Forest Thrills at Masinagudi

This must be my umpteenth trip through forests. But this one was a bit unique as it was a trip with friends.

What’s good about travelling to Masinagudi is that you cover two major Tiger Reserves on the way – Bandipur and Mudhumalai which are in two different states i.e. Karnataka and Tamil Nadu. So you can plan a jungle safari on the way if required. You also get to see herd of deers and wild elephants on the way. I have been lucky all the time and this time it was even better as I saw bisons, lion tailed macaque… Plus a wild elephant that almost rushed towards our car.

Now this stay that we planned is a 150 year old cottage amongst a 90 acres coffee estate. The Wilds at Northern Hay at Masinagudi is about 5-6 hours from Bangalore. Once you enter Bandhipur forest, you automatically slow down to spot animals. From Bandipur, you enter the next forest section of Mudhumalai. Once you reach Masinagudi, you have to head towards Singara Check Post. Beyond that (due to bad roads or literally no roads), you cannot take your car unless it is a four wheel drive vehicle. There is no parking lot as such and you have to park your car at the check post.  We were a little concerned about the safety of car but when we came back, we didn’t find any damages except a few monkey footprints on the windows.

The estate owners have already started expanding the accommodation options with tree houses and luxury cottages. But they have retained the old charm of the already existing one. The rooms are decorated with antiques. 

We were welcomed by the caretaker and he gave an overview of the facilities and activities. Then we came to know that another guest have cancelled the booking due to bad weather. We were happy as we got the entire bungalow for ourselves. After refreshing, we went to the dining hall and we were served with delicious food. Our stomach was so full that we needed siesta.

After having the evening coffee (try it, it’s awesome), we chose for plantation walk instead of jungle safari. Our guide Babu was also a caretaker at the estate played a perfect host and entertainer. He told that he came to this place at the age of 13 and been here for over a decade. First he showed us the tree houses and newly built cottages. Then his jungle book stories began. He narrated about sighting leopards and bears in the estate and how he was almost attacked by a tusker. His brother Salim, the cook, also accompanied us.

The plantation walk turned out to be a jungle trek. On the way we saw fresh foot marks of bears and half eaten mole hills. I slowly picked up a stick to shoo the tiger away, in case I encountered one. Babu then consoled us by saying that the wild animal would attack the guide first and then turn towards the guests. Now how will the wild creature know which one is the guide here?

All Hollywood movies like Anaconda, Predator, Crocodile, and so on started flashing in my mind. I didn’t want to be walking behind, as always the last one gets killed first. Walking for two hours, other than paw marks, we saw lot of deers and then we went back to our rooms at sunset.

Meanwhile when Babu was arranging bonfire for us at an elevated ground close to the cottage, we skimmed through the guest books and read statements of spotting tigers, leopards and bears near the resort. So the caretaker’s tales had some truth.

At the campfire, I positioned myself facing the coffee estate so that I am ready to run when I see leopard. Barbecue option was also available but we didn’t opt for it. Babu made fresh orange juice for the ladies and it was so yummy. Dinner was even better. We had more than three servings of chilly chicken that Salim prepared.  

                              

We chit chatted till late night safe and sound in the living room filled with antique hunting weapons and books. It was so quiet that I started getting shivers thinking that the bungalow may be haunted. But luckily I didn’t find any ghosts. We were strictly instructed not to stroll around at night as there could be wild animals around.

I woke up in the morning with the sound of something running on the roof and it was monkey menace. While serving morning tea, Babu started off with his set of stories on how monkeys spoilt his food arrangement and stole bowls. The breakfast though didn’t have much choice, was still tasty.

We lazily sat in the portico on those old rocking chairs and arm chairs and funnily debated on what we would have done if we had met a bear or tiger during our trek.

By noon, we checked out and started our journey back to Bangalore.