Monsoon season is macro photography season and Amboli is one of our regular destinations to catchup with the variety of reptiles, amphibians and other species that show-up during the torrential rains. We at Wild India Eco Tours visited Amboli last weekend (14-16 July 2017) with a small group of like-minded folks. Apart from the regular Malabar pit vipers, Green vine snakes and gliding frogs, we had some fantastic sightings of Caecilian, Beddome’s keelback, Marbled frog and even witnessed a Cicada giving birth!
We came across a total of 13 individuals of snakes (5 Malabar pit vipers, 7 Green vine snakes & 1 Beddome’s keelback), 10 species of Frogs / Toads and 3 species of Geckos. Note that this is more of photo-blog post with some of the images we managed click in this 3 day trip. Click on the images for a larger view.
Snakes
Frogs & Toads
Caecilians, Geckos & others
Apart from all the lovely sightings & photographic opportunities, it was great interact and share knowledge with the group members along with all the fun we had. And off-course, special mention to Shubham for guiding and helping us to click these beautiful species. Add to it the fantastic weather at Amboli – either raining heavily or filled with fog and lovely stay at Hemant Ogale’s – Whistling Woods. With neat / clean rooms & fantastic hospitality, we highly recommend this place if you plan to visit and stay in Amboli. Signing off with a head on shot of the Amboli special – Malabar gliding frog.
How to reach
Once you are on the Mumbai – Bangalore highway road, drive till Nipani. After Nipani, take right atop the small Tawandi ghat. Once you take the right, you need to drive for another 70 odd kms to reach Amboli. Google maps is pretty accurate and we followed the instructions all along.
Another option is to arrive to Sawantwadi via train and you have multiple options to reach Amboli (shared taxi, rickshaw, bus).
If traveling from Bangalore, you can reach Belgaum and take a bus to Amboli.
Tips
1. Ensure you carry rain cover / protective gear for your camera equipment
2. Always carry a poncho / jacket and also an umbrella.
3. Do keep an eye for the leeches, leech socks are good to have.
4. Carry a torch / headlamp.
5. Make sure you buy entry tickets and hire a local guide.
6. If you intend to do macro photography, try to go in small groups (~5), so that everyone can get good amount of time to make images.
7. Do not litter and keep the place clean.
Thanks for reading. We would love to host you in our tours in future, do visit and subscribe to www.wild-india.in to know more about our upcoming tours.
– Rudraksha & Shraddha