When to go

Khuri has a wide range of routes for tourists to choose from. The best safari is from Jaisalmer to Barmer with a jeep transfer from Jaisalmer to the saddle up point at Khuri and from the last village to Barmer. The seven day, six night trek costing from Rs. 5000/- to Rs. 8000/- per person, depending on facilities included, takes you through an incredible range of countryside – sand dunes, salt flats, dry river beds, grasslands, thorn scrub, rocky terrain – interspersed with villages and crisscrossed by roads. A camel cart carries the baggage and lodging and boarding are organized at the villages on the way. Those who cannot complete the safari can pull out on the highway at Shiv, the mid-way point. Foreigners require a permit from the District Collector or Magistrate.

For those interested in wildlife, another interesting five day, four night trek is for Khuri to Samm through the Desert National Park. Connecting two of the most famous sand dunes in Rajasthan, the camel safari takes you through some fertile wildlife areas. Indian gazelle, Great Indian bustard, Houbara bustard, quails, desert lark, desert fox, desert cat and desert hare are often seen in the Sewan grasslands; eagles and vultures on the acacia trees and in the evenings you can see falcons and harriers coming to roost on the dunes. On the way you can see some really colourful hamlets where even Hindi is unknown, a real change from Jaisalmer where locals understand even French and Italian and the principal languages are Sindhi and Marwari.

For a true desert adventure, however, I would recommend the four day, three night camel safari from the DESERT HERMITAGE at SHERGADH, two hours south west from Jodhpur, to SOVALIA, two hours south east before Jaisalmer, crossing one of India’s greatest stretches of rolling at places. The Desert Hermitage is a family run cottage resort owned by a retired Brigadier, Udai Singh, who holds discourses on local culture, history, the importance of Yoga, philosophy of Vedanta and his own experiences at war. The cottages are tastefully done up and very spacious with comfortable twin beds, settees, locally woven carpets, side tables and private baths with hot and cold showers.
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On the first day of the safari you get acclimatized to camel travel with a short ride and evening entertainment programme. The next day you bypass the Tendu village and spend the afternoon at Raison village. On the third day you are on the highest sand dune in the area and in the fourth day you descend to the highway in the morning from where a jeep can take you to Jaisalmer or Khuri. The safari cna be extended either to Pokaran on the Jodhpur – Jaisalmer highway or to Shit on the Jaisalmer-Barmer highway.

You hardly encounter any roads, villages or civilization on the way and rarely descend below 100 feet from sea level. Dunes change shape from barren seas of sand to patches of drought resisting green vegetation covered dunes and hours pass between signs of life broken by an occasional Indian gazelle or a caravan of nomadic cameleers. The remaining nights are spent in army surplus tents with camp style toilet tents, a mess tent and other camping arrangements on the dunes. For those who especially ask for it, the caravan can descend to one of the dhannis (desert hamlets) for a night camp in more ethnic surroundings.

BOOKINGS:

NORTH WEST SAFARIS provides a 8 days/7 night camel safari package with a 3 day/2 night camel trek from Desert Hermitage to Sovalis; a 4 day/3 night camel trek from Khuri to Samm and sightseeing of the desert citadels of Jodhpur and Jaisalmer for Rs. 9000/- to Rs. 14000/- per person, depending on the number of persons and whether transfers are by vehicle with or without air-conditioning. The tariff includes accommodation, meals, one camel per person, baggage transfers by camel cart/vehicle, folk entertainment, guidance and transportation by car or coach and a desert safari from Desert Hermitage to Sovalia. TOP

Other safaris between Jodhpur and Jaisalmer usually begin at Lathi near Pokaran, mid-way between Jodhpur and Jaisalmer, and take in Delasar, Nualana and Zarat before ending near Jaisalmer are arranged by SAFARI CLUB, JODHPUR; TRAVEL PLAN (JODHPUR/JAIPUR), tel : 0141-522632; RAJASTHAN TOURS (RAMBAGH PALACE, JAIPUR), tel: 0141-521784. Fax: 91-141-521546; REGISTAN TOURS, tel: 0141-38024 and GITS (Jaipur). Fax: 91-141-40909. If you can afford it, ask for the more expensive tours with accommodation in Swiss cottage tents.

