Tigers!
In 2011 on our first scouting tours our participants had 25 tigers on the first
tour, and 54 tigers on the second. We are visiting THE BEST tiger locations.
We also had Indian Wild Dogs, Sloth Bears, Leopards, all of India's big game.
The Ultimate Tiger Safari
covering three of India's best natural history
and tiger national parks.
Our itinerary is almost entirely devoted to in-field photography of India's wildlife,
at three of the Best Parks for Tigers.
Park One -
with one of the largest concentrations of tigers in India, where, on one trip, we had 31 tigers in 5 days!
Park Two-
one of the big 'four' for viewing tigers (Park One is in that four, too), with a wide diversity of herbivores as well. In 2011 this was everyone's favorite park!
Park Three -
with the highest density of herbivores of any Indian park, and with sloth bears, dhole (Asiatic wild dog), leopards, and tigers. In 2011 we had all of the above species.
Dates - Trip One
February 28 - March 16, 2012
Extension to Park Four: March 16-20, 2012
Trip Two
March 20 - April 6, 2012
Nepal Extension for People and Rhinos
April 6 - 15, 2012
*Cancelled*
Limited to Ten Participants
Price: $8599
(add $1850 for extension)
Based on a tour of ten participants.
A sliding scale must be levied for a tour
of four or six participants (see end of brochure for details).
What are the three Parks? Details will be provided to registered participants, with the option of cancelling at that point if you wish. Frankly, this trip is too great to risk providing information to those simply wishing to copy our itinerary -- and that happens too often. Trust us, the tiger possibilities are incredible.
No one is offering a more complete, tiger and wildlife intensive photo safari.
Optional Extension to Park Four!
Scroll to the end of the brochure
Because of our self-imposed limitation of two photographers per jeep we will be accepting participants on a first come/first serve basis, and the last participant, if the fifth, or seventh, or ninth participant, will not be guaranteed a spot until the sixth or eighth or tenth participant registers. You will be first on the list as another participant registers, but we cannot have a one or a three person jeep.
All photos in this brochure were taken on our 2011 photo tours. To have an even better idea
of the wealth of photo subjects, and opportunities, please check out the portfolios from our
participants as well!
The following Portfolios will be posted soon, revealing the beauty and wildlife diversity of this trip:
Pat Collin's Portfolio
Eric Grossman's Portfolio
John Mullin's Portfolio
Bill Sailer's Portfolio
Tom Wester's Portfolio
Joe and Mary Ann McDonald's Bird Portfolio
and our Wildlife Portfolio
Some History ...
This is the ultimate tiger trip, visiting three of the best tiger parks without wasting time in cities, as each park is within driving distance of the next. After a tremendous amount of research, we've designed an itinerary that maximizes our chances of photographing tigers, as well as much of India's other exciting wildlife.
For years, friends have been urging Mary and I to do a trip to India and in 2011 we decided, after a 20 year lapse, to return. We visited the three parks featured in this itinerary, and, after only a few days of being on safari, we knew we'd be returning and including India in our permanent schedule. Our outfitter was wonderful, the camps were great, and the wildlife was superb. We were hooked.
These tigers, and the second tiger shown in the brochure (see top)
are our photos from our first trip. Just had to add some of our tiger shots, too!
What Parks are we visiting?
I'm sorry to be so mysterious about this but India's parks are crowded. Some parks have a per day limit to the number of vehicles, requiring booking spots long in advance.
We've put a tremendous amount of time and effort into researching our trip, deciding upon which parks to visit, how long, and what operators and guides to use, and we feel that knowledge and expertise should solely benefit those doing our trips, and not someone who copies our information off of the internet and leads a trip based upon our information. That is not fair to photographers seeking the best, and it is not fair to us for enduring the theft. According, we are just referring to these parks as Park One, Two, and Three. Registered participants will receive full details on all of the parks, but quite frankly, those locations are not essential for making your decision. The images will speak for themselves, as will the tiger numbers.
Trust me, these are the three best parks for tiger photography! Each park is slightly different in terms of habitat and the general composition of the wildlife, and in that way our tour will provide a tremendous portfolio of wildlife opportunities. To obtain a very, very accurate account of our India Tiger Photo Safaris, please read either our Trip One Report Summary, Trip Two Report Summary, or the day-by-day journal for either Trip One or Trip Two. In those very lengthy reports, all of the triumphs, frustrations, and experiences are included -- warts and all!
To get the absolute most out of these safaris, or any of our
offerings, consider taking one of our Complete Digital Nature
Photo Courses, in Pennsylvania next summer!
Special Features of Our India Tiger Photo Safari
1. The best three National Parks for Tiger Photography
2.
Two photographers per vehicle.
3. We rotate people per vehicle to insure group cohesiveness (see below)
4. Four 'Tiger Shows' included, subject to availability
5. All normal tips and gratuities
6. Internal flights from Delhi (1) and back (1)
7. CD or DVD of the group's images (subject to participation)
8. Customized book of the best images (subject to participation)
See below for more details.
9. Customized Pre-Trips available to the Taj Mahal or any other destination
(booked directly through our Indian Outfitter and not included in
the Tour Price).
Langur monkeys, a large, tame, and common primate around many
of the park entrances and throughout the forests.
I
n 2012, the park with the greatest tiger possibilities should also have several female tigers with young cubs! In 2011 these females had cubs ranging in age from 18 to 24 months, and within the next few months these young tigers will be out on their own. We fully expect that at least some of these tigresses will have very young cubs by the time of our 2012 tours, offering fantastic photo opportunities! Another park, with the second greatest number of tiger sightings, should also have new cubs. And the third park will have cubs that are nearly full grown, and semi-independent, providing the possibility of more tiger sightings.
Our Tour Operator has quite likely the most distinquished pedigree of any Indian operator, with the owner's grandfather one of the originators of Project Tiger, India's celebrated campaign to save the tiger from extinction. Our operator and his family has been in the business of wildlife tourism for decades, and the service and attention to fine detail is unmatched.
This trip is devoted to photographing India's wildlife, with a special emphasis upon photographing the Bengal tiger, the most threatened of the big cats. Except for our first full day in Delhi, where we'll have the option of doing some city touring or simply resting and getting over jet-lag, all of our time will be spent in the National Parks. We will not be spending time in cities doing tours, and our only non-Delhi city time will be as we drive from the airport to our first destination and then as we commute from park to park.
In contrast to many tours, we will be flying from Delhi to the nearest city to our first park, and flying back to Delhi at the end of the trip. Many tours cut costs, and waste time, by using the train system -- it is not worth it.
We will game-drive through the parks in jeeps with only TWO PHOTOGRAPHERS per vehicle. There will be both a guide and a driver in each vehicle, but you won't be competing with several people as we do our shooting. We also rotate people through the vehicles so that photographers have an equal opportunity to shoot with either Mary or Joe, and to experience the different guides and drivers. Lodge naturalists drive some of the vehicles, and to be fair to everyone, everyone is rotated so that all get a chance to benefit. This rotation also insures group cohesiveness, eliminating a clique or the rare chance that someone is 'stuck' with another person that they would prefer not to be with for every game drive. Spouses, or close friends, if they desire can request, upon registration, to be together for the entire safari and, if so, forgo the opportunity to shoot with Mary or Joe. This does not imply that a couple paid for the exclusive use of a vehicle, and if one sits out a game drive, and another vehicle also would end up as a single photographer, we will combine the participants into one. The reason -- the parks can be crowded, and we do not want to contribute to a potentially compromised photo situation by an unnecessary number of jeeps.
We may also have the opportunity to do some elephant back tiger viewing. These 'Sher Darshan' or tiger shows are offered at all three parks, but the tiger shows are not guaranteed. They are subject to availability, based upon whether or not a tiger was located that would be conducive to a tiger show; the number of people in the park, if a film crew has taken over all of the elephants, or if the elephants are being used for other purposes. In some parks, some weeks, no tiger shows occur, while in another park or at another time, the tiger shows may occur daily. Four tiger shows are included, with two prepaid at one park and two at another, in the cost of the tour. There are no refunds for the tiger shows if they do not occur. In the unlikely event that more than two shows are offered in a park, you will have the option of paying the fee and doing more than two.
We may also have the opportunity to book your own elephant for the entire morning for a one or two person photo experience with tigers up close. Elephants can get you closer than otherwise possible, unless a tiger comes to you (which happens, often!), but this option is expensive. Details will be provided to our registered participants, along with our complete assessment of the value and possibilities this provides.
While these elephant photo opportunities may arise, our best shooting will be from the vehicles where we'll film tigers at close to ground-level from our jeeps. These jeeps are open, so you'll be photographing either from a seated, kneeling, or standing position, depending upon how you are supporting your camera..
OUR SHOOTING PHILOSOPHY
We'll be game-driving in the best hours for seeing predators, starting our game drives before dawn and in the late afternoon prior to sunset. And, although the focus and goal of this safari is to photograph tigers, we will photograph every good wildlife and nature subject we find.
Let me repeat that -- we'll photograph everything. It is often very counter-productive to be obsessed with one subject and ignoring others while you seek one goal. While our tours have had tremendous success with tigers, these parks are not zoos, and no wildlife sighting is guaranteed. If you're not interested in anything but tigers, if you're not willing to photograph other species, if you're not prepared to 'smell the roses' and take things as they come, not rushing things and letting nature play out as it may, then do not come with us.
Left: Indian Wild Dogs, or Dhole, playing
Our shooting philosophy has been extremely successful, and even when we haven't shot our target species (which has only happened once, on an African wild dog trip) we nonetheless had a great trip.
I'm extremely confident that we'll get tigers -- we'll be there at the best time, at the best parks, but we'll be photographing wild animals that may not cooperate for us, or for you. It is possible that the jeep that you are in will be at the wrong place at the wrong time and you'll miss the best encounter, or that there will be a traffic jam of vehicles on a cat, and our shooting will be compromised. That reality can occur and you must be aware that this could happen. Indeed, it happened to me at one park on my second trip in 2011, where it seemed I was always at the wrong spot. I photographed tigers, but not like I wanted to. However, on the last game drive of that park I got my 'dream shot,' with a big male tiger walking directly to my camera as I shot from near tiger-level. I hadn't despaired, and luck finally, and really, came my way!
The Parks
We'll be visiting what I am convinced are the three best parks for tiger opportunities, and while that point could be argued, other parks in India are quite removed from one another. Our three parks are centrally located, and close enough together to be in reach for an afternoon drive, so we won't be wasting valuable field time taking a train, or flying, or driving for days to reach our next destination. You will get shooting every single day!
Park One
This may be the premiere tiger park, and may offer the best opportunities for seeing and photographing tigers. Most, if not all, of our photography will be from jeeps, although India's erratic Park's Department sometimes offers elephant ride/tiger viewing Tiger Shows. In 2011 we did some Tiger Shows here, as well as booking a full morning elephant safari.
Again, in 2012 we may also have the option of booking elephants for an entire morning, but this will be subject to availability. There are pros and cons to shooting from elephants. On the positive side, elephants can take us to locations where our jeeps cannot, and one can get very close with elephants. On the negative side, the shooting can be nearly straight down if both the elephant and the tiger is on the same plane, but it can also be at virtual eye-level if a tiger is on a hill.
Unfortunately, the access to elephants is not guaranteed, so we could not build in a trip price that included all-day elephant rides. Further, we might find that we enjoy shooting from the near ground-level perspective of our jeeps, rather than 10 feet above the ground on an elephant's back. However, if we have the option of booking one or more elephants for a morning, anyone wishing to take advantage of this opportunity will be paying extra. The price on this will depend upon the park, and the number of photographers per elephant back. We suggest everyone bringing along extra money in case they wish to do one or more additional elephant rides. More details on this will be forwarded to registered participants.
The park is a mixture of bamboo, grassland, and a complex of deciduous forests. There are at least 150 species of birds in the park, along with several great mammals. This may be the best of all India parks for tigers, but there are also sloth bears, langur monkeys, wild boar, and three species of deer - chital, sambar, and barking deer.
We will be providing our tour participants with a thorough outline of the best shooting opportunities, and what subjects to concentrate on, in this outstanding park.
Park Two
Park Two is a more popular and more highly visited park, and offers a variety of species including tigers and leopards, cheetal, Indian bison or gaur, barking deer, sambhar deer, and the endangered Barasingha deer. The habitat is similar in many ways to Park One, with a mixture of grassy plains and sal forests.
Tiger Shows, the 'Sher Darshan,'may be offered here, but whether or not elephant rides will be offered or available (sometimes film crews take all the elephants) won't be known until we get there.
Park Three
Although we did not see many tigers here (on Trip One we had only one, but a tigress with five cubs on Trip Two), Park Three would have been everyone's (in 2011) favorite park had we had more luck. The shooting potential was the best, with many waterholes and open forests. It has a large diversity of wildlife, including leopard, tiger, jungle cat, dhole (wild dog), sloth bear, wild boar, mongoose, gaur (a huge bovine that may be the ancestor to all cattle), and the highest density of herbivores, including cheetal (spotted deer), and sambar.
There are at least 250 species of birds found in the diverse habitats, which is composed of grasslands, open canopy mixed forests, riverine forest systems, and rolling hills.
Our Itinerary
Day 1, - Depart US or departure city
Day 2, - Arrive in Delhi
Welcome dinner and meeting.
Overnight - The Claridges Hotel.
Visit http://www.claridges-hotels.com/delhi/ to check out
our beautiful hotel in Delhi.
Day 3, Delhi
Recover from jet-lag or tour the city or engage in other personal activities. In the afternoon we'll visit some markets, including a silver market where the photographic opportunities are stellar. Nearby, there is also a 'gray market' camera market where anything can be purchased - sans boxed -- at the best prices anywhere. If you're short on gear ....
Overnight - The Claridges Hotel
Day 4, March 3- Delhi - Park One
We'll leave the hotel after an early breakfast for our flight to our destination city, where we will meet our fleet of SUVs that will transport us to our first Park.
Flight times are not determined at the time and we may arrive in the mid-afternoon or late evening.
Overnight - Our Lodge within minutes of Park One.
Day 5 to 9, - Park One
Game drives morning and evening for tigers and other wildlife. This is a great place for tigers, and we're likely to see any or all of our tigers in this park. However, there is a host of other species to photograph here, especially rhesus macaque monkeys, spotted deer, langur monkeys, wild hogs, and a variety of birds.
For anyone who wishes, if Tiger Show elephants are available it may be possible to book an elephant for the entire day. This is expensive and we did not include this as part of our tour, but it may be an option for someone who desires to spend more time on elephants, for whatever reason. Refer to the notes above, and further details on these elephant safaris will be forwarded to registered participants as information comes in.
Overnights - Our Lodge.
Our lodges in Park One and Park Two are owned by the tour
operator we'll be using. You're looking at a bedroom, eating area,
looking out at the grounds, and a porch outdoor relaxing and viewing area.
Day 10, - Park One to Park Two
We'll do the usual morning game drive before returning to the lodge for a brunch. Afterwards, we'll load up our fleet of SUVs and begin our 5 hour drive to our next destination, Park Two. We'll arrive in the early evening, hopefully in time to watch the Indian Giant Flying Squirrel swoop overhead!
Overnight - Our Lodge
Day 11 to 15, Park Two
We'll be doing morning and evening game drives through Park Two's varied habitats, and if the Tiger Shows are available we're likely to do at least one of these. Shooting from elephant back does give a photographer the opportunity to film tigers (if found) when they've come to rest for the day off track, but the shooting is generally at an angle, and sometimes a steep angle at that. Remember, an elephant tiger show is not guaranteed, but the opportunity to ride and elephant and photograph a tiger upclose is fun and can be very productive. But that depends upon exactly where a tiger happens to be!
Most of our participants felt that Park Two was their favorite park, and it was Mary and mine. The topography is diverse, as is the habitat. Here we'll have our first chance at photographing the largest cow-like animal in the world, the Indian Gaur or Indian Bison, an enormous, black animal with white stockings. Five other large herbivores are here, including the elk-like Sambar and the plentiful Spotted Deer. Indian Wild Dogs or Dholes, Sloth Bears, Leopards, Golden Jackals, as well as various mongooses, Langur Monkeys, and great birds are potential, if not very likely, subjects.
As it was in Park One, for anyone who wishes,it may be possible to book an elephant for the entire day or for the morning. These bookings cannot be done more than a few days in advance, for the reasons outlined above. In the past, we have done full-morning elephant rides at Park One, with mixed success. Refer to the notes above, and further details on these elephant safaris will be forwarded to registered participants as information comes in.
Overnights - Our Lodge
One of the lounges at Park One, and tea time overlooking the grounds.
Day 16, - Park Two to Park Three
We'll have our final morning game drive in Park Two before returning for a late brunch. After packing our fleet of SUVs we'll embark on our five hour drive to our final park. At this point, we are expecting that our outfitter's new, small, and private camp will be available.
This Park, Park Three, has the potential of being our favorite park. The topography is varied, there are numerous waterholes, and the forest is quite open, giving a tended, park-like quality to the forest, which provides wonderful visibility for animals deeper in the forest. In 2011, there were 15 different tiger cubs in this park of varying ages, and also the possibility of tiger shows.
Leopards, Gaur, Sambar, Spotted Deer, Langur and Macaque Monkeys, Golden Jackals, Wild Dogs, and Sloth Bears are all found here. In 2011 we only had one sighting of the numerous tigers found here, but that bit of bad luck provided us with the opportunity to round out our portfolio with all of the other Indian wildlife subjects. Birds are diverse, with various kingfishers, wading birds, and songbirds and raptors all accessible.
Overnight - Our Lodge, if available, or a luxury tented camp -
details to be determined.
Day 17 - 19, Park Three
We'll do morning and afternoon game drives, and may have another opportunity for an elephant tiger show safari. Park Three has a wide variety of wildlife, and although it probably has fewer tigers than our other two parks we'll be ready to fill in our portfolios with the other animals and birds found here.
Overnights - Our Lodge, if available, or a luxury tented camp -
details to be determined.
Day 20, - Park Three to Delhi
For those not going on with the extension, we'll have an early morning transfer to the airport to board a flight to Delhi, arriving in the late morning in Delhi where you will have a day room until 9PM that evening. You'll have a Farewell Dinner before transfering to Indira Gandhi International Airport for your flight home.
Day Room - Radisson Hotel
For those doing the extension, scroll down to the bottom of this brochure.
Day 21 - Delhi to Home
In the late hours of Day 19 we'll transfer to the airport and board flights for home.
