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Wildlife Destinations
Kanha National Park

Madhya Pradesh is considered to be the heritage heartland of India. This area is blessed by nature due to the rich abundance of wild animals, thereby enriching wildlife. For adventure-loving people who want to explore more about nature and its biotic components can make Madhya Pradesh their holiday destination because this state has something to offer for people of every age. Starting from deer to wild boar to tigers, Madhya Pradesh houses them all. Hence, a holiday trip to Madhya Pradesh can bring a life-altering experience to be cherished forever.

National Parks in Madhya Pradesh

Since Madhya Pradesh falls under the promising states of the country where the chances of spotting tigers are tremendous, the national parks of Madhya Pradesh, be it Bandhavgarh or Kanha or Pench, each and every national park is being maintained in a way so that wildlife never gets disturbed due to urban civilization and remains wildly charming for its visitors. It is to be noted that there are 9 National Parks, 6 Tiger Reserves, and 25 Wildlife Sanctuaries present in the state. Therefore, this region can be termed a kaleidoscope of nature. What are you waiting for then? Contact your travel agent and plan your holiday trip to visit the wilderness of Madhya Pradesh.

Kanha National Park - An Overview

One of the most famous national parks of Madhya Pradesh is situated in the Maikal range of Satpuras is the Kanha National Park. It is not only a national park but also a renowned tiger reserve that has received the title of being one of the finest wildlife areas in the World. Just like Kaziranga National Park of Assam, Kanha National Park is also spread across two districts of the state namely the Mandala and the Kalaghat. Moreover, it was declared a reserve forest in the year 1879 and then revalued as Wildlife Sanctuary in the year 1933. Finally, it received the title of National Park in 1955.

Kanha National Park is spread across an area of approximately 940 sq km, occupying the Maikal chain of hills. However, if both the buffer zone and core zone are brought all together, the area increases to 1945 sq km. This protected area remains surrounded by lush green forests and wooden strands that offer amazing and breathtaking sightseeing experiences for nature lovers. The presence of crystal clear streams that run through the heart of the jungle makes it much more attractive as well as adorable. Besides, this beautiful forest has been the source of inspiration for famous writer Rudyard Kipling, who wrote “The Jungle Book”.

The Kanha National Park is known to house a wide range of wild creatures, right from the mighty tigers to the most populated Barasingha, accompanied by countless species of birds, plants, reptiles, and insects as well. This reserve has successfully garnered the attention of many travelers who visit this national park every year and arrive from different parts of the globe. The best location in this region (according to the visitors) is the Bammi Dadar, also called the Sunset point.

Jungle safari in Kanha National Park

Since this national park is spread across a huge area, it is not possible for tourists to visit the entire park on walking. Therefore, they need to opt for a jeep or elephant safari to encounter the rare species present in this protected area. With the help of jungle safari, visitors can have the opportunity of taking a closer look at wild animals and nature, thereby capturing mesmerizing images in their cameras.

Jeep safari in Kanha National Park

The forest officials are very particular about the safari timings and thus, the duration allotted for the same is fixed with no changes at any cost. There are open jeeps with 04×04 seat arrangements where each individual is accompanied by an experienced naturalist to give an idea of the species roaming around the jungle and their characteristic features. The jeep is bound to follow a fixed route that has been designed in a way so that the wild animals do not get disturbed due to human presence.

Jeep safari acts as fuel for adventurous souls and provides the flexibility to explore areas that cannot be explored by any other means of transportation. A single-day safari in Kanha National Park can be done up to 2 times, one in the early morning and the other in the late afternoon. There are 6 seaters open vehicle also. In each vehicle, 6 visitors are allowed, accompanied by one naturalist and one driver. Some necessary paper formalities need to be completed before entering the national park and the visitors should carry their ID proofs. Moreover, at the entrance, vehicle details, naturalist details, and visitor details are recorded. It takes almost 15 to 20 minutes the completion of all the necessary formalities.

Mukki gate

The Mukki gate entrance remains open all seven days a week and remains closed during the months of July, August, and September (due to heavy rainfall). Visitors who want to enter through this gate need to take a flight or train to reach Jabalpur and then hire a cab or taxi to travel 200 km to reach Kanha National Park. Raipur is one of the closest airports as well as a railway station (about 210 km away).

Zones of Kanha National Park

It is to be noted that the entire national park is not available for visitors. Thus, visitors can explore only 20% of the national park. There are mainly four zones in the core area of the park namely Kanha, Kisli, Mukki, and Sarhi. The oldest zone is Kanha, and was considered to be the premium zone of the park till 2016. The newly added zones are the Sarhi and the Kisli (this zone has been extracted out of the Kanha zone). However, all these zones are ideal for tiger spotting. Khatia, Khapa, and Sijhora zones fall under the buffer area.

  • Northern region: the Sarhi gate
  • Western region: Khatia gate and the Kisli zone
  • Central region: Kanha zone
  • Southern region: the Mukki gate and Mukki zone
  • Eastern region: the Buffer zone
Safari timing in Kanha National Park

Kanha National Park remains accessible for visitors from 16th October to 30th June. The morning safari time from 16th October to 15th February is from sunrise up to 11 am. Whereas, the afternoon safari time starts at 2 pm and ends at sunset.

From 16th February to 15th April, the morning safari time starts from sunrise up to 11 am. Whereas, the afternoon safari time starts at 3 pm and ends at sunset. Lastly, from 16th April to 30th June, the morning safari time starts from sunrise up to 10 am. On the other hand, the afternoon safari time starts at 3:30 pm and ends at sunset. It is to be noted that the afternoon shift of Jeep Safari remains closed to visitors every Wednesday.

Best time to visit Kanha National Park

If the visitors want to spot tigers, the best time to visit Kanha National Park is April and May. But the temperature remains quite high during these months, thus, may become too hot to handle for many visitors. Hence, the ideal time to visit this national park is from November to March as this period offers balmy temperatures along with a lusher landscape.