Ah, back to the Jungle Lodge properties… I’ve seen about half of the ones in Karnataka now although I wasn’t there to sleep in the cozy cabins this time- just there for lunch and a safari with goMowgli.
River Tern Jungle Lodge Boat Safari
All safaris should probably have a lunch first. We arrived a little late, so missed the water activities like kayaking and such, but we were okay to take a long lunch. As all these resorts do, it was buffet style. Everything was delicious. The fish was great but had lots of little bones and I had a hard time eating it.
Looking back at these pictures of food, I’m not surprised I was about 5 kg thinner by the time my trip in Karnataka ended. If you don’t over do the rice and bread, it’s actually quite healthy to eat in South India compared to the North.
But back to the safari… in the off chance a safari isn’t your thing, this place offers lots of fun activities to pass the afternoon: kayaking, trampoline in the water, rafting, and more.
The boat safari doesn’t offer as much of a promise to see wildlife as the jeep safari, and this lodge in general doesn’t see as much wildlife as somewhere like Kabini River. They said animals may come to drink, but as wet season is just ending there is a lot of water inland for them so they don’t come down to the river much. We didn’t see any of the “good” stuff: elephants, tiger, leopard, guar, etc.
We did see Kingfishers, peacocks, little baby “water crows”, and something I never knew existed- sweet water jelly fish. Sweet water just means freshwater, and I have only heard it called that in India so not sure if other countries do as well. The jelly fish were tiny and there were hundreds and hundreds! Tried to take a goPro pic, but failed miserably in the dark water. Apparently these ones don’t sting you.
Practical Information:
- Location: Behind Ranganatha Swamy Temple, Road to Bhadra Forest Resort, Bhadra Project, Lakkavalli, Chikkamagaluru, Karnataka 577135, India
- Pricing: Lunch was 350 rupees plus tax, the boat safari is 1400 rupees, the jeep (which we didn’t do) is 2250 rupees, and for water sports you pay 350 rupees for one hour to use the trampolines or kayaks.
- Personal opinion, I think that the safari was cool but if you’ve done a bird safari (this was my 4th that month) and aren’t particularly interested in birds, then this is something to skip and save your money. Hang out by the river instead and kayak! I was on this safari as part of my tour with goMowgli.
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I’m so obsessed with the idea of swimming in a lake (or river?) full of jellyfish. I’m actually terrified of jellyfish but it’s something I really want to do one day. That’s insane that you found a river with freshwater jellyfish. I thought they only existed in a few lakes in SE Asia.
wow- I had never even heard of them and wouldn’t jump in and swim with them in a million years lol, you’re brave! I mean they don’t sting, but still eww!
Looks like a ball. I would love this! I did a mangrove tour in Mexico, saw lots of cool wildlife and then we went swimming in a little roped off area… same water that held the fish, turtles and crocs we saw on the tour, haha oh Mexico!
Oh wow that’s so scary!!! I am terrified of crocs.. like weirdly scared of them.
Hey Rachel,
I can totally see how going for the 4th time could be a bit much if the experiences aren’t that different. Still, looks like an amazing and affordable experience for a first-timer. Seeing a huge bunch of jellyfish all at once sounds cool! I’ve seen mass amounts of singrays which is pretty neat, but never jellyfish.
Andrew
Yeah, it’s definitely a cool experience- highly recommended!
Looks like a great time needless to say. Sweet water jelly fish is a first time for me. I’ll have to check these out in person. Are they dangerous?