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Travelling in the wildernesses requires a special sensitivity. The laws of the jungle are different but there are several ways to get the best out of your 'Wild Travel' without disturbing the habitats you visit. Bring back only beautiful memories.
Some tips that you can use from those who've been there…
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On forest trails
• Use a map and trace out the route you intend to take. Always carry a compass and travel in groups with an experienced guide.
• Make enquiries as to the safety of routes before venturing out. The office of the Field Director is the best source of information.
• Always inform someone at your base camp of the route you intend to take for excursions into the forest.
• While inside the forest frequently switch off your engine. Sit quietly and listen to the birds. In a moment or two the insects will pitch in and, through the undergrowth, you might just hear gurgling brooks, and if you read the alarm calls of chital, sambar and langurs, you might well see the tiger anyway.
• Keep ever-vigilant and if you have company in your vehicle, it is always a good idea to sit facing different directions so that you are able to double the chances of spotting animals.
• Dress in muted forest colours like greens and dull browns.
• Wear comfortable walking shoes, travel light and don't forget a hat!
• High boots with socks are a sensible option on jungle walks.
• Always check your shoes before you wear them to check for creepy crawlies like scorpions that love dark places.
• It is advisable to carry woollens with you in the winter, since the nights may be cold.
• Go easy on the perfumes, deodorant, aftershave, etc. - Such fragrances can also attract biting insects.
• Since the fire hazard is a serious problem, please do not smoke, and carefully put out every last timber in your campfires before leaving.
• Keep a sensible first-aid kit handy and always travel with enough food and water for at least 24 hours (chocolates are a great, compact energy option).
• Binoculars, a good bird book and a camera are essential to a good trip.
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Jungle etiquette
• Try to avoid weekends, because the place becomes overcrowded with noisy picnickers and the tranquillity of the forest is often disturbed.
• Try not to talk too much or make loud sounds. Do not carry tape-recorders and disturb animals.
• Do not litter the park. In fact, pick up non-biodegradable materials and deposit them back at camp.
• Do not get too close to the animals or startle or disturb them in any way. And don't ever attempt to feed animals.
• Drinking alcohol and carrying arms and ammunition within the precincts of the sanctuary is strictly prohibited.
• Check whether swimming and fishing are permitted in the lakes and follow the law.
• While staying inside the forest conform to the 'no bright lights' unspoken rule or you could have beetles and other insect life as hard-to-get-rid-of companions for the night.
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When you're out bird watching
• Don't look for birds in a forest. Just let your eyes wander to detect movement where nothing else is moving.
• Edges or eco tones, where one type of landscape merges into another, are usually sites of greater activity, especially at dawn and dusk, rather than inside the habitat.
• Birds need water and streams, ponds, fountains, especially with nearby protective cover are all excellent spots.
• Forest birds tend to move in mixed flocks. One of the best tactics to catch sight of these is to determine the flocks' direction, get ahead of them and wait for them to follow you. This way, you don't disturb them and you have maximum time to get the field marks.
• Most birds can distinguish colours very well and you scare them off (or at least alert them) It's a good idea not to wear blue or red! Dress in mute greens and browns.
• Noise is an absolute no. Don't chat on the trails and try and wear fabrics that don't make much of a sound. A noisy camera shutter is inexcusable.
• Enjoy all your birds - there aren't any 'better' or 'more exotic' species and if the birds are where you are, stay and watch for you may not see any more that day!
• Carry a notebook in which to record your observations. Important details that you might wish to keep a record of would include the date, time and place, species observed, sex of the bird, unusual behaviour, if any, type of habitat (thick or sparse forest, hilly terrain, dense undergrowth).
• Carry a good bird book with you, which would help you identify the birds you see. The more enthusiastic might even want to go equipped with a micro-cassette recorder or video recorder. Either way don't miss out on capturing the joy of the sights and smells in your memory. |
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For divers
• Always dive with a buddy and check your gear twice over. Diving is safe, if you are careful.
• Choose a very good dive shop/group to deal with. Don't go back to your organisers if you see them dumping garbage overboard, or flushing their toilets in the sea prior to coming back to land.
• Insist on learning buoyancy control perfectly, even at the risk of irritating your instructor. Quite apart from the fact that this is an essential diving skill, it will also prevent you from damaging corals by landing with a thud on them!
• Securely fasten your gauge console, dive computer/octopus to your BC to prevent it from snagging on the reef.
• Don't touch hard corals. They can be damaged very easily. They can also cut and poison you. In fact, unless you have some very specific reason to, try not to wear gloves because you are then tempted to handle corals.
• Don't push sediment and sand from your fins on to corals… they could be choked to death. When you want to go down to look at something, don't go feet first. Instead keep a head-down position with your fins away from the reef or bottom.
• Keep your movements slow and steady and for heaven's sake, don't grab slow-moving sea animals such as puffer fish, or octopus.
• Riding sea turtles is a bad idea. They are easily stressed and you could make them scared of all divers.
• Read up information about the site you are going to visit and contact a local environmental group to find out how you can support their defence of the marine havens you visit.
• Take another instruction to refresh your skills if you have not dived for a year. |
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