Introduction
I’ve always had a guarded approach to India as a destination for a trip with my friends. To suggest that much of this personal opinion has been shaped by their own previous experiences would probably be an obvious one. Fred in particular, has such a confusing view of the sub-continent that, taken at face value, there should be no book here in need of an introduction.
Putting it frankly, Fred has made no secret, every time he returns from India, of telling anyone who will listen just how much he detests the place. I’m not really sure that I’ve ever been able to put a finger on the true nature of his dislike. Perhaps it is a mixture of a distrust of the bureaucracy, interactions with a few obnoxious people or traffic-terror. Who really knows.
Despite the dislikes, Fred has somehow managed to engineer several return trips, each producing superb wildlife sightings and long lists of exotic birds. Other people continue to rave about their experiences and showcase magnificent photographs of birds, wildlife and stunning scenery.
I’m not ashamed to confess that I’ve never had a particularly strong desire to visit myself. My reluctance is most likely based on my well-known dislike of crowds and a general feeling that it is just not a place for me. Still, the call of further cat species (and much more) has always been pulling gently. Part of me had been holding out for the possibility of a trip to the Russian far east in search of Amur tigers, throwing in Hokkaido to look for Stellar’s Sea Eagles as well. Now, with Russia set to be viewed as a pariah for the foreseeable future, that seems ever more unlikely.
So, in the early summer of 2024, Fred shared a link to a new trip report from some friends of his from TripAdvisor. He’s a regular contributor and authority on all things east-African and keeps in the loop regarding many people’s plans.
Of course, Chris and myself have a good chance to take a look at these extensive reports and, frankly, I’m bowled away by the variety of wildlife captured and the stunning shots of the tigers in Jim Corbett National Park. Apparently, Fred is quite impressed as well, becoming very quickly keen on making a more-or-less identical trip if we want to do so.
As always seems to be the case with these things, plans for trips grow and develop over a period of time. This one is no exception. Our two-week duplicate safari extends by a couple of days and then Fred becomes determined to take Chris and myself to the far north where he and Elizabeth apparently found so much to see. So, a couple of extra nights in Delhi are arranged, along with internal flights to Leh in the remote northern state of Ladakh, beyond the Himalayas.
This raises the tantalising possibility of us being able to see two more cat species – both of which I thought I might never even get a chance to look for – snow leopard and Pallas’s cat. Neither are an easy proposition, but we have a history of luck to help us along, as well as competent guides and a week to try our luck out in the high mountains. Even without them, there are dozens of mammals to be seen and hundreds of birds that I’ve probably never seen before.
First, however, we need to actually get there. That means pre-arranging a visa with the Indian authorities and booking flights. For a number of years, getting a Visa with an Isle of Man passport has been too much trouble, involving a visit to the Indian High Commission on the mainland. This wasn’t always the case – once you could apply for an e-visa online with a Manx passport without difficulty – but the Indian authorities arbitrarily changed this. Now, however, they have, again arbitrarily, changed it back and we’re good to go.
The flight booking isn’t without its inevitable complications involving cancelled flights, changed flight times and re-organised bookings, but eventually, we are ready to risk a same-day departure from London Heathrow. Last time the weather was very much against us, but this time, Monday, February 24th dawns breezy but clear and we are on our way.
A Reasonable Flight
I’ve never flown with British Airways and my opinion now is that they are fine – not anything special, but not too bad. At least we had the extra comfort afforded by exit-row window seats in an Airbus A350. It’s easy to see why they are beginning to mount a real take-over of the airways. The airbus is so much quieter, roomier and generally better equipped than an equivalent Boeing. Probably a Boeing on the way back, though.
Sadly, landing in Delhi is a real introduction to the delights of Indian bureaucracy. The immigration procedure – even with our ready pre-printed e-visa – feels interminable. What’s the point of filling in a mountain of detail online, only to have to give them half of it on a landing card and then have them look blankly at a Manx passport. It says “British Islands – Isle of Man” on the front and that doesn’t match with anything on their computer system, requiring a trip to the supervisor before they will let either Fred or myself in.
It is a relatively short flight, but with a 5.5-hour time difference, I’m afraid that a touch of jet-lag is inevitable. By the time we find our pick-up and get to the waiting car, it is about nine in the morning local and I feel like I’ve been roused at two. Then you are plunged into almost an hour of Delhi traffic to only drive about two miles to the hotel. I honestly don’t know why they paint the lines on the road, because nobody takes a blind bit of notice of them. Why have three lanes when you can easily get five across with only the occasional scrape.
Luckily, the hotel actually has our rooms available right away and we are soon able to relax for the day and get our bearings. Somewhere along the line, however, Fred discovers that the hotel is one of many dry establishments across the country and we can’t even have a beer with our dinner. The room is large and fairly comfortable and at least offers a desk and proper chair so I can sit and work on the start of this text. Then the buffet is more than acceptable and starts early enough to allow us all to get some much-needed sleep before our adventuring starts in earnest.