The Tour Price is $ $8,599
add. $1850 for extension (see below)
Single Supplement - add. $2,495
Our Tour Cost Includes
Accommodations on double/twin sharing basis
Meals in Delhi - Breakfasts and Welcome Dinner on Day 2 and 3
Tips for the jeep drivers, mahots, and our English-speaking guides
All Meals and Accommodations while on Safari, Day 4 - 19
Service of English speaking resident naturalists in each park
Jeep safaris, with 2 per vehicle
Four Elephant safaris (tiger shows) subject to availablity
Farewell dinner at 'The Great Kebab Factory' in Delhi
Airfare for domestic flight to our destination city and back to Delhi
All transfers - from airport to hotel in Delhi and to airport
Our Tour Cost does not include
Insurance fees
International Airfare
Any pre-trip excursions, to Agra or elsewhere.
Expenditures of a personal nature, including drinks, laundary, phone calls,
alcoholic beverages, tips
Any sudden and unforeseen increase in price due to an increase in Park Fees, Fuel Costs, or Government Tax Policies beyound our control, acts of god, natural calamity, law and order situations, riots, or forced changes in itinerary due to situations or reasons beyond our control
A Final Important Note
While we make every effort to provide you with success, we are dealing with wild animals and your luck -- be it with the animals, with a driver or guide, with a assigned route your vehicle is arbitrarily given by the Park authorities on a given day, any of these things and more-- is out of our control. Further, we run our trips for the benefit of the group, not a lone individual, and all of our decisions and actions are based upon the group's well being and success, and not to catering to a single individual. This model has worked wonderfully for us for over 25 years of doing photo tours, but if you are accustomed to having your own way or calling your own shots then do the trip by yourself, or pick another tour.
As with any International trip, we strongly recommend you purchase travel trip insurance.
Optional Extention to National Park
Day 20 -
Park Three to Park Four
This extension applies to Trip One
At this point we are determining where we will be offering an extension, at the conclusion of the trip. As of early April, that will be to our Park Four, excellent for Dhole, or Indian Wild Dogs, and Sloth Bears, and the details are below.
IF You do our Extension
For those doing the extension we'll leave early for our drive to Park Four after having a breakfast and tearful farewell for anyone leaving us! We'll have a morning drive to reach our next destination, one of the newest of India's parks with some of the most diverse group of predators found anywhere.
This unique park probably sports the most spectacular habitat and landscapes of any park in the Project Tiger system, and as a new park it is almost unvisited. On the negative, tiger sightings are not common and the road system is not as well developed as in other parks, but on the positive side the wildlife sightings have been very good, and there are few tourists to contend with. Satpura has the promise of becoming one of the best locations for wildlife viewing, and there is the opportunity to go through the park in many ways.
Left: The rare four-horned antelope.
The park has an elevation of 320-1,352m with tall sandstone mountains, narrow gorges, ravines, water falls, streams and dense forests near the Mahadev hills in the Pachmarhi plateau. The area boasts two unique species of trees – the sal and the teak besides a wide variety of ferns, mango trees, butterflies and birds. Upon arrival at Park Four we will check into our lodge, a stylish environmentally friendly lodge that is engaged with the park management and the local community in a pioneering effort to create an
unprecedented jungle experience in one of the most exciting tiger habitats in the
world. This is an effort to create an exceptional wilderness experience for those
who truly revel in wild places far from the jeep borne hordes that have defaced so many other parks. Lunch and afternoon visit to the park by 4x4 Jeep with an
English-speaking Naturalist.
Whether or not we'll have the time or energy to avail ourselves of the options, we'll have the chance to canoe, kayak, hike, use elephants, jeep, or stay in blinds. In 2011 we only did jeep rides or boat trips for water birds, because the jeep rides were too productive -- for wild dogs and sloth bears and guars, for us to risk doing anything else.
Dinner and overnights at our Lodge.
Day 20 - 22
Park Four
We will have the options of Game drives / walking safarsi / elephant safaris / or bush walk at and around camp or village walk.
One of the greatest attractions are the wild dogs, perhaps the most common in this park, and the Sloth Bear, which is unique in often having their cubs riding upon their mother's back. After over two full weeks of 'tiger hunting' and photographing the major animal species, Park Four may offer a very refreshing change and an opportunity to film species not normally seen. I'm looking at this extension as a great way to round out my Indian wildlife portfolio!
As I mentioned above, there are a lot of activities one can do and the trick, truly, will be deciding upon what we, or you, individually, wish to do! If the wildlife viewing is great by jeep, or elephant, we may devote all of our time to that, but the canoeing and kayaking opportunities sound very interesting, too.
Overnight at our lodge
Day 23
Park Four - Bhopal - Delhi
Early morning drive to Bhopal Airport to board our flight for Delhi (a 3.5 hour flight), arriving approximately at 11:50AM. On arrival we'll transfer to our hotel for a day room until 9PM. We'll have a farewell dinner at the Indira Gandhi International Pairpor before your flight home.
Day 24
Delhi-Onward Journey
On time transfer to the Airport for your flight back home
Optional Extension Price:
$1,850
Our Extension cost includes:
Accommodation on double / twin sharing basis at hotels mentioned above or in
similar category.
Your accommodation at our lodge includes all meals i.e. breakfast,
Lunch & Dinner with morning and evening tea with cookies.
Services of Air Conditioned Car / Toyta Innova / Tempo Traveler / Mini Coach for
transfers in Delhi & Services of air Conditioned Toyota Innovas/Sumo for drives-
depending up the number of guests.
Services of English speaking resident naturalist in the park.
Jeep Safaris (sits 2 in a jeep)/elephant safari / boat ride / Village walks as mentioned in itinerary inclusive of entry fee to park, resident naturalist services. (Elephant Ride is subject to availability)
Farewell Dinner at restaurant in Delhi.
Cost does not include:
Any additional Airfare, any insurance fee
Anything not mentioned in inclusion above.
Any pre-trip excursions, to Agra or elsewhere.
Any expenditure of personal nature like tabled drinks, laundry, telephone calls, soft/hard drinks, Tips.
Any sudden increase in price due to steep hike in park Entry Fee, steep hike in fuel cost, change in government tax policy or for any reason beyond our control like acts of god, natural calamity, law and order situation, riots etc and any forced change in itinerary for any unforeseen situation or reason beyond our control.
As with any International trip, we strongly recommend you purchase travel trip insurance.
Contact us by e-mail: info@hoothollow.com
Phone us at 717-543-6423
Or FAX us at: (717) 543-5342
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Tigers!
In 2011 on our first scouting tours our participants had 25 tigers on the first
tour, and 54 tigers on the second. We are visiting THE BEST tiger locations.
We also had Indian Wild Dogs, Sloth Bears, Leopards, all of India's big game.
The Ultimate Tiger Safari
covering three of India's best natural history
and tiger national parks.
Our itinerary is almost entirely devoted to in-field photography of India's wildlife,
at three of the Best Parks for Tigers.
Park One -
with one of the largest concentrations of tigers in India, where, on one trip, we had 31 tigers in 5 days!
Park Two-
one of the big 'four' for viewing tigers (Park One is in that four, too), with a wide diversity of herbivores as well. In 2011 this was everyone's favorite park!
Park Three -
with the highest density of herbivores of any Indian park, and with sloth bears, dhole (Asiatic wild dog), leopards, and tigers. In 2011 we had all of the above species.
Dates - Trip One
February 28 - March 16, 2012
Extension to Park Four: March 16-20, 2012
Trip Two
March 20 - April 6, 2012
Nepal Extension for People and Rhinos
April 6 - 15, 2012
*Cancelled*
Limited to Ten Participants
Price: $8599
(add $1850 for extension)
Based on a tour of ten participants.
A sliding scale must be levied for a tour
of four or six participants (see end of brochure for details).
What are the three Parks? Details will be provided to registered participants, with the option of cancelling at that point if you wish. Frankly, this trip is too great to risk providing information to those simply wishing to copy our itinerary -- and that happens too often. Trust us, the tiger possibilities are incredible.
No one is offering a more complete, tiger and wildlife intensive photo safari.
Optional Extension to Park Four!
Scroll to the end of the brochure
Because of our self-imposed limitation of two photographers per jeep we will be accepting participants on a first come/first serve basis, and the last participant, if the fifth, or seventh, or ninth participant, will not be guaranteed a spot until the sixth or eighth or tenth participant registers. You will be first on the list as another participant registers, but we cannot have a one or a three person jeep.
All photos in this brochure were taken on our 2011 photo tours. To have an even better idea
of the wealth of photo subjects, and opportunities, please check out the portfolios from our
participants as well!
The following Portfolios will be posted soon, revealing the beauty and wildlife diversity of this trip:
Pat Collin's Portfolio
Eric Grossman's Portfolio
John Mullin's Portfolio
Bill Sailer's Portfolio
Tom Wester's Portfolio
Joe and Mary Ann McDonald's Bird Portfolio
and our Wildlife Portfolio
Some History ...
This is the ultimate tiger trip, visiting three of the best tiger parks without wasting time in cities, as each park is within driving distance of the next. After a tremendous amount of research, we've designed an itinerary that maximizes our chances of photographing tigers, as well as much of India's other exciting wildlife.
For years, friends have been urging Mary and I to do a trip to India and in 2011 we decided, after a 20 year lapse, to return. We visited the three parks featured in this itinerary, and, after only a few days of being on safari, we knew we'd be returning and including India in our permanent schedule. Our outfitter was wonderful, the camps were great, and the wildlife was superb. We were hooked.
These tigers, and the second tiger shown in the brochure (see top)
are our photos from our first trip. Just had to add some of our tiger shots, too!
What Parks are we visiting?
I'm sorry to be so mysterious about this but India's parks are crowded. Some parks have a per day limit to the number of vehicles, requiring booking spots long in advance.
We've put a tremendous amount of time and effort into researching our trip, deciding upon which parks to visit, how long, and what operators and guides to use, and we feel that knowledge and expertise should solely benefit those doing our trips, and not someone who copies our information off of the internet and leads a trip based upon our information. That is not fair to photographers seeking the best, and it is not fair to us for enduring the theft. According, we are just referring to these parks as Park One, Two, and Three. Registered participants will receive full details on all of the parks, but quite frankly, those locations are not essential for making your decision. The images will speak for themselves, as will the tiger numbers.
Trust me, these are the three best parks for tiger photography! Each park is slightly different in terms of habitat and the general composition of the wildlife, and in that way our tour will provide a tremendous portfolio of wildlife opportunities. To obtain a very, very accurate account of our India Tiger Photo Safaris, please read either our Trip One Report Summary, Trip Two Report Summary, or the day-by-day journal for either Trip One or Trip Two. In those very lengthy reports, all of the triumphs, frustrations, and experiences are included -- warts and all!
To get the absolute most out of these safaris, or any of our
offerings, consider taking one of our Complete Digital Nature
Photo Courses, in Pennsylvania next summer!
Special Features of Our India Tiger Photo Safari
1. The best three National Parks for Tiger Photography
2.
Two photographers per vehicle.
3. We rotate people per vehicle to insure group cohesiveness (see below)
4. Four 'Tiger Shows' included, subject to availability
5. All normal tips and gratuities
6. Internal flights from Delhi (1) and back (1)
7. CD or DVD of the group's images (subject to participation)
8. Customized book of the best images (subject to participation)
See below for more details.
9. Customized Pre-Trips available to the Taj Mahal or any other destination
(booked directly through our Indian Outfitter and not included in
the Tour Price).
Langur monkeys, a large, tame, and common primate around many
of the park entrances and throughout the forests.
I
n 2012, the park with the greatest tiger possibilities should also have several female tigers with young cubs! In 2011 these females had cubs ranging in age from 18 to 24 months, and within the next few months these young tigers will be out on their own. We fully expect that at least some of these tigresses will have very young cubs by the time of our 2012 tours, offering fantastic photo opportunities! Another park, with the second greatest number of tiger sightings, should also have new cubs. And the third park will have cubs that are nearly full grown, and semi-independent, providing the possibility of more tiger sightings.
Our Tour Operator has quite likely the most distinquished pedigree of any Indian operator, with the owner's grandfather one of the originators of Project Tiger, India's celebrated campaign to save the tiger from extinction. Our operator and his family has been in the business of wildlife tourism for decades, and the service and attention to fine detail is unmatched.
This trip is devoted to photographing India's wildlife, with a special emphasis upon photographing the Bengal tiger, the most threatened of the big cats. Except for our first full day in Delhi, where we'll have the option of doing some city touring or simply resting and getting over jet-lag, all of our time will be spent in the National Parks. We will not be spending time in cities doing tours, and our only non-Delhi city time will be as we drive from the airport to our first destination and then as we commute from park to park.
In contrast to many tours, we will be flying from Delhi to the nearest city to our first park, and flying back to Delhi at the end of the trip. Many tours cut costs, and waste time, by using the train system -- it is not worth it.
We will game-drive through the parks in jeeps with only TWO PHOTOGRAPHERS per vehicle. There will be both a guide and a driver in each vehicle, but you won't be competing with several people as we do our shooting. We also rotate people through the vehicles so that photographers have an equal opportunity to shoot with either Mary or Joe, and to experience the different guides and drivers. Lodge naturalists drive some of the vehicles, and to be fair to everyone, everyone is rotated so that all get a chance to benefit. This rotation also insures group cohesiveness, eliminating a clique or the rare chance that someone is 'stuck' with another person that they would prefer not to be with for every game drive. Spouses, or close friends, if they desire can request, upon registration, to be together for the entire safari and, if so, forgo the opportunity to shoot with Mary or Joe. This does not imply that a couple paid for the exclusive use of a vehicle, and if one sits out a game drive, and another vehicle also would end up as a single photographer, we will combine the participants into one. The reason -- the parks can be crowded, and we do not want to contribute to a potentially compromised photo situation by an unnecessary number of jeeps.
We may also have the opportunity to do some elephant back tiger viewing. These 'Sher Darshan' or tiger shows are offered at all three parks, but the tiger shows are not guaranteed. They are subject to availability, based upon whether or not a tiger was located that would be conducive to a tiger show; the number of people in the park, if a film crew has taken over all of the elephants, or if the elephants are being used for other purposes. In some parks, some weeks, no tiger shows occur, while in another park or at another time, the tiger shows may occur daily. Four tiger shows are included, with two prepaid at one park and two at another, in the cost of the tour. There are no refunds for the tiger shows if they do not occur. In the unlikely event that more than two shows are offered in a park, you will have the option of paying the fee and doing more than two.
We may also have the opportunity to book your own elephant for the entire morning for a one or two person photo experience with tigers up close. Elephants can get you closer than otherwise possible, unless a tiger comes to you (which happens, often!), but this option is expensive. Details will be provided to our registered participants, along with our complete assessment of the value and possibilities this provides.
While these elephant photo opportunities may arise, our best shooting will be from the vehicles where we'll film tigers at close to ground-level from our jeeps. These jeeps are open, so you'll be photographing either from a seated, kneeling, or standing position, depending upon how you are supporting your camera..
OUR SHOOTING PHILOSOPHY
We'll be game-driving in the best hours for seeing predators, starting our game drives before dawn and in the late afternoon prior to sunset. And, although the focus and goal of this safari is to photograph tigers, we will photograph every good wildlife and nature subject we find.
Let me repeat that -- we'll photograph everything. It is often very counter-productive to be obsessed with one subject and ignoring others while you seek one goal. While our tours have had tremendous success with tigers, these parks are not zoos, and no wildlife sighting is guaranteed. If you're not interested in anything but tigers, if you're not willing to photograph other species, if you're not prepared to 'smell the roses' and take things as they come, not rushing things and letting nature play out as it may, then do not come with us.
Left: Indian Wild Dogs, or Dhole, playing
Our shooting philosophy has been extremely successful, and even when we haven't shot our target species (which has only happened once, on an African wild dog trip) we nonetheless had a great trip.
I'm extremely confident that we'll get tigers -- we'll be there at the best time, at the best parks, but we'll be photographing wild animals that may not cooperate for us, or for you. It is possible that the jeep that you are in will be at the wrong place at the wrong time and you'll miss the best encounter, or that there will be a traffic jam of vehicles on a cat, and our shooting will be compromised. That reality can occur and you must be aware that this could happen. Indeed, it happened to me at one park on my second trip in 2011, where it seemed I was always at the wrong spot. I photographed tigers, but not like I wanted to. However, on the last game drive of that park I got my 'dream shot,' with a big male tiger walking directly to my camera as I shot from near tiger-level. I hadn't despaired, and luck finally, and really, came my way!
The Parks
We'll be visiting what I am convinced are the three best parks for tiger opportunities, and while that point could be argued, other parks in India are quite removed from one another. Our three parks are centrally located, and close enough together to be in reach for an afternoon drive, so we won't be wasting valuable field time taking a train, or flying, or driving for days to reach our next destination. You will get shooting every single day!
Park One
This may be the premiere tiger park, and may offer the best opportunities for seeing and photographing tigers. Most, if not all, of our photography will be from jeeps, although India's erratic Park's Department sometimes offers elephant ride/tiger viewing Tiger Shows. In 2011 we did some Tiger Shows here, as well as booking a full morning elephant safari.
Again, in 2012 we may also have the option of booking elephants for an entire morning, but this will be subject to availability. There are pros and cons to shooting from elephants. On the positive side, elephants can take us to locations where our jeeps cannot, and one can get very close with elephants. On the negative side, the shooting can be nearly straight down if both the elephant and the tiger is on the same plane, but it can also be at virtual eye-level if a tiger is on a hill.
Unfortunately, the access to elephants is not guaranteed, so we could not build in a trip price that included all-day elephant rides. Further, we might find that we enjoy shooting from the near ground-level perspective of our jeeps, rather than 10 feet above the ground on an elephant's back. However, if we have the option of booking one or more elephants for a morning, anyone wishing to take advantage of this opportunity will be paying extra. The price on this will depend upon the park, and the number of photographers per elephant back. We suggest everyone bringing along extra money in case they wish to do one or more additional elephant rides. More details on this will be forwarded to registered participants.
The park is a mixture of bamboo, grassland, and a complex of deciduous forests. There are at least 150 species of birds in the park, along with several great mammals. This may be the best of all India parks for tigers, but there are also sloth bears, langur monkeys, wild boar, and three species of deer - chital, sambar, and barking deer.
We will be providing our tour participants with a thorough outline of the best shooting opportunities, and what subjects to concentrate on, in this outstanding park.
Park Two
Park Two is a more popular and more highly visited park, and offers a variety of species including tigers and leopards, cheetal, Indian bison or gaur, barking deer, sambhar deer, and the endangered Barasingha deer. The habitat is similar in many ways to Park One, with a mixture of grassy plains and sal forests.
Tiger Shows, the 'Sher Darshan,'may be offered here, but whether or not elephant rides will be offered or available (sometimes film crews take all the elephants) won't be known until we get there.
