Re: Velavadar - India's Savana Grassland inundated with Buck

Photologue Approved

It is very nice to see the photos talking, but it would be nicer if you also did some talking

Re: Velavadar - India's Savana Grassland inundated with Buck

Thanks @monk that was fast. I will surely add some talk as well, details about the route, the charges at the Sanctuary, what to see and all will come up in the next post for sure.

But will still remain a Photolog

Re: Velavadar - India's Savana Grassland inundated with Buck

bring on the writeup too bro, your smooth descriptive writing is another addiction that cannot be replaced... even jumping words is hard in your triplogs

Re: Velavadar - India's Savana Grassland inundated with Buck

Nice start there! Bring on the rest

Cheers & Ride Safe!

Re: Velavadar - India's Savana Grassland inundated with Buck

Amazing pics bro...especially the 2nd pics...need to get more info about the place u visited...how to get there...stay if required...please share Atleast little travelogue...

Sent from my LG-P765 using xBhp Connect mobile app

Re: Velavadar - India's Savana Grassland inundated with Buck

It's been a long time since we last had a long ride together and we were confused about where to go. Since we wanted to keep it to a single day at the moment so in terms of distance we had to keep it to around 350-400 Km round trip. Polo was the option coming up as thats the best place in this range, but Polo ! we had been there umpteen times, its lovely, its green, its wild but Monsoon is the best time to visit and its just not monsoon right now. Thol was too near, would just not satisfy the craving. Lothal has nothing much to see, other options had their own problems.


Velavadar has its own strange problem which even though we wanted to visit was literally pushing us away in a way. Bikes are not allowed as its a sanctuary, but its been over 2 years that we had last visited the place. Its been haunting us all since, as last time was more than just adventurious for us all, being one of the most densely populated sanctuary on the planet it sure has no shortage of wildlife and that was confirmed 2 years ago. We all saw more Black Bucks there in 2 hours than we see dogs and cats in the city in a month.


So for a change we decided to give the bikes a break and take Sharad's car instead. Plans got finalized, I confirmed that the Sanctuary was open. Roads are prity familiar to me so that was never going to be an issue. Created an Event on FB stating every minute detail that I could and in a couple of days we had enough members that we needed 3 cars which to my surprise was not going to be an issue as 2 more members were ready to bring their 4 wheeled beasts as well. Dates were locked for 16th February 2014, time of departure was going to be 4:30 AM. Velavadar being 150 Km from Ahmedabad (As per G-Maps, in actuality its almost 200) we hoped to reach there by around 7:30 AM.




14th Feb.


8:00 PM onwards Alpha One was hosting Shamiana, a short film festival which screens award winning short films from across the world. @adisakke AKA Ashik Khan , @alurysharad2008 AKA Sharad and myself plan to meetup and finalize the ride. Shamiana though was not that much on the minds, for me it was a no-no as I had to meetup and get back home. I call up the rest of the guys and get a negetive reply from everyone. Things start to look grim but I was ready to go, even if it meant it would just be 3 of us. We all plan to meetup around 7:15-7:30 Pm, have our breif meet and then disperse. We all get late due to traffic jams across the city, which by the way has become a norm.

We all meetup, the route and timings get finalized in no time, there was however some confusion as to where to meetup in the morning, Ashik had duty from like 2:00 PM so for him to leave his bike somewhere on the highway was not advisable and if he left it at Sharad's place he would again have a headache to come and collect it. Though it was odd we all agreed to meetup at Ashik's place around 4:30-4:45 AM and proceed from there. The plan for 16th is all sorted out and we guys enjoy some snacks as well before we disperse.


15th Feb.


I contacted @AK3D AKA Aamirbhai as he too was willing to come but unfortunately some meetings came up for him at the last moment and it would not have been possible for him to join in. One more set-back but there was a blessing for me in that. Aamirbhai asked me if I wanted to carry his DSLR along with his 55-300 Lens, I immediately agree and agreed to pick it up from his place. We needed atleast one more Zoom lens but for some strange reason we were unable to get hold of one from any of our friends.


D-Day.


