Experiencing nature everyone has had their moment which is just ultimate, one which is unforgettable. What has been your moment? As nature lovers we recently had one of our best experiences deep in the jungles of Indo-Nepal border high in the mountains. We successfully tracked and spotted red pandas in the wild.
The journey began as we flew to the Indian border town of Siliguri and crossed into Nepal through the land border near kakarvita. Another 5 hours of 4X4 drive through rough mountains took us to the core of the red panda’s habitat. Dense, moss laden jungles with barely any sunlight falling on the floor is the typical habitat of the Firefox. Well to begin with upon arrival, we were very warmly welcomed by the Sherpa community that dwell in the jungles here since time immemorial. We checked into our very cozy wooden rooms with a sweet woody fragrance that hung in the cold air. The adventure was to begin tomorrow morning early.
The trackers in two teams of 4 each headed out in different directions to find the elusive creature and the job is in true sense finding a needle in a haystack. Working with just distant clues, they narrow it down to a small bright orange coloured animal tucked amongst similar coloured moss on high trees. We were having our first breakfast with a view when our homestay host got a phone call that one of the teams have found a red panda. With our gear already packed, off we went. Well it was an hour’s trek away on steep mountains. Tracks were a bit slippery and the slight drizzle didn’t help. After 50 minutes of trek slipping and sliding we reached the top of a mountain. One of the members from the tracker team was there waiting for us as the last bit of the trek didn’t have cell phone reception. He said the panda was on the move and we rushed downhill. This time none of us cared to count how many times we slipped. In 15 minutes we were there. Resting on top of a tree few metres from us was a wild red panda.
It was a lot more striking than we all had thought. From the safety of the tree it kept watching us and also at the same time kept changing positions giving us best views and frames for our cameras. We stood in complete awe for at least 30 minutes. In the next 3 days of our stay there we found one more individual in the jungles there.
Staying away from the maddening hustle of the plains, the red panda experience had completely detoxified us. The people we lived with were some of the simplest and most caring. The sumptuous meals we had were all organic grown in the backyards. The sights, the night sky and everything else were crisp devoid of even a hint of pollution.
With heavy hearts and numerous promises to be back again we filled our eyes with the view of this paradise on earth and slowly made our way down through windy mountain roads.
This is genuinely one wildlife experience that we think everyone in love with nature must experience! Period! After closely and carefully done multiple recce trips we now offer several Red Panda Expeditions round the year during the best months. And yes we don’t go through any other travel agent with only wiki and google information. The very people who have successfully tracked pandas and organised trips are the ones leading the trips from front ensuring the best possible wildlife experience.
To learn more about what we offer check out RED PANDA EXPEDITION
There is a MUST WATCH video from our experience as well IN SEARCH OF THE FIREFOX
We are always ready to bend our rules to accommodate any of your wishes or changes. Just drop us a mail anytime. If there is any lacking information, just pick it out and we will be very happy to give you all the details.
We eagerly hope to hear back from you about our red panda experience!
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