Park Three
Although we did not see many tigers here (on Trip One we had only one, but a tigress with five cubs on Trip Two), Park Three would have been everyone's (in 2011) favorite park had we had more luck. The shooting potential was the best, with many waterholes and open forests. It has a large diversity of wildlife, including leopard, tiger, jungle cat, dhole (wild dog), sloth bear, wild boar, mongoose, gaur (a huge bovine that may be the ancestor to all cattle), and the highest density of herbivores, including cheetal (spotted deer), and sambar.
There are at least 250 species of birds found in the diverse habitats, which is composed of grasslands, open canopy mixed forests, riverine forest systems, and rolling hills.
Our Itinerary
Day 1, - Depart US or departure city
Day 2, - Arrive in Delhi
Welcome dinner and meeting.
Overnight - The Claridges Hotel.
Visit http://www.claridges-hotels.com/delhi/ to check out
our beautiful hotel in Delhi.
Day 3, Delhi
Recover from jet-lag or tour the city or engage in other personal activities. In the afternoon we'll visit some markets, including a silver market where the photographic opportunities are stellar. Nearby, there is also a 'gray market' camera market where anything can be purchased - sans boxed -- at the best prices anywhere. If you're short on gear ....
Overnight - The Claridges Hotel
Day 4, March 3- Delhi - Park One
We'll leave the hotel after an early breakfast for our flight to our destination city, where we will meet our fleet of SUVs that will transport us to our first Park.
Flight times are not determined at the time and we may arrive in the mid-afternoon or late evening.
Overnight - Our Lodge within minutes of Park One.
Day 5 to 9, - Park One
Game drives morning and evening for tigers and other wildlife. This is a great place for tigers, and we're likely to see any or all of our tigers in this park. However, there is a host of other species to photograph here, especially rhesus macaque monkeys, spotted deer, langur monkeys, wild hogs, and a variety of birds.
For anyone who wishes, if Tiger Show elephants are available it may be possible to book an elephant for the entire day. This is expensive and we did not include this as part of our tour, but it may be an option for someone who desires to spend more time on elephants, for whatever reason. Refer to the notes above, and further details on these elephant safaris will be forwarded to registered participants as information comes in.
Overnights - Our Lodge.
Our lodges in Park One and Park Two are owned by the tour
operator we'll be using. You're looking at a bedroom, eating area,
looking out at the grounds, and a porch outdoor relaxing and viewing area.
Day 10, - Park One to Park Two
We'll do the usual morning game drive before returning to the lodge for a brunch. Afterwards, we'll load up our fleet of SUVs and begin our 5 hour drive to our next destination, Park Two. We'll arrive in the early evening, hopefully in time to watch the Indian Giant Flying Squirrel swoop overhead!
Overnight - Our Lodge
Day 11 to 15, Park Two
We'll be doing morning and evening game drives through Park Two's varied habitats, and if the Tiger Shows are available we're likely to do at least one of these. Shooting from elephant back does give a photographer the opportunity to film tigers (if found) when they've come to rest for the day off track, but the shooting is generally at an angle, and sometimes a steep angle at that. Remember, an elephant tiger show is not guaranteed, but the opportunity to ride and elephant and photograph a tiger upclose is fun and can be very productive. But that depends upon exactly where a tiger happens to be!
Most of our participants felt that Park Two was their favorite park, and it was Mary and mine. The topography is diverse, as is the habitat. Here we'll have our first chance at photographing the largest cow-like animal in the world, the Indian Gaur or Indian Bison, an enormous, black animal with white stockings. Five other large herbivores are here, including the elk-like Sambar and the plentiful Spotted Deer. Indian Wild Dogs or Dholes, Sloth Bears, Leopards, Golden Jackals, as well as various mongooses, Langur Monkeys, and great birds are potential, if not very likely, subjects.
As it was in Park One, for anyone who wishes,it may be possible to book an elephant for the entire day or for the morning. These bookings cannot be done more than a few days in advance, for the reasons outlined above. In the past, we have done full-morning elephant rides at Park One, with mixed success. Refer to the notes above, and further details on these elephant safaris will be forwarded to registered participants as information comes in.
Overnights - Our Lodge
One of the lounges at Park One, and tea time overlooking the grounds.
Day 16, - Park Two to Park Three
We'll have our final morning game drive in Park Two before returning for a late brunch. After packing our fleet of SUVs we'll embark on our five hour drive to our final park. At this point, we are expecting that our outfitter's new, small, and private camp will be available.
This Park, Park Three, has the potential of being our favorite park. The topography is varied, there are numerous waterholes, and the forest is quite open, giving a tended, park-like quality to the forest, which provides wonderful visibility for animals deeper in the forest. In 2011, there were 15 different tiger cubs in this park of varying ages, and also the possibility of tiger shows.
Leopards, Gaur, Sambar, Spotted Deer, Langur and Macaque Monkeys, Golden Jackals, Wild Dogs, and Sloth Bears are all found here. In 2011 we only had one sighting of the numerous tigers found here, but that bit of bad luck provided us with the opportunity to round out our portfolio with all of the other Indian wildlife subjects. Birds are diverse, with various kingfishers, wading birds, and songbirds and raptors all accessible.
Overnight - Our Lodge, if available, or a luxury tented camp -
details to be determined.
Day 17 - 19, Park Three
We'll do morning and afternoon game drives, and may have another opportunity for an elephant tiger show safari. Park Three has a wide variety of wildlife, and although it probably has fewer tigers than our other two parks we'll be ready to fill in our portfolios with the other animals and birds found here.
Overnights - Our Lodge, if available, or a luxury tented camp -
details to be determined.
Day 20, - Park Three to Delhi
For those not going on with the extension, we'll have an early morning transfer to the airport to board a flight to Delhi, arriving in the late morning in Delhi where you will have a day room until 9PM that evening. You'll have a Farewell Dinner before transfering to Indira Gandhi International Airport for your flight home.
Day Room - Radisson Hotel
For those doing the extension, scroll down to the bottom of this brochure.
Day 21 - Delhi to Home
In the late hours of Day 19 we'll transfer to the airport and board flights for home.
The Tour Price is $ $8,599
add. $1850 for extension (see below)
Single Supplement - add. $2,495
Our Tour Cost Includes
Accommodations on double/twin sharing basis
Meals in Delhi - Breakfasts and Welcome Dinner on Day 2 and 3
Tips for the jeep drivers, mahots, and our English-speaking guides
All Meals and Accommodations while on Safari, Day 4 - 19
Service of English speaking resident naturalists in each park
Jeep safaris, with 2 per vehicle
Four Elephant safaris (tiger shows) subject to availablity
Farewell dinner at 'The Great Kebab Factory' in Delhi
Airfare for domestic flight to our destination city and back to Delhi
All transfers - from airport to hotel in Delhi and to airport
Our Tour Cost does not include
Insurance fees
International Airfare
Any pre-trip excursions, to Agra or elsewhere.
Expenditures of a personal nature, including drinks, laundary, phone calls,
alcoholic beverages, tips
Any sudden and unforeseen increase in price due to an increase in Park Fees, Fuel Costs, or Government Tax Policies beyound our control, acts of god, natural calamity, law and order situations, riots, or forced changes in itinerary due to situations or reasons beyond our control
A Final Important Note
While we make every effort to provide you with success, we are dealing with wild animals and your luck -- be it with the animals, with a driver or guide, with a assigned route your vehicle is arbitrarily given by the Park authorities on a given day, any of these things and more-- is out of our control. Further, we run our trips for the benefit of the group, not a lone individual, and all of our decisions and actions are based upon the group's well being and success, and not to catering to a single individual. This model has worked wonderfully for us for over 25 years of doing photo tours, but if you are accustomed to having your own way or calling your own shots then do the trip by yourself, or pick another tour.
As with any International trip, we strongly recommend you purchase travel trip insurance.
Optional Extention to National Park
Day 20 -
Park Three to Park Four
This extension applies to Trip One
At this point we are determining where we will be offering an extension, at the conclusion of the trip. As of early April, that will be to our Park Four, excellent for Dhole, or Indian Wild Dogs, and Sloth Bears, and the details are below.
IF You do our Extension
For those doing the extension we'll leave early for our drive to Park Four after having a breakfast and tearful farewell for anyone leaving us! We'll have a morning drive to reach our next destination, one of the newest of India's parks with some of the most diverse group of predators found anywhere.
This unique park probably sports the most spectacular habitat and landscapes of any park in the Project Tiger system, and as a new park it is almost unvisited. On the negative, tiger sightings are not common and the road system is not as well developed as in other parks, but on the positive side the wildlife sightings have been very good, and there are few tourists to contend with. Satpura has the promise of becoming one of the best locations for wildlife viewing, and there is the opportunity to go through the park in many ways.
Left: The rare four-horned antelope.
The park has an elevation of 320-1,352m with tall sandstone mountains, narrow gorges, ravines, water falls, streams and dense forests near the Mahadev hills in the Pachmarhi plateau. The area boasts two unique species of trees – the sal and the teak besides a wide variety of ferns, mango trees, butterflies and birds. Upon arrival at Park Four we will check into our lodge, a stylish environmentally friendly lodge that is engaged with the park management and the local community in a pioneering effort to create an
unprecedented jungle experience in one of the most exciting tiger habitats in the
world. This is an effort to create an exceptional wilderness experience for those
who truly revel in wild places far from the jeep borne hordes that have defaced so many other parks. Lunch and afternoon visit to the park by 4x4 Jeep with an
English-speaking Naturalist.
Whether or not we'll have the time or energy to avail ourselves of the options, we'll have the chance to canoe, kayak, hike, use elephants, jeep, or stay in blinds. In 2011 we only did jeep rides or boat trips for water birds, because the jeep rides were too productive -- for wild dogs and sloth bears and guars, for us to risk doing anything else.
Dinner and overnights at our Lodge.
Day 20 - 22
Park Four
We will have the options of Game drives / walking safarsi / elephant safaris / or bush walk at and around camp or village walk.
One of the greatest attractions are the wild dogs, perhaps the most common in this park, and the Sloth Bear, which is unique in often having their cubs riding upon their mother's back. After over two full weeks of 'tiger hunting' and photographing the major animal species, Park Four may offer a very refreshing change and an opportunity to film species not normally seen. I'm looking at this extension as a great way to round out my Indian wildlife portfolio!
As I mentioned above, there are a lot of activities one can do and the trick, truly, will be deciding upon what we, or you, individually, wish to do! If the wildlife viewing is great by jeep, or elephant, we may devote all of our time to that, but the canoeing and kayaking opportunities sound very interesting, too.
Overnight at our lodge
Day 23
Park Four - Bhopal - Delhi
Early morning drive to Bhopal Airport to board our flight for Delhi (a 3.5 hour flight), arriving approximately at 11:50AM. On arrival we'll transfer to our hotel for a day room until 9PM. We'll have a farewell dinner at the Indira Gandhi International Pairpor before your flight home.
Day 24
Delhi-Onward Journey
On time transfer to the Airport for your flight back home
Optional Extension Price:
$1,850
Our Extension cost includes:
Accommodation on double / twin sharing basis at hotels mentioned above or in
similar category.
Your accommodation at our lodge includes all meals i.e. breakfast,
Lunch & Dinner with morning and evening tea with cookies.
Services of Air Conditioned Car / Toyta Innova / Tempo Traveler / Mini Coach for
transfers in Delhi & Services of air Conditioned Toyota Innovas/Sumo for drives-
depending up the number of guests.
Services of English speaking resident naturalist in the park.
Jeep Safaris (sits 2 in a jeep)/elephant safari / boat ride / Village walks as mentioned in itinerary inclusive of entry fee to park, resident naturalist services. (Elephant Ride is subject to availability)
Farewell Dinner at restaurant in Delhi.
Cost does not include:
Any additional Airfare, any insurance fee
Anything not mentioned in inclusion above.
Any pre-trip excursions, to Agra or elsewhere.
Any expenditure of personal nature like tabled drinks, laundry, telephone calls, soft/hard drinks, Tips.
Any sudden increase in price due to steep hike in park Entry Fee, steep hike in fuel cost, change in government tax policy or for any reason beyond our control like acts of god, natural calamity, law and order situation, riots etc and any forced change in itinerary for any unforeseen situation or reason beyond our control.
As with any International trip, we strongly recommend you purchase travel trip insurance.
Contact us by e-mail: info@hoothollow.com
Phone us at 717-543-6423
Or FAX us at: (717) 543-5342
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Tigers!
In 2011 on our first scouting tours our participants had 25 tigers on the first
tour, and 54 tigers on the second. We are visiting THE BEST tiger locations.
We also had Indian Wild Dogs, Sloth Bears, Leopards, all of India's big game.
The Ultimate Tiger Safari
covering three of India's best natural history
and tiger national parks.
Our itinerary is almost entirely devoted to in-field photography of India's wildlife,
at three of the Best Parks for Tigers.
Park One -
with one of the largest concentrations of tigers in India, where, on one trip, we had 31 tigers in 5 days!
Park Two-
one of the big 'four' for viewing tigers (Park One is in that four, too), with a wide diversity of herbivores as well. In 2011 this was everyone's favorite park!
Park Three -
with the highest density of herbivores of any Indian park, and with sloth bears, dhole (Asiatic wild dog), leopards, and tigers. In 2011 we had all of the above species.
Dates - Trip One
February 28 - March 16, 2012
Extension to Park Four: March 16-20, 2012
Trip Two
March 20 - April 6, 2012
Nepal Extension for People and Rhinos
April 6 - 15, 2012
*Cancelled*
Limited to Ten Participants
Price: $8599
(add $1850 for extension)
Based on a tour of ten participants.
A sliding scale must be levied for a tour
of four or six participants (see end of brochure for details).
What are the three Parks? Details will be provided to registered participants, with the option of cancelling at that point if you wish. Frankly, this trip is too great to risk providing information to those simply wishing to copy our itinerary -- and that happens too often. Trust us, the tiger possibilities are incredible.
No one is offering a more complete, tiger and wildlife intensive photo safari.
Optional Extension to Park Four!
Scroll to the end of the brochure
Because of our self-imposed limitation of two photographers per jeep we will be accepting participants on a first come/first serve basis, and the last participant, if the fifth, or seventh, or ninth participant, will not be guaranteed a spot until the sixth or eighth or tenth participant registers. You will be first on the list as another participant registers, but we cannot have a one or a three person jeep.
All photos in this brochure were taken on our 2011 photo tours. To have an even better idea
of the wealth of photo subjects, and opportunities, please check out the portfolios from our
participants as well!
The following Portfolios will be posted soon, revealing the beauty and wildlife diversity of this trip:
Pat Collin's Portfolio
Eric Grossman's Portfolio
John Mullin's Portfolio
Bill Sailer's Portfolio
Tom Wester's Portfolio
Joe and Mary Ann McDonald's Bird Portfolio
and our Wildlife Portfolio
Some History ...
This is the ultimate tiger trip, visiting three of the best tiger parks without wasting time in cities, as each park is within driving distance of the next. After a tremendous amount of research, we've designed an itinerary that maximizes our chances of photographing tigers, as well as much of India's other exciting wildlife.
For years, friends have been urging Mary and I to do a trip to India and in 2011 we decided, after a 20 year lapse, to return. We visited the three parks featured in this itinerary, and, after only a few days of being on safari, we knew we'd be returning and including India in our permanent schedule. Our outfitter was wonderful, the camps were great, and the wildlife was superb. We were hooked.
These tigers, and the second tiger shown in the brochure (see top)
are our photos from our first trip. Just had to add some of our tiger shots, too!
What Parks are we visiting?
I'm sorry to be so mysterious about this but India's parks are crowded. Some parks have a per day limit to the number of vehicles, requiring booking spots long in advance.
We've put a tremendous amount of time and effort into researching our trip, deciding upon which parks to visit, how long, and what operators and guides to use, and we feel that knowledge and expertise should solely benefit those doing our trips, and not someone who copies our information off of the internet and leads a trip based upon our information. That is not fair to photographers seeking the best, and it is not fair to us for enduring the theft. According, we are just referring to these parks as Park One, Two, and Three. Registered participants will receive full details on all of the parks, but quite frankly, those locations are not essential for making your decision. The images will speak for themselves, as will the tiger numbers.
Trust me, these are the three best parks for tiger photography! Each park is slightly different in terms of habitat and the general composition of the wildlife, and in that way our tour will provide a tremendous portfolio of wildlife opportunities. To obtain a very, very accurate account of our India Tiger Photo Safaris, please read either our Trip One Report Summary, Trip Two Report Summary, or the day-by-day journal for either Trip One or Trip Two. In those very lengthy reports, all of the triumphs, frustrations, and experiences are included -- warts and all!
To get the absolute most out of these safaris, or any of our
offerings, consider taking one of our Complete Digital Nature
Photo Courses, in Pennsylvania next summer!
Special Features of Our India Tiger Photo Safari
1. The best three National Parks for Tiger Photography
2.
Two photographers per vehicle.
3. We rotate people per vehicle to insure group cohesiveness (see below)
4. Four 'Tiger Shows' included, subject to availability
5. All normal tips and gratuities
6. Internal flights from Delhi (1) and back (1)
7. CD or DVD of the group's images (subject to participation)
8. Customized book of the best images (subject to participation)
See below for more details.
9. Customized Pre-Trips available to the Taj Mahal or any other destination
(booked directly through our Indian Outfitter and not included in
the Tour Price).
Langur monkeys, a large, tame, and common primate around many
of the park entrances and throughout the forests.
I
n 2012, the park with the greatest tiger possibilities should also have several female tigers with young cubs! In 2011 these females had cubs ranging in age from 18 to 24 months, and within the next few months these young tigers will be out on their own. We fully expect that at least some of these tigresses will have very young cubs by the time of our 2012 tours, offering fantastic photo opportunities! Another park, with the second greatest number of tiger sightings, should also have new cubs. And the third park will have cubs that are nearly full grown, and semi-independent, providing the possibility of more tiger sightings.
Our Tour Operator has quite likely the most distinquished pedigree of any Indian operator, with the owner's grandfather one of the originators of Project Tiger, India's celebrated campaign to save the tiger from extinction. Our operator and his family has been in the business of wildlife tourism for decades, and the service and attention to fine detail is unmatched.
This trip is devoted to photographing India's wildlife, with a special emphasis upon photographing the Bengal tiger, the most threatened of the big cats. Except for our first full day in Delhi, where we'll have the option of doing some city touring or simply resting and getting over jet-lag, all of our time will be spent in the National Parks. We will not be spending time in cities doing tours, and our only non-Delhi city time will be as we drive from the airport to our first destination and then as we commute from park to park.
