“We are so lucky,” Omar whispered, as his eyes darted frantically around the surrounding jungle. “Most guides won’t take tourists on walking safaris in the core zone of the park, but we have the best chance of seeing tigers here.” The park in question – Chitwan National Park in south-central Nepal – is home to 128 Bengal tigers[1], and is regarded as a global wildlife conservation success story. Our five-person group was tracking one of those tigers on foot in the notorious core zone, armed only with bamboo sticks for protection. By the point that Omar was expressing his gratitude, we had already encountered fresh tiger tracks and scat, as well as some fearsome claw marks on the bark of a tree. Now, the nearby rhesus monkeys and spotted deer were erupting in alarm calls to warn each other of an approaching predator, and we braced ourselves for the formidable carnivore to reveal itself. I gripped my trusty bamboo stick tightly and prayed that I would remain lucky and that the tiger would eat Omar instead of me…
Choose Local Guides for a Sustainable Safari
… Omar was not the guide, and mercifully, he was not on the menu either. He was a guest from Kathmandu who had made the five-hour drive the previous night with his friend Tenzing in the hope of catching a glimpse of a tiger. He apparently did so without informing his wife and mother, both of whom were angrily messaging him during the trek to find out when he would be resuming his family duties. His hangdog demeanour lingered for a few minutes after checking his phone, suggesting that an encounter with a wild tiger would likely be less ferocious than the greeting that awaited him at home. Like me, Omar and Tenzing were guests at Chital Lodge, a humble family-run guesthouse in Meghauli – located a 30-minute tuk-tuk drive from the popular gateway town of Sauraha, which houses a large portion of the hotels and tour companies that cater to safari tourists.
Chital Lodge is run by Bishnu, who grew up on the premises after his father opened it in the 1980s, and he is now raising his own children there. Although the surrounding area is increasingly attracting interest from Indian and Kathmandu-based investors, the tourism industry also offers a potential lifeline to local communities. Small-scale, sustainable operators like Bishnu are able to provide visitors with unique perspectives and eco-friendly alternatives to the large hospitality groups. Indeed, it was Bishnu’s intimate knowledge of the national park, quiet authority and passion for wildlife that had drawn Omar to return several times in recent years. It was also the reason why I did not suffer a panic attack when I learnt that we were tracking a tiger in an area of the park where many others dare not tread.
Bishnu, a guide at Chitwan National Park, searches for animal tracks in the Nepalese wilderness. Photo by Paddy Cooke.
Safety Tips for Your Walking Safari Adventure
We had left the lodge in a safari jeep at 7am after a hearty home-cooked breakfast. By 7.30am we were enjoying a leisurely canoe ride down the Rapti River, spying occasional Gharial crocodiles in the water and elephants on the banks as we listened to the early-morning chorus of the birds. The tranquility was interrupted after an hour when the canoe beached on the river bank and we were instructed to disembark to begin our walking safari.
Bishnu gathered our small group in a huddle to run through some of the most important “dos” and “don’ts” during our trek. Do follow his instructions at all times and stay close to the group. Don’t make loud noises and, most importantly, don’t panic if faced by a large wild animal – be it tiger, elephant, rhino or sloth bear. We should follow Bishnu’s lead, and only run for shelter in or behind a tree if instructed to do so. If the event of a tiger encounter, the key was to maintain eye contact and back away slowly. As a general rule, Bishnu would walk at the front of the group and his teenage assistant – who seemed to be much fonder of his smartphone than his bamboo stick – would bring up the rear. Silently, I made my own personal rule to never leave Bishnu’s side until we were safely back in the safari jeep.
How Nepal Became a World Conservation Leader
We had only been walking for a few minutes when we encountered our first one-horned rhino wallowing in a watering hole. As we huddled among the shrubs to watch, Bishnu’s ears pricked up at a strange sound that seemed to alternate between clicking, hissing and grunting. This alien cacophony emanated from a hole on the opposite bank, and we were soon treated to the sight of a long-snouted Gharial crocodile emerging from her nest and gliding into the water. This appeared to be the cue for the armour-plated rhino to lumber out of the shallows and eye us warily from across the water.
