Chasing Tigers

Our second safari in Ranthambore took us to a different section of the park. The entrance that is presided over by the immense fort that sits on top of a mountain plateau. As we headed into section 3 it became clear that this was the "better" section - the road was a bit smoother and the guide spoke significantly better English then the morning one. And so we proceeded to drive around the lake, stopping to look at a variety of birds, multiple crocodiles and various deer/antelope. Then we parked in a central section and waited, taking in the nature sounds (and no other sounds) until "Hold on!" And off we went. Bumping down the tracks at high speed, halting at a cross section until another jeep passed by, deciding to go off into the other sector ( the one we weren't cleared for) only to see another jeep of people holding their arms in the air giving a thumbs up. Sadly the tiger had just crossed over the road and was now hidden among the thick bushes of the jungle. S back off to our section we scooted patrolling the road on the other side of that patch of greenery hoping he might exit on our side. 

After a while we gave up and went to sit back in a central location. As our guide and driver discussed if we needed to head out a couple of jeeps ahead of us suddenly started tearing off down the track and the command came again "Hold on!" We were off on a tiger chase. Although this time as we tore down the dirt paths dust was getting sprayed up by the jeeps ahead of us. I closed my eyes to protect them only to find that a horrible idea as we took corners at high speeds and hit bumps that sent both mom and I off our seat. Perhaps I needed to keep them open so that I could brace myself against the route. We were in a race against the clock as we were supposed to be out of the park at 6pm, 10 minutes later. As we slid to a halt and turned off the jeep I climbed up on the roll bar and balanced myself (with mom's help) to peer down into the creek bed where a large majestic male tiger was resting. It's a tiger! They are almost mesmerizing  in their regal bearing, capturing your attention and keeping it. We started to leave only to hear that it was beginning to move and so we backed up, watched it sit up then slink through the grass until it crossed the road directly in front of our jeep. Pausing to pose as if to say "Yes, I know I'm the most important thing in this part of the forest." We might have been late leaving the park, and needed someone to open the gates for us (for a bribe? Or a fine?) but I was so excited I was practically bouncing in my seat, the refrain of "We saw a tiger! We saw a tiger!" repeating in my head.