company in this trip...We reached Mysore at 7.40 am where we were picked up by 3 vans that were arranged for us..After having breakfast at "Om Shanthi" restaurant we headed towards Masinagudi!!
Masinagudi is a stretch of bliss (forest in practical terms) between the Bandipur national park (Karnataka) and Mudhumalai National park (Tamilnadu)in India. With sunlight(during daytime) and moonlight (during nighttime) distilled through trees and silence punctuated with cries of the wild, Masinagudi offers hope and scope for weekenders looking for a stint in the wild and trekkers looking for tenacious terrain...
On the way near a checkpost, our vans were surrounded by a group of monkeys which climbed on our van, fought with each other and did all mischievous acts amusing the kids in our van.We reached our resort "Jungle Retreat" at around 12.30 pm.The resort was spread over 35 acres of land and had lots of trees and plants all around..The resort owners had five cats and five dogs which included a German Shepherd ..After greeting us we were briefed about the resort and the area around.We heard enthusiastically as they told about the frequent visitors like the deer,peacock,Malabar giant squirrel and many species of birds.. The real fun started when we heard,in the recent past their resort was visited by elephants,bear and occasionally by leopards..We were given instructions not to go walk alone between our rooms and the reception area between 6.30 PM till 6.30 AM as there are chances of us encountering these animals and hence their resort security guards will accompany us.We were strictly ordered not to roam about, outside the rooms once we get inside after being escorted by the security..We could all feel a slight shiver in our nerves when we heard all this which of course increased when they said there are many varieties of snakes around which included cobras too!!!!.Those who carried food items with them were asked to leave them in the reception area to which we all obediently obliged since the reason they gave was food items attract rats which in turn would attract snakes!!
We all then checked in into our respective rooms,had bath and went to the dining area for lunch at around 2.30 pm...After a short nap post lunch we had our coffee/ tea and set out for a drive to elephant camp at 5 pm. Five jeeps were arranged with each containing six persons..We first went to an elephant camp maintained by the forest department.There we saw how nutritious food was prepared for elephants in enormous quantity which included Ragi, herbs to name a few.We all watched in awe as the elephants were being fed..My son and other children were more excited when they saw the elephant chew a whole sugarcane..We then took photographs and continued with our drive on the jeep..We were taken into the jungle...The road was calm,there were no street lights..We were instructed not to make any noise in case we encountered any wild animals during our journey..It was 7.15 pm...Our jeep was moving on and on and on..My son was so obedient and cooperated well with us chatting with my husband's colleagues.We saw few deers, bisons, elephants while on the way..At one stage our jeep driver halted the jeep, switched off the jeep's head light and we waited..The other jeeps that were following us didn't turn up still.
There was pin drop silence...Suddenly we heard a cry "Amma Badam(Almond)"..To our surprise it was my son asking me for almonds..He started
singing this in a tone for nearly half an hour..My husband's friends started making
fun of him saying where in the mid of the forest shall we get badam for you!
(Actually he is fond of almonds.Though we brought it for pur trip,by mistake we left it in the resort itself). After sometime he settled down and we all reached our resort
around 8 pm. There we were shown a power point presentation of the animals and
birds that frequently visited the resorts..We could all feel a sense of shiver
going down our spine when they said in case when we are on the way to our room
and should we be bitten by snakes we were asked to observe the appearance of
the snake which bit us so as to be given the appropriate anti venom
injection...Unanimously we all thought, it was extremely dark outside,after the
snake has bitten we will be groaning with pain then how on earth can we observe
the snake Having said all this they also asked us not to worry since such
horrible incidents have not occurred in their resort earlier and we
were just being given a precautionary advice..We were also asked to switch on
the light outside our room so that wild animals will not come near our
rooms..
