While Rishi’s 14 hour work schedule was taking a toll on his health, no birding in the past 6 months meant that we had to plan something quick, eventually settling on Vietnam which was a short hop from India and had several endemic birds with unfortunately, an uncertain future. The trip was largely a success […]
Author: Anjana and Rishi
Of fjords and the midnight sun
In the backdrop of some radio noise about a virus breakout in Wuhan, we booked our flights to Kirkenes in March 2020 believing that this will be over by May. Little did we know that CoV-19 would ground us for a while. This was also the time when business ethics were put to test and […]
Seychelles, Mauritius & Réunion
We still vaguely remember seeing a long tailed bird at La Digue in 2010 but never thought that this bird would call us back to the islands after 12 long years. This eventually happened during the 2022 Diwali holidays and with the help of cloudbirder trip reports, we chalked out an itinerary covering Seychelles, Mauritius […]
Mata Atlântica
South America was always very far for us, however our urge to explore and being pinned to our homes due to the global travel restrictions finally made us plan a trip to South America. Amazon rainforest naturally came to our mind, however, we soon realized that for our time of travel, the Atlantic forests were […]
Namti Plains & Dehing Patkai
For the 2021 yearend vacations, we decided to visit Walong to search for the new species that were being reported from this part of the world. Binanda advised that December is not the best time for birding, however we still went ahead knowing that we will end up missing a few species. We also added […]
Where Eagles Dare
2020 went by without any travel, so as soon as we got the opportunity, we decided to search for the birds that we were missing from India. And what better way to start than Eaglenest 🙂 Birding with Khandu: The key to Eaglenest is Khandu, a local who knows the forest inside out. Khandu ended […]
Ghana
After experiencing the East African birdlife along the Albertine and Ethiopian rift valleys, we decided to visit the West African region; and Ghana fit the bill perfectly with decent infrastructure and access to most of the endemic/near endemic Upper Guinea birds. We browsed through several trip reports to get a feeling of this region and […]
Bali and East Java
While Bali is usually seen as a sun and sand destination, it was the birds that drove us to visit this beautiful island. A short ferry ride across the Javan Strait also gave us an opportunity to explore the birdlife of the East Javan forests, thus enabling us to see many more birds of this […]
Khao Yai and Kaeng Krachan
Summary: For our first visit to Thailand, we focused on the easy to do birding locations and split a week equally between Khao Yai and Kaeng Krachan National Park. While there is a fair bit of overlap between the two parks, both have their own key birds and we found it worthwhile to visit both […]
Central Ethiopia
The festive holidays in India gave us an excellent opportunity to visit Ethiopia as it coincided with the near perfect birding season of the country. We were also very excited to walk the ancient land where apes may have started walking upright, thus paving the way for humans to evolve. However, as we only had […]
Mgahinga & Nyungwe
PART II: DAY 8 – DAY 10 Day 11: 6 Aug 2018 (Ruhija: Mubwindi swamp) Today we hiked to the Mubwindi swamp along with the local bird guide Amos, and managed to see the Grauer’s Swamp Warbler and several other interesting birds, but the Grauer’s Broadbill remained elusive. After the hike, we drove to the […]
Bwindi Impenetrable Forest
PART I: DAY 1 – DAY 7 Day 8: 3 Aug 2018 (Elizabeth NP – Buhoma) We left the Pumba Safari Cottages early morning in search of the Papyrus Gonolek, eventually finding the bird in a small papyrus patch along the roadside. We then drove to Buhoma via the Ishasha sector reaching the Community Rest […]
Uganda
