National Forest/Wild Life in Karnataka :

Wildlife of Karnataka is infested in the 5 national parks and 21 well preserved wildlife sanctuaries of the state. Havens for the endangered species of animals and birds, these national parks are endemic to the region. Besides enjoying a royal elephant safari in the woods, tourists can also enjoy trekking along the tracks of the Western Ghats. The numerous waterfalls and flora increases the wilderness experience multi times. The lush and green forests of Karnataka offers some of the best wildlife parks in India.

Bandipur National Park :

Nesting in the foothills of the Nilgiris, the Bandipur National Park was formed by extending the Venugopal Wildlife Park, set up in 1931 by the Mysore Maharajas. It is one of the tiger reserves in the country.

Several species of birds have also made the Bandipur National Park their home. You could see beautiful birds like the Grey Jungle Fowl, Malabar, Trogon, Woodpecker, Weaverbird, Brown Hawk Owl, Weaverbird, Kingfisher, Bay Owl, Warbier and a number of rare species of birds here.

What to see:

Gopalswamy Betta- is one of the highest peaks in the Bandipur National Park and location of an ancient (13th century) fort of the Palegars of Terakanambi.The view from top of this hill is truly breath-taking. It is one of the highest peaks (1454 meters above sea level) in the Bandipur National Park, Karnataka, India. It is also called Himada Gopalswamy Betta, as it is covered in mist (hima means mist in Kannada), for most of the months.

The nearest town is Gundulpet,20 km.

The nearest city is Mysore,89 km.

There are no buses to Gopalswamy betta, so it would be prudent to take either a taxi, or ride a motorbike. Take the NH-212 towards Gundulpet from Mysore. Just outside of Gundulpet there is a fork in the road. One towards Sultan Bateri, Waynad (NH-212 continued) and the other towards Bandipur (NH-66). Take the fork towards Bandipur. As you proceed towards Bandipur, take a right turn at Hangala village. (There should be a big Karnataka Tourism board abutting the road). From this point, the hill top should be 15 km. 4 km further, there is a forest department check post at the base of the hill. It is a 10 km winding, steep road, with a few hairpin bends that take you to the hill top.

Safari - The national park organizes 45-minute bus safari into the forest for a minimal fare of Rs. 95/- only for Indians. Foreigners have to pay a few extra bucks. There is also open-jeep safari for Rs. 2200/-. The safari, however, doesn't guarantee that tourists will get to see tiger, as it is a matter of chance.

Elephant rides - Kids would love elephant ride organized by the forest department for Rs. 120/-. The ride is for just 20 mins and it is not a safari.

Bandipur is suitable for wildlife photography with many wildlife / nature photographers preferring to photograph animals and birds up close in the calm and serene surroundings in their natural habitat on the foothills of Niligiris Mountains.

Accommodation:

Jungle Home Guest House, Mudumalai: A lovely resort located close to the Mudumalai and Bandipur National Park that lets you enjoy the beauty of nature in absolute comfort and luxury.

Forest guest House, Bandipur.

Tiger Ranch, Mangala.

Jungle Lodges, Bandipur.

Tusker Trails, Mangala.

Country Club, Bush Betta, Mangala.

Nilgiris Resort, Hangala.

Contact for more details:Field Director, Bandipur,Tiger Reserve,Mysore - 570004.

Nagarhole National Park:

Nagarhole National Park , also known as "Rajiv Gandhi National Park", is located 94 kilometers (58 mi) from Mysore in Karnataka in South India. It is spread between Kodagu district and Mysore district. Located to the northwest of Bandipur National Park, Kabini reservoir separates the two. The exclusive hunting reserve of the former rulers of Mysore, the park has rich forest cover, small streams, valleys, and waterfalls.

The park stretches over 643 square kilometres (248 sq mi), protecting the wildlife of Karnataka.

The place derives its name from Naga meaning snake and hole referring to river streams. The climate is tropical; summer is hot and winter is pleasant. The park has a healthy tiger-predator ratio, and tiger, bison, and elephant are much more populour here than in Bandipur.

Nagarhole has a quite big elephant population, tigers, leopards, wild dogs, and sloth bears are found in viable numbers. The large predators prey on a variety of ungulates, like gaur, sambar deer, chital (spotted deer), common muntjac, four-horned antelope, mouse deer and wild boar. Gray langurs, lion-tailed macaques and bonnet macaques represent the primates in the park. On the surrounding hills outside the park occurre Nilgiri tahrs and Nilgiri langurs.

The park's main entrance is 93km southwest of Mysore. However, the best accommodation and the most beautiful views are at the Kabini Lake side of the reserve, near the village of Karapura, around 80km south of Mysore.

Best Time to Visit : October - March .

Nearest town : Kutta (7 km), Mysore (80 km)

How to Get There:

International Airport : Bangalore (220 km)

Railways : Mysore (80 km)

Road : Can be easily accessed from Mysore and Bangalore.

Accommodation:

State-owned forest resthouses, private lodges and cottages are among the accommodation options in Nagarhole. Reservations for the forest resthouses must be made at least 15 days in advance by contacting the warden’s office in Bangalore or Mysore. There is also a posh river lodge (state-run) at the Kabini River, which, though it comes for a high-end price, also offers a great experience.

Contact for more details: Asst. Conservator of forests,Wild life Sub - Division Van Vilas Marg, Mysore.

Kudremukh National Park :

Kudremukh National Park in the Western Ghats, area of about 600 square meter of a tropical evergreen wet forest, is the main attraction. It is declared as Wildlife Protected Area.

Kudremukh National Park is developed based on the report of the noted environmentalist Dr Ullas Karanth. It was in 1987, this national park was formed in the Reserved Forests in Kudremukh. Endangered mammals and rare species are protected here in this park, includes the three large predator species - Wild dogs, Leopard and Tigers. This is the natural habitat of many other wild animals such as Common Languar, Wild Pig, sambar and Lion tailed Macaque.

The national park is dwelling to many natural attractions, which can be visited with a special permission available at the National Park.

Useful links for your INDIA trip.

• Best Documentary on INDIA
• Official website of Ministry of Tourism,Govt. of IndiaBeaches