In search of Rhinos and Elephants in Chitwan N.P.

Most people go to Chitwan National Park to trek through the jungle in search of wild Rhino’s, tigers, crocodiles, deer and to ride elephants.

We had thought about doing a trek but with a toddler who never stops talking, we figured we wouldn’t see anything anyway. We spoke to one of the guides at our guesthouse and he confirmed, A)kids under 10 are not allowed, B) it cost waaaay more than we could justify, and C) Being just after the monsoon there is ample food in the park so the animals are mostly staying deeper and sightings were less common.

And so that was it, thankful for the honesty of the guides, we decided it was no trekking for us! Instead, we chose to chill out at our guesthouse, watch the elephants bath each morning, let gypsy pat every elephant/horse/cow that went past, and relax for a bit.

So you can imagine our surprise when we woke up one morning and were told to run down to the river because there was a wild rhino taking a bath on the other side!!

Well hello there!
Thanks for coming to see us!!




Feeling inspired we decided to go for a walk along the river and bam! Crocodiles!!

Hello as well! Please kindly stay on the other side of the river with Mr Rhino..

Further a long the river we encountered a group of elephants, with their mahouts, heading off into the jungle for a feed. We don’t like seeing animals in captivity or for tourism purposes but the elephants in Chitwan, at least the ones we saw, seemed to be really well taken care of. No chains except at night, lots of food, bathing twice a day.  It was lovely to see them up close and personal and to pat them and play with them a bit before they headed off into the jungle for lunch.

On even more of a high we walked a little further, and believe it or not, encountered a wild rhino. No more than 5 metres away!! He/she was just chilling out and eating grass. He was near to the conservation research centre but wasn’t fenced in. Just free to come and go as he pleased. WOW. 

He was so calm, it was easy to forget that he was extremely dangerous and could quite easily kill us!! We went back the next day and he was in a different area, again not fenced in but just chilling and doing his thing. Lots of locals were walking past calmly so we figure he must be a regular. How amazing that such a wild and potentially dangerous animal is able to just go about its business without invoking fear into everyone!

So, without trekking we managed to see Rhinos, elephants, and crocodiles!! Who needs to trek!?!?!

(Note, the people we met who had done treks said they were really worthwhile.)


But on a serious note, we are super happy Gypsy was able to see a wild rhino although she probably won't remember it. The truth is, they are becoming rarer by the day due to poaching and their habitats being destroyed for farming.  I truly hope the efforts being undertaken by places like the conservation centre in Sauraha can have a positive impact on their numbers and that Gypsy will be able to bring her children and grandchildren back in the future to see them again.