Our journey today will take us from Kathmandu to Chitwan Natioanl Park, which is a UNESCO recognised world heritage site. Something to really look forward to.

First we had a ride of 165km out of Kathmandu and heading west at first and then dropping south to the park. The roads were heavily eroded in sections making the riding dusty and rough in stages, thankfully the bikes are ideal for covering distances and taking in the rough sections all I their stride.

Arriving midday at Jungle resort located on the banks of the Rapti River alongside the Chitwan National Park we were greeted by the lovely staff  who had lunch ready for us shortly after arrival. We were the only guests in this resort, which was partly due to the season however unfortunately since the earthquake tourists had simply stopped coming which is very sad for the community that rely on tourism as its main source of income.

At 4:00pm we were off on an elephant ride through the park which ran for nearly 3hrs. To ride atop elephants and seeing animals such as Rhino’s, Spotted deer, Hog deer, Monkeys and a Crocodile was something we shall never forget.  Apparently Tigers and Leopards also roam free in this jungle, although are endangered species due to hunting in the past. It is a credit to the staff of the park and the army that now guard the Chitwan that no poaching deaths have been recorded of animals in the past two years. Let’s hope this continues.

The evening was a relaxed time spent chatting to the staff of the resort and sneaking a cold beer which went very well with the locally sourced and produced dinner.