“I felt my lungs inflate with the onrush of scenery—air, mountains, trees, people. I thought, “This is what it is to be happy.”

— Sylvia Plath

 

 

 

 

 

 

Adventures in the Wild

The woods are where I belong. Wilderness and the wild, make me the happiest. My twelve-day adventure in the wild side of Satpura, Central Indian Highlands has refurbished my lungs with copious amounts of oxygen and my soul with boundless joy.

I was in Satpura for a Professional Naturalist Training program (PRONAT), a one-of-its-kind, unique course, organised in India by my company, for whom I curate content, Pugdundee Safaris, in association with Wildlife and Forestry Services (WFS). This course is currently being held at Satpura’s Denwa Backwater Escape, one of Pugdundee Safaris, six lodges in Central India. Denwa Backwater Escape lies by the scenic banks of the meandering Denwa river. The course arms the participants to become naturalists in the forests. I went to learn, grow and become one with myself. 

The monsoon have been more than generous this season. And the river has foisted itself right against the Denwa property.  The rains drummed against our roof-top, while we were absorbed in our training modules. Or on our forest adventures, when they washed off all the mugginess and the grime we had carried with us from our big, bad cities. 

THE ENGROSSING CURRICULUM AND PASSIONATE FACULTY:

The course entailed equal number of class room sessions and field trips, that involved hands on learning in the lap of nature. A faculty of  esteemed experts conduct this twenty-one day course that has modules like Birds, Butterflies, Reptile and Amphibians, Trees and Mammals etc. I attended twelve days of this engrossing course; as “home-diva” responsibilities beckon.

Our jungle walks and safaris armed us with immense learning, along with our herping (act of searching for amphibians or reptiles in the wild) adventures with our expert Herpetologist, Nariman Vazifdar.  It was not unusual to have heart-thumping encounters with various species of snakes and reptiles. Some venomous and some non-venomous.  A truly exhilarating experience. Nari (Nariman) played a big role in alleviating our fears and myths around the reptilian population, with much ease and aplomb. 

We also learned various tools and features to identify the avian population. As well as some very interesting and intriguing pointers in bird-watching and butterfly identification. Satpura is teeming with birds and butterflies. Our expert trainer, Nikhil ensured a fun six-day module with his wit and deft story-telling skills. 

Kartikeya Singh or Dada as we fondly call him, the founder of Wildlife and Forestry Services, is a force to beckon with. His ubiquitous presence during the course, and even when he was away for a few days, ensured our learning graphs grew in leaps and bounds. His calm, composed disposition and gentle conversations during meal time or in class, made the course amiable. Dada is a knowledge bank. And there is always so much to learn from him. 

Nature is where we all belong Share on X

THE AFTERMATH: 

My twelve, breezy days at Denwa Backwaters got over in a jiffy. I returned to the urban jungle armed with experiences that were befitting, a heart oozing with gratitude, a soul reinvigorated by the gifts of wildreness and valuable knowledge on wildlife.

Such adventures in the wild, are a must-do for us city dwellers who sometimes forget to celebrate their true selves and the bountiful nature that surrounds them. It’s easy to lose our selves in the wilderness. To bury our pain in the midst of the wild. After all, nature is where we all belong. 

 

 

 

Linking up with the lovely ladies, Mel for Microblog Mondays and Corinne for MondayMusings.