The popular safari is from Jaisalmer to Bikaner as arranged by Jaisal Tours, Narayan Niwas Palace, kjaisalmer, ranging from 6 days to 2 weeks. The Jaisalmer-Bikaner Safari usually takes you north to Mohangadh and then across to Gajner Wildlife Sanctuary via a number of interesting villages. Gajner to Bikaner can be done by camel or vehicle. Shorter safaris from Bikaner are arranged by the owners of Hotel Thar who arrange stays at the Dhawa Castle in the desert. Bikaner has India’s largest camel station, a large stud farm where you can see thousands of adult and baby camels gamboling to an from pastures. Meet the Rabari cameleers and taste still-warm camel milk, fresh from the udder!
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A number of interesting variations have been introduced into camel safaris as the sport has become more and more popular. Rohet Safaris (Jodhpur), tel: 0290-31161, has introduced the one day village safari by camel or horseback, following a jeep safari route popularized by Ajit Bhawan, a Heritage Hotel in Jodhpur. The safari begins from the Rohetgarh Heritage Hotel and takes in the hamlets of the Bishnois who are known for their traditional environment management technologies like xeriscaping with drought resisting trees to prevent the advance of the desert; the settlements of the Raika herdspeople; workplaces of the desert artisans and habitats of the Chinkara gazelle, Blackbuck antelope and Blue bull. En route you stop for a hot camp lunch on the desert sands and for birdwatching at a lake where cranes, storks and other birds assemble in huge flocks.

The night is spent at Rohetgarh Heritage Hotel. The safari is also being done by Jhalamand Castle and marketed by North West Safaris at slightly lower rates. Horse safaris can also be arranged on these soft sandy one day desert trails or to Udaipur across the desert countryside and through the jungle passes of the Aravalli mountains, visiting the textile township of Pali, the temple town of Ranakpur, the fortress citadel of Kumbhalgadh, the art town of Nathdwara and historic battlefield of Haldighati on the way. Stays are arranged at castles in Jhalamand near Jodhpur, Rohat en route, Sodavas near Pali, Narlai near Kumbhalgadh and Ghanerao near Ranakpur, with deluxe tented camps on remaining nights.

THE ROYAL CARAVAN SAFARI from Jalore to Jodhpur is jointly conducted by Hotel Madho Niwas (Jodhpur), tel: 91-291-34486, and North West Safaris, offers accommodation in the Rawla Bhanswada (Royal manor of Bhanswada), 16th century Pink Castle of Badrajun, Rohetgarh Heritage Hotel, Hotel Jhalamand Castle, Karni Bhawan Mansion Hotel and deluxe tents with flush toilets and showers.

You can also combine culture with adventure on a array of 7 day/6 night safaris from Daspan – along River Bandi, sourcing the Sangli, to Panchpadra sand dunes – during which landscapes change from sand dunes to rocky peaks and with it you encounter a number of communities – the desert dwelling Bishnois, the grassland traversing Raikas, the Bheel hill tribes, the nomadic Sindhi Muslim cameleers, the potters, weavers, arrow crafters and mojdi shoemakers.
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Accommodation is arranged in basic tents. Nightly programmes of music and dancing change with the terrain. There is also a 7 day route to Mt. Abu which combines a 4 day camel safari in the desert and a 3 day trek in the hill culminating at the plateaux summit of this tropical hill resort

Camel safaris are also becoming popular in the Shekawati region. This region is known as India’s open air art gallery for its concentration of frescoes seen on numerous painted mansions, temples and bazaars. For Bookings contact: Captain Study Tours, Nawalgadh and Shahpura House, Jaipur. Tel: 91-141-77293. Fax: 91-141-67760; Mandawa Castle Heritage Hotel and Desert Resort; Roopniwas Palace Hotel of Nawalgadh; the fortress hotels of Dunlod and Mukundgarh Castle. Though not as spectacular as western Rajasthan, Shekhawati is easily accessible from Delhi-Agra-Jaipur golden triangle.

Other Indian states also have their own camel safari programmes. “We introduced camel treks in Ladakh to climax the Zanskar and local Ladakhi treks,” says Ramesh Tikoo of Peerless Travels,” and the tourists were fascinated by the two humped camels of this region as opposed to the single humped caravans of the Thar.”
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The Rann of Kutch in Gujarat has some interesting trails for those interested in wildlife. The best among them being Dasada to Dhangadra, both of which can easily be reached from Ahmedabad. Dasada is only 33 kilometers from Viramgram which is connected to Bombay. Dangadra receives daily trains from Bombay. You spend the first night at the historic village of Dasada, view the wildlife at Bajana Creek on your second night, experience rural culture at Dehgam and Bharada village on the third and fourth night and spend your last day at the princely township of Dhangadra. En route you will see herds of the handsome Asiatic Onager (wild ass) and spot the wolf, desert fox, jungle cat, blue bull, Indian gazelle, houbara bustard and a plethora of birds.

