Tigers & Leopards, it’s Nagarhole, Naturally

Unlike many other Indian parks, Nagarhole is pretty well regulated and vehicle numbers are comparably low. This makes it an ideal place to take your time, enjoy the magnificent forest and the wildlife that calls it home. There were two stand-out encounters this year, among many other excellent wildlife encounters and photographic opportunities. 

It had been a great start to the week with multiple tiger sightings, countless elephants and exquisite birds, but so far one animal had eluded us. Over the past 10 years or so, Nagarhole has built up quite the reputation for its reliable leopard encounters. However, despite our best efforts, we hadn’t yet come across one. We decided that had to change.

A thick mist hung over the hills and valleys of the park, leaving the forest eerily quiet and visibility was limited. These sort of conditions give the world an ethereal quality. We slowly made our way down a track, descending a hill on our way down to the backwaters of the Kabini Reservoir. Checking every tree, we arrived at the bottom of the hill, sitting in silence in the hope an alarm call would pierce the morning’s stillness. Nothing stirred. We started to make our way back up the hill again and there, there she was. One of the most beautiful leopards you could imagine.

Sat out in the open, on a tree we passed by only ten minutes earlier, the leopard watched us closely. It was clear she thought we had passed her by, only to come retrace our ‘steps’ and drive right back past where she chose to rest. It wasn’t long before she fell asleep, completely relaxed in our presence.

After spending 40 minutes with this wonderful cat, she descended the tree and disappeared into the thick scrub. We took that as our cue to leave. What a remarkable way to spend a morning. What’s more, we weren’t exactly short of photographic opportunities. 

India is rightly famed for its tigers, and we had already enjoyed several views, some better than others. Being a photography group though, you always want the light to be a little warmer, softer and for the subject to be in just the right spot. And so we wanted one more ‘quality’ tiger. 

On our last full day in the park, we glimpsed a tigress in the morning as she made her way into the thick forest. Our plan for the afternoon was to focus our efforts on the closest waterhole to where we lost her. And so, driving slowly through the park, we wound our way toward the spot. Once there, we waited. That’s the thing with photography tours, if you’re prepared to put in the time, you hope you will reap the rewards. Boy did we reap the rewards.

With the sun starting to lower in the sky, a changeable hawk eagle flew down from the canopy to quench its thirst from the waterhole. Chital alarm calls rang out through the surrounding trees. The tigress was close. Everything went silent again and we waited. Suddenly, the alarm calls were more intense and much closer. The tigress appeared right in front of us, the light was golden and the cat was absolutely beautiful. The photography was out of this world. We'd struck gold in the final hour of our final evening in the park. You couldn’t ask for more.

  

There's still space on Bret Charman's Nagarhole Photo Safari 2025 departure, so if you fancy joining him for an Indian photographic extravaganza, book your place today.

If you'd like to see Nagarhole National Park's fantastic array of wildlife, but aren't looking for a photography tour, discover our 7-night Nagarhole's Tigers, Wild Dogs & Leopards trip.