The previos night I could not sleep till 2:00 AM as I was actually waiting for someone's call as I had to collect a 70-300 but that call never came. I slept knowing I did not have much time. Woke up at 4:00 AM took a shower and had a cup of coffee which my wife made for me even at that odd hour. She made sure I packed all my stuff properly and left on time. I rode to Ashik's place as I was going to leave leave my bike there. As soon as I reached Ashik's place I got a call from Sharad telling me that he was waiting outside the colony and that we 2 meetup with him there only. I agreed and called Ashik to tell him I was on his building's ground floor. Ashik came down in less than a minute. We walked out and met with Sharad. Loaded our cams, bags and snacks in Sharad's car and as was agreed upon earlier I took the wheel and once we crossed city limits Sharad took over for reasons that can't be mentioned here .


We had to take the following route. Ahmedabad - Bagodra - Pipli - Dholera - Velavadar. I had absolutely no sleep so was not as aware of the surroundings as I should have, I was not sleepy but still. After an hour of driving we reached Bagodra, in all this absent mindedness I thought we might have reached our exit but to make absolutely sure we stopped at the tea stall at the intersection and we were told we still have to go a few more kilometer ahead, this give us all an opportunity to take a pee break as well. We took the exit and headed to Pipli. I was very sure that the roads upto Pipli were very good which they were, it was the Pipli - Bagodra road which I was not too confident about as a couple of months back when I was travelling on that route the tarmac was almost absent, it was more of an offroad trail than a road, but those couple of months is all that the authorities needed to resurface the entire road, though there are few very short patches that one needs to be very careful of.

Around 7 the sun had started to rise and we had already crossed Dholera. At this time Sharad started to question if we were on the right track as we had crossed Dholera and his trip meter was showing almost 180 odd kms and there was absolutely no signs of the sanctuary. I told him that just before the entrance there are 2 Transmission towers and within seconds we saw 2 towers in the distance and I pointed it out to Sharad but after a while we could see those towers being left behind, again doubts start to creep in, but we were on the right track and again in to time we see 2 more transmission towers and this time they are on the main highway. We stop for breakfast just at the entrance of the Sanctuary. Coffee for all, along with some chips and other packaged foods.

Just a good looking Bull grazing near the Hotel.





Sharad's Friend, Sharad and Ashik.





After the short break we head straight for the Sanctuary.

PS. More details about the route, overnight stay, charges, sanctuary history and details coming up in the next post, stay tuned

Re: Velavadar - India's Savana Grassland inundated with Buck

The Sanctuary gate is some 10 Km from the highway, the roads are narrow but well tarred and lined by thorny bushes. Traffic from the oppisite side was not heavy but it was there. We might have moved just a couple of kms and Sharad spotted something in the distance on the right hand side, initially we thought it was a herd of Black Bucks, they must have been around 500-600 mts away. We stopped and took a few snaps. As soon as started I realized there was a problem. I will tell you something about the camera that I was using for the day, as mentioned earlier it was Aamir bhai's cam, a Nikon D7000 with a Nikon 55-300 Lens. Aamir bhai has his own preferences and he has setup his cam accordingly. Genereally if we half press the shutter button the autofocus would kick in and after that pressing further the cam would click the photo. Aamir bhai has disabled this feature and on his cam we have to press the AFL button next to the eye peice. This was new to me and to some extent even for Ashik. Ashik had got a taste of that a couple of days back when we were at Aamirbhai's place, still getting used to this took me a lot of time. This arrangement is just brilliant once you get used to it as it gives you a lot more freedom. I realized this by the end of the trip.


As for the herd that we saw it was actually a flock of Cranes, they were just magnificent. It was only after clicking a couple of shots and reviewing them that we realized what we were looking at. I was still getting used to the equipment and its typical setup. Yes I could have customized the cam to my liking but did not want to do that. The images of the cranes were not the best but still we were happy to see so many of them.






Just see the numbers in this one shot only



Moving on further and spot a couple of Blackbucks crossing the road just in front of our car. So much action and still we are not at the Sanctuaries gate






We finally reach the Sancturay. We asked for a guide and got our tickets.


The rates for the Sanctuary are as follows.