In contrast to many tours, we will be flying from Delhi to the nearest city to our first park, and flying back to Delhi at the end of the trip. Many tours cut costs, and waste time, by using the train system -- it is not worth it.
We will game-drive through the parks in jeeps with only TWO PHOTOGRAPHERS per vehicle. There will be both a guide and a driver in each vehicle, but you won't be competing with several people as we do our shooting. We also rotate people through the vehicles so that photographers have an equal opportunity to shoot with either Mary or Joe, and to experience the different guides and drivers. Lodge naturalists drive some of the vehicles, and to be fair to everyone, everyone is rotated so that all get a chance to benefit. This rotation also insures group cohesiveness, eliminating a clique or the rare chance that someone is 'stuck' with another person that they would prefer not to be with for every game drive. Spouses, or close friends, if they desire can request, upon registration, to be together for the entire safari and, if so, forgo the opportunity to shoot with Mary or Joe. This does not imply that a couple paid for the exclusive use of a vehicle, and if one sits out a game drive, and another vehicle also would end up as a single photographer, we will combine the participants into one. The reason -- the parks can be crowded, and we do not want to contribute to a potentially compromised photo situation by an unnecessary number of jeeps.
We may also have the opportunity to do some elephant back tiger viewing. These 'Sher Darshan' or tiger shows are offered at all three parks, but the tiger shows are not guaranteed. They are subject to availability, based upon whether or not a tiger was located that would be conducive to a tiger show; the number of people in the park, if a film crew has taken over all of the elephants, or if the elephants are being used for other purposes. In some parks, some weeks, no tiger shows occur, while in another park or at another time, the tiger shows may occur daily. Four tiger shows are included, with two prepaid at one park and two at another, in the cost of the tour. There are no refunds for the tiger shows if they do not occur. In the unlikely event that more than two shows are offered in a park, you will have the option of paying the fee and doing more than two.
We may also have the opportunity to book your own elephant for the entire morning for a one or two person photo experience with tigers up close. Elephants can get you closer than otherwise possible, unless a tiger comes to you (which happens, often!), but this option is expensive. Details will be provided to our registered participants, along with our complete assessment of the value and possibilities this provides.
While these elephant photo opportunities may arise, our best shooting will be from the vehicles where we'll film tigers at close to ground-level from our jeeps. These jeeps are open, so you'll be photographing either from a seated, kneeling, or standing position, depending upon how you are supporting your camera..
OUR SHOOTING PHILOSOPHY
We'll be game-driving in the best hours for seeing predators, starting our game drives before dawn and in the late afternoon prior to sunset. And, although the focus and goal of this safari is to photograph tigers, we will photograph every good wildlife and nature subject we find.
Let me repeat that -- we'll photograph everything. It is often very counter-productive to be obsessed with one subject and ignoring others while you seek one goal. While our tours have had tremendous success with tigers, these parks are not zoos, and no wildlife sighting is guaranteed. If you're not interested in anything but tigers, if you're not willing to photograph other species, if you're not prepared to 'smell the roses' and take things as they come, not rushing things and letting nature play out as it may, then do not come with us.
Left: Indian Wild Dogs, or Dhole, playing
Our shooting philosophy has been extremely successful, and even when we haven't shot our target species (which has only happened once, on an African wild dog trip) we nonetheless had a great trip.
I'm extremely confident that we'll get tigers -- we'll be there at the best time, at the best parks, but we'll be photographing wild animals that may not cooperate for us, or for you. It is possible that the jeep that you are in will be at the wrong place at the wrong time and you'll miss the best encounter, or that there will be a traffic jam of vehicles on a cat, and our shooting will be compromised. That reality can occur and you must be aware that this could happen. Indeed, it happened to me at one park on my second trip in 2011, where it seemed I was always at the wrong spot. I photographed tigers, but not like I wanted to. However, on the last game drive of that park I got my 'dream shot,' with a big male tiger walking directly to my camera as I shot from near tiger-level. I hadn't despaired, and luck finally, and really, came my way!
The Parks
We'll be visiting what I am convinced are the three best parks for tiger opportunities, and while that point could be argued, other parks in India are quite removed from one another. Our three parks are centrally located, and close enough together to be in reach for an afternoon drive, so we won't be wasting valuable field time taking a train, or flying, or driving for days to reach our next destination. You will get shooting every single day!
Park One
This may be the premiere tiger park, and may offer the best opportunities for seeing and photographing tigers. Most, if not all, of our photography will be from jeeps, although India's erratic Park's Department sometimes offers elephant ride/tiger viewing Tiger Shows. In 2011 we did some Tiger Shows here, as well as booking a full morning elephant safari.
Again, in 2012 we may also have the option of booking elephants for an entire morning, but this will be subject to availability. There are pros and cons to shooting from elephants. On the positive side, elephants can take us to locations where our jeeps cannot, and one can get very close with elephants. On the negative side, the shooting can be nearly straight down if both the elephant and the tiger is on the same plane, but it can also be at virtual eye-level if a tiger is on a hill.
Unfortunately, the access to elephants is not guaranteed, so we could not build in a trip price that included all-day elephant rides. Further, we might find that we enjoy shooting from the near ground-level perspective of our jeeps, rather than 10 feet above the ground on an elephant's back. However, if we have the option of booking one or more elephants for a morning, anyone wishing to take advantage of this opportunity will be paying extra. The price on this will depend upon the park, and the number of photographers per elephant back. We suggest everyone bringing along extra money in case they wish to do one or more additional elephant rides. More details on this will be forwarded to registered participants.
The park is a mixture of bamboo, grassland, and a complex of deciduous forests. There are at least 150 species of birds in the park, along with several great mammals. This may be the best of all India parks for tigers, but there are also sloth bears, langur monkeys, wild boar, and three species of deer - chital, sambar, and barking deer.
We will be providing our tour participants with a thorough outline of the best shooting opportunities, and what subjects to concentrate on, in this outstanding park.
Park Two
Park Two is a more popular and more highly visited park, and offers a variety of species including tigers and leopards, cheetal, Indian bison or gaur, barking deer, sambhar deer, and the endangered Barasingha deer. The habitat is similar in many ways to Park One, with a mixture of grassy plains and sal forests.
Tiger Shows, the 'Sher Darshan,'may be offered here, but whether or not elephant rides will be offered or available (sometimes film crews take all the elephants) won't be known until we get there.
Park Three
Although we did not see many tigers here (on Trip One we had only one, but a tigress with five cubs on Trip Two), Park Three would have been everyone's (in 2011) favorite park had we had more luck. The shooting potential was the best, with many waterholes and open forests. It has a large diversity of wildlife, including leopard, tiger, jungle cat, dhole (wild dog), sloth bear, wild boar, mongoose, gaur (a huge bovine that may be the ancestor to all cattle), and the highest density of herbivores, including cheetal (spotted deer), and sambar.
There are at least 250 species of birds found in the diverse habitats, which is composed of grasslands, open canopy mixed forests, riverine forest systems, and rolling hills.
Our Itinerary
Day 1, - Depart US or departure city
Day 2, - Arrive in Delhi
Welcome dinner and meeting.
Overnight - The Claridges Hotel.
Visit http://www.claridges-hotels.com/delhi/ to check out
our beautiful hotel in Delhi.
Day 3, Delhi
Recover from jet-lag or tour the city or engage in other personal activities. In the afternoon we'll visit some markets, including a silver market where the photographic opportunities are stellar. Nearby, there is also a 'gray market' camera market where anything can be purchased - sans boxed -- at the best prices anywhere. If you're short on gear ....
Overnight - The Claridges Hotel
Day 4, March 3- Delhi - Park One
We'll leave the hotel after an early breakfast for our flight to our destination city, where we will meet our fleet of SUVs that will transport us to our first Park.
Flight times are not determined at the time and we may arrive in the mid-afternoon or late evening.
Overnight - Our Lodge within minutes of Park One.
Day 5 to 9, - Park One
Game drives morning and evening for tigers and other wildlife. This is a great place for tigers, and we're likely to see any or all of our tigers in this park. However, there is a host of other species to photograph here, especially rhesus macaque monkeys, spotted deer, langur monkeys, wild hogs, and a variety of birds.
For anyone who wishes, if Tiger Show elephants are available it may be possible to book an elephant for the entire day. This is expensive and we did not include this as part of our tour, but it may be an option for someone who desires to spend more time on elephants, for whatever reason. Refer to the notes above, and further details on these elephant safaris will be forwarded to registered participants as information comes in.
Overnights - Our Lodge.
Our lodges in Park One and Park Two are owned by the tour
operator we'll be using. You're looking at a bedroom, eating area,
looking out at the grounds, and a porch outdoor relaxing and viewing area.
Day 10, - Park One to Park Two
We'll do the usual morning game drive before returning to the lodge for a brunch. Afterwards, we'll load up our fleet of SUVs and begin our 5 hour drive to our next destination, Park Two. We'll arrive in the early evening, hopefully in time to watch the Indian Giant Flying Squirrel swoop overhead!
Overnight - Our Lodge
Day 11 to 15, Park Two
We'll be doing morning and evening game drives through Park Two's varied habitats, and if the Tiger Shows are available we're likely to do at least one of these. Shooting from elephant back does give a photographer the opportunity to film tigers (if found) when they've come to rest for the day off track, but the shooting is generally at an angle, and sometimes a steep angle at that. Remember, an elephant tiger show is not guaranteed, but the opportunity to ride and elephant and photograph a tiger upclose is fun and can be very productive. But that depends upon exactly where a tiger happens to be!
Most of our participants felt that Park Two was their favorite park, and it was Mary and mine. The topography is diverse, as is the habitat. Here we'll have our first chance at photographing the largest cow-like animal in the world, the Indian Gaur or Indian Bison, an enormous, black animal with white stockings. Five other large herbivores are here, including the elk-like Sambar and the plentiful Spotted Deer. Indian Wild Dogs or Dholes, Sloth Bears, Leopards, Golden Jackals, as well as various mongooses, Langur Monkeys, and great birds are potential, if not very likely, subjects.
As it was in Park One, for anyone who wishes,it may be possible to book an elephant for the entire day or for the morning. These bookings cannot be done more than a few days in advance, for the reasons outlined above. In the past, we have done full-morning elephant rides at Park One, with mixed success. Refer to the notes above, and further details on these elephant safaris will be forwarded to registered participants as information comes in.
Overnights - Our Lodge
One of the lounges at Park One, and tea time overlooking the grounds.
Day 16, - Park Two to Park Three
We'll have our final morning game drive in Park Two before returning for a late brunch. After packing our fleet of SUVs we'll embark on our five hour drive to our final park. At this point, we are expecting that our outfitter's new, small, and private camp will be available.
This Park, Park Three, has the potential of being our favorite park. The topography is varied, there are numerous waterholes, and the forest is quite open, giving a tended, park-like quality to the forest, which provides wonderful visibility for animals deeper in the forest. In 2011, there were 15 different tiger cubs in this park of varying ages, and also the possibility of tiger shows.
Leopards, Gaur, Sambar, Spotted Deer, Langur and Macaque Monkeys, Golden Jackals, Wild Dogs, and Sloth Bears are all found here. In 2011 we only had one sighting of the numerous tigers found here, but that bit of bad luck provided us with the opportunity to round out our portfolio with all of the other Indian wildlife subjects. Birds are diverse, with various kingfishers, wading birds, and songbirds and raptors all accessible.
Overnight - Our Lodge, if available, or a luxury tented camp -
details to be determined.
Day 17 - 19, Park Three
We'll do morning and afternoon game drives, and may have another opportunity for an elephant tiger show safari. Park Three has a wide variety of wildlife, and although it probably has fewer tigers than our other two parks we'll be ready to fill in our portfolios with the other animals and birds found here.
Overnights - Our Lodge, if available, or a luxury tented camp -
details to be determined.
Day 20, - Park Three to Delhi
For those not going on with the extension, we'll have an early morning transfer to the airport to board a flight to Delhi, arriving in the late morning in Delhi where you will have a day room until 9PM that evening. You'll have a Farewell Dinner before transfering to Indira Gandhi International Airport for your flight home.
Day Room - Radisson Hotel
For those doing the extension, scroll down to the bottom of this brochure.
Day 21 - Delhi to Home
In the late hours of Day 19 we'll transfer to the airport and board flights for home.
The Tour Price is $ $8,599
add. $1850 for extension (see below)
Single Supplement - add. $2,495
Our Tour Cost Includes
Accommodations on double/twin sharing basis
Meals in Delhi - Breakfasts and Welcome Dinner on Day 2 and 3
Tips for the jeep drivers, mahots, and our English-speaking guides
All Meals and Accommodations while on Safari, Day 4 - 19
Service of English speaking resident naturalists in each park
Jeep safaris, with 2 per vehicle
Four Elephant safaris (tiger shows) subject to availablity
Farewell dinner at 'The Great Kebab Factory' in Delhi
Airfare for domestic flight to our destination city and back to Delhi
All transfers - from airport to hotel in Delhi and to airport
Our Tour Cost does not include
Insurance fees
International Airfare
Any pre-trip excursions, to Agra or elsewhere.
Expenditures of a personal nature, including drinks, laundary, phone calls,
alcoholic beverages, tips
Any sudden and unforeseen increase in price due to an increase in Park Fees, Fuel Costs, or Government Tax Policies beyound our control, acts of god, natural calamity, law and order situations, riots, or forced changes in itinerary due to situations or reasons beyond our control
A Final Important Note
While we make every effort to provide you with success, we are dealing with wild animals and your luck -- be it with the animals, with a driver or guide, with a assigned route your vehicle is arbitrarily given by the Park authorities on a given day, any of these things and more-- is out of our control. Further, we run our trips for the benefit of the group, not a lone individual, and all of our decisions and actions are based upon the group's well being and success, and not to catering to a single individual. This model has worked wonderfully for us for over 25 years of doing photo tours, but if you are accustomed to having your own way or calling your own shots then do the trip by yourself, or pick another tour.
As with any International trip, we strongly recommend you purchase travel trip insurance.
Optional Extention to National Park
Day 20 -
Park Three to Park Four
This extension applies to Trip One
At this point we are determining where we will be offering an extension, at the conclusion of the trip. As of early April, that will be to our Park Four, excellent for Dhole, or Indian Wild Dogs, and Sloth Bears, and the details are below.
IF You do our Extension
For those doing the extension we'll leave early for our drive to Park Four after having a breakfast and tearful farewell for anyone leaving us! We'll have a morning drive to reach our next destination, one of the newest of India's parks with some of the most diverse group of predators found anywhere.
This unique park probably sports the most spectacular habitat and landscapes of any park in the Project Tiger system, and as a new park it is almost unvisited. On the negative, tiger sightings are not common and the road system is not as well developed as in other parks, but on the positive side the wildlife sightings have been very good, and there are few tourists to contend with. Satpura has the promise of becoming one of the best locations for wildlife viewing, and there is the opportunity to go through the park in many ways.
Left: The rare four-horned antelope.
The park has an elevation of 320-1,352m with tall sandstone mountains, narrow gorges, ravines, water falls, streams and dense forests near the Mahadev hills in the Pachmarhi plateau. The area boasts two unique species of trees – the sal and the teak besides a wide variety of ferns, mango trees, butterflies and birds. Upon arrival at Park Four we will check into our lodge, a stylish environmentally friendly lodge that is engaged with the park management and the local community in a pioneering effort to create an
unprecedented jungle experience in one of the most exciting tiger habitats in the
world. This is an effort to create an exceptional wilderness experience for those
who truly revel in wild places far from the jeep borne hordes that have defaced so many other parks. Lunch and afternoon visit to the park by 4x4 Jeep with an
English-speaking Naturalist.
Whether or not we'll have the time or energy to avail ourselves of the options, we'll have the chance to canoe, kayak, hike, use elephants, jeep, or stay in blinds. In 2011 we only did jeep rides or boat trips for water birds, because the jeep rides were too productive -- for wild dogs and sloth bears and guars, for us to risk doing anything else.
Dinner and overnights at our Lodge.
Day 20 - 22
Park Four
We will have the options of Game drives / walking safarsi / elephant safaris / or bush walk at and around camp or village walk.
One of the greatest attractions are the wild dogs, perhaps the most common in this park, and the Sloth Bear, which is unique in often having their cubs riding upon their mother's back. After over two full weeks of 'tiger hunting' and photographing the major animal species, Park Four may offer a very refreshing change and an opportunity to film species not normally seen. I'm looking at this extension as a great way to round out my Indian wildlife portfolio!
As I mentioned above, there are a lot of activities one can do and the trick, truly, will be deciding upon what we, or you, individually, wish to do! If the wildlife viewing is great by jeep, or elephant, we may devote all of our time to that, but the canoeing and kayaking opportunities sound very interesting, too.
Overnight at our lodge
Day 23
Park Four - Bhopal - Delhi
Early morning drive to Bhopal Airport to board our flight for Delhi (a 3.5 hour flight), arriving approximately at 11:50AM. On arrival we'll transfer to our hotel for a day room until 9PM. We'll have a farewell dinner at the Indira Gandhi International Pairpor before your flight home.
Day 24
Delhi-Onward Journey
On time transfer to the Airport for your flight back home
Optional Extension Price:
$1,850
Our Extension cost includes:
Accommodation on double / twin sharing basis at hotels mentioned above or in
similar category.
Your accommodation at our lodge includes all meals i.e. breakfast,
Lunch & Dinner with morning and evening tea with cookies.
Services of Air Conditioned Car / Toyta Innova / Tempo Traveler / Mini Coach for
transfers in Delhi & Services of air Conditioned Toyota Innovas/Sumo for drives-
depending up the number of guests.
Services of English speaking resident naturalist in the park.
Jeep Safaris (sits 2 in a jeep)/elephant safari / boat ride / Village walks as mentioned in itinerary inclusive of entry fee to park, resident naturalist services. (Elephant Ride is subject to availability)
Farewell Dinner at restaurant in Delhi.
Cost does not include:
Any additional Airfare, any insurance fee
Anything not mentioned in inclusion above.
Any pre-trip excursions, to Agra or elsewhere.
Any expenditure of personal nature like tabled drinks, laundry, telephone calls, soft/hard drinks, Tips.
Any sudden increase in price due to steep hike in park Entry Fee, steep hike in fuel cost, change in government tax policy or for any reason beyond our control like acts of god, natural calamity, law and order situation, riots etc and any forced change in itinerary for any unforeseen situation or reason beyond our control.
As with any International trip, we strongly recommend you purchase travel trip insurance.
Contact us by e-mail: info@hoothollow.com
Phone us at 717-543-6423
Or FAX us at: (717) 543-5342
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Tigers!
