Pickup from home at 6 AM, Maddur vada for breakfast, then down past Mysuru and through the Bandipur and Mudumalai forests to Masinagudi for lunch. In the late afternoon you take a Forest Department bus safari from Theppakadu, then watch the camp elephants being fed by the Moyar river. About 245 km and 6 hours of driving with stops.
- 6:00 AM
Pickup from your home
Your driver calls 30 minutes before. An early start gets us through the forest in good light. Keep binoculars and a warm layer in your hand bag.
- 1 h 33 min · 84 km
- 7:30 AM
Breakfast stop at Maddur
Idli, dosa and the crisp Maddur vada at a highway eatery. Pay as you eat.
- 2 h 42 min · 141 km
- 10:45 AM1
Drive through Bandipur and Mudumalai
1 h hereAbout 35 km of forest road between Karnataka and Tamil Nadu. Watch for deer, peacocks and elephants. Stopping, getting out or feeding animals is not allowed. Your Nilgiris e-pass is checked at the Tamil Nadu border; we arrange it before the trip.
- 54 min · 25 km
- 12:30 PM
Check in and lunch in Masinagudi
Lunch is included at Jungle Hut. At The Nest Inn and Bamboo Banks you pay for lunch at the resort or in the village. Rest a little before the safari.
- 17 min · 8 km
- 3:15 PM2
Evening bus safari from Theppakadu
1 h 30 min hereA Tamil Nadu Forest Department bus safari of about 45 minutes into the reserve, ticket included. Tickets are sold at the Theppakadu counter, first come first served, so we reach early. Private cars cannot go into the park. Wear dull colours and keep voices low.
- 5:15 PM3
Theppakadu elephant camp
1 h hereWatch the camp elephants and their mahouts at the evening feeding, about 5:30 PM, by the Moyar river. Entry ticket included. Each elephant has its own diet, and the mahouts are happy to explain.
- 21 min · 8 km
- 6:45 PM
Back at your resort in Masinagudi
Dinner at the resort, included at Jungle Hut. The forest roads close to traffic at 9 PM, so evenings are spent at the resort, listening to the jungle.