Visiting the African continent was always on our wish list and the moment we got 15 days off work, we decided to travel to Uganda as our holidays coincided with the peak Ugandan birding season. We also added Rwanda into the plan due to its proximity to Uganda and the possibility to see a few […]
Sri Lanka
Summary: We squeezed in a birding trip to Sri Lanka just before Rishi started off with his new job and were completely blown away by the Sri Lankan hospitality and the very friendly people. As our trip coincided with the Sri Lankan New Year, we were invited on several occasions by villagers to their homes […]
The Naga Princess
Summary: An an extension to our Mishmi Hills trip, we spent three days at Khonoma and managed to see several interesting birds like the Striped Laughingthrush, Brown-capped Laughingthrush, Assam Laughingthrush and Red-faced Liocichla while the Spot-breasted Laughingthrush remained heard only. Apart from birding, we also got an opportunity to briefly experience the Angami culture and […]
The Mishmi Goddess
Summary: Our plan was to cover the Mishmi Hills and the eastern part of Assam in 10 days, however we ended up exhausting all our days at Mishmi itself due to the severe weather conditions, the ongoing road construction work and the clearing of forest for palm plantation that made birding very challenging. We still […]
Campbell Bay
PART I: Port Blair 25 Nov 2017: The journey to the Nicobar Islands We took to the sea on MV Coral Queen as the workhorse MV Campbell Bay was out for repairs and were excited with the idea of relaxing for a day or two, but once we hit the open waters, we could feel […]
Port Blair
Summary: We spent two weeks covering all the important bird areas of both the Andaman and Nicobar islands and while the weather was generally against us, we still managed to spot almost all the island endemic birds including some interesting winter migrants and several butterfly species. Travel Dates: 20 Nov 2017 – 5 Dec 2017 […]
Sabah III
29 August 2017: Day 9 (Maliau Basin) We followed the same routine as yesterday and after a filling breakfast, started off birding at 0700 Hrs and while the Black-headed Pitta was still calling from the Wildlife trail, we decided to explore the EE trail today hoping to find a few new birds. Initially, the trail […]
Sabah II
25 August 2017: Day 5 (Kinabalu Park – Crocker Range, Gunung Alab/Rafflesia Forest) Today was our last day at Kinabalu Park and we were up there at 0600 Hrs and parked our vehicle close to the intersection of the Silau-Silau and the Kiau View trail. Shifu soon picked up the calls of the Bare headed […]
Sabah
Background: After our marathon road-trip across India and a few short trips thereafter; the plan was to wait out the monsoon season at home and take some much deserved rest. However, the nomads in us were soon yearning for another adventure and to escape the Indian monsoons, the world map was spread out to scout […]
Melghat
Background: Drive to the Sahyadris The Drive 19 Feb 2017: Day 50 (Pune – Tansa – Jalgaon, 574 km, 14 Hrs) We were on a mission today and armed with credible intelligence from our friend Ronit on the area where he had spotted a Forest Owlet a few weeks ago, we set out towards the […]
Goodbye Sahyadris
Background: Drive to the Sahyadris The Drive 14 Feb 2017: Day 45 (Coimbatore – Ooty – Masinagudi – Thirunelly, 293 km, 10 Hrs) Since we were now returning back home, we decided to try our luck spotting some of the birds that we had missed out earlier and the first one on the list was […]
Chinnar and Valparai
Background: Drive to the Sahyadris The Drive 12 Feb 2017: Day 43 (Kumily – Marayoor, 150 km, 4 Hrs) After a delicious breakfast of Idiyappam, we finally commenced our long journey back home and stopped at Marayoor for the night. We reached Marayoor by 1330 Hrs and settled in at the Marayoor Holidays Guest House. […]
Periyar
Background: Drive to the Sahyadris The Drive 10 Feb 2017: Day 41 (Munnar – Kumily, 90 km, 3 Hrs) After some amazing roast dosas at Saravana Bhavan, we commenced our drive to Kumily at 0850 Hrs reaching Panthalams homestay by noon. Our very affable host, Mr. Shukkoor guided us on the various things we could […]
Munnar