In 2011 on our first scouting tours our participants had 25 tigers on the first
tour, and 54 tigers on the second. We are visiting THE BEST tiger locations.
We also had Indian Wild Dogs, Sloth Bears, Leopards, all of India's big game.
The Ultimate Tiger Safari
covering three of India's best natural history
and tiger national parks.
Our itinerary is almost entirely devoted to in-field photography of India's wildlife,
at three of the Best Parks for Tigers.
Park One -
with one of the largest concentrations of tigers in India, where, on one trip, we had 31 tigers in 5 days!
Park Two-
one of the big 'four' for viewing tigers (Park One is in that four, too), with a wide diversity of herbivores as well. In 2011 this was everyone's favorite park!
Park Three -
with the highest density of herbivores of any Indian park, and with sloth bears, dhole (Asiatic wild dog), leopards, and tigers. In 2011 we had all of the above species.
Dates - Trip One
February 28 - March 16, 2012
Extension to Park Four: March 16-20, 2012
Trip Two
March 20 - April 6, 2012
Nepal Extension for People and Rhinos
April 6 - 15, 2012
*Cancelled*
Limited to Ten Participants
Price: $8599
(add $1850 for extension)
Based on a tour of ten participants.
A sliding scale must be levied for a tour
of four or six participants (see end of brochure for details).
What are the three Parks? Details will be provided to registered participants, with the option of cancelling at that point if you wish. Frankly, this trip is too great to risk providing information to those simply wishing to copy our itinerary -- and that happens too often. Trust us, the tiger possibilities are incredible.
No one is offering a more complete, tiger and wildlife intensive photo safari.
Optional Extension to Park Four!
Scroll to the end of the brochure
Because of our self-imposed limitation of two photographers per jeep we will be accepting participants on a first come/first serve basis, and the last participant, if the fifth, or seventh, or ninth participant, will not be guaranteed a spot until the sixth or eighth or tenth participant registers. You will be first on the list as another participant registers, but we cannot have a one or a three person jeep.
All photos in this brochure were taken on our 2011 photo tours. To have an even better idea
of the wealth of photo subjects, and opportunities, please check out the portfolios from our
participants as well!
The following Portfolios will be posted soon, revealing the beauty and wildlife diversity of this trip:
Pat Collin's Portfolio
Eric Grossman's Portfolio
John Mullin's Portfolio
Bill Sailer's Portfolio
Tom Wester's Portfolio
Joe and Mary Ann McDonald's Bird Portfolio
and our Wildlife Portfolio
Some History ...
This is the ultimate tiger trip, visiting three of the best tiger parks without wasting time in cities, as each park is within driving distance of the next. After a tremendous amount of research, we've designed an itinerary that maximizes our chances of photographing tigers, as well as much of India's other exciting wildlife.
For years, friends have been urging Mary and I to do a trip to India and in 2011 we decided, after a 20 year lapse, to return. We visited the three parks featured in this itinerary, and, after only a few days of being on safari, we knew we'd be returning and including India in our permanent schedule. Our outfitter was wonderful, the camps were great, and the wildlife was superb. We were hooked.
These tigers, and the second tiger shown in the brochure (see top)
are our photos from our first trip. Just had to add some of our tiger shots, too!
What Parks are we visiting?
I'm sorry to be so mysterious about this but India's parks are crowded. Some parks have a per day limit to the number of vehicles, requiring booking spots long in advance.
We've put a tremendous amount of time and effort into researching our trip, deciding upon which parks to visit, how long, and what operators and guides to use, and we feel that knowledge and expertise should solely benefit those doing our trips, and not someone who copies our information off of the internet and leads a trip based upon our information. That is not fair to photographers seeking the best, and it is not fair to us for enduring the theft. According, we are just referring to these parks as Park One, Two, and Three. Registered participants will receive full details on all of the parks, but quite frankly, those locations are not essential for making your decision. The images will speak for themselves, as will the tiger numbers.
Trust me, these are the three best parks for tiger photography! Each park is slightly different in terms of habitat and the general composition of the wildlife, and in that way our tour will provide a tremendous portfolio of wildlife opportunities. To obtain a very, very accurate account of our India Tiger Photo Safaris, please read either our Trip One Report Summary, Trip Two Report Summary, or the day-by-day journal for either Trip One or Trip Two. In those very lengthy reports, all of the triumphs, frustrations, and experiences are included -- warts and all!
To get the absolute most out of these safaris, or any of our
offerings, consider taking one of our Complete Digital Nature
Photo Courses, in Pennsylvania next summer!
Special Features of Our India Tiger Photo Safari
1. The best three National Parks for Tiger Photography
2.
Two photographers per vehicle.
3. We rotate people per vehicle to insure group cohesiveness (see below)
4. Four 'Tiger Shows' included, subject to availability
5. All normal tips and gratuities
6. Internal flights from Delhi (1) and back (1)
7. CD or DVD of the group's images (subject to participation)
8. Customized book of the best images (subject to participation)
See below for more details.
9. Customized Pre-Trips available to the Taj Mahal or any other destination
(booked directly through our Indian Outfitter and not included in
the Tour Price).
Langur monkeys, a large, tame, and common primate around many
of the park entrances and throughout the forests.
I
n 2012, the park with the greatest tiger possibilities should also have several female tigers with young cubs! In 2011 these females had cubs ranging in age from 18 to 24 months, and within the next few months these young tigers will be out on their own. We fully expect that at least some of these tigresses will have very young cubs by the time of our 2012 tours, offering fantastic photo opportunities! Another park, with the second greatest number of tiger sightings, should also have new cubs. And the third park will have cubs that are nearly full grown, and semi-independent, providing the possibility of more tiger sightings.
Our Tour Operator has quite likely the most distinquished pedigree of any Indian operator, with the owner's grandfather one of the originators of Project Tiger, India's celebrated campaign to save the tiger from extinction. Our operator and his family has been in the business of wildlife tourism for decades, and the service and attention to fine detail is unmatched.
This trip is devoted to photographing India's wildlife, with a special emphasis upon photographing the Bengal tiger, the most threatened of the big cats. Except for our first full day in Delhi, where we'll have the option of doing some city touring or simply resting and getting over jet-lag, all of our time will be spent in the National Parks. We will not be spending time in cities doing tours, and our only non-Delhi city time will be as we drive from the airport to our first destination and then as we commute from park to park.
In contrast to many tours, we will be flying from Delhi to the nearest city to our first park, and flying back to Delhi at the end of the trip. Many tours cut costs, and waste time, by using the train system -- it is not worth it.
We will game-drive through the parks in jeeps with only TWO PHOTOGRAPHERS per vehicle. There will be both a guide and a driver in each vehicle, but you won't be competing with several people as we do our shooting. We also rotate people through the vehicles so that photographers have an equal opportunity to shoot with either Mary or Joe, and to experience the different guides and drivers. Lodge naturalists drive some of the vehicles, and to be fair to everyone, everyone is rotated so that all get a chance to benefit. This rotation also insures group cohesiveness, eliminating a clique or the rare chance that someone is 'stuck' with another person that they would prefer not to be with for every game drive. Spouses, or close friends, if they desire can request, upon registration, to be together for the entire safari and, if so, forgo the opportunity to shoot with Mary or Joe. This does not imply that a couple paid for the exclusive use of a vehicle, and if one sits out a game drive, and another vehicle also would end up as a single photographer, we will combine the participants into one. The reason -- the parks can be crowded, and we do not want to contribute to a potentially compromised photo situation by an unnecessary number of jeeps.
We may also have the opportunity to do some elephant back tiger viewing. These 'Sher Darshan' or tiger shows are offered at all three parks, but the tiger shows are not guaranteed. They are subject to availability, based upon whether or not a tiger was located that would be conducive to a tiger show; the number of people in the park, if a film crew has taken over all of the elephants, or if the elephants are being used for other purposes. In some parks, some weeks, no tiger shows occur, while in another park or at another time, the tiger shows may occur daily. Four tiger shows are included, with two prepaid at one park and two at another, in the cost of the tour. There are no refunds for the tiger shows if they do not occur. In the unlikely event that more than two shows are offered in a park, you will have the option of paying the fee and doing more than two.
We may also have the opportunity to book your own elephant for the entire morning for a one or two person photo experience with tigers up close. Elephants can get you closer than otherwise possible, unless a tiger comes to you (which happens, often!), but this option is expensive. Details will be provided to our registered participants, along with our complete assessment of the value and possibilities this provides.
While these elephant photo opportunities may arise, our best shooting will be from the vehicles where we'll film tigers at close to ground-level from our jeeps. These jeeps are open, so you'll be photographing either from a seated, kneeling, or standing position, depending upon how you are supporting your camera..
OUR SHOOTING PHILOSOPHY
We'll be game-driving in the best hours for seeing predators, starting our game drives before dawn and in the late afternoon prior to sunset. And, although the focus and goal of this safari is to photograph tigers, we will photograph every good wildlife and nature subject we find.
Let me repeat that -- we'll photograph everything. It is often very counter-productive to be obsessed with one subject and ignoring others while you seek one goal. While our tours have had tremendous success with tigers, these parks are not zoos, and no wildlife sighting is guaranteed. If you're not interested in anything but tigers, if you're not willing to photograph other species, if you're not prepared to 'smell the roses' and take things as they come, not rushing things and letting nature play out as it may, then do not come with us.
Left: Indian Wild Dogs, or Dhole, playing
Our shooting philosophy has been extremely successful, and even when we haven't shot our target species (which has only happened once, on an African wild dog trip) we nonetheless had a great trip.
I'm extremely confident that we'll get tigers -- we'll be there at the best time, at the best parks, but we'll be photographing wild animals that may not cooperate for us, or for you. It is possible that the jeep that you are in will be at the wrong place at the wrong time and you'll miss the best encounter, or that there will be a traffic jam of vehicles on a cat, and our shooting will be compromised. That reality can occur and you must be aware that this could happen. Indeed, it happened to me at one park on my second trip in 2011, where it seemed I was always at the wrong spot. I photographed tigers, but not like I wanted to. However, on the last game drive of that park I got my 'dream shot,' with a big male tiger walking directly to my camera as I shot from near tiger-level. I hadn't despaired, and luck finally, and really, came my way!
The Parks
We'll be visiting what I am convinced are the three best parks for tiger opportunities, and while that point could be argued, other parks in India are quite removed from one another. Our three parks are centrally located, and close enough together to be in reach for an afternoon drive, so we won't be wasting valuable field time taking a train, or flying, or driving for days to reach our next destination. You will get shooting every single day!
Park One
This may be the premiere tiger park, and may offer the best opportunities for seeing and photographing tigers. Most, if not all, of our photography will be from jeeps, although India's erratic Park's Department sometimes offers elephant ride/tiger viewing Tiger Shows. In 2011 we did some Tiger Shows here, as well as booking a full morning elephant safari.
Again, in 2012 we may also have the option of booking elephants for an entire morning, but this will be subject to availability. There are pros and cons to shooting from elephants. On the positive side, elephants can take us to locations where our jeeps cannot, and one can get very close with elephants. On the negative side, the shooting can be nearly straight down if both the elephant and the tiger is on the same plane, but it can also be at virtual eye-level if a tiger is on a hill.
Unfortunately, the access to elephants is not guaranteed, so we could not build in a trip price that included all-day elephant rides. Further, we might find that we enjoy shooting from the near ground-level perspective of our jeeps, rather than 10 feet above the ground on an elephant's back. However, if we have the option of booking one or more elephants for a morning, anyone wishing to take advantage of this opportunity will be paying extra. The price on this will depend upon the park, and the number of photographers per elephant back. We suggest everyone bringing along extra money in case they wish to do one or more additional elephant rides. More details on this will be forwarded to registered participants.
The park is a mixture of bamboo, grassland, and a complex of deciduous forests. There are at least 150 species of birds in the park, along with several great mammals. This may be the best of all India parks for tigers, but there are also sloth bears, langur monkeys, wild boar, and three species of deer - chital, sambar, and barking deer.
We will be providing our tour participants with a thorough outline of the best shooting opportunities, and what subjects to concentrate on, in this outstanding park.
Park Two
Park Two is a more popular and more highly visited park, and offers a variety of species including tigers and leopards, cheetal, Indian bison or gaur, barking deer, sambhar deer, and the endangered Barasingha deer. The habitat is similar in many ways to Park One, with a mixture of grassy plains and sal forests.
Tiger Shows, the 'Sher Darshan,'may be offered here, but whether or not elephant rides will be offered or available (sometimes film crews take all the elephants) won't be known until we get there.
Park Three
Although we did not see many tigers here (on Trip One we had only one, but a tigress with five cubs on Trip Two), Park Three would have been everyone's (in 2011) favorite park had we had more luck. The shooting potential was the best, with many waterholes and open forests. It has a large diversity of wildlife, including leopard, tiger, jungle cat, dhole (wild dog), sloth bear, wild boar, mongoose, gaur (a huge bovine that may be the ancestor to all cattle), and the highest density of herbivores, including cheetal (spotted deer), and sambar.
There are at least 250 species of birds found in the diverse habitats, which is composed of grasslands, open canopy mixed forests, riverine forest systems, and rolling hills.
Our Itinerary
Day 1, - Depart US or departure city
Day 2, - Arrive in Delhi
Welcome dinner and meeting.
Overnight - The Claridges Hotel.
Visit http://www.claridges-hotels.com/delhi/ to check out
our beautiful hotel in Delhi.
Day 3, Delhi
Recover from jet-lag or tour the city or engage in other personal activities. In the afternoon we'll visit some markets, including a silver market where the photographic opportunities are stellar. Nearby, there is also a 'gray market' camera market where anything can be purchased - sans boxed -- at the best prices anywhere. If you're short on gear ....
Overnight - The Claridges Hotel
Day 4, March 3- Delhi - Park One
We'll leave the hotel after an early breakfast for our flight to our destination city, where we will meet our fleet of SUVs that will transport us to our first Park.
Flight times are not determined at the time and we may arrive in the mid-afternoon or late evening.
Overnight - Our Lodge within minutes of Park One.
Day 5 to 9, - Park One
Game drives morning and evening for tigers and other wildlife. This is a great place for tigers, and we're likely to see any or all of our tigers in this park. However, there is a host of other species to photograph here, especially rhesus macaque monkeys, spotted deer, langur monkeys, wild hogs, and a variety of birds.
For anyone who wishes, if Tiger Show elephants are available it may be possible to book an elephant for the entire day. This is expensive and we did not include this as part of our tour, but it may be an option for someone who desires to spend more time on elephants, for whatever reason. Refer to the notes above, and further details on these elephant safaris will be forwarded to registered participants as information comes in.
Overnights - Our Lodge.
Our lodges in Park One and Park Two are owned by the tour
operator we'll be using. You're looking at a bedroom, eating area,
looking out at the grounds, and a porch outdoor relaxing and viewing area.
Day 10, - Park One to Park Two
We'll do the usual morning game drive before returning to the lodge for a brunch. Afterwards, we'll load up our fleet of SUVs and begin our 5 hour drive to our next destination, Park Two. We'll arrive in the early evening, hopefully in time to watch the Indian Giant Flying Squirrel swoop overhead!
Overnight - Our Lodge
Day 11 to 15, Park Two
We'll be doing morning and evening game drives through Park Two's varied habitats, and if the Tiger Shows are available we're likely to do at least one of these. Shooting from elephant back does give a photographer the opportunity to film tigers (if found) when they've come to rest for the day off track, but the shooting is generally at an angle, and sometimes a steep angle at that. Remember, an elephant tiger show is not guaranteed, but the opportunity to ride and elephant and photograph a tiger upclose is fun and can be very productive. But that depends upon exactly where a tiger happens to be!
Most of our participants felt that Park Two was their favorite park, and it was Mary and mine. The topography is diverse, as is the habitat. Here we'll have our first chance at photographing the largest cow-like animal in the world, the Indian Gaur or Indian Bison, an enormous, black animal with white stockings. Five other large herbivores are here, including the elk-like Sambar and the plentiful Spotted Deer. Indian Wild Dogs or Dholes, Sloth Bears, Leopards, Golden Jackals, as well as various mongooses, Langur Monkeys, and great birds are potential, if not very likely, subjects.
As it was in Park One, for anyone who wishes,it may be possible to book an elephant for the entire day or for the morning. These bookings cannot be done more than a few days in advance, for the reasons outlined above. In the past, we have done full-morning elephant rides at Park One, with mixed success. Refer to the notes above, and further details on these elephant safaris will be forwarded to registered participants as information comes in.
Overnights - Our Lodge
One of the lounges at Park One, and tea time overlooking the grounds.
Day 16, - Park Two to Park Three
We'll have our final morning game drive in Park Two before returning for a late brunch. After packing our fleet of SUVs we'll embark on our five hour drive to our final park. At this point, we are expecting that our outfitter's new, small, and private camp will be available.
This Park, Park Three, has the potential of being our favorite park. The topography is varied, there are numerous waterholes, and the forest is quite open, giving a tended, park-like quality to the forest, which provides wonderful visibility for animals deeper in the forest. In 2011, there were 15 different tiger cubs in this park of varying ages, and also the possibility of tiger shows.
Leopards, Gaur, Sambar, Spotted Deer, Langur and Macaque Monkeys, Golden Jackals, Wild Dogs, and Sloth Bears are all found here. In 2011 we only had one sighting of the numerous tigers found here, but that bit of bad luck provided us with the opportunity to round out our portfolio with all of the other Indian wildlife subjects. Birds are diverse, with various kingfishers, wading birds, and songbirds and raptors all accessible.
Overnight - Our Lodge, if available, or a luxury tented camp -
details to be determined.
Day 17 - 19, Park Three
We'll do morning and afternoon game drives, and may have another opportunity for an elephant tiger show safari. Park Three has a wide variety of wildlife, and although it probably has fewer tigers than our other two parks we'll be ready to fill in our portfolios with the other animals and birds found here.
Overnights - Our Lodge, if available, or a luxury tented camp -
details to be determined.
Day 20, - Park Three to Delhi
For those not going on with the extension, we'll have an early morning transfer to the airport to board a flight to Delhi, arriving in the late morning in Delhi where you will have a day room until 9PM that evening. You'll have a Farewell Dinner before transfering to Indira Gandhi International Airport for your flight home.
Day Room - Radisson Hotel
For those doing the extension, scroll down to the bottom of this brochure.
Day 21 - Delhi to Home
In the late hours of Day 19 we'll transfer to the airport and board flights for home.
