The area around Bandhavgarh came into limelight when Maharaja Martand Singh of Rewa captured the first white tiger (named it Mohan ) from this region in 1951.All the white tigers in the world are his progeny.The best place to see healthy white tigers is Zoo maintained by Bhilai Steel Plant in Bhilai in the State of Chhatisgarh.
In the year 1968 it was declared as Bandhavgarh National Park .
The nature lovers from all over the world visit this park as it has one of the highest density of Royal Bengal tigers in the wild. It derives its name from the hillock which is said to be given by Lord Rama to his younger brother Laxman , after victory to keep a watch on Lanka (presently known as Sri Lanka in the Indian Ocean)
Although my first visit to this park was in 2004 October but I had the unforgettable experience during 13 safaris in June 2011. By this time the rains had started and the tiger sightings had reduced on account of water availability, but the little grass had laid the green carpet and the tiger walking over it gave a feeling of the model on the ramp.
As a parting gift I was fortunate to have a memorable habitat shot of leopard on 26th June 2011. The sighting was hardly for less than a minute but it is still etched in my memory as fresh as dew. Late on the image also got its place in the book WILD FIRE by Valmik Thapar, a well known naturalist, conservationist and a writer.
Thousands of pilgrims visit to have glimpses of the various incarnations of Lord Vishnu during the monsoons . Truly they are priceless heritage of this park. A unique reclining statue ,35 feet long of Lord Vishnu along with A Shiva ling is at the base of the hill. The fort at the top of the hill has a old temple and the 9 incarnations of Lord Vishnu are dotted in the area. They are worth visiting in addition to the wilderness provided by the park.
For some reason the Indian Gaur was wiped out from this park . The forest authorities have translocated Indian Gaur from the Kanha National Park and trying to revive them by monitoring them with the help of radio collars. I am sharing with you 5 images of well known tigress Machhiani ,a leopard on the rocks , emerald Dove ,Sloth bear with little ones and Reclining Lord Vishnu with a Shivling .