Background: Drive to the Sahyadris The Drive 8 Feb 2017: Day 39 (Thattekad – Munnar, 83 km, 2 Hrs) We picked up Vinod from the sanctuary gate and commenced our drive at 0350 Hrs, reaching Munnar by 0600 Hrs. Upon reaching Munnar, we crossed the main market and parked our car near the Ganesan Temple […]
Thattekad
Background: Drive to the Sahyadris The Drive 6 Feb 2017: Day 36 (Thattekad and around) We met Vinod at 0600 Hrs at the tea stall next to the Sanctuary gate, had a quick cup of tea and drove down to the Urulanthanni forest. From here on, we hiked and Vinod led us up a massive […]
Masinagudi
Background: Drive to the Sahyadris The Drive 3 Feb 2017: Day 34 (Kotagiri – Masinagudi, 66 km, 2 Hrs) The original plan was to spend the next few days at Thattekad, but since no naturalist was available in Thattekad, we contacted Siddan, the naturalist at Masinagudi and fixed up the next few days of birding […]
Kotagiri
Background: Drive to the Sahyadris The Drive 1 Feb 2017: Day 32 (Kotagiri and around) We woke up to a chilly morning in the Nilgiris and warmed ourselves with a hot cup of aromatic tea before driving down to meet Aggal Sir and then proceeding to Sim’s Park at Coonoor. While it was still misty, […]
Thirunelly
Background: Drive to the Sahyadris The Drive 30 Jan 2017: Day 30 (Thirunelly and around) After a quick breakfast, we set out to explore the area and just wandered around the hilly terrain, but the hills were engulfed in the early morning fog making birding a little tricky. To add to this, a wild tusker […]
Kulgi Nature Camp
Background: Drive to the Sahyadris The Drive 26 Jan 2017: Day 26 (Anshi – Kulgi, 56 km, 3 Hrs) We left Anshi early morning and drove towards Kulgi hoping to spot a few more birds on the way. While birding was not very exciting initially, it gradually picked up and after crossing a bridge over […]
Anshi National Park
Background: Drive to the Sahyadris The Drive 25 Jan 2017: Day 25 (Cotigao – Anshi, 82 km, 2 Hrs) After a delicious breakfast, we commenced our drive reaching Anshi Nature Camp by 1000 Hrs. Within the camp grounds, we spotted several birds including Brown-breasted Flycatcher, Orange-headed Thrush and a Nilgiri Flowerpecker. After lunch, we explored […]
Zuari River and Cotigao
Background: Drive to the Sahyadris The Drive 23 Jan 2017: Day 23 (Surla – Cortalim – Cotigao) We reached the Cortalim Jetty sharp at 0700 Hrs and finished off our breakfast while we waited for Mrs. Kamat. She soon arrived and introduced us to Frankie, the guide-cum- boatman for the morning. Other guests arrived shortly […]
Bhawan Mahavir and Bondla Wildlife Sanctuary
Background: Drive to the Sahyadris Birding in Goa: Birding in Goa is fairly easy and one can spot several endemics in a short span of time, however we did observe that birds were mostly active early morning and by afternoon bird activity reduced considerably with the exception of nocturnal birds. Birds also appeared a little […]
Blackbuck National Park
Background: Drive to the Sahyadris The Drive 14 Jan 2017: Day 14 (Jamnagar – Bhavnagar, 273 km, 6 Hrs) Our next stop was Velavadar, but our booking at the Forest Rest House was from 15 Jan, so we decided to stay at Bhavnagar for the night. Just before reaching Bhavnagar, we checked online and got […]
Jamnagar
Background: Drive to the Sahyadris The Drive 11 Jan 2017: Day 11 (Moti Virani – Jamnagar, 316 km, 6 Hrs) We commenced our drive from Moti Virani at 0730 Hrs reaching the coastal city of Jamnagar at 1300 Hrs. There we checked in at the Hotel President and even before going to our room, paid […]
Moti Virani
Background: Drive to the Sahyadris The Drive 9 Jan 2017: Day 9 (Lodai – Moti Virani, 79 km, 2 Hrs) We started our drive at 0620 Hrs and drove further west reaching Moti Virani by 0830 Hrs. Jugal Sir was waiting for us at his homestay where we quickly unloaded our luggage and proceeded for […]
Lodai
Background: Drive to the Sahyadris The Drive 7 Jan 2017: Day 7 (LRK – Lodai, 268 km, 5 Hrs) We commenced our drive from Patdi at 0620 Hrs and drove west towards the Great Rann of Kutch. It was here that we started getting a feel of complete wilderness as we drove past miles and […]