Rs. 250 /- per car with a maximum of 6 passengers. (paid 250)
Rs. 100 /- per Camera (2 DSLRs so we paid Rs. 200)
Rs. 50/- for the guide. You can go without a guide but still took a guide as the amount was not much and believe me its worth every penny. (Paid 50 officially and Rs. 100 as token of appreciation)


There are very good rooms for those who might want to stay there overnight, the charges are Rs. 500 / night for a room of 2 people, Non - Ac. I guess this would be a great place to spent the night for those who are willing to do some night time photography specially star trails, planets and meteor showers. Its far away from civilization with minimal light polution. Morning you can get up early and head for the safari and sure you would get to see a lot of animals just as the sun rises. The Sanctuary officially opens at 7:00 AM. They have luch and dinner facilities as well for those who stay at the guest house, Rs. 70/person, they would be serving Gujarati thali. The rooms are generally available if pre-booked. There is a private lodge as well right next to the Sanctuary, you can inquire there as well. If anyone is interested in visiting or staying over I will be more than please to share the contact information as well.


We ended up paying Rs. 600/- in all. The name of our guide was Mehul, he was good, he knew the roads, knew where the animals would be and the best part was he knew about the birds. I was very interested in seeing the Lesser Floricans which is one of the most endangered bird species in the world, Velavadar is one of the last known breeding grounds for these rare birds. On enquiry came to know that they are only seen here during Monsoon and that the park remains closed to public during that time frame. It was a heartbreak for me as I had very high expectations.


A bit more about the park.


Velavadar is divided into 2 parts. The grasslands (Tall savana type grass) and the Wetlands. The park is divided by the road running right through the middle. The park is spead over an area of roughly 35 SqKm, small, very small compared to all the other large National parks in India and this is a big advantage as this small area and large population makes this place special. If you goto Velavadar and don't see Blackbucks you surely have landed in the wrong place !


The part of the park where the Offices and the Guesthouse are located is the Grasslands. You can see tall green grass just after monsoon. rest of the time its dry and the local villagers and the park authorities cut the grass occasionally so that the animals are more visible, but I guess by doing so they are taking away the natural cover and camouflage that the grass provides to the shy type of animals that reside there. The park is home to over 5000 black bucks, numerous Blue Bulls, birds, Hyenas, Wolfs, Jungle Cats, Foxes and a few other species.


The wetlands are on the other side of the road. There is not much of a fencing between the 2 parts and that enables the animals to roam around freely from one part to the other. The wetlands has a lake where loads of migratory birds come to spend their winters. Storks, Spoonbills, Pelicans are very easily spotted. There are ample number of Black bucks as well.


I request all those who visit this place to make sure they visit both parts. Our guide Mehul had already told us not to have very high expectations of birds as its already Spring and most of the migratory birds had returned back to their summer homelands.

How to Reach Velavadar National Park / Velavadar Black Buck Sanctuary.

Velavaday is very well connected to Ahmedabad and other major cities of Gujarat. Here are few routes that could be taken depending on where you are coming in from

From Northern States and for people coming in from Ahmedabad

Ahmedabad - Bagodra - after Bagodra take the Dhandhuka Highway - Pipli - Dholera - Velavadar

Alternate Route
Ahmedabad - Anand - Vasad - Tarapur - Vataman - Pipli - Dholera - Velavadar

For people coming in from Rajkot side
Rajkot - Limdi, after Limdi take the Dhandhuka Highway - Pipli - Dholera - Velavadar

For people coming in from Bhavnagar Side
Bhavnagar to Veladar is just 40-45 Km. Just ask anyone the route to Vataman - Ahmedabad.

For those who are coming from Eastern or Southers States

Vadodra - Vasad - Tarapur - Vataman - Pipli - Dholera - Velavadar

Re: Velavadar - India's Savana Grassland inundated with Buck

Velvadar is simply a plain, or are there some rock formations? Please if you can tell me more about the wetlands, it would be very useful.

Re: Velavadar - India's Savana Grassland inundated with Buck

Velavadar is just plains with loads of grass no mountains, hills or rocks what so ever.

The wetlands are like 5.5 SqKms so its a very small area as such with a lake that might be around 2-2.5 SqKm. It's primarily tidal waters from the Bay of Khambhat which inundate parts of the park during high tides. So the water is salty.

This small lake is again surrounded by grass lands.

