Monday, March 4-6, 2013 - Days 3-5 Chitwan National Park
Day 3
Take a local bus down to Chitwan National Park at the base of the Himalayas (approx 6 hours).
Declared a Unesco World Heritage site in 1984, Chitwan National Park offers some of the best wildlife viewing in Asia with rhinos, deer, monkeys and a wide array of birdlife including the infamous Nepalese wild chickens.
We were to take a local bus today out of Kathmandu. I personally thought the first 10 minutes might be an interesting experience, and the next 6 hours, might be hell. Riding with locals, chickens, and goats in an old bus with no shock absorbers, bench seats, with open windows, no air conditioning on bumpy dusty roads with only one planned toilet stop along the way didn't sound alluring.
There are twelve of us on this trip plus our guide, and it was mind boggling to think all of us and our luggage would even fit in a local bus. Guess you've guessed by now, we are not on a comfort trip. Intrepid is about real life experiences with the locals. Fortunately there have been threats of transportation and fuel station strikes, so our guide decided to play it safe and hired a private mini bus. Just to make sure we got our "real life experience" this was no posh mini bus with cushie seats, seat belts, or air conditioning. This van didn't look bad on the ouside, but inside it was a bit rough with hard seats. All of our luggage with the exception of our day packs was tied down on top of the bus, and we were sardined into the 13 small seats with our knees presses into the seats in front of us. We used the 13th seat for day packs.
Kathmandu is a high mountain valley approximately 4,000 feet high. The goal today was to descend out of the valley down to the river canyon, follow the river for a while then head toward the park. Our driver lives in the park and had left at 3:00 am this morning to pick us up at 8:30 in Kathmandu and drive us back. He was, I guess, an excellent driver as we arrived in one piece and alive, but it was the scariest ride we've ever taken.
The road out of Kathmandu is a narrow, windy, descent. It is a two lane major road with no lines so drivers can weave back and forth to avoid rubble, potholes, cows, and other vehicles doing the same. It is crammed with buses, trucks, and motor bikes, going to and from Kathmandu.
In order for us to make it to Chitwan National Park in six hours, our driver followed no one and passed everyone. Vehicles coming the opposite direction were doing the same. There were numerous times when our vehicle and an on coming vehicle were both on the wrong side of the road doing a dosey-do swerve and pass...Yipes. We passed several trucks and buses that had broken down along the way, one over turned truck, and passenger bus that had gone partially over one of the steep river embankments and was being towed back.
Okay! Needless to say, that was an experience, I am not looking forward to again, but am afraid that is the norm here and this only day 3! The scenery was very interesting and we saw slices of rural village life and lovely terraced vistas as we descended. It was not spectacularly beautiful as we had hoped. The air here is smokey-dusty-hazy, the villages are shabby, and rubble and trash border the road. The people however are beautiful.
The lack of any nicer restaurants along the way also meant no toilets either. We relieved ourselves along side the road in the bush. Glad I had the she wee with me. We stopped in one quaint village area by the river, and it had a single outhouse toilet that was well used. By the time we reached The Royal Park Hotel in Chitwan about 2:30, my stomach was a rumbling volcano. I stayed close to our room until dinner, skipping a late lunch and a bicycle ride. Russ took some lovely photos of the village life and a Nepal sunset.
We were treated to a cultural dance program this evening. It was very entertaining. The dances we saw are warrior dances by men with bamboo rhythmic sticks. The men danced to bongo type drums and with great eye-hand coordination clacked their two sticks together and then those of other dancers as they whirled and twirled. The performance ended with a fire dance.
All is Well with the Worrall Travel R's
Day 4
Set off with our local guides for a full-day jungle excursion. Begin by canoeing on the Rapti River into the park (approx 90 mins), before jumping out and embarking on a trek to Ghatgai, a village in another section of the park (approx 12 km, 7-8 hrs). Our trekking pace will be slow and quiet to try to maximise our chances of seeing some wildlife and we can soak up the atmosphere with a couple of breaks and a lunch stop along the way. You'll need to carry your own day pack, including your picnic lunch.
Day 5
The next day, trek back into the park for about 90 minutes and visit the crocodile breeding centre, then take jeeps back to our hotel at the edge of the park.
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