"Ranthambore National Park" a Sawai Madhopur Travel Page by grets

Tiger, tiger, burning bright
In the forests of the night,
What immortal hand or eye
Could frame thy fearful symmetry?

In what distant deeps or skies
Burnt the fire of thine eyes?
On what wings dare he aspire?
What the hand dare seize the fire?

And what shoulder and what art
Could twist the sinews of thy heart?
And when thy heart began to beat,
What dread hand and what dread feet?

What the hammer? what the chain?
In what furnace was thy brain?
What the anvil? What dread grasp
Dare its deadly terrors clasp?

When the stars threw down their spears,
And water'd heaven with their tears,
Did He smile His work to see?
Did He who made the lamb make thee?

Tiger, tiger, burning bright
In the forests of the night,
What immortal hand or eye
Dare frame thy fearful symmetry?

William Blake. 1757–1827

Ranthambore is India’s premier tiger reserve, declared in 1973 as part of Project Tiger. Covering an area of over 500 square kilometres in the state of Rajastan, the park is dotted with archaeological remains, including the 1000-year old Ranthambore fort, hunting palaces and many temples of the medieval period. The setting is stunning, and brings about feelings of a bygone era with the thrill of the hunt from when the park was the hunting ground of the Maharaja of Jaipur. The park gats its name from two hills close by, Ran and Thambor.

Located 14 km from the small town of Sawai Madhopur, Ranthambore is spread over a highly undulating topography, varying from gentle slopes to majestic escarpments, from wide and flat valleys to narrow, rocky gorges to tranquil lakes and pools. The best time to spot one of the 40 resident tigers in the park, is between October and June.

Other animals found in the park include:

Leopard
Striped hyena
Sambar deer
Chital
Nilgai
Hanuman langur
Macaque
Jackal
Jungle cat
Caracal
Sloth bear
Black buck
Rufoustailed hare
Indian wild boar
Chinkara
Common palm civet
Toddy cat
Common yellow bat
Desert cat
Fivestriped palm squirrel
Indian false vampire
Indian flying fox
Indian fox
Indian gerbil
Indian mole rat
Indian porcupine
Long-eared hedgehog
Ratel
Small Indian mongoose
Small Indian civet
Common mongoose
There are some 250 bird species in the park, and we identified the following:

White Throated Kingfisher
Indian Greenpie
Green Treepie
Red Vented Bulbul
Rosewing Parakeet
Peacock
Anhinga
Black Headed Ibis
Common Snipe
Ruddy Shelduck
Common Teal
Grey Francolin
Partridge
Common Tern
Osprey
Indian Roller
Bareback Shrike
Hoopoo
Eurasian Spoonbill
Black Stork
Spotted Owlet
Little Cormorant
Lesser Black Woodpecker
Grey Heron
Lesser Pied Kingfisher
White Breasted Kingfisher
Golden Backed Woodpecker
Jungle Babbler
Peraya Kite
Long Billed Vulture
White Broad Fronted Flycatcher
Brown Fish Owl
Red Wattled Lapwing
Black Winged Kite
Crested Serpent Eagle
Black Drongo
White Bellied Drongo
Great Stone Plover
Common Kingfisher
Indian Sarus Crane
Green Bee Eater
Asian Palm Swift
Rock Pigeon
Wood Sandpiper
Indian Cormorant
Little Egret
Painted Stork
Oriental Magpie Robin
Common Myna

I have put my tiger pictures and stories in the Must See category, my other animal pictures under the General heading and birds under Off the Beaten Path.The history and pictures of the fort can be found in the Sports section