Sher Bagh begins its 11th season on a high note!

There has been very good news with the birth, over the summer, of two cubs born to the Sultanpur Tigress (T13). This is her second litter and she has been sighted, sometimes even crossing the pilgrim road leading to the temples of Ranthambhore Fort, with her children in shy attendance. Resident males, who had begun last season looking to create new territories have now carved out their own realms in the park. Our very own resident male, (T24) has visited the Camp twice in the last month.

Ranthambhore National Park now incorporates 8 zones, an increase of 3 zones from previous years. Although the access to the new zones takes visitors past the old city, these areas are contiguous with the National Park and hold a rich variety of fauna, including the elusive hyena, sloth bear, leopard and of course, tigers.

An all new excursion we now offer is the ‘Extreme Safari’, a day long trip to the Qualji Tiger Reserve. The drive there takes visitors through pastoral countryside and the peripheral roads of Ranthambhore National Park. Once there guests can hike, drive or take their time exploring the forests with our specially trained trackers and guides. The excursion also offers stunning views of the Chambal river and its floodplain. A Leopard Reintroduction Programme that is currently running here welcomes visitors who wish to see these elusive cats, being prepared to return to the wild.

Post a thunderous monsoon and unexpected showers throughout November, the abundance of water has continued to attract birds to the Park. With the annual migrations of winter visitors soon due, we are expecting larger numbers of birds than in previous years. Residents such as Kingfishers and Flycatchers can be seen darting about both within and outside the National Park. The last census of birds carried out on the Sher Bagh premises, in early October revealed the presence of 62 separate species that included the rarely seen White Eyed Buzzard as well as Yellow Footed Green Pigeons and Golden Orioles. A breeding pair of Shikra Hawks has also made Sher Bagh their home. With winter we expect the number of species to rise substantially.

Sher Bagh has just expanded its Jungle Spa, and for those wishing to relax at Camp, an elaborate choice of massages and other treatments is now available. Our hand-crafted mason’s pool has continued to prove popular with guests and has undergone extensive refurbishment over the monsoon. An expanded ‘photo den’ – a veritable Hall of Fame for Ranthambhore’s Tigers – offers visitors to the Park a chance to compare their sightings with our own records. We are presently in the process of gathering and exhibiting plaster of Paris casts of the ‘pug-marks’ of every tiger in the Park as well as stripe patterns of each of our tigers so that every individual seen can be accounted for and recognised.

The Sher Bagh Farm & Dairy has also undergone extensive expansion and creation. Not only our salads and vegetables but also milk and poultry items are now sourced from our own farmstead.

As we begin our eleventh season, we invite you to come and share a unique experience of life in this vast and beautiful natural heritage we call Ranthambhore.

General Manager
1st December 2010

Sher Bagh has just celebrated the beginning of its tenth season this year and we look forward to the future with renewed excitement and hope.

Ranthambhore has continued to delight and inspire visitors. Recent though long awaited rains have covered the National Park in a blanket of seamless greens. Not only has this had a direct and positive influence on the diversity of birdlife but plentiful water has led to sightings of those rarely seen and elusive creatures, such as leopard, gazelle and sloth bear. Tigers have been sighted in each of the 5 Zones of the National Park regularly and at least two tigresses are frequently observed roaming the forests with cubs. Moreover, six younger tigers have recently left their mothers and carved out independent territories across the Park. They are seen, often at close quarters by visitors, as they ‘strike out’ on their own. Ranthambhore remains an island of hope and growth for the majestic Royal Bengal Tiger’s continued survival in India’s wilds.

Peripheral areas of the Park, opened two years ago hold tremendous future for the expansion of prime natural habitat. Kundal and Balas now offer brilliant sightings of not just antelope, wild boar and gazelle but increasingly tiger as well. Both these locations offer stunning views of dramatic landscapes and rolling countryside.

At Sher Bagh we have continued to up the standard of luxury we have offered our guests over the last nine years and have created a wider, more diverse selection of activities and locations within camp through which to enjoy the natural environment.

Our handcrafted masons pool, offers panoramic vistas of the forest and the massage tent, hidden away in the privacy of a lemon grove in a cool corner of the camp, both induce a feeling of relaxation and fun, in the seclusion of Ranthambhore’s pristine habitat. Our Library Bar, recently refurbished, affords views of the ancient Aravalli hill range that circles the National Park while imparting a sense of being in a Gentleman’s Club. Copious plantations of vetiver and dhaman grass throughout the camp attracts birdlife and a recent count found over 80 species in residence within the Sher Bagh estate alone. Many of these can be observed at our waterhole through the newly built ‘Hide’ at camp.

The boutique at Sher Bagh has seen the introduction of a whole new range of hand-crafted and carefully chosen products that reflect the richest and most colourful traditions of India. We also have a selection of photographs taken in-house over the years of the diversity of Ranthambhore’s wildlife. These are on display across the camp and an ‘exhibition’ of these is in place in our Den, dedicated to providing a useful introduction of Ranthambhore’s rich heritage, particularly to first time visitors.

GENERALMANAGER
20th October 2009.