For an insight into desert culture, nothing matches the camel safari organized by Malir Garden Resort, North West Safaris (fax: 02712-23729) and Florican Tours (91-79-342590/445354). The tour is along the Great Rann of Kutch and in the Banni grasslands. The villages along the way are unspoilt and colourful, synonymous with their embroideries, leather crafts, metal ware, silver ornaments, wood carvings and other handicrafts.

The trail begins from Bhuj or Gandhidham station from where you are transferred to Malir Garden Resort which consists of 8 deluxe cottages each of which is a self contained double bedroom with private bath. The camel trek takes you to of the Great Rann of Kutch. Dinodar Hill has some natural caves and medieval temples. Virani Fort can be visited en route for a glimpse of some finely carved balconies. From Dinodar you continue to the craft villages of Dhorado noted for their embroidery and where you can spend the night. From here you can visit Hodko and other craft villages of Banni by jeep. From here you can also ride to Charri Fulay, a lake shore village and watch several thousand birds at the lake including flamingoes, storks and ducks. Finally you return to Malir for the night.

A camel safari is a great way to see the desert – visiting the villages, seeing wildlife, riding across the open desert sands. Typical camel safaris organized around Jaisalmer take in the architectural ruins of Lodurva which was the former capital of the Bhatti Rajput desert kingdom before the founding of Jaisalmer, the oasis garden of Bada Badh, the Amarsagar oasis, the sand dunes of Samm and the water source of Moolsagar where village women gather with pitchers at dusk – in a five day four night circuit north and west of Jaisalmer.

But it is only on the second or third day that you get to see the ‘real’ desert of sand dunes at Samm, considered so typical of Beau Geste desert countryside. The rest of the three days are spent crossing featureless lunar plains and empty scrubland, the monotony broken by villages of Sodha Rajputs sporting cavalier moustaches and masculine earrings, settlements of gaily turbanned Sindhi Muslim cameleers, painted huts selling fizzy soft drink, fields being tilled by bullock carts and girls picking berries. Night halts on basic safaris are at villages on the way or temporary bivouac camps in the desert scrub where camels are hobbled and let out to browse.

Hotel Fort View, Haveli Hotel, Neeraj Hotel, Golden City Hotel, Sona Hotel and the RTDC Office, are good places to book reasonably priced camel safaris. There are a number of cameleers parked between Gadisar Gate and the fortress who can be met to compare prices. It is a good idea to look at the remarks in the notebooks by previous tourists and check out the mattresses, saddles; menus etc.
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Before making the final choice in this ‘market.’ The deluxe safaris are arranged by Jaisal Travels, subsidiary of Hotel Narain Niwas Palace for Rs. 1500/- to Rs. 5000/- a night depending on what is included and they provide everything conceivable – deluxe tented accommodation with private toilet tents, camel carts to carry luggage, water supplies, cooks, camp staff, kitchen equipment, night watchmen, folk musicians to accompany the caravan and masseurs to attend to saddle sores... even up to radio contact with the police on some trails. They also offer treks to some lesser known sand dunes. If you are impatient to get to the dunes you can take a jeep to Samm or Khuri for short rides on the dunes.
Tel: 91-2992/2753/2408/2601. Tlx: 055-01-201.

WHEN TO GO:

These are the best periods for a camel safari :
Autumn: August – September
Spring : March
Winter : November - February

A number of camel safaris connect with different fairs and festivals: Jodhpur to Pushkar during the Kartik Purnima camel fair at the latter in October – November; Jodhpur to Jaisalmer by coach and camel during the Desert Festival in January – February; camel safari in Banni grasslands following the Kutch Festival in February; Daspan to Balotra during the Tilwara camel fair near the latter in March; Bhenswada to Anandra by camel, climb to Mt. Abu and then a 4 day trek to Poshins to arrive on time for the Chitra Vichitra tribal fair in March. It is a good idea to find out about such group safaris that coincide with your visit to the desert regions of Kutch or Rajasthan from your travel operator.

The summer months from April to July are best avoided for a visit to the desert. But if you have only this period available for a visit to this area, Hotel Dhoramaroo arranges for you to stay in air-conditioned comfort at the hotel and take exciting forays into the desert by night.
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