TRACK THE RIDE

Its the day of the Lions.



The bikes are rested as we spend the entire day at Sasan hoping to meet the Lions. Everybody is up by 6.00 and into the three gypsies by 6.30, when the gates open, but the ranger issuing he permits is slow with the computer and its 7.00 by the time we hit the road and are on the forest track in a few minutes.

Its a dry deciduous forest, teak trees abound and barring te little green due to a good monsoon, the landscape remains a dusty yellow through out the year.



There is no info. on the location of the Lions for the day, so we take the route 4 passing the lake, accompanied by a forest guide with a wireless set for any locations received late. 15 minutes drive on the dusty track into the forest, we are greeted by a herd of spotted deer. They stop to gaze at us for a few seconds and then gallop away deeper into the foliage.

We reach the lake in another 45 minutes, catching a glimpse of Wild Boar, Nilgai, Deer, Peacock, Crane. On the way back we take another route but the Lions elude us and we return to Sasan disappointed by 9-30.

Breakfast at Sasan is 'methi theplas', mildly spiced rotis with fenugreek leaves cooked in oil, with curds and tea.

The next trip to the jungle is in the evening and we decide to spend the afternoon by the river, some take a dip, some sit in the shade, Kyle and Anand ride to somnath (30 km away) and are back before our next sojourn into the forest.

This time the guide with us does have a location but we fail to spot any after driving for almost an hour. Everyone in the car falls very silent, feeling empty with the big cat eluding us.

Its a reminder of the forest conservator reprimanding for us the previous night for being impatient and wanting to see the Lions as soon as we land in Gir, its not a zoo he had said.

We are suddenly alerted by the car slowing down at the sight of two rangers sitting on the road ahead of us, signalling us to park and look to our right. its a sight to behold, barely 35-40 feet away we see two majestic Lionesses resting in the shade, uncaring of all this human activity around them. It felt so safe some guys jumped out of the gypsy to take pictures from a little closer. One Lioness has a radio tracking collar.

The gates close at sunset, so we are hurried away from the spot no one wants to leave, by the guide and the driver. Its a mixed feeling, satisfaction of finally seeing a cat, disappointment of not hearing a fierce roar.

Suddenly again, someone screams to stop. Almost at the same moment the driver stomps on the brakes and a Lioness sitting at the side of the road jumps up startled by the sound of the brakes and charges away from us, stops after a few paces and growls back into our eyes. this time no one steps off the gypsy. Mission Accomplished!

The Lions look really regal and demand our respect. but on the way we see a village (there are about 50 of them) in the heart of the jungle. Small villages, 3-4 families each, live with the lions and have the balls to look a lion in the eye and say, " this is my cow boss. u cant eat it."

It gets so dark, the ranger at the gate refuses to let us out before he gives a piece of his mind to the driver and our guide. but the broad smiles on our faces melts him too. Dinner is at another place where chicken is served too, amidst discussion on the policies of 60KPH. Retire to a good night by 11-30.

The ride tommorrow is a long one and there are lions to b dreamt of...

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