Archive for the ‘Wildlife’ Category

Any place where you can see royal Bengal tigers, panthers, leopards and something called swamp deer, and end the day with a big bowl of authentic Indian curry, is A-OK in my books. The Kanha Tiger Reserve is located in the Indian province of Madhya Pradesh in Central India. The reserve is part of the Kanha National Park. You can get there from major Indian cities by train and cab, and you can get around by renting an escorted jeep.

Stay in 3 star Indian hotels, jungle chalets, quaint cottages, or the Shergarh tented camp outside the reserve.

For more info on this amazing place:

Kanha Tiger Reserve
Kanha National Park

india, kanha tiger reserve, kanha national park, tigers, wildlife, travel, accommodation, tourism

Monkey Mia is located about 800km north of Perth, Western Australia and is most famous for it’s friendly dolphins. Visitors to the attraction have the opportunity to feed and get close to several bottlenose dolphins. Unlike other dolphin attractions around the world though, these dolphins are not in captivity. They’ve been fed at this location since the 60s and have come to trust the spot as a good source of food and a safe place to be. While there are many restrictions in place to protect the beautiful creatures, it is more spectacular than any amount of dolphin riding you can do in Florida or Mexico, simply because these dolphins are free.

I had the pleasure of visiting Monkey Mia in 1992, when we stopped there during a road trip up the West Coast of Australia which ended at Exmouth. The entire West Coast of Australia is absolutely breath taking, probably the most beautiful landscape, beaches, oddities and wildlife I’ve ever been privy to in my entire life. And Monkey Mia was a definite highlight. Of course, the dolphins made it extra special, but the grounds themselves were awe-inspiring. It’s virtually in the middle of nowhere, with nothing else around but the Monkey Mia resort structures and a campground. The beach, aside from the dolphin feeding spot, is fairly deserted. I remember standing in a purple-skied dusk on a stunning beach as our friend caught a parrot fish and barbecued it for dinner. The whole place is just breathtaking.

It’s set in the middle of Western Australia’s Shark Bay and sees sunshine 320 days per year. It doesn’t matter what time of year you visit, because it’s sunny year round, but also because the dolphins visit daily, not seasonally. It is absolutely free to see the dolphins as well.

Monkey Mia is considered a World Heritage site and a dolphin research site. It is so fully worth going to see. For more information:

1. Wikipedia
2. Monkey Mia Resort
3. Visiting Monkey Mia

australia, western australia, monkey mia, dolphins, resort, shark bay