I have been to Bharatpur bird sanctuary from Delhi many times so I am going to make a cocktail of all my experiences, shake it and spill it over into this thread. Its not going to get you drunk because for that kick you really need to be there to see those birds yourself with your own eyes. The first time I went there was in the month of December a few years ago and that in my opinion is a good time to visit as you would get to see many migratory birds that time of the year. Every time I went to Bharatpur I stayed at Fatehpur Sikri which is about 20 mins drive from Bharatpur and the road is excellent being a toll road. The reason I do not stay at Bharatpur is that the average quality hotels are priced too high and there is nothing to do there when it gets dark. Not that there is much to do at Fatehpur Sikri but there is Buland darwaza where you can go for a walk after sunset and it is all lit up and looks beautiful. If you are staying at Agra it would take you about an hour and a half's drive to get to Bharatpur and little less if you want to stop by at Fatehpur Sikri first. I left Sikri for Bharatpur about 9am and was at the ticket window by 9:30. They allow cars beyond the gates upto a parking area where you can hire bicycles or cycle rikshaws but you can go walking as well if you haven't got a lot of photography equipment with you. I hired a rikshaw as I needed a guide and those guys who pull rikshaws have good knowledge of birds. My Rishaw guys name was Hukum Singh who had good knowledge of the park and kept telling me names of different birds. As you can see in the pictures I have posted the birds look beautiful and there are just so many of them. I had never imagined I would see so many beautiful birds at one place from such a close distance. On road sides there are little gaps in the bushes that can be used for taking pictures and seeing the birds up close. There are lots of different tortoise too. This national park had an acute shortage of water so the government had installed bore wells that run on solar power and keep pumping water all day long. Main source of water to the wetlands is now through a canal that was build a few decades ago as the natural collection of water was decreasing every year resulting in shortage of food for birds that came here in winters. Siberian cranes that used to come here every year have not been seen for more then 30 years now. Pythons can be seen here in plenty. If you want to see them out in the open then get to the park very early in the morning when sun is just out because pythons come out to heat up their bodies early in the morning. The best place to see them is about half a kilometer away from the main road where you can go walking. I spent a good 4-5 hours every time I went there and it was amazing. I will go there again if I get a chance. I will leave you with some of the pictures that I have taken for you to see what it is like.
Best time to go there is in Winters. Most birds come to escape harsh winters from other places as winters here are relatively less severe. You will see some birds in summers too but it wont be much fun.
Thanks for posting the wonderful pictures. I haven't been to a bird sanctuary yet although we have one here in Davao where they care for the Philippine eagle. But in Manila Zoo, there is a big aviary that houses a variety of birds, big and small. Now, I remember, there's also an aviary in Zoobic Park with mostly small but colorful birds. But what I understand with a sanctuary is a natural habitat of birds that is not caged.
Bharatpur bird sanctuary has been on my list of places to go for many years, somehow I've not made the journey there yet. Thank you for all the information that you've given, its exactly the sort of information that I wanted to know. I'm a little concerned about the pythons though, are they likely to attack people, do you have to be careful to avoid stepping on them ? I love the birds of India but I'm not quite so keen on the snakes.
Pythons could be dangerous when they are hungry, otherwise they are harmless. They have no poison and their speed is also not great. However, you should avoid stepping on them because nobody can predict their movements. it just reminds of an incident that took place around 4-5 months back in India. A boy was taking bath in a river when a giant crocodile attacked him and within seconds his whole leg was inside its mouth. In utmost pain he cried out for help, but the villagers were helpless and they started throwing stones. Then to everybody's surprise the boy went closer to the crocodile and started putting pressure on its eyes using his finger. The crocodile now left with no other option but to open the mouth. That gap was enough for the boy to escape to safety. So for any living being, eyes are considered to be one of the weak areas.
