Pench National Park, Maharashtra: A Beautiful and Serene Experience

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If you want to visit a serene forest, as forests should be, you must visit Pench National Park, Maharashtra.

Pench is a beautiful jungle, and the poet Kalidas wrote about the scenic beauty of these forests in his epics ‘Meghdootam’ and ‘Shakuntalam’. “R.A. Strendale’s ‘Camp in the Satpura Hills’ draws a vivid pen picture of this idyllic paradise – as does Forsyth’s ‘Highlands of Central India’.

Pench National Park is divided between Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh. We visited the Maharashtra side, and were delighted by the quaintness, and low commercialisation. There weren’t many resorts (thankfully, at least when we visited in 2010), and tourists were also few. The forest department ran only about 21 Jeep Safaris at a time. Although we didn’t have a tiger sighting, we did enjoy the forest drives, and we managed to see the Jackal, the Fox and the Wolf, apart from many birds, mammals and ungulates. From the Maharashtra side, the entry to Pench is through the Sillari Gate.

We had an extremely basic stay at the Forest Rest House. The canteen was a few meters away from the rooms, and there was no room service. At night, the walk from the rooms to the canteen was in pitch darkness. There was a Tiger Interpretation Centre which was a very commendable attempt at telling us about the secret life of a Tiger.

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A beautiful morning at Pench.
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Plenty of Chital (Axis axis) make ample prey base for the Tiger.
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The magic of the first rays of warm sunlight hitting the winter morning mist at Pench.
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A raptor perches at Pench
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Chital (Axis axis) look gorgeous when backlit.
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Two males lock their horns in a territorial/mating rights ritual.
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An Indian Roller (Coracias benghalensis).
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With so many safaris, the Chital are more curious than afraid of visitors.
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An Indian Scops Owl (Otus bakkamoena).
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The Kulu tree (Sterculia urens), also known as The Ghost Tree, is a beautiful tree of central India with a white trunk and peeling papery skin. “It survives drought partly by going leafless and lying dormant for more than half the year making up for the loss through a green chlorophyll layer that lies just under the skin of its trunk.” : ‘Jungle Trees of Central India by Pradip Kishen.
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Tigers’s favourite meal, the Sambar deer (Rusa unicolor), checking us out.
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A black drongo (Dicrurus macrocercus) at Pench National Park.
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Pench is a birder’s delught, with over 164 species. Here, an  Alexandrine Parakeet (Psittacula eupatria) looks busy over its supper.
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Bathed in golden setting sunlight, An Indian Wolf (Canis lupus pallipes) at Pench, a rare sighting.
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With branches spread like a wise old man, a Banyan Tree (Ficus benghalensis) stands in confidence, having watched over this forest for perhaps a 100 years.
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The Tiger Interpretation Centre at Pench has these beautiful clay models depicting the life of a Tiger.
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An Indian Fox (Vulpes bengalensis) also known as the Bengal Fox. These beautiful animal is hunted for its flesh, pelt and various local rituals. Habitat destruction is also taking a toll on the Indian Fox.
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Another first for me, a Plum Headed Parakeet (Psittacula cyanocephala).
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The Indian Grey Hornbill (Ocyceros birostris).
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A Rose ringed Parakeet (Psittacula krameri) with an electricity pylon in the background.
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Magical light at Pen National Park.
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There is an ancient temple deep inside the Pench Forest (Maharashtra side) bringing busloads of pilgrims thoughout the year and many times that on certain days.
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beautiful rocky cliffs with waterfall and moss.
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There are plenty of Oriental Pied Hornbills (Anthracoceros albirostris) around the ancient temple, mostly because of the ficus trees.
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Wild Boars (Sus scrofa) in Pench.
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Red Naped Ibis (Pseudibis papillosa) at Pench National Park
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The Grey Langur (Simia entellus) and Chital have a pretty much symbiotic relationship.
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An Indian Jackal (Canis aureus indicus).
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The Pench National Park, Madhya Pradesh is overpopulated with tourists, safari vehicles and resorts. Comparatively, the Pench Maharashtra side is cleaner, quieter.
Waiting for our safari at Pench, MP.
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Morning light on tree trunks.
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A wall spider at our forest lodge.
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The simple but functional forest rest house accommodation we stayed in.
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Beautiful waterbodies inside Pench are surrounded by meadows where the ungulates graze lazily.
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Hordes of cattle being driven for grazing.
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One of the villages outside the buffer zone.
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Wild grass flowers, backlit.

[box type=”success” width=”100%” ]By Air: Land at Nagpur and take a taxi till Pench, 70 km away.

By Train: Nagpur is the nearest station, then take a taxi to Pench.

By Bus: Ramtek, 35 kms by bus has a regular bus service to Pench National Park. Where to Stay: Sillari Rest House Dy. Conservator of Forests, Nagpur Forest Division, Nagpur. Ph: 0712-2524624 MTDC, Regional Office, opp. Hotel Hardev, Nagpur Ph: 2533325[/box]

2 thoughts on “Pench National Park, Maharashtra: A Beautiful and Serene Experience”

  1. This national park looks so scenic and unspoilt – we see lots of deer and fox here in England but I would love to see the Indian fox to see what the differences are and those tropical birds are such pretty colours. Must have been a lovely experience 🙂

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