The Tour Price is $ $8,599
add. $1850 for extension (see below)
Single Supplement - add. $2,495
Our Tour Cost Includes
Accommodations on double/twin sharing basis
Meals in Delhi - Breakfasts and Welcome Dinner on Day 2 and 3
Tips for the jeep drivers, mahots, and our English-speaking guides
All Meals and Accommodations while on Safari, Day 4 - 19
Service of English speaking resident naturalists in each park
Jeep safaris, with 2 per vehicle
Four Elephant safaris (tiger shows) subject to availablity
Farewell dinner at 'The Great Kebab Factory' in Delhi
Airfare for domestic flight to our destination city and back to Delhi
All transfers - from airport to hotel in Delhi and to airport
Our Tour Cost does not include
Insurance fees
International Airfare
Any pre-trip excursions, to Agra or elsewhere.
Expenditures of a personal nature, including drinks, laundary, phone calls,
alcoholic beverages, tips
Any sudden and unforeseen increase in price due to an increase in Park Fees, Fuel Costs, or Government Tax Policies beyound our control, acts of god, natural calamity, law and order situations, riots, or forced changes in itinerary due to situations or reasons beyond our control
A Final Important Note
While we make every effort to provide you with success, we are dealing with wild animals and your luck -- be it with the animals, with a driver or guide, with a assigned route your vehicle is arbitrarily given by the Park authorities on a given day, any of these things and more-- is out of our control. Further, we run our trips for the benefit of the group, not a lone individual, and all of our decisions and actions are based upon the group's well being and success, and not to catering to a single individual. This model has worked wonderfully for us for over 25 years of doing photo tours, but if you are accustomed to having your own way or calling your own shots then do the trip by yourself, or pick another tour.
As with any International trip, we strongly recommend you purchase travel trip insurance.
Optional Extention to National Park
Day 20 -
Park Three to Park Four
This extension applies to Trip One
At this point we are determining where we will be offering an extension, at the conclusion of the trip. As of early April, that will be to our Park Four, excellent for Dhole, or Indian Wild Dogs, and Sloth Bears, and the details are below.
IF You do our Extension
For those doing the extension we'll leave early for our drive to Park Four after having a breakfast and tearful farewell for anyone leaving us! We'll have a morning drive to reach our next destination, one of the newest of India's parks with some of the most diverse group of predators found anywhere.
This unique park probably sports the most spectacular habitat and landscapes of any park in the Project Tiger system, and as a new park it is almost unvisited. On the negative, tiger sightings are not common and the road system is not as well developed as in other parks, but on the positive side the wildlife sightings have been very good, and there are few tourists to contend with. Satpura has the promise of becoming one of the best locations for wildlife viewing, and there is the opportunity to go through the park in many ways.
Left: The rare four-horned antelope.
The park has an elevation of 320-1,352m with tall sandstone mountains, narrow gorges, ravines, water falls, streams and dense forests near the Mahadev hills in the Pachmarhi plateau. The area boasts two unique species of trees – the sal and the teak besides a wide variety of ferns, mango trees, butterflies and birds. Upon arrival at Park Four we will check into our lodge, a stylish environmentally friendly lodge that is engaged with the park management and the local community in a pioneering effort to create an
unprecedented jungle experience in one of the most exciting tiger habitats in the
world. This is an effort to create an exceptional wilderness experience for those
who truly revel in wild places far from the jeep borne hordes that have defaced so many other parks. Lunch and afternoon visit to the park by 4x4 Jeep with an
English-speaking Naturalist.
Whether or not we'll have the time or energy to avail ourselves of the options, we'll have the chance to canoe, kayak, hike, use elephants, jeep, or stay in blinds. In 2011 we only did jeep rides or boat trips for water birds, because the jeep rides were too productive -- for wild dogs and sloth bears and guars, for us to risk doing anything else.
Dinner and overnights at our Lodge.
Day 20 - 22
Park Four
We will have the options of Game drives / walking safarsi / elephant safaris / or bush walk at and around camp or village walk.
One of the greatest attractions are the wild dogs, perhaps the most common in this park, and the Sloth Bear, which is unique in often having their cubs riding upon their mother's back. After over two full weeks of 'tiger hunting' and photographing the major animal species, Park Four may offer a very refreshing change and an opportunity to film species not normally seen. I'm looking at this extension as a great way to round out my Indian wildlife portfolio!
As I mentioned above, there are a lot of activities one can do and the trick, truly, will be deciding upon what we, or you, individually, wish to do! If the wildlife viewing is great by jeep, or elephant, we may devote all of our time to that, but the canoeing and kayaking opportunities sound very interesting, too.
Overnight at our lodge
Day 23
Park Four - Bhopal - Delhi
Early morning drive to Bhopal Airport to board our flight for Delhi (a 3.5 hour flight), arriving approximately at 11:50AM. On arrival we'll transfer to our hotel for a day room until 9PM. We'll have a farewell dinner at the Indira Gandhi International Pairpor before your flight home.
Day 24
Delhi-Onward Journey
On time transfer to the Airport for your flight back home
Optional Extension Price:
$1,850
Our Extension cost includes:
Accommodation on double / twin sharing basis at hotels mentioned above or in
similar category.
Your accommodation at our lodge includes all meals i.e. breakfast,
Lunch & Dinner with morning and evening tea with cookies.
Services of Air Conditioned Car / Toyta Innova / Tempo Traveler / Mini Coach for
transfers in Delhi & Services of air Conditioned Toyota Innovas/Sumo for drives-
depending up the number of guests.
Services of English speaking resident naturalist in the park.
Jeep Safaris (sits 2 in a jeep)/elephant safari / boat ride / Village walks as mentioned in itinerary inclusive of entry fee to park, resident naturalist services. (Elephant Ride is subject to availability)
Farewell Dinner at restaurant in Delhi.
Cost does not include:
Any additional Airfare, any insurance fee
Anything not mentioned in inclusion above.
Any pre-trip excursions, to Agra or elsewhere.
Any expenditure of personal nature like tabled drinks, laundry, telephone calls, soft/hard drinks, Tips.
Any sudden increase in price due to steep hike in park Entry Fee, steep hike in fuel cost, change in government tax policy or for any reason beyond our control like acts of god, natural calamity, law and order situation, riots etc and any forced change in itinerary for any unforeseen situation or reason beyond our control.
As with any International trip, we strongly recommend you purchase travel trip insurance.
Contact us by e-mail: info@hoothollow.com
Phone us at 717-543-6423
Or FAX us at: (717) 543-5342
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Tigers!
In 2011 on our first scouting tours our participants had 25 tigers on the first
tour, and 54 tigers on the second. We are visiting THE BEST tiger locations.
We also had Indian Wild Dogs, Sloth Bears, Leopards, all of India's big game.
The Ultimate Tiger Safari
covering three of India's best natural history
and tiger national parks.
Our itinerary is almost entirely devoted to in-field photography of India's wildlife,
at three of the Best Parks for Tigers.
Park One -
with one of the largest concentrations of tigers in India, where, on one trip, we had 31 tigers in 5 days!
Park Two-
one of the big 'four' for viewing tigers (Park One is in that four, too), with a wide diversity of herbivores as well. In 2011 this was everyone's favorite park!
Park Three -
with the highest density of herbivores of any Indian park, and with sloth bears, dhole (Asiatic wild dog), leopards, and tigers. In 2011 we had all of the above species.
Dates - Trip One
February 28 - March 16, 2012
Extension to Park Four: March 16-20, 2012
Trip Two
March 20 - April 6, 2012
Nepal Extension for People and Rhinos
April 6 - 15, 2012
*Cancelled*
Limited to Ten Participants
Price: $8599
(add $1850 for extension)
Based on a tour of ten participants.
A sliding scale must be levied for a tour
of four or six participants (see end of brochure for details).
What are the three Parks? Details will be provided to registered participants, with the option of cancelling at that point if you wish. Frankly, this trip is too great to risk providing information to those simply wishing to copy our itinerary -- and that happens too often. Trust us, the tiger possibilities are incredible.
No one is offering a more complete, tiger and wildlife intensive photo safari.
Optional Extension to Park Four!
Scroll to the end of the brochure
Because of our self-imposed limitation of two photographers per jeep we will be accepting participants on a first come/first serve basis, and the last participant, if the fifth, or seventh, or ninth participant, will not be guaranteed a spot until the sixth or eighth or tenth participant registers. You will be first on the list as another participant registers, but we cannot have a one or a three person jeep.
All photos in this brochure were taken on our 2011 photo tours. To have an even better idea
of the wealth of photo subjects, and opportunities, please check out the portfolios from our
participants as well!
The following Portfolios will be posted soon, revealing the beauty and wildlife diversity of this trip:
Pat Collin's Portfolio
Eric Grossman's Portfolio
John Mullin's Portfolio
Bill Sailer's Portfolio
Tom Wester's Portfolio
Joe and Mary Ann McDonald's Bird Portfolio
and our Wildlife Portfolio
Some History ...
This is the ultimate tiger trip, visiting three of the best tiger parks without wasting time in cities, as each park is within driving distance of the next. After a tremendous amount of research, we've designed an itinerary that maximizes our chances of photographing tigers, as well as much of India's other exciting wildlife.
For years, friends have been urging Mary and I to do a trip to India and in 2011 we decided, after a 20 year lapse, to return. We visited the three parks featured in this itinerary, and, after only a few days of being on safari, we knew we'd be returning and including India in our permanent schedule. Our outfitter was wonderful, the camps were great, and the wildlife was superb. We were hooked.
These tigers, and the second tiger shown in the brochure (see top)
are our photos from our first trip. Just had to add some of our tiger shots, too!
What Parks are we visiting?
I'm sorry to be so mysterious about this but India's parks are crowded. Some parks have a per day limit to the number of vehicles, requiring booking spots long in advance.
We've put a tremendous amount of time and effort into researching our trip, deciding upon which parks to visit, how long, and what operators and guides to use, and we feel that knowledge and expertise should solely benefit those doing our trips, and not someone who copies our information off of the internet and leads a trip based upon our information. That is not fair to photographers seeking the best, and it is not fair to us for enduring the theft. According, we are just referring to these parks as Park One, Two, and Three. Registered participants will receive full details on all of the parks, but quite frankly, those locations are not essential for making your decision. The images will speak for themselves, as will the tiger numbers.
Trust me, these are the three best parks for tiger photography! Each park is slightly different in terms of habitat and the general composition of the wildlife, and in that way our tour will provide a tremendous portfolio of wildlife opportunities. To obtain a very, very accurate account of our India Tiger Photo Safaris, please read either our Trip One Report Summary, Trip Two Report Summary, or the day-by-day journal for either Trip One or Trip Two. In those very lengthy reports, all of the triumphs, frustrations, and experiences are included -- warts and all!
To get the absolute most out of these safaris, or any of our
offerings, consider taking one of our Complete Digital Nature
Photo Courses, in Pennsylvania next summer!
Special Features of Our India Tiger Photo Safari
1. The best three National Parks for Tiger Photography
2.
Two photographers per vehicle.
3. We rotate people per vehicle to insure group cohesiveness (see below)
4. Four 'Tiger Shows' included, subject to availability
5. All normal tips and gratuities
6. Internal flights from Delhi (1) and back (1)
7. CD or DVD of the group's images (subject to participation)
8. Customized book of the best images (subject to participation)
See below for more details.
9. Customized Pre-Trips available to the Taj Mahal or any other destination
(booked directly through our Indian Outfitter and not included in
the Tour Price).
Langur monkeys, a large, tame, and common primate around many
of the park entrances and throughout the forests.
I
n 2012, the park with the greatest tiger possibilities should also have several female tigers with young cubs! In 2011 these females had cubs ranging in age from 18 to 24 months, and within the next few months these young tigers will be out on their own. We fully expect that at least some of these tigresses will have very young cubs by the time of our 2012 tours, offering fantastic photo opportunities! Another park, with the second greatest number of tiger sightings, should also have new cubs. And the third park will have cubs that are nearly full grown, and semi-independent, providing the possibility of more tiger sightings.
Our Tour Operator has quite likely the most distinquished pedigree of any Indian operator, with the owner's grandfather one of the originators of Project Tiger, India's celebrated campaign to save the tiger from extinction. Our operator and his family has been in the business of wildlife tourism for decades, and the service and attention to fine detail is unmatched.
This trip is devoted to photographing India's wildlife, with a special emphasis upon photographing the Bengal tiger, the most threatened of the big cats. Except for our first full day in Delhi, where we'll have the option of doing some city touring or simply resting and getting over jet-lag, all of our time will be spent in the National Parks. We will not be spending time in cities doing tours, and our only non-Delhi city time will be as we drive from the airport to our first destination and then as we commute from park to park.
In contrast to many tours, we will be flying from Delhi to the nearest city to our first park, and flying back to Delhi at the end of the trip. Many tours cut costs, and waste time, by using the train system -- it is not worth it.
We will game-drive through the parks in jeeps with only TWO PHOTOGRAPHERS per vehicle. There will be both a guide and a driver in each vehicle, but you won't be competing with several people as we do our shooting. We also rotate people through the vehicles so that photographers have an equal opportunity to shoot with either Mary or Joe, and to experience the different guides and drivers. Lodge naturalists drive some of the vehicles, and to be fair to everyone, everyone is rotated so that all get a chance to benefit. This rotation also insures group cohesiveness, eliminating a clique or the rare chance that someone is 'stuck' with another person that they would prefer not to be with for every game drive. Spouses, or close friends, if they desire can request, upon registration, to be together for the entire safari and, if so, forgo the opportunity to shoot with Mary or Joe. This does not imply that a couple paid for the exclusive use of a vehicle, and if one sits out a game drive, and another vehicle also would end up as a single photographer, we will combine the participants into one. The reason -- the parks can be crowded, and we do not want to contribute to a potentially compromised photo situation by an unnecessary number of jeeps.
We may also have the opportunity to do some elephant back tiger viewing. These 'Sher Darshan' or tiger shows are offered at all three parks, but the tiger shows are not guaranteed. They are subject to availability, based upon whether or not a tiger was located that would be conducive to a tiger show; the number of people in the park, if a film crew has taken over all of the elephants, or if the elephants are being used for other purposes. In some parks, some weeks, no tiger shows occur, while in another park or at another time, the tiger shows may occur daily. Four tiger shows are included, with two prepaid at one park and two at another, in the cost of the tour. There are no refunds for the tiger shows if they do not occur. In the unlikely event that more than two shows are offered in a park, you will have the option of paying the fee and doing more than two.
We may also have the opportunity to book your own elephant for the entire morning for a one or two person photo experience with tigers up close. Elephants can get you closer than otherwise possible, unless a tiger comes to you (which happens, often!), but this option is expensive. Details will be provided to our registered participants, along with our complete assessment of the value and possibilities this provides.
While these elephant photo opportunities may arise, our best shooting will be from the vehicles where we'll film tigers at close to ground-level from our jeeps. These jeeps are open, so you'll be photographing either from a seated, kneeling, or standing position, depending upon how you are supporting your camera..
OUR SHOOTING PHILOSOPHY
We'll be game-driving in the best hours for seeing predators, starting our game drives before dawn and in the late afternoon prior to sunset. And, although the focus and goal of this safari is to photograph tigers, we will photograph every good wildlife and nature subject we find.
Let me repeat that -- we'll photograph everything. It is often very counter-productive to be obsessed with one subject and ignoring others while you seek one goal. While our tours have had tremendous success with tigers, these parks are not zoos, and no wildlife sighting is guaranteed. If you're not interested in anything but tigers, if you're not willing to photograph other species, if you're not prepared to 'smell the roses' and take things as they come, not rushing things and letting nature play out as it may, then do not come with us.
Left: Indian Wild Dogs, or Dhole, playing
Our shooting philosophy has been extremely successful, and even when we haven't shot our target species (which has only happened once, on an African wild dog trip) we nonetheless had a great trip.
I'm extremely confident that we'll get tigers -- we'll be there at the best time, at the best parks, but we'll be photographing wild animals that may not cooperate for us, or for you. It is possible that the jeep that you are in will be at the wrong place at the wrong time and you'll miss the best encounter, or that there will be a traffic jam of vehicles on a cat, and our shooting will be compromised. That reality can occur and you must be aware that this could happen. Indeed, it happened to me at one park on my second trip in 2011, where it seemed I was always at the wrong spot. I photographed tigers, but not like I wanted to. However, on the last game drive of that park I got my 'dream shot,' with a big male tiger walking directly to my camera as I shot from near tiger-level. I hadn't despaired, and luck finally, and really, came my way!
The Parks
We'll be visiting what I am convinced are the three best parks for tiger opportunities, and while that point could be argued, other parks in India are quite removed from one another. Our three parks are centrally located, and close enough together to be in reach for an afternoon drive, so we won't be wasting valuable field time taking a train, or flying, or driving for days to reach our next destination. You will get shooting every single day!
Park One
This may be the premiere tiger park, and may offer the best opportunities for seeing and photographing tigers. Most, if not all, of our photography will be from jeeps, although India's erratic Park's Department sometimes offers elephant ride/tiger viewing Tiger Shows. In 2011 we did some Tiger Shows here, as well as booking a full morning elephant safari.
Again, in 2012 we may also have the option of booking elephants for an entire morning, but this will be subject to availability. There are pros and cons to shooting from elephants. On the positive side, elephants can take us to locations where our jeeps cannot, and one can get very close with elephants. On the negative side, the shooting can be nearly straight down if both the elephant and the tiger is on the same plane, but it can also be at virtual eye-level if a tiger is on a hill.
Unfortunately, the access to elephants is not guaranteed, so we could not build in a trip price that included all-day elephant rides. Further, we might find that we enjoy shooting from the near ground-level perspective of our jeeps, rather than 10 feet above the ground on an elephant's back. However, if we have the option of booking one or more elephants for a morning, anyone wishing to take advantage of this opportunity will be paying extra. The price on this will depend upon the park, and the number of photographers per elephant back. We suggest everyone bringing along extra money in case they wish to do one or more additional elephant rides. More details on this will be forwarded to registered participants.
The park is a mixture of bamboo, grassland, and a complex of deciduous forests. There are at least 150 species of birds in the park, along with several great mammals. This may be the best of all India parks for tigers, but there are also sloth bears, langur monkeys, wild boar, and three species of deer - chital, sambar, and barking deer.
We will be providing our tour participants with a thorough outline of the best shooting opportunities, and what subjects to concentrate on, in this outstanding park.
Park Two
Park Two is a more popular and more highly visited park, and offers a variety of species including tigers and leopards, cheetal, Indian bison or gaur, barking deer, sambhar deer, and the endangered Barasingha deer. The habitat is similar in many ways to Park One, with a mixture of grassy plains and sal forests.