Little Rann of Kutch
Background: Drive to the Sahyadris The Drive 4 Jan 2017: Day 4 (Kumbhalgarh – LRK, 379 km, 7 Hrs) Starting at 0730 Hrs, we continued our drive south towards the Little Rann of Kutch, reaching Patdi by 1415 Hrs. While Kumbhalgarh was warm, Patdi was a thermal shock for us. We checked-in at Hotel Ashirwad […]
Kumbhalgarh
Background: Drive to the Sahyadris The Drive 2 Jan 2017: Day 2 (Sariska – Kumbhalgarh, 449 km, 7 Hrs) As per our original plan, we had two options for the day, either do a morning safari at Sariska or leave early and do some evening birding at Kumbhalgarh. However, weather had some other plans; fog […]
Sariska National Park
Background: Drive to the Sahyadris The Drive 1 Jan 2017: Day 1 (Noida – Sariska, 235 km, 4 Hrs) We commenced our journey on the 1st of Jan 2017 at 0730 Hrs and reached Sariska by noon. The drive was mostly uneventful except a few patches of bad roads and traffic in the Alwar region. […]
Changthang Plateau
Summary: This was our second visit to Ladakh after a gap of six years and the primary focus was to cover the Changthang plateau. During the eight birding days, we covered Tso Kar and Startsapuk Tso, Tso Moriri and Thadsang Karu, Yaye Tso, Sumdo/Puga and the Hanle area. We had some great wildlife moments but […]
The Great Himalayan National Park
Summary: We spent 10 days in the pristine Tirthan Valley and camped for five days inside the Great Himalayan National Park. The whole experience was like a dream; an enchanted forest where Himalayan Monals and Koklass Pheasants were flying all around, mammals were roaming freely and the early morning calls of the Western Tragopan kept […]
Manas National Park
Summary: We spent a week at the Manas National Park in the expert company of Rustom. The park is beautifully set in the backdrop of the Himalayas and is a blend of grasslands and dry deciduous forests. It is breathtaking to witness the land transform from a dense forest to grassland within a few minutes […]
Tal Chhapar
Summary: We drove to Tal Chhapar during the 2015 Christmas weekend. Key birds spotted during the trip were the White-browed Bushchat, Kashmir Flycatcher, Brooks’s Leaf Warbler, Spotted Creeper, Red-tailed Wheatear among others. Travel Dates: 24 Dec 2015 – 27 Dec 2015 Location covered: Tal Chhapar and surroundings Interstate Travel: Self Drive Noida – Gurgaon – […]
Churchill
Pre-Planning: It all started with a chance encounter with a Black Bear during one of our treks in the high Himalayas. It remained etched in our memories and many years later we again saw several Black Bears at Dachigam National Park. During all these encounters, we always dreamt of spotting Polar Bears in the wild, […]
Assam
Summary: We went on a weeklong trip to Assam in March 2015 covering Kaziranga National Park, Gibbon Wildlife Sanctuary and the Nameri National Park. During the trip, we managed to spot over 120 bird species, 14 mammal species and 27 butterfly species. Travel Dates: 02 March 2015 – 10 March 2015 Location covered: Kaziranga National […]
Desert National Park
Summary: A short trip was planned to the Desert National Park with an aim to spot the Great Indian Bustard. Birding was exceptional and some of the key birds spotted were: Great Indian Bustard (Godavan), Macqueen’s Bustard, Trumpeter Finch and Cream-coloured Courser among others. Apart from the excellent birding, we managed to spot several mammals […]
Singalila Ranges
Summary: This trip was a combination of trekking and birding. We trekked for five days in the Singalila National Park followed by a few days at Borong, Sikkim. While in Borong, we explored the dense forests of the Maenam Wildlife Sanctuary, Tendong Hills and Bhanjang Valley. During the course of 10 days, we trekked for […]
Little Rann and Gir
Summary: The main aim for this short trip was to spot the last remaining Asiatic Lions at the Gir forest. Travel Dates: 26 Nov 2012 – 02 Dec 2012 (Monday to Sunday) Locations covered: Little Rann of Kutch Gir National Park Interstate Travel: New Delhi – Ahmedabad = Rajdhani Express (12958) Ahmedabad – New Delhi […]