Mount Abu The Abode: Gir Forest to South Bhopal Ahmedabad

Saturday, March 23, 2013

Gir Forest to South Bhopal Ahmedabad

Day 6

10^th March 2013.

Sleep, they say is the nectar of life, just like water that supports our existence. If one has a good night of sleep one need not go in for meditation. Amazingly I sleep very well while I’m in Gujarat, it’s probably the effect of the climate that has this soothing effect. My biological clock works like a charm. I can go to bed anytime after 11 p.m., but I’m up before the break of dawn. I was up by 5:30 a.m. and left the hotel premises for a walk through the fields and jungle side surrounding the hotel. It was an exhilarating walk compared to the walk I had through the ancient town of Dwarka.

I saw more variety of birds on this walk of mine than I had seen while on the safaris through the forest. Rather ironic. When I got back to the hotel around 8 a.m. I saw Eddie shooting some dusty Martins at the basketball court of the hotel. We explored the mango grove, took some snaps, had breakfast and prepared for our journey to Ahmedabad, a drive of a little over 6 hours.

Route taken by us.

View Larger Map

Snaps were taken by me on our way to South Bhopal from Gir.

Amidhara Resort

New Place new destination

Out of Gir

Camels

Herders

Rabaris

Lock stock and barrel

Self-explanatory

Day 7
11 March 2013

FASCINATING THOL

White Ibis

Thol Road

Ibis

Spoonbill

Another angle

Before the sanctuary Gate

Common Babbler

Wood Sandpiper

Birds Paradise

Embankment

Well fed

Colony of Cormorants

OH Lonesome Me

Flamingoes

Serene

Incredible Thol

A Fantastic Year

Not Long to GO

Up, up and away

Reflections

Will be leaving shortly

Gosh! I'm over-stuffed

Sarus Cranes

Sarus

Seen anything Interesting?

Rudy Shelducks

Gosh the water is deep

Will miss this place

Conference of Great Bills

Pelicans

Grey Heron

Godwit

Common Babbler

Hey let go of my leg

Walter Hey Come on Guys Move it

Ruddy in flight

Great Egret

Recalling stories from the good old school days.

While travelling to Thol, Eddie called former schoolmates who had settled in the emerging Mega-metropolitan metropolis of Ahmedabad and invited them to meet for an impromptu lunch in any section of the city that was convenient for them. Who would want to lose out on such an unexpected and precious opportunity to meet old friends out of the blue? It was planned that the Ahmedabad boys would pick the restaurant, and we would go after photographing birds at the birding refuge.

The species and the spectacular panoramic landscapes that showed themselves when birding at Thol Lake impressed Eddie. This was my third visit, yet the amazing influence of this site engulfed me.

Before we knew what hit us, Wally announced that it was time to head for town to meet up with the other guys. We reluctantly moved towards the waiting cab, but before we drove out, we told the forest guy at the gate that we were going to lunch and would be back at 4 p.m. to pick up where we had left off. We were supposed to drive to a McDonald's not far from our birding location. We arrived at the other two buddies who were waiting for us in less than 40 minutes.

Can you imagine the effect a motley and portly group of old farts gathering after ages can have? As predicted, our chat centred on our hay days in school, our triumphs, our failed or gained aspirations, and now how do we go about earning our final kicks in life?

Before we realized it, we were saying goodbye to Nalin and Jaideep and going back to Thol. Wally had already gone home to be with his wife. We went around the lake's perimeter, admiring its beauty and photographing birds whenever the opportunity arose. We packed our belongings and drove to Walter's place after sundown. The next day, we were to separate up, with I completing the circle, Eddie heading to Bombay, and Wally staying behind to care for his old lady.