Tiger Shows, the 'Sher Darshan,'may be offered here, but whether or not elephant rides will be offered or available (sometimes film crews take all the elephants) won't be known until we get there.
Park Three
Although we did not see many tigers here (on Trip One we had only one, but a tigress with five cubs on Trip Two), Park Three would have been everyone's (in 2011) favorite park had we had more luck. The shooting potential was the best, with many waterholes and open forests. It has a large diversity of wildlife, including leopard, tiger, jungle cat, dhole (wild dog), sloth bear, wild boar, mongoose, gaur (a huge bovine that may be the ancestor to all cattle), and the highest density of herbivores, including cheetal (spotted deer), and sambar.
There are at least 250 species of birds found in the diverse habitats, which is composed of grasslands, open canopy mixed forests, riverine forest systems, and rolling hills.
Our Itinerary
Day 1, - Depart US or departure city
Day 2, - Arrive in Delhi
Welcome dinner and meeting.
Overnight - The Claridges Hotel.
Visit http://www.claridges-hotels.com/delhi/ to check out
our beautiful hotel in Delhi.
Day 3, Delhi
Recover from jet-lag or tour the city or engage in other personal activities. In the afternoon we'll visit some markets, including a silver market where the photographic opportunities are stellar. Nearby, there is also a 'gray market' camera market where anything can be purchased - sans boxed -- at the best prices anywhere. If you're short on gear ....
Overnight - The Claridges Hotel
Day 4, March 3- Delhi - Park One
We'll leave the hotel after an early breakfast for our flight to our destination city, where we will meet our fleet of SUVs that will transport us to our first Park.
Flight times are not determined at the time and we may arrive in the mid-afternoon or late evening.
Overnight - Our Lodge within minutes of Park One.
Day 5 to 9, - Park One
Game drives morning and evening for tigers and other wildlife. This is a great place for tigers, and we're likely to see any or all of our tigers in this park. However, there is a host of other species to photograph here, especially rhesus macaque monkeys, spotted deer, langur monkeys, wild hogs, and a variety of birds.
For anyone who wishes, if Tiger Show elephants are available it may be possible to book an elephant for the entire day. This is expensive and we did not include this as part of our tour, but it may be an option for someone who desires to spend more time on elephants, for whatever reason. Refer to the notes above, and further details on these elephant safaris will be forwarded to registered participants as information comes in.
Overnights - Our Lodge.
Our lodges in Park One and Park Two are owned by the tour
operator we'll be using. You're looking at a bedroom, eating area,
looking out at the grounds, and a porch outdoor relaxing and viewing area.
Day 10, - Park One to Park Two
We'll do the usual morning game drive before returning to the lodge for a brunch. Afterwards, we'll load up our fleet of SUVs and begin our 5 hour drive to our next destination, Park Two. We'll arrive in the early evening, hopefully in time to watch the Indian Giant Flying Squirrel swoop overhead!
Overnight - Our Lodge
Day 11 to 15, Park Two
We'll be doing morning and evening game drives through Park Two's varied habitats, and if the Tiger Shows are available we're likely to do at least one of these. Shooting from elephant back does give a photographer the opportunity to film tigers (if found) when they've come to rest for the day off track, but the shooting is generally at an angle, and sometimes a steep angle at that. Remember, an elephant tiger show is not guaranteed, but the opportunity to ride and elephant and photograph a tiger upclose is fun and can be very productive. But that depends upon exactly where a tiger happens to be!
Most of our participants felt that Park Two was their favorite park, and it was Mary and mine. The topography is diverse, as is the habitat. Here we'll have our first chance at photographing the largest cow-like animal in the world, the Indian Gaur or Indian Bison, an enormous, black animal with white stockings. Five other large herbivores are here, including the elk-like Sambar and the plentiful Spotted Deer. Indian Wild Dogs or Dholes, Sloth Bears, Leopards, Golden Jackals, as well as various mongooses, Langur Monkeys, and great birds are potential, if not very likely, subjects.
As it was in Park One, for anyone who wishes,it may be possible to book an elephant for the entire day or for the morning. These bookings cannot be done more than a few days in advance, for the reasons outlined above. In the past, we have done full-morning elephant rides at Park One, with mixed success. Refer to the notes above, and further details on these elephant safaris will be forwarded to registered participants as information comes in.
Overnights - Our Lodge
One of the lounges at Park One, and tea time overlooking the grounds.
Day 16, - Park Two to Park Three
We'll have our final morning game drive in Park Two before returning for a late brunch. After packing our fleet of SUVs we'll embark on our five hour drive to our final park. At this point, we are expecting that our outfitter's new, small, and private camp will be available.
This Park, Park Three, has the potential of being our favorite park. The topography is varied, there are numerous waterholes, and the forest is quite open, giving a tended, park-like quality to the forest, which provides wonderful visibility for animals deeper in the forest. In 2011, there were 15 different tiger cubs in this park of varying ages, and also the possibility of tiger shows.
Leopards, Gaur, Sambar, Spotted Deer, Langur and Macaque Monkeys, Golden Jackals, Wild Dogs, and Sloth Bears are all found here. In 2011 we only had one sighting of the numerous tigers found here, but that bit of bad luck provided us with the opportunity to round out our portfolio with all of the other Indian wildlife subjects. Birds are diverse, with various kingfishers, wading birds, and songbirds and raptors all accessible.
Overnight - Our Lodge, if available, or a luxury tented camp -
details to be determined.
Day 17 - 19, Park Three
We'll do morning and afternoon game drives, and may have another opportunity for an elephant tiger show safari. Park Three has a wide variety of wildlife, and although it probably has fewer tigers than our other two parks we'll be ready to fill in our portfolios with the other animals and birds found here.
Overnights - Our Lodge, if available, or a luxury tented camp -
details to be determined.
Day 20, - Park Three to Delhi
For those not going on with the extension, we'll have an early morning transfer to the airport to board a flight to Delhi, arriving in the late morning in Delhi where you will have a day room until 9PM that evening. You'll have a Farewell Dinner before transfering to Indira Gandhi International Airport for your flight home.
Day Room - Radisson Hotel
For those doing the extension, scroll down to the bottom of this brochure.
Day 21 - Delhi to Home
In the late hours of Day 19 we'll transfer to the airport and board flights for home.
The Tour Price is $ $8,599
add. $1850 for extension (see below)
Single Supplement - add. $2,495
Our Tour Cost Includes
Accommodations on double/twin sharing basis
Meals in Delhi - Breakfasts and Welcome Dinner on Day 2 and 3
Tips for the jeep drivers, mahots, and our English-speaking guides
All Meals and Accommodations while on Safari, Day 4 - 19
Service of English speaking resident naturalists in each park
Jeep safaris, with 2 per vehicle
Four Elephant safaris (tiger shows) subject to availablity
Farewell dinner at 'The Great Kebab Factory' in Delhi
Airfare for domestic flight to our destination city and back to Delhi
All transfers - from airport to hotel in Delhi and to airport
Our Tour Cost does not include
Insurance fees
International Airfare
Any pre-trip excursions, to Agra or elsewhere.
Expenditures of a personal nature, including drinks, laundary, phone calls,
alcoholic beverages, tips
Any sudden and unforeseen increase in price due to an increase in Park Fees, Fuel Costs, or Government Tax Policies beyound our control, acts of god, natural calamity, law and order situations, riots, or forced changes in itinerary due to situations or reasons beyond our control
A Final Important Note
While we make every effort to provide you with success, we are dealing with wild animals and your luck -- be it with the animals, with a driver or guide, with a assigned route your vehicle is arbitrarily given by the Park authorities on a given day, any of these things and more-- is out of our control. Further, we run our trips for the benefit of the group, not a lone individual, and all of our decisions and actions are based upon the group's well being and success, and not to catering to a single individual. This model has worked wonderfully for us for over 25 years of doing photo tours, but if you are accustomed to having your own way or calling your own shots then do the trip by yourself, or pick another tour.
As with any International trip, we strongly recommend you purchase travel trip insurance.
Optional Extention to National Park
Day 20 -
Park Three to Park Four
This extension applies to Trip One
At this point we are determining where we will be offering an extension, at the conclusion of the trip. As of early April, that will be to our Park Four, excellent for Dhole, or Indian Wild Dogs, and Sloth Bears, and the details are below.
IF You do our Extension
For those doing the extension we'll leave early for our drive to Park Four after having a breakfast and tearful farewell for anyone leaving us! We'll have a morning drive to reach our next destination, one of the newest of India's parks with some of the most diverse group of predators found anywhere.
This unique park probably sports the most spectacular habitat and landscapes of any park in the Project Tiger system, and as a new park it is almost unvisited. On the negative, tiger sightings are not common and the road system is not as well developed as in other parks, but on the positive side the wildlife sightings have been very good, and there are few tourists to contend with. Satpura has the promise of becoming one of the best locations for wildlife viewing, and there is the opportunity to go through the park in many ways.
Left: The rare four-horned antelope.
The park has an elevation of 320-1,352m with tall sandstone mountains, narrow gorges, ravines, water falls, streams and dense forests near the Mahadev hills in the Pachmarhi plateau. The area boasts two unique species of trees – the sal and the teak besides a wide variety of ferns, mango trees, butterflies and birds. Upon arrival at Park Four we will check into our lodge, a stylish environmentally friendly lodge that is engaged with the park management and the local community in a pioneering effort to create an
unprecedented jungle experience in one of the most exciting tiger habitats in the
world. This is an effort to create an exceptional wilderness experience for those
who truly revel in wild places far from the jeep borne hordes that have defaced so many other parks. Lunch and afternoon visit to the park by 4x4 Jeep with an
English-speaking Naturalist.
Whether or not we'll have the time or energy to avail ourselves of the options, we'll have the chance to canoe, kayak, hike, use elephants, jeep, or stay in blinds. In 2011 we only did jeep rides or boat trips for water birds, because the jeep rides were too productive -- for wild dogs and sloth bears and guars, for us to risk doing anything else.
Dinner and overnights at our Lodge.
Day 20 - 22
Park Four
We will have the options of Game drives / walking safarsi / elephant safaris / or bush walk at and around camp or village walk.
One of the greatest attractions are the wild dogs, perhaps the most common in this park, and the Sloth Bear, which is unique in often having their cubs riding upon their mother's back. After over two full weeks of 'tiger hunting' and photographing the major animal species, Park Four may offer a very refreshing change and an opportunity to film species not normally seen. I'm looking at this extension as a great way to round out my Indian wildlife portfolio!
As I mentioned above, there are a lot of activities one can do and the trick, truly, will be deciding upon what we, or you, individually, wish to do! If the wildlife viewing is great by jeep, or elephant, we may devote all of our time to that, but the canoeing and kayaking opportunities sound very interesting, too.
Overnight at our lodge
Day 23
Park Four - Bhopal - Delhi
Early morning drive to Bhopal Airport to board our flight for Delhi (a 3.5 hour flight), arriving approximately at 11:50AM. On arrival we'll transfer to our hotel for a day room until 9PM. We'll have a farewell dinner at the Indira Gandhi International Pairpor before your flight home.
Day 24
Delhi-Onward Journey
On time transfer to the Airport for your flight back home
Optional Extension Price:
$1,850
Our Extension cost includes:
Accommodation on double / twin sharing basis at hotels mentioned above or in
similar category.
Your accommodation at our lodge includes all meals i.e. breakfast,
Lunch & Dinner with morning and evening tea with cookies.
Services of Air Conditioned Car / Toyta Innova / Tempo Traveler / Mini Coach for
transfers in Delhi & Services of air Conditioned Toyota Innovas/Sumo for drives-
depending up the number of guests.
Services of English speaking resident naturalist in the park.
Jeep Safaris (sits 2 in a jeep)/elephant safari / boat ride / Village walks as mentioned in itinerary inclusive of entry fee to park, resident naturalist services. (Elephant Ride is subject to availability)
Farewell Dinner at restaurant in Delhi.
Cost does not include:
Any additional Airfare, any insurance fee
Anything not mentioned in inclusion above.
Any pre-trip excursions, to Agra or elsewhere.
Any expenditure of personal nature like tabled drinks, laundry, telephone calls, soft/hard drinks, Tips.
Any sudden increase in price due to steep hike in park Entry Fee, steep hike in fuel cost, change in government tax policy or for any reason beyond our control like acts of god, natural calamity, law and order situation, riots etc and any forced change in itinerary for any unforeseen situation or reason beyond our control.
As with any International trip, we strongly recommend you purchase travel trip insurance.
Tigers!
In 2011 on our first scouting tours our participants had 25 tigers on the first
tour, and 54 tigers on the second. We are visiting THE BEST tiger locations.
We also had Indian Wild Dogs, Sloth Bears, Leopards, all of India's big game.
The Ultimate Tiger Safari
covering three of India's best natural history
and tiger national parks.
Our itinerary is almost entirely devoted to in-field photography of India's wildlife,
at three of the Best Parks for Tigers.
Park One -
with one of the largest concentrations of tigers in India, where, on one trip, we had 31 tigers in 5 days!
Park Two-
one of the big 'four' for viewing tigers (Park One is in that four, too), with a wide diversity of herbivores as well. In 2011 this was everyone's favorite park!
Park Three -
with the highest density of herbivores of any Indian park, and with sloth bears, dhole (Asiatic wild dog), leopards, and tigers. In 2011 we had all of the above species.
Dates - Trip One
February 28 - March 16, 2012
Extension to Park Four: March 16-20, 2012
Trip Two
March 20 - April 6, 2012
Nepal Extension for People and Rhinos
April 6 - 15, 2012
*Cancelled*
Limited to Ten Participants
Price: $8599
(add $1850 for extension)
Based on a tour of ten participants.
A sliding scale must be levied for a tour
of four or six participants (see end of brochure for details).
What are the three Parks? Details will be provided to registered participants, with the option of cancelling at that point if you wish. Frankly, this trip is too great to risk providing information to those simply wishing to copy our itinerary -- and that happens too often. Trust us, the tiger possibilities are incredible.
April 6 - 15, 2012
No one is offering a more complete, tiger and wildlife intensive photo safari.
Optional Extension to Park Four!
Scroll to the end of the brochure
Because of our self-imposed limitation of two photographers per jeep we will be accepting participants on a first come/first serve basis, and the last participant, if the fifth, or seventh, or ninth participant, will not be guaranteed a spot until the sixth or eighth or tenth participant registers. You will be first on the list as another participant registers, but we cannot have a one or a three person jeep.
All photos in this brochure were taken on our 2011 photo tours. To have an even better idea
of the wealth of photo subjects, and opportunities, please check out the portfolios from our
participants as well!
The following Portfolios will be posted soon, revealing the beauty and wildlife diversity of this trip:
Pat Collin's Portfolio
Eric Grossman's Portfolio
John Mullin's Portfolio
Bill Sailer's Portfolio
Tom Wester's Portfolio
Joe and Mary Ann McDonald's Bird Portfolio
and our Wildlife Portfolio
Some History ...
This is the ultimate tiger trip, visiting three of the best tiger parks without wasting time in cities, as each park is within driving distance of the next. After a tremendous amount of research, we've designed an itinerary that maximizes our chances of photographing tigers, as well as much of India's other exciting wildlife.
For years, friends have been urging Mary and I to do a trip to India and in 2011 we decided, after a 20 year lapse, to return. We visited the three parks featured in this itinerary, and, after only a few days of being on safari, we knew we'd be returning and including India in our permanent schedule. Our outfitter was wonderful, the camps were great, and the wildlife was superb. We were hooked.
These tigers, and the second tiger shown in the brochure (see top)
are our photos from our first trip. Just had to add some of our tiger shots, too!
What Parks are we visiting?
I'm sorry to be so mysterious about this but India's parks are crowded. Some parks have a per day limit to the number of vehicles, requiring booking spots long in advance.
We've put a tremendous amount of time and effort into researching our trip, deciding upon which parks to visit, how long, and what operators and guides to use, and we feel that knowledge and expertise should solely benefit those doing our trips, and not someone who copies our information off of the internet and leads a trip based upon our information. That is not fair to photographers seeking the best, and it is not fair to us for enduring the theft. According, we are just referring to these parks as Park One, Two, and Three. Registered participants will receive full details on all of the parks, but quite frankly, those locations are not essential for making your decision. The images will speak for themselves, as will the tiger numbers.
Trust me, these are the three best parks for tiger photography! Each park is slightly different in terms of habitat and the general composition of the wildlife, and in that way our tour will provide a tremendous portfolio of wildlife opportunities. To obtain a very, very accurate account of our India Tiger Photo Safaris, please read either our Trip One Report Summary, Trip Two Report Summary, or the day-by-day journal for either Trip One or Trip Two. In those very lengthy reports, all of the triumphs, frustrations, and experiences are included -- warts and all!
To get the absolute most out of these safaris, or any of our
offerings, consider taking one of our Complete Digital Nature
Photo Courses, in Pennsylvania next summer!
Special Features of Our India Tiger Photo Safari
1. The best three National Parks for Tiger Photography
2.
Two photographers per vehicle.
3. We rotate people per vehicle to insure group cohesiveness (see below)
4. Four 'Tiger Shows' included, subject to availability
5. All normal tips and gratuities
6. Internal flights from Delhi (1) and back (1)
7. CD or DVD of the group's images (subject to participation)
8. Customized book of the best images (subject to participation)
See below for more details.
9. Customized Pre-Trips available to the Taj Mahal or any other destination
(booked directly through our Indian Outfitter and not included in
the Tour Price).
Langur monkeys, a large, tame, and common primate around many
of the park entrances and throughout the forests.
I
n 2012, the park with the greatest tiger possibilities should also have several female tigers with young cubs! In 2011 these females had cubs ranging in age from 18 to 24 months, and within the next few months these young tigers will be out on their own. We fully expect that at least some of these tigresses will have very young cubs by the time of our 2012 tours, offering fantastic photo opportunities! Another park, with the second greatest number of tiger sightings, should also have new cubs. And the third park will have cubs that are nearly full grown, and semi-independent, providing the possibility of more tiger sightings.
Our Tour Operator has quite likely the most distinquished pedigree of any Indian operator, with the owner's grandfather one of the originators of Project Tiger, India's celebrated campaign to save the tiger from extinction. Our operator and his family has been in the business of wildlife tourism for decades, and the service and attention to fine detail is unmatched.
This trip is devoted to photographing India's wildlife, with a special emphasis upon photographing the Bengal tiger, the most threatened of the big cats. Except for our first full day in Delhi, where we'll have the option of doing some city touring or simply resting and getting over jet-lag, all of our time will be spent in the National Parks. We will not be spending time in cities doing tours, and our only non-Delhi city time will be as we drive from the airport to our first destination and then as we commute from park to park.