With so many thoughts in our minds we had our dinner and were escorted
to our rooms by the resort security..They had a torch in their hands while we
had one...We were allotted room no 5,the last one in that row..Sriram's friends
went to their respective rooms along with their families,we were the last one
to be escorted to the room..Before we went into our room, i just asked that
security whether everything was safe during the night time.The reply that he
gave made us freeze literally but still we tried to be as brave as
possible.This is what he said"Generally elephants used to come near this
room during night time.Recently in the last two weeks we have also seen bears eating
the fruit from the tree outside your room..Don't keep the doors open since
there are chances of snakes getting inside.You can hear animals shout and
scream at midnight in the forest..Don't be scared.Just switch on this light
outside your room,so that animals don't come outside your rooms".Having
said this he lighted his torch in the open area outside our room and told
us"Can you see those two bright eyes,it could be of a leopard..But no
worries it will not come here since your lights are switched
on".So saying and wishing us good night he left..We really wished it
should be a good night for us having heard all this!!!!
Though we were frightened,we
were really damn tired that all the three of us dozed off as soon as we went to
bed..At midnight i suddenly woke up,the time was 12.45 am..I heard continuous
noise"tap tap"...It was not the sound of animals..was just wondering
what it could be.The sound was getting louder,i could feel a sense of fear
within me...Gaining courage i turned to my left side to continue sleeping where
to my surprise i saw three lizards on the top corner of the wall.It seemed like
they were playing..On observing them closely,realized that the sound came from
them..Laughing within myself i went to sleep..After sometime i heard a sound as
if many frogs were croaking .But i couldn't hear any sound of wild
animals roaring..May be i was not lucky enough to hear that sound!!!
The next day morning after breakfast at 10 am we
all chilled out playing outdoor games..While adults were playing
crickets,volley ball and badminton children played football..We all then took a
walk near the swimming pool .Their swimming pool is structured like a watering
hole with a pebbled sloping beach like entrance to provide easy access and exit
both for human use and just in case the odd thirsty or disoriented animal falls
in.Then we visited the tree houses..Astonished by the way they were being
constructed we all took photographs wondering how safe it will be for those who
stay in the tree house!!!We all were then taken for "Interpretation
walk". We were taken around the resort and shown the various species of
trees/plants,endangered species of birds(which were in various colors like
blue,yellow,orange to name a few),the places where elephants and bears frequent
and so on..The walk lasted for a hour..Tired as we were all, we went to have
lunch at 1.30 pm followed by short nap.
At around 5.30 pm we all
assembled for tea/coffee and were discussing about the next day's programme..We
all then set out for the night safari.Like the previous day,we set out in jeeps
each taking six people and were given the same instructions..This time i didn't
want to take any risk with my son, so took almonds with us..On the way we saw
many elephants,bison,few peacocks,a rabbit with its little one and deers of
course...We were taken into the forest and waited for sometime switching off
the the jeep headlights..Though our minds wished to see wild animals yet our
hearts feared not to see them..Keeping fingers crossed we waited there!!!But
unfortunately (or fortunately) no animal turned up...Perhaps since all the five
jeeps followed each other due to the sound of the wheels they didn't come out
from the bushes..We were taken back to our resorts..The journey through the
forest was really an unforgettable experience!!!
Post dinner we were escorted to our
rooms..That night too i heard "tok tok"sound..Me and my husband bravely
peeped through the window each time we heard any noise..But no animal was
visible..
The next day we curiously inquired whether any animal was
caught in the camera trap..But unfortunately since a leopard was found to have
feasted on a deer in a nearby resort,they had given away the camera to them to
be used for the next two days!!! After breakfast ,we packed our luggage and
headed off to Mysore a 12.30 pm..We had our lunch at 2.30 pm and at around 4.15
pm we reached Mysore palace...While some of them preferred to take photographs
outside the palace rest of us went inside...My son's eyes were filled with
wonder when he saw the huge swords,the royal chair,their costumes and so
on..Since i frequently play him the story of "Tenali Raman", he could easily
relate the two..Besides he couldn't stop running here and there after seeing
such a huge area..We also went to the palace museum..Though I had gone there
twice or thrice earlier when i was young this time when i went i couldn't stop
admiring the rich and cultural heritage of India...At the same time felt sad
that due to western influence on our younger generation because of which they have
started forgetting about our culture! We then
took my son for a camel ride which was really a different experience not
only for him but also for us...After taking a group photograph by a
professional photographer followed by little shopping, we had our dinner at
"Om Shanti" restaurant and boarded the 'Cauvery Express' train at
8.30 pm..
Thus ended our three days trip filled with thrill and excitement.We reached Chennai safely on 24th November 2013 at 7.40 am!!!!