Earlier this month my five friends and I left for Jim Corbett National Park, my second visit after a gap of six years. The trip was fantastic and we couldn’t have asked for more.
But it also brought back memories of a particular incident that took place the last time I went there with another group of friends. This is what happened:
It was a chilly January morning when we left Delhi for the park. As we reached Ramnagar, 50 kms short of Corbett at around 3 p.m. we realized that the gates for Corbet were already closed and we would have to spend the night in Ramnagar.
However, a visit to the local Uttarakhand tourism office and we were more than happy after learning what was on offer. Open air camping next to the Ramganga river, bonfire and booze—we were not going anywhere!
But as it was only 4 p.m. we decided to pass the time by going for a drive in the nearby Sitavani jungles. So, as we drove on the serpentine road deep into the woods we spotted a number of deers, peacocks, wild hens and exotic birds.
After driving for about half an hour, we saw a narrow valley covered with pebbles and moss that led to the river. So, all of us decided to go downhill. We frolicked in the ice cold water, chatted and smoked some cigarettes for about an hour or so and as it started to get dark, we decided to get back to the camp.
We got up and headed towards our car parked up the hill. As we reached the road we saw a couple of auto rickshaws parked behind our car and some locals talking to our driver. Concerned, we approached them and enquired what the matter was?
I could tell by their faces that they were delighted to see us all ALIVE! Because what they told us sent a chill down our spines.
According to them, the whole area that we were returning from was infested by poisonous snakes, lizards, scorpions and several other reptiles. On top of that jackals and wild elephants use to frequent that portion of river to drink water.
They had tried calling us but obviously we couldn’t hear them as we were a bit deep in the jungle and none of them dared to venture down the hill to inform us in person.
Flustered, we thanked our stars sat in the car and drove away. That memory is still in the back of our minds.
