{"id":510,"date":"2013-02-22T21:54:23","date_gmt":"2013-02-22T13:54:23","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.joel.net.au\/?p=510"},"modified":"2026-10-21T07:18:49","modified_gmt":"2026-10-20T23:18:49","slug":"safari-city","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/day.lat\/lon\/2013\/02\/22\/safari-city\/","title":{"rendered":"Safari City"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Asian
Asian Elephant (Elephas maximus) Carrying Riders Across the Ladhari River \u2013 Near Chitwan National Park, Nepal<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Woke this morning to the smell of a burning spliff drifting from a nearby farmer’s field. Perhaps he was just burning off a crop in the cool, damp early morning hours. Today was safari day, and first up after breakfast was the safari-on-an-elephant’s-back safari. I have been on the back of an elephant’s back before and know two things: <\/p>\n

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  1. It’s not the most comfortable experience, continually rocking back and forth and side to side, and <\/li>\n
  2. It is not very ideal for trying to take pictures and change lenses with big, bulky cameras. <\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    I reluctantly agreed to do the elephant ride as long as I could also do a jeep ride when I negotiated my tour with my Kathmandu hotel manager.<\/p>\n

    \"Elephant
    Elephant Stables at Sunset \u2013 Near Sauraha, Chitwan, Nepal<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
    \"Elephant
    Elephant Safari on a Male Asian Elephant \u2013 Near Sauraha, Chitwan, Nepal<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
    \"Elephant
    Elephant Safari on a Male Asian Elephant \u2013 Near Sauraha, Chitwan, Nepal<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
    \"Elephant
    Elephant Mahout Riding an Asian Elephant (Elephas maximus) \u2013 Near Chitwan National Park, Nepal<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
    \"Elephant
    Elephant Safari Snack Shop from the back of a male Asian Elephant \u2013 Near Sauraha, Chitwan, Nepal<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

    As it turned out, it was actually a really good way to see the wildlife. We weren’t permitted inside the national park, but we could explore trails in the surrounding buffer zone. Because elephants are native to the area, the other wildlife didn’t seem to flinch when we approached. I’m not even sure they knew humans were on the elephants’ backs! I got very close to a wide range of native wild animals, including a big adult rhino and lots of deer, just chilling out in the shelter of the forest.<\/p>\n

    \"Spotted
    Spotted Deer (Chital, Axis axis) \u2013 Chitwan National Park, Nepal<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
    \"Greater
    Greater One-Horned Rhinoceros (Rhinoceros unicornis) \u2013 Chitwan National Park, Nepal<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

    Elephant Safari Walk<\/strong>
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    Map of the route \u201cSafari City\u201d: 3,185 m, 18 m of climbing and 23 m of descent, elevation between 180 m and 187 m, time 01:33:13. It is a loop that starts and ends at 27.59412, 84.48109 (latitude, longitude).<\/p>