Re: Velavadar - India's Savana Grassland inundated with Buck

subscribed,great pictures

Re: Velavadar - India's Savana Grassland inundated with Buck

awesome.
waiting for the jumping shots of black bucks

Re: Velavadar - India's Savana Grassland inundated with Buck

Mehul, our Guide told us that we will start off with the Grasslands and then move to the wetlands. We agreed, but I just confirmed if we would have to pay again to visit the wetlands and he said no, you pay once and you can visit both the parts unlike a lot of sanctuaries in India where you are alloted a sector and you are not allowed to change that or if you wish you have to again pay all the fees, this was a welcome relief for us, though the amount was more than just reasonable but since we did not have more than 4 hours spending money again to visit the other part would not have made much sense. Sharad was driving, the guide in the front passenger seat, Ashik and myself got took occupied the 2 rear window passenger seats with our cameras rear to shoot any action that might happen and Sharad's friend sandwiched in-between.

The Sanctuary gate


As soon as we enter the park and move a bit forward I see an owl sitting on one of the trees, I asked Sharad to stop as I wanted to click a few pics. The owl was now no longer visible from my window so thought of getting out of the car but as soon as I opened the door the sound freaked it out and it flew away leaving me a bit disappointed.


Going further down the road we saw a lot of Black bucks and Mehul told us to get ready as they will surely be crossing the road and will be jumping, give us an opportunity to click some good shots. Ashik and myself got out of the car, I gave Ashik the cam and opened up the boot as I had my Panasonic FZ35 as well and I wanted to try out a few shots with that (I was still not comfortable with the larger SLR and did not want to waste the opportunity. In all the excitement just forgot to change the settings of the cam and kept shooting to later realize all the photos were way over exposed and would not yeild any results. Ashik though did get a couple of good shots.

These were captured by Ashik ( [MENTION=17425]adisakke[/MENTION])






And Finally the moment we were waiting for. I was heart broken though as I thought I might have lost my chance of getting any of these but opportunity was to present itself once again.



This is me trying to figure out what went wrong



One of the cute babies that we got to see



Black Shouldered kite that Ashik Captured


One more of those beautiful birds



A Beautiful Red Dove




And Now some clicks from my side

A Neilgie



Finally got a hold of the Camera settings and was able to get some good pics.

This is one of the birds spotted by our guide. The abundance of Black Bucks made me loose interest in them and I diverted my attention to avian wildlife instead.


A Long Tailed Shrike


Stepe Eagle



Red Wattled Lapwing


These guys are like "What the hell are you staring at"


Ashik on one of the watch towers



Mehul our guide


A Male Stonechat



Our Group



The American group that was also at in the Park


Snake skin


One more of the Stonechat males


The Black shouldered kite that I captured




One of the less colourful female birds out there



A Green Bee-Eater




This guy just kept posing for Ashik

Re: Velavadar - India's Savana Grassland inundated with Buck

We return to the Entrance of the Sanctuary and take a short break to refresh ourselves.

We then head over to the other side of the road to check out the Wetlands.

I will start off with pictures I captured.





















































----consecutive posts auto-merged-----

The last set of pictures from @adisakke AKA Ashik Khan's Camera.

View of the lake




























So that folks is it as far as the photos and the Photolog goes.

We returned back home on the same route that we took and reached Ahmedabad by around 1:45 PM.

Credits and Acknowledgements.
[MENTION=52772]AK3D[/MENTION] - Aamirbhai I don't have the words to thank you for the equipment that you lended to me. All my photos are courtesy your camera. [MENTION=31133]Sharad[/MENTION]alury2008 - Sharad thanks for the ride and being so patient all the while I kept clicking all those pics and bothering you to stop the vehicle every couple of minutes. [MENTION=17425]adisakke[/MENTION] - Thanks for all the support, without you the photos would not have come out so well, neither would I have mustered the courage to carry Aamirbhai's cam. I have done my best in terms of editing the pics, forgive me for any errors in editing or at times over doing it.

Re: Velavadar - India's Savana Grassland inundated with Buck

Ayazbhai, don't worry about the pics, it will get better with time. Nice captures for a first time DSLR user. Love the Jumping Buck...