Date with Birds and Crocs!!

 Great way to spend the weekend - date with the birds and crocs on the bed of Kaveri River in Ranganathitu Bird sanctuary.. This was a half a day trip from Bangalore which is around 150 kms from Bangalore and 10 kms from Mysore. River Kaveri forms a marsh with seven small islands at this place which is apt for fishes, hence birds and crocodiles.. 

There are variety of birds coming from different parts of the world to name a few Painted stork, River Tern, Openbill stork, Darter, Heron and more..  

As per Muniswamy, the boat rider cum guide for our group, these birds come down to this sanctuary in the month of December, lay eggs, hatch and give birth to the new ones, once they are old they flew back to their home land.  A new set of birds come in the month of May/June. The sanctuary is also home for around 50 crocodiles.

We (Alok and me)started  the trip around 4:40AM and reached the Sanctuary @ 7:00AM, which is almost 170kms(from my room) in 140mins with just two breaks. As we entered the sanctuary's parking space it is almost empty indicating that there is no crowd hence complete peace.

The scenes…

Birds building their new homes - many birds are seen going to the nearby trees, collecting the twigs and building nests..the wing span of Openbill , coloured feathers of painted storks are a treat for the photographers to capture.  

Feeding the new borns - Openbill collecting the food for the younger ones and feeding is a great scene to watch.

 Croc's taking the Sun bath - The deceiving animal, crocodiles are in plenty at this sanctuary.. One of crocs almost 7 foot long was taking a Sun bath on one of the rocks in the marsh, this was the first time I have seen a croc from such close.. almost 2 mts close!! At least 2 others take a silent swim around us.

This place is a natures beauty, with picture perfect landscapes with water background, well maintained gardens, small pond with lot of Lotus welcoming the visitors to the sanctuary, many flowers shining bright with the dew drops and early morning Sun rays falling on them…. All around the sanctuary there is a warning of fine if the flowers are plucked (be aware).

Around this place was the beautiful village scenic paddy and sugarcane  fields - farmers getting ready for the next crop.

After the Sanctuary we headed towards Srirangapatnam - the then capital of Tippu Sultan to have a glance of the sculpture beauty of "Ranganatha Temple" Gopuram. The atmosphere in front of the temple resembles the Village side mela...number of petty shops selling wooden paintings, small shivalingas made from rock and many more.. Number of horse riders taking the visitors for a small ride.   

After this we headed back to Bangalore, stopped @ Kamath for yummy brunch and reached home around 2PM, absolutely the best way to spend the weekend.