Jim Corbett

Imperturbable, serene, tranquil, unruffled, placid, no matter how many synonyms one uses, giving a description to the dense forests of Jim Corbett National Park is humanly implausible. The crystal clear waters that flow in the bordering rivers are an elixir of life for the sore eyes of the city dwelling people. The pollution free environment is good, both for the body and the soul. The outermost part of the jungle is covered by Sal trees and mostly grasslands which have an abundant population of the varied species of Deer; the spotted-deer, the barking deer, the barasingha and Asia’s largest deer, the sambar deer. The winter season witnesses a huge population of birds which migrate to northern India from the European continent. 

The inner parts of the jungle are dense, dark, cold, wet and SCARY. There are no proper roads inside the forest. The monsoon-rivers and streams which wash away the soil and leave stones and rocks on the bed are used as roads in most parts. In some parts, the thicket has been cleared for passing of gypsies. Every turn and twist inside the core area of the Park is a scary reminder of the unknown which lies ahead. The terrain is highly uneven with grassland leading to hills which end in a sudden cliff or open to small rivulets which make the roads bumpy and slippery. There are tens and hundreds of small ponds and reservoirs of water inside the wilderness which act as the perfect hunting spot for the hungry tigers. The deer usually come to these small water bodies to quench their thirst where the tiger waits patiently to pounce on the harmless animal and satisfy its hunger. 

The jungle is usually filled with the voices of birds, insects and various animals. But once the royal tiger growls to prove its dominance over the forest, a pin drop silence prevails in the wilderness. The tiger, the most ferocious animal in the wild, whose every step, is signalled by the monkeys hanging by the trees. The monkeys act as an alarming agent to the rest of the forest, cautioning them about the direction of the tiger’s advancement. The deer clearing the vicinity to save their lives; but everything they do fall short compared to the aggression and ferocity of the full grown tiger. 

The dense interiors, where even the sun struggles to land its rays, where the wind breaks due to the in-numerous barriers in its way, where the water doesn’t evaporate due to the lack of heat and the extreme cold, the elephant rules the area; kicking anything in its way, clearing forests on will, uprooting shrubs, eating fruit-filled trees. But once the tiger enters the dense jungle area, the elephant starts hitting the ground with its trunk out of fear and starts running here and there, confused and scared. A tiger proves too worthy an opponent even for the gigantic mammal. Its walk, its stance, its growl, its mere sight is nerve cracking, even for the most brave-heart of all. It truly deserves to be the King of the Jungle. 

“When a man wants to murder a tiger he calls it sport; when a tiger wants to murder him he calls it ferocity.” ~George Bernard Shaw