Although Bishnu had warned of the dangers that rhinos could pose if they felt threatened, they have good reason to be wary of humans. According to the most recent count, there are 694 one-horned rhinos[2] resident in Chitwan National Park out of a total of 752 in Nepal. This figure represents a remarkable turnaround in the fortunes of Nepal’s rhino population, which had been almost hunted to extinction[3] in the 1960s.
Thanks to successful conservation efforts, this first rhino encounter was by no means our last during our expedition. I counted 10 in total throughout the day, some from a distance and a few that were perhaps too close for comfort, but the ever-vigilant Bishnu always knew how to behave during each encounter.
Like the one-horned rhino, the tiger population is also on the rise in Chitwan National Park. Indeed, Nepal is considered a global success story in tiger conservation – with its national population almost tripling in the space of 13 years. Of the 13 countries that pledged to double their tiger populations at the Global Tiger Summit in 2009, Nepal was the first one to reach – and exceed – this target.
The success of Nepal’s conservation efforts has been partly attributed to a zero-poaching approach[4] enforced by national park rangers backed by military units and community support teams. At the same time, the government has collaborated[5] with conservation NGOs and local communities to monitor and manage tiger populations.
Exploring Chitwan National Park in Nepal by Boat with a Guide and fellow adventurers. Photo by Paddy Cooke.
Balancing Tiger Conservation with Community Safety
Rightly praised for its successful conservation efforts, Nepal’s rising tiger population feeds a growing safari tourism industry. However, the increasing number of tigers is also leading to concerns about deadly human-tiger interactions. Local media reports[6] indicate that 62 people were killed in a total of 104 tiger attacks that took place in Nepal’s national parks and adjacent buffer zones between 2019 and 2022. According to the ever-calming Bishnu, most attacks involved ageing or ailing tigers that were no longer able to effectively hunt their preferred prey, such as deer and wild boar. This makes them increasingly likely to hunt livestock animals or, on rarer occasions, people.
Tiger-human interactions mostly occur in community forests or close to neighbouring settlements when villagers are out gathering wood or grasses for animal feed, and Bishnu stressed that tigers tend to avoid groups of people.
Bishnu’s local knowledge meant that he was well aware when a high-risk tiger was on the prowl, and to date, there have been no documented cases of attacks on tourists in the national park, despite numerous companies offering daily walking safaris. Nevertheless, the aforementioned statistics on recent human-tiger encounters demonstrate the challenges that local communities and policymakers face in adapting to the growing population of these magnificent creatures.
With more than 300 resorts [7]now located on the periphery of Chitwan National Park and the area experiencing record numbers of visitors, [8]it is hoped that growth in the safari tourism industry will also generate broader socio-economic benefits and that efforts to boost local wildlife populations further will continue to be undertaken in consultation and harmony with local communities.
Walking through the tall grass of Chitwan National Park, Nepal, on the way to a watchtower for a better view of the wilderness. Photo by Paddy Cooke.
Feeling Lucky: Reflections on Chitwan’s Wildlife Wonders
After a lengthy and watchful rest in the elevated hide to escape the midday heat, we ventured back out into the bush in search of up-close wildlife encounters. It did not take long for a jaunty warthog and her piglets to cross our path about 50 metres ahead as we walked through a clearing between long grasses. Bishnu whispered that the warthog family was in the perfect position for a tiger ambush that – fortunately for them – never came. Later that afternoon, as we enjoyed the shade of the jungle, a sudden sound of breaking branches alerted us to the startling sight of a sloth bear with two cubs crashing through the undergrowth in the opposite direction. Such incredible sightings were usually followed by long periods of quiet and contemplative walking, which provided an almost meditative experience among the sounds of the forest.
Despite some heart-stopping moments throughout the course of the long, hot day, I felt a pang of regret as we waded across a shallow point of the river at dusk to reconnect with our safari jeep. Despite the obvious presence of a tiger in the core zone before we stopped for lunch, the enigmatic creature chose not to reveal itself. “Tigers are only seen when they want to be seen,” Bishnu sagely observed. “You can be sure that the tiger definitely saw us.” I handed back my trusty bamboo stick and concluded that it was much more effective as a tiger repellent than I had initially expected. I also concluded that Omar was right: I was so lucky to have experienced Chitwan National Park in all its raw and rugged glory.
A majestic Bengal tiger sits proudly amidst the lush green jungle, showcasing the beauty of Nepal’s rich wildlife. Photo by Javier Virues-Ortega on Unsplash.
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