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Reader draw close. I have a tail to tell so amazing it will remain etched in my memory for ever.
The day safari started at six in the morning. We were in one of a dozen or so safari jeeps waiting for the gate to open to Corbett National Park. Once it did a frenzy of activity as the drivers raced up the track, all in search of the icon of India, the illusive tiger.
By eight in the morning we were parked in the right area and had seen dozens of fresh tracks in the dust and mud of the jeep trails that crossed the park. Males, females, cubs all were in the area. We saw an abundance of wildlife, Samber Deer, Spotted Deer, Barking Deer, a pair of Great Pied Hornbill in flight and troops of monkeys. The scenery was breathtaking as we drove around the undulating tracks in the park, stopping to drink in the sights, sounds and smells.
All too soon the morning safari drew to a close. The morning had been to intoxicating we decided to pay an extra fee for a full day. After breakfast the tourist jeeps thinned considerably and we could have been mistaken for thinking we were the only ones left in the park. Occasionally however we drove past another jeep, stopped and exchanged information. The morning passed with a series of very relaxing stops, listening to the wildlife.
At around eleven we heard the bark. It was a deer screeching the alarm call of a nearby predator. I learned that both deer and monkeys call out nearby danger. Useful if you are tracking a predator.
We headed towards the noise, the great hunter armed only with camera and some intelligence. We were the dominant species here. Again we stopped and listened. Another bark, two hundred metres off to our left. We drove down a small track and made a right turn onto another track with elephant grass and dense bushes either side. We again stopped. By this time two other jeeps had appeared, one some 50 metres further down the track and another a similar distance behind us. We listened. I turned and faced the bushes as the side of the jeep. Again a bark, ahead of me and only 50 metres away. I looked into the bushes and could see no further than a few metres. If the tiger emerged from here it we be next to me. The height of the jeep meant I was less than a metre from the floor and unprotected. I felt very vulnerable. We stayed there, silent for perhaps fifteen minutes. The waiting game. Occasionally the deer barked it’s call letting us know it was still in danger. I could hear my heart beat in my cerotic vein. Every blade of elephant grass that whispered in the breeze caught my attention and glance. For over five hundred generations I had evolved to this point. To be an intelligent hunter, super attuned for this very occasion. How many times before in my life had adrenaline kicked it in the name of leisure, perhaps a film. This was the real deal.
A growl. Time stopped. Breathing stopped. Perhaps ten metres? Directly in front. The hunter and the hunted. The hunted and the hunter. In that brief second our roles switched and I realized my arrogance. Another growl. Dear God it had moved. Same distance but to my left. Another growl, again further left. We had blocked it’s path and it was moving around us. Still no sight. Another growl. My heart raced Then nothing. Suddenly in my peripheral vision I saw movement. I jumped. I then realized it was occupants of the other jeep frantically but silently waving for our attention. The tiger had broken cover and was crossing the riverbed down the track in front of us. I held on as we drove closer. Then we saw it. 120kg of male tiger, perhaps five years old, calming and confidently walking across the open river bed. I began to photograph as fast as I could. After about a minute it reached the track in front of us, about forty metres distant and thankfully walking away. The driver started the engine and squeezed past the other jeep. ‘Buzz, buzz,’ The guide warned the driver, slowly slowly. We edged closer. Was this a good idea? The guide told us the tiger was in must. I had seen stag Deer in must once, aggressive, argumentative, tetchy. Was this really a good idea? ‘Buzz, buzz,’ closer and closer. How close were we going to get? My 300mm lense was fully of tiger and I had to pull back on the zoom. I was about to suggest we were close enough when the tiger stopped. It was about 25 metres away. It turned, growled and within a split second started to run towards us!
‘Hut, hut, hut, hut!’ the guide screamed at both the driver and tiger, go go go go!

We slammed into reverse and floored it with no care for the jeeps behind us. I saw the tigers teeth and it’s feet as they spread in the dusty track in front of us. The driver in his cab was fairly safe, the guide was behind us. 120kg of predator was running full pelt at me and Patrice. I braced for the impact with the other jeep. It never came. Thankfully all drivers did the same thing at the same time. The tiger stopped ten metres in front of us. It’s point well made. Respect. Patrice and I sank into our seats. For the next few minutes I was silent. We told the guide that perhaps the other jeeps could have a go at being in front.