Sher Bagh has now completed eight successful seasons in operation, and,  as we re-open for our ninth on the 30th of September, Ranthambhore will be lush and green. The monsoon would have transformed the dry grasses and leaves,  the park will be teeming with animal and bird life.

We fully refurbished the camp last year, which as we had hoped, has been brilliantly received and appreciated by our guests in the past season. The hand-crafted teak and rosewood Campaign furniture has given Sher Bagh a ‘pukka’ 1920s safari feel. This combined with our refined soft furnishings have made the camp truly luxurious, yet in keeping with its surroundings.

Our delicious, fresh and mostly organic menus have been a great hit, and we were recently featured in Gourmet Travel - House and Garden. Last year the celebrated British Chef, Gary Rhodes chose us to be part of his series Rhodes Across India, which was aired on UKTV Food Channel. This apart, our guest comments speak for themselves.

To further enhance the guest experience, we have just added more land to the estate, which includes the addition of a new water hole designed to blend with the surrounding landscape and offering panoramic views of the ancient Aravalli hill range that rings the camp. The placement of a deck made from local natural materials will create another area for guests to relax in.

Unstinted in our commitment to Ranthambhore National Park, we have continued to contribute our support to park management. Earlier this year Sher Bagh donated an Eicher Troop Carrier to the Forest Department for patrolling the park. As some parts of the park faced an acute water shortage this summer Sher Bagh decided to fund the construction of a well and a trough for animals to drink from. This well was dug in Jailkho, part of the Khandar Forest Range and has been fully operational since mid April. We have committed to also fund the planting of 5, 000 indigenous trees this year, in areas surrounding the park using saplings bought from the Ranthambhore Foundation’s nursery. Sher Bagh has also generated enormous support and awareness for newly created areas around the Park, such as Kundal, part of the Ranthambhore Tiger Reserve, which require public attention to become viable havens for our wildlife. The camp continues to recycle much of its waste-water, and use waste-fed boilers for its running hot water. We are looking into the option of Solar Power as well.

In keeping with our policy to provide employment and a livelihood for local communities we are proud that 95 percent of our staff are from villages surrounding the park area and have been trained in-house, from scratch. Most of them began their working lives at Sher Bagh, and have now completed eight years with us. We look forward to welcoming you at Sher Bagh!

JAISAL SINGH
Executive Director

As Sher Bagh enters its eighth spring this year, there is much to merit interest, excitement and hope for the future. Both, the camp as well as Ranthambhore National Park have seen some seminal changes this season.

The ageless and pristine natural beauty of Ranthambhore has continued to delight visitors. Moreover the increase in regularity with which visitors have sighted tiger’s gives us all hope for the magnificent creatures continued survival in the wild. At least four tigresses are with cubs and there are indications that at least one more may be pregnant. This is great news for Ranthambhore and for the species in particular. The Lake Tigress, popularly know as ‘Machli’ has been a source of continual marvel and a source of inspiration for all those who know her. Now with her fifth ‘litter’, she is frequently seen moving across the park in her characteristically bold manner.

Winter has also seen an influx of migratory birds arriving from their annual migrations, into and around the Park. With water levels remaining high the area has provided a unique and unprecedented opportunity for bird-watchers to indulge themselves in close observation.

The Forest Department has also opened new areas to the peripheries of the park and these provide an expansion in experience for all visitors to Ranthambhore. Kundal and Balas, both contiguous with the Park have proved to be popular with guests and naturalists alike. From tiger to herds of the otherwise elusive Indian gazelle, Kundal and Balas offer an alternative landscape with their rolling countryside and extensive views.

Within Sher Bagh too we have sought to enlarge the definition of comfort and luxury while keeping in mind the form we have always maintained of a forest friendly tented camp. New lounge and sitting areas, built on mud-decks allow guests to lie back and observe nature and the geological wonder that is Ranthambhore, in serenity and peace. Our lounge areas offer panoramic views of the surrounding country, agrarian India at its beautiful best and of the ancient Aravalli hills that run around Ranthambhore. Alternatively if guests wish they can walk around our private lake, through the sun-kissed fields of vetiver and dhaman grass. This walk is a particular favourite with bird-watchers who sometimes spend hours watching the diverse bird-life in and around the lake.

More recently, in keeping with our commitment to conservation and protecting the environment Sher Bagh donated a 20-seater ‘Canter’ to the Forest Department which will assist the department in patrolling, transporting staff and other activities. The presentation ceremony was conducted at the Headquarters of the Ranthambhore Tiger Reserve in Sawai Madhopur where Mr. Jaisal Singh, our Vice-Chairman, presented the vehicle to Mr. R.S. Shekhawat the Divisional Forest Officer & Deputy Conservator of Forests, Ranthambhore and one of his Assistant Conservators, Mr. Sudarshan Sharma. We are already in the process of creating an in-house center devoted to the collection and display of archival and research material about tigers and wildlife of Ranthambhore. This Wildlife Resource & Information Centre will include textual as well as visual material on a range of interests to do with wildlife, environment and eco-tourism. We hope it will provide a useful introduction to guests visiting Ranthambhore for the first time.

THE GENERAL MANAGER
20^th January 2008.