Rudy, Author at Whistling Trails

Dapoli – Yet another jewel in Konkan…

Rudy Travel May 13, 2015October 9, 2017Common Kingisher, Dapoli, Fish auction at harne, harne bandar, Kadyavarcha Ganapati, Ladghar beach, Serene Ravine at Dapoli, Stork-billed Kingfisher

With rainy season couple of months away and summer at its peak, we decided to explore yet another place in Konkan region – Dapoli. One reason to select Dapoli was that it is at an altitude of 800 ft and also known as “Mini Mahableshwar”. We had booked a room at Serene Ravine Homestay in Kolbandre village; which was around 8 KMs away from the Dapoli town nestled in the dense jungle.. and it was indeed a lovely stay there. As always we started at around 6 AM and drove through the Tamhini ghats. Read more

Tadoba, Tigers and more…

Rudy Safari March 19, 2015October 9, 2017Bengal Tiger, Black stork, Eyebrowed Thrush, Tadoba, TATR, Tiger with kill, Wild-India.in 8 Comments

Being one of the tiger reserves in India with a good density of tigers, Tadoba Andhari Tiger Reserve is a must visit for wildlife lovers; not only for tigers but for other wild mammals and birds as well. Opportunity knocked on the door at the last moment to visit Tadoba Andhari Tiger Reserve as part of Wild-India.in along with Bhavesh. We were a total of 12 people; hence had reserved two gypsies for each of the safaris. Read more

Bird-watching at Akshi & a visit to Korlai Fort

Rudy Birding Hotspots, Travel March 6, 2015January 19, 2016Bird-watching at Akshi, Gulls, Korlai Fort, Pune to Akshi, Ruddy Turnstone, Sanderling, Terns, Weekend trip to Akshi 4 Comments

After fantastic trips to Ratnagiri and Chiplun, we zeroed on visiting Akshi in Konkan; a place around 5 KMs from Alibaug. Akshi beach has the same coastline that extends from Alibaug; however is relatively less crowded and not as famous as Alibaug beach or Kashid beach. Another key aspect we considered to visit Akshi beach was for bird-watching. Akshi beach is pretty familiar name among bird watchers; primarily for the variety and huge number of water birds seen on the beach. Read more

Bird-watching @ Bhigwan and Veer dam

Rudy Birding Hotspots February 20, 2015January 19, 2016Asian Openbill, Bar-headed Geese, chestnut bellied sandgrouse, Flamingos at Bhigwan, Greater Flamingo, Indian Courser, Indian thick-knee, Kumbhargaon, Tufted Ducks 0 Comment

Bhigwan is another bird watching place in close proximity with Pune; famous primarily for the Greater Flamingos. It was on my list for this winter and when Bhavesh informed me about the Wild India local tour to Bhigwan & Veer dam, I blocked my calendar for the weekend (7-8th Feb 2015) immediately. Except me, everyone was from Mumbai and journey from Mumbai started at around 11:30 PM on 6th Feb. I was picked from my place by 2:30 AM and we finally managed to reach Kumbhargaon, Bhigwan at around 4:30 AM. There are multiple bird watching sights in Bhigwan; Kumbhargaon and Diksal being the key ones. Read more

Trek to the Raigad Fort

Rudy Treks February 11, 2015January 19, 2016Indian Vulture, Pune to Raigad fort, Raigad, Raigad fort trek, Shivaji Maharaj Raigad 1 Comment

For anyone who likes to trek, a trek to Raigad fort is a must do. We finally managed to visit Raigad last Saturday. Situated at a distance of around 150 KMs from Pune and coupled with bad roads; it takes at-least 4 hours to reach this place. This time Me and Shraddha were joined by our friends; Akash, Sachin and Shilpa. We started at around 4:30 AM and took the road via Tamhini Ghat and eventually reached Raigad base by 9:30 AM (Journey time extended by 1 hour; thanks to Google maps :P).

We had some refreshments at the foothills and started our trek by 10 AM. There are a total of around 1500 steps to climb if you choose to climb via steps. Read more

Bird-watching at Little Rann of Kutch & Thol Bird Sanctuary

Rudy Birding Hotspots, Birds January 14, 2015November 28, 2017Bluethroat, Demosile Crane, Desert Fox, Eastern Imperial Eagle, Great White Pelican, Indian Wild Ass, Khur, Lesser Flamingo, Little Rann of Kutch, LRK, Macqueens Bustard, Merlin, Peregrine Falcon, Red-necked Falcon, Sarus Crane, Short-eared Owl, Thol Bird Sanctuary, White-tailed Lapwing, www.wild-india.in 17 Comments

Being avid birders, winter is THE season we look forward to. When Wild India announced the birding trip to Little Rann of Kutch and Thol, we registered instantly as we couldn’t have asked for better company to do birding with. The Little Rann of Kutch (LRK) is world famous for the Indian Wild Ass (Khur) and hence a majority of LRK areas is declared as Wild Ass Sanctuary. More information on LRK and Indian Wild Ass at the end of the report. Read more