In contrast to many tours, we will be flying from Delhi to the nearest city to our first park, and flying back to Delhi at the end of the trip. Many tours cut costs, and waste time, by using the train system -- it is not worth it.
We will game-drive through the parks in jeeps with only TWO PHOTOGRAPHERS per vehicle. There will be both a guide and a driver in each vehicle, but you won't be competing with several people as we do our shooting. We also rotate people through the vehicles so that photographers have an equal opportunity to shoot with either Mary or Joe, and to experience the different guides and drivers. Lodge naturalists drive some of the vehicles, and to be fair to everyone, everyone is rotated so that all get a chance to benefit. This rotation also insures group cohesiveness, eliminating a clique or the rare chance that someone is 'stuck' with another person that they would prefer not to be with for every game drive. Spouses, or close friends, if they desire can request, upon registration, to be together for the entire safari and, if so, forgo the opportunity to shoot with Mary or Joe. This does not imply that a couple paid for the exclusive use of a vehicle, and if one sits out a game drive, and another vehicle also would end up as a single photographer, we will combine the participants into one. The reason -- the parks can be crowded, and we do not want to contribute to a potentially compromised photo situation by an unnecessary number of jeeps.
We may also have the opportunity to do some elephant back tiger viewing. These 'Sher Darshan' or tiger shows are offered at all three parks, but the tiger shows are not guaranteed. They are subject to availability, based upon whether or not a tiger was located that would be conducive to a tiger show; the number of people in the park, if a film crew has taken over all of the elephants, or if the elephants are being used for other purposes. In some parks, some weeks, no tiger shows occur, while in another park or at another time, the tiger shows may occur daily. Four tiger shows are included, with two prepaid at one park and two at another, in the cost of the tour. There are no refunds for the tiger shows if they do not occur. In the unlikely event that more than two shows are offered in a park, you will have the option of paying the fee and doing more than two.
We may also have the opportunity to book your own elephant for the entire morning for a one or two person photo experience with tigers up close. Elephants can get you closer than otherwise possible, unless a tiger comes to you (which happens, often!), but this option is expensive. Details will be provided to our registered participants, along with our complete assessment of the value and possibilities this provides.
While these elephant photo opportunities may arise, our best shooting will be from the vehicles where we'll film tigers at close to ground-level from our jeeps. These jeeps are open, so you'll be photographing either from a seated, kneeling, or standing position, depending upon how you are supporting your camera..
OUR SHOOTING PHILOSOPHY
We'll be game-driving in the best hours for seeing predators, starting our game drives before dawn and in the late afternoon prior to sunset. And, although the focus and goal of this safari is to photograph tigers, we will photograph every good wildlife and nature subject we find.
Let me repeat that -- we'll photograph everything. It is often very counter-productive to be obsessed with one subject and ignoring others while you seek one goal. While our tours have had tremendous success with tigers, these parks are not zoos, and no wildlife sighting is guaranteed. If you're not interested in anything but tigers, if you're not willing to photograph other species, if you're not prepared to 'smell the roses' and take things as they come, not rushing things and letting nature play out as it may, then do not come with us.
Left: Indian Wild Dogs, or Dhole, playing
Our shooting philosophy has been extremely successful, and even when we haven't shot our target species (which has only happened once, on an African wild dog trip) we nonetheless had a great trip.
I'm extremely confident that we'll get tigers -- we'll be there at the best time, at the best parks, but we'll be photographing wild animals that may not cooperate for us, or for you. It is possible that the jeep that you are in will be at the wrong place at the wrong time and you'll miss the best encounter, or that there will be a traffic jam of vehicles on a cat, and our shooting will be compromised. That reality can occur and you must be aware that this could happen. Indeed, it happened to me at one park on my second trip in 2011, where it seemed I was always at the wrong spot. I photographed tigers, but not like I wanted to. However, on the last game drive of that park I got my 'dream shot,' with a big male tiger walking directly to my camera as I shot from near tiger-level. I hadn't despaired, and luck finally, and really, came my way!
The Parks
We'll be visiting what I am convinced are the three best parks for tiger opportunities, and while that point could be argued, other parks in India are quite removed from one another. Our three parks are centrally located, and close enough together to be in reach for an afternoon drive, so we won't be wasting valuable field time taking a train, or flying, or driving for days to reach our next destination. You will get shooting every single day!
Park One
This may be the premiere tiger park, and may offer the best opportunities for seeing and photographing tigers. Most, if not all, of our photography will be from jeeps, although India's erratic Park's Department sometimes offers elephant ride/tiger viewing Tiger Shows. In 2011 we did some Tiger Shows here, as well as booking a full morning elephant safari.
Again, in 2012 we may also have the option of booking elephants for an entire morning, but this will be subject to availability. There are pros and cons to shooting from elephants. On the positive side, elephants can take us to locations where our jeeps cannot, and one can get very close with elephants. On the negative side, the shooting can be nearly straight down if both the elephant and the tiger is on the same plane, but it can also be at virtual eye-level if a tiger is on a hill.
Unfortunately, the access to elephants is not guaranteed, so we could not build in a trip price that included all-day elephant rides. Further, we might find that we enjoy shooting from the near ground-level perspective of our jeeps, rather than 10 feet above the ground on an elephant's back. However, if we have the option of booking one or more elephants for a morning, anyone wishing to take advantage of this opportunity will be paying extra. The price on this will depend upon the park, and the number of photographers per elephant back. We suggest everyone bringing along extra money in case they wish to do one or more additional elephant rides. More details on this will be forwarded to registered participants.
The park is a mixture of bamboo, grassland, and a complex of deciduous forests. There are at least 150 species of birds in the park, along with several great mammals. This may be the best of all India parks for tigers, but there are also sloth bears, langur monkeys, wild boar, and three species of deer - chital, sambar, and barking deer.
We will be providing our tour participants with a thorough outline of the best shooting opportunities, and what subjects to concentrate on, in this outstanding park.
Park Two
Park Two is a more popular and more highly visited park, and offers a variety of species including tigers and leopards, cheetal, Indian bison or gaur, barking deer, sambhar deer, and the endangered Barasingha deer. The habitat is similar in many ways to Park One, with a mixture of grassy plains and sal forests.
Tiger Shows, the 'Sher Darshan,'may be offered here, but whether or not elephant rides will be offered or available (sometimes film crews take all the elephants) won't be known until we get there.
Park Three
Although we did not see many tigers here (on Trip One we had only one, but a tigress with five cubs on Trip Two), Park Three would have been everyone's (in 2011) favorite park had we had more luck. The shooting potential was the best, with many waterholes and open forests. It has a large diversity of wildlife, including leopard, tiger, jungle cat, dhole (wild dog), sloth bear, wild boar, mongoose, gaur (a huge bovine that may be the ancestor to all cattle), and the highest density of herbivores, including cheetal (spotted deer), and sambar.
There are at least 250 species of birds found in the diverse habitats, which is composed of grasslands, open canopy mixed forests, riverine forest systems, and rolling hills.
Our Itinerary
Day 1, - Depart US or departure city
Day 2, - Arrive in Delhi
Welcome dinner and meeting.
Overnight - The Claridges Hotel.
Visit http://www.claridges-hotels.com/delhi/ to check out
our beautiful hotel in Delhi.
Day 3, Delhi
Recover from jet-lag or tour the city or engage in other personal activities. In the afternoon we'll visit some markets, including a silver market where the photographic opportunities are stellar. Nearby, there is also a 'gray market' camera market where anything can be purchased - sans boxed -- at the best prices anywhere. If you're short on gear ....
Overnight - The Claridges Hotel
Day 4, March 3- Delhi - Park One
We'll leave the hotel after an early breakfast for our flight to our destination city, where we will meet our fleet of SUVs that will transport us to our first Park.
Flight times are not determined at the time and we may arrive in the mid-afternoon or late evening.
Overnight - Our Lodge within minutes of Park One.
Day 5 to 9, - Park One
Game drives morning and evening for tigers and other wildlife. This is a great place for tigers, and we're likely to see any or all of our tigers in this park. However, there is a host of other species to photograph here, especially rhesus macaque monkeys, spotted deer, langur monkeys, wild hogs, and a variety of birds.
For anyone who wishes, if Tiger Show elephants are available it may be possible to book an elephant for the entire day. This is expensive and we did not include this as part of our tour, but it may be an option for someone who desires to spend more time on elephants, for whatever reason. Refer to the notes above, and further details on these elephant safaris will be forwarded to registered participants as information comes in.
Overnights - Our Lodge.
Our lodges in Park One and Park Two are owned by the tour
operator we'll be using. You're looking at a bedroom, eating area,
looking out at the grounds, and a porch outdoor relaxing and viewing area.
Day 10, - Park One to Park Two
We'll do the usual morning game drive before returning to the lodge for a brunch. Afterwards, we'll load up our fleet of SUVs and begin our 5 hour drive to our next destination, Park Two. We'll arrive in the early evening, hopefully in time to watch the Indian Giant Flying Squirrel swoop overhead!
Overnight - Our Lodge
Day 11 to 15, Park Two
We'll be doing morning and evening game drives through Park Two's varied habitats, and if the Tiger Shows are available we're likely to do at least one of these. Shooting from elephant back does give a photographer the opportunity to film tigers (if found) when they've come to rest for the day off track, but the shooting is generally at an angle, and sometimes a steep angle at that. Remember, an elephant tiger show is not guaranteed, but the opportunity to ride and elephant and photograph a tiger upclose is fun and can be very productive. But that depends upon exactly where a tiger happens to be!
Most of our participants felt that Park Two was their favorite park, and it was Mary and mine. The topography is diverse, as is the habitat. Here we'll have our first chance at photographing the largest cow-like animal in the world, the Indian Gaur or Indian Bison, an enormous, black animal with white stockings. Five other large herbivores are here, including the elk-like Sambar and the plentiful Spotted Deer. Indian Wild Dogs or Dholes, Sloth Bears, Leopards, Golden Jackals, as well as various mongooses, Langur Monkeys, and great birds are potential, if not very likely, subjects.
As it was in Park One, for anyone who wishes,it may be possible to book an elephant for the entire day or for the morning. These bookings cannot be done more than a few days in advance, for the reasons outlined above. In the past, we have done full-morning elephant rides at Park One, with mixed success. Refer to the notes above, and further details on these elephant safaris will be forwarded to registered participants as information comes in.
Overnights - Our Lodge
One of the lounges at Park One, and tea time overlooking the grounds.
Day 16, - Park Two to Park Three
We'll have our final morning game drive in Park Two before returning for a late brunch. After packing our fleet of SUVs we'll embark on our five hour drive to our final park. At this point, we are expecting that our outfitter's new, small, and private camp will be available.
This Park, Park Three, has the potential of being our favorite park. The topography is varied, there are numerous waterholes, and the forest is quite open, giving a tended, park-like quality to the forest, which provides wonderful visibility for animals deeper in the forest. In 2011, there were 15 different tiger cubs in this park of varying ages, and also the possibility of tiger shows.
Leopards, Gaur, Sambar, Spotted Deer, Langur and Macaque Monkeys, Golden Jackals, Wild Dogs, and Sloth Bears are all found here. In 2011 we only had one sighting of the numerous tigers found here, but that bit of bad luck provided us with the opportunity to round out our portfolio with all of the other Indian wildlife subjects. Birds are diverse, with various kingfishers, wading birds, and songbirds and raptors all accessible.
Overnight - Our Lodge, if available, or a luxury tented camp -
details to be determined.
Day 17 - 19, Park Three
We'll do morning and afternoon game drives, and may have another opportunity for an elephant tiger show safari. Park Three has a wide variety of wildlife, and although it probably has fewer tigers than our other two parks we'll be ready to fill in our portfolios with the other animals and birds found here.
Overnights - Our Lodge, if available, or a luxury tented camp -
details to be determined.
Day 20, - Park Three to Delhi
For those not going on with the extension, we'll have an early morning transfer to the airport to board a flight to Delhi, arriving in the late morning in Delhi where you will have a day room until 9PM that evening. You'll have a Farewell Dinner before transfering to Indira Gandhi International Airport for your flight home.
Day Room - Radisson Hotel
For those doing the extension, scroll down to the bottom of this brochure.
Day 21 - Delhi to Home
In the late hours of Day 19 we'll transfer to the airport and board flights for home.
The Tour Price is $ $8,599
add. $1850 for extension (see below)
Single Supplement - add. $2,495
Our Tour Cost Includes
Accommodations on double/twin sharing basis
Meals in Delhi - Breakfasts and Welcome Dinner on Day 2 and 3
Tips for the jeep drivers, mahots, and our English-speaking guides
All Meals and Accommodations while on Safari, Day 4 - 19
Service of English speaking resident naturalists in each park
Jeep safaris, with 2 per vehicle
Four Elephant safaris (tiger shows) subject to availablity
Farewell dinner at 'The Great Kebab Factory' in Delhi
Airfare for domestic flight to our destination city and back to Delhi
All transfers - from airport to hotel in Delhi and to airport
Our Tour Cost does not include
Insurance fees
International Airfare
Any pre-trip excursions, to Agra or elsewhere.
Expenditures of a personal nature, including drinks, laundary, phone calls,
alcoholic beverages, tips
Any sudden and unforeseen increase in price due to an increase in Park Fees, Fuel Costs, or Government Tax Policies beyound our control, acts of god, natural calamity, law and order situations, riots, or forced changes in itinerary due to situations or reasons beyond our control
A Final Important Note
While we make every effort to provide you with success, we are dealing with wild animals and your luck -- be it with the animals, with a driver or guide, with a assigned route your vehicle is arbitrarily given by the Park authorities on a given day, any of these things and more-- is out of our control. Further, we run our trips for the benefit of the group, not a lone individual, and all of our decisions and actions are based upon the group's well being and success, and not to catering to a single individual. This model has worked wonderfully for us for over 25 years of doing photo tours, but if you are accustomed to having your own way or calling your own shots then do the trip by yourself, or pick another tour.
As with any International trip, we strongly recommend you purchase travel trip insurance.
Optional Extention to National Park
Day 20 -
Park Three to Park Four
This extension applies to Trip One
At this point we are determining where we will be offering an extension, at the conclusion of the trip. As of early April, that will be to our Park Four, excellent for Dhole, or Indian Wild Dogs, and Sloth Bears, and the details are below.
IF You do our Extension
For those doing the extension we'll leave early for our drive to Park Four after having a breakfast and tearful farewell for anyone leaving us! We'll have a morning drive to reach our next destination, one of the newest of India's parks with some of the most diverse group of predators found anywhere.
This unique park probably sports the most spectacular habitat and landscapes of any park in the Project Tiger system, and as a new park it is almost unvisited. On the negative, tiger sightings are not common and the road system is not as well developed as in other parks, but on the positive side the wildlife sightings have been very good, and there are few tourists to contend with. Satpura has the promise of becoming one of the best locations for wildlife viewing, and there is the opportunity to go through the park in many ways.
Left: The rare four-horned antelope.
The park has an elevation of 320-1,352m with tall sandstone mountains, narrow gorges, ravines, water falls, streams and dense forests near the Mahadev hills in the Pachmarhi plateau. The area boasts two unique species of trees – the sal and the teak besides a wide variety of ferns, mango trees, butterflies and birds. Upon arrival at Park Four we will check into our lodge, a stylish environmentally friendly lodge that is engaged with the park management and the local community in a pioneering effort to create an
unprecedented jungle experience in one of the most exciting tiger habitats in the
world. This is an effort to create an exceptional wilderness experience for those
who truly revel in wild places far from the jeep borne hordes that have defaced so many other parks. Lunch and afternoon visit to the park by 4x4 Jeep with an
English-speaking Naturalist.
Whether or not we'll have the time or energy to avail ourselves of the options, we'll have the chance to canoe, kayak, hike, use elephants, jeep, or stay in blinds. In 2011 we only did jeep rides or boat trips for water birds, because the jeep rides were too productive -- for wild dogs and sloth bears and guars, for us to risk doing anything else.
Dinner and overnights at our Lodge.
Day 20 - 22
Park Four
We will have the options of Game drives / walking safarsi / elephant safaris / or bush walk at and around camp or village walk.
One of the greatest attractions are the wild dogs, perhaps the most common in this park, and the Sloth Bear, which is unique in often having their cubs riding upon their mother's back. After over two full weeks of 'tiger hunting' and photographing the major animal species, Park Four may offer a very refreshing change and an opportunity to film species not normally seen. I'm looking at this extension as a great way to round out my Indian wildlife portfolio!
As I mentioned above, there are a lot of activities one can do and the trick, truly, will be deciding upon what we, or you, individually, wish to do! If the wildlife viewing is great by jeep, or elephant, we may devote all of our time to that, but the canoeing and kayaking opportunities sound very interesting, too.
Overnight at our lodge
Day 23
Park Four - Bhopal - Delhi
Early morning drive to Bhopal Airport to board our flight for Delhi (a 3.5 hour flight), arriving approximately at 11:50AM. On arrival we'll transfer to our hotel for a day room until 9PM. We'll have a farewell dinner at the Indira Gandhi International Pairpor before your flight home.
Day 24
Delhi-Onward Journey
On time transfer to the Airport for your flight back home
Optional Extension Price:
$1,850
Our Extension cost includes:
Accommodation on double / twin sharing basis at hotels mentioned above or in
similar category.
Your accommodation at our lodge includes all meals i.e. breakfast,
Lunch & Dinner with morning and evening tea with cookies.
Services of Air Conditioned Car / Toyta Innova / Tempo Traveler / Mini Coach for
transfers in Delhi & Services of air Conditioned Toyota Innovas/Sumo for drives-
depending up the number of guests.
Services of English speaking resident naturalist in the park.
Jeep Safaris (sits 2 in a jeep)/elephant safari / boat ride / Village walks as mentioned in itinerary inclusive of entry fee to park, resident naturalist services. (Elephant Ride is subject to availability)
Farewell Dinner at restaurant in Delhi.
Cost does not include:
Any additional Airfare, any insurance fee
Anything not mentioned in inclusion above.
Any pre-trip excursions, to Agra or elsewhere.
Any expenditure of personal nature like tabled drinks, laundry, telephone calls, soft/hard drinks, Tips.
Any sudden increase in price due to steep hike in park Entry Fee, steep hike in fuel cost, change in government tax policy or for any reason beyond our control like acts of god, natural calamity, law and order situation, riots etc and any forced change in itinerary for any unforeseen situation or reason beyond our control.
As with any International trip, we strongly recommend you purchase travel trip insurance.
Contact us by e-mail: info@hoothollow.com
Phone us at 717-543-6423
Or FAX us at: (717) 543-5342
