Drive from Lucknow to Agra

 

Lucknow – Agra – Lucknow

 

Total Distance: 330 (onward) + 330 (return) = 660 km

Total time: 4 hr (onward) and 4 hr (return)

Average fuel economy: 17.5 kmpl

Car: Audi A4 Petrol

Place of stay: Tajview Agra

The primary reason to do this trip was to experience the Lucknow Agra expressway. It took almost 4 hours to cover the 330 km stretch. The Tajview is a wonderful hotel to stay. It is very near to the expressway and one doesn’t even have to enter the city to reach the hotel. I stayed there for 2 nights and the view of Taj from the window of the room was really awesome. The hotel has 2 dogs of their own, Max and Maya and of course it is a pet friendly hotel. The food was good, there was ample space to park the car, I even saw 2 dedicated parking spots for electric cars.

Drive from Lucknow to Dhanachuli

Below is the list of all the bird species that I saw in Dhanachuli, followed by the pics. 

1. Ashy Drongo
2. Barn Swallow
3. Black Bulbul
4. Black Francolin
5. Black Redstart 
6. Black-headed Jay
7. Black-throated Accentor
8. Black-throated Tit
9. Blue Whistling Thrush
10. Blue-capped Redstart 
11. Blue-fronted Redstart
12. Bonelli's Eagle 
13. Booted Eagle 
14. Brown-fronted Woodpecker
15. Coal Tit 
16. Common Stonechat
17. Eurasian Collared Dove
18. Great Barbet
19. Greater Yellownape 
20. Green-backed Tit
21. Grey Bushchat
22. Grey Treepie
23. Grey-backed Shrike 
24. Grey-headed Woodpecker 
25. Grey-hooded Warbler
26. Griffon Vulture
27. Himalayan Bulbul
28. Himalayan Buzzard
29. Himalayan Woodpecker 
30. House Sparrow
31. Jungle Crow
32. Jungle Myna
33. Lemon-rumped Warbler 
34. Lesser Whitethroat 
35. Long-tailed Minivet
36. Long-tailed Shrike
37. Oriental Turtle Dove
38. Oriental White-eye
39. Red-billed Blue Magpie
40. Red-rumped Swallow 
41. Red-vented Bulbul 
42. Rock Bunting
43. Rose-ringed Parakeet
44. Rufous Sibia
45. Russet Sparrow
46. Scaly-bellied Woodpecker 
47. Spotted Dove
48. Streaked Laughingthrush
49. Striated Laughingthrush 
50. Upland Buzzard 
51. Verditer Flycatcher
52. White-tailed Nuthatch 
53. White-throated Laughingthrush
54. Yellow-breasted Greenfinch 
55. 
    

 TRIP 1: March 2023

Total driving distance: 406 onward + 406 return = 812 km
Total time: 8 hours onwards and 9 hours return.
Average fuel economy: 14.2 kmpl
Car: Audi A4 Petrol
Passengers: 3 adults
Luggage: Full boot

Place of stay: Rituraj Homestay (https://goo.gl/maps/WNsLH41g5BW3HpPV7)
 
Dhanachuli is like a second home to us. My parents used to visit Dhanachuli every year and stay there for the entire summer. Incidentally, I never got a chance to visit until now. This time I was staying in Lucknow for about a month and I realized that it would be a wonderful opportunity for me to visit and see this place. I had the Audi too with me, so the journey should also be very comfortable. Apparently there is a problem with the 4G/5G connection, hence I planned to stay for only the weekend. A couple of days’ stay, only to know what the place is and what kind of potential it has for birding and the potential for a long term stay.
 
Dhanachuli is quite pristine, compared to Nainital / Mukteshwar, there is hardly any tourist traffic here and the village is not at all crowded. Perfect for a long term stay. Birding is phenomenal, at an altitude of 7000 ft, you can easily imagine how beautiful the bird life will be. If I list down the species that I saw in a matter of 2 days, anybody would be surprised.
 
The drive till Dhanachuli from Lucknow was smooth. Since it was the month of March, the summer vacation did not start yet, because of that the roads near Bhimtal were completely deserted. It might have saved us about an hour compared to the regular time that it takes usually. We left Lucknow at 5-30 AM and managed to reach Dhanachuli by 1-30 PM. The return journey wasn’t that great though. By mistake I took the route through Bareilly / Khutani and I wouldn’t recommend it to anybody. Too much of traffic compared to the road via Pilibhit. Onward journey was through Sitapur, Sitarganj and Pilibhit, which is much better as far as traffic movement and road condition is concerned.
 
Enjoy some of the pics below.

Black-throated Accentor (lifer)

Rock Bunting male (lifer)

Blue Whistling Thrush

Himalayan Bulbul

Long-tailed Minivet female

Long-tailed Minivet male

Blue-fronted Redstart female

Grey Bushchat female

Common Stonechat female

TRIP 2: JUNE 2023

Total driving distance: 406 km onward and 406 km return  

Total time: 8 hours onwards and 8 hours 46 minutes return 
Average fuel economy: 15.5 kmpl 
Car: Honda Amaze Petrol 
Passengers: 3 adults
Luggage: Full boot

Place of stay: Rituraj Homestay (https://goo.gl/maps/WNsLH41g5BW3HpPV7)

This was our second trip and this time neither I had the Audi with me, nor I had my camera gear. Whatever i could click I did it with my mobile. Was lucky to click a lifer butterfly. It was a wonderful season to visit, harvested Peach, Plum, Apricot and Potato with help from Raju (owner and farmer of Rituraj homestay). 

Green Hairstreak - Theclini

Peach tree @ Rituraj Homestay

French hydrangea

Dhanachuli Altitude

Apricot, Peach and Plum harvest @ Rituraj homestay

Apple tree @ Rituraj homestay

Glassy Tiger

Evening view from our home

Mother of Pearl Moth

TRIP 3: DECEMBER 2023

Total driving distance: 406 km onward and 406 km return  

Total time: 8 hours 8 minutes onwards and 8 hours 30 minutes return
Average fuel economy: 15.0 kmpl 
Car: Honda Amaze Petrol 
Passengers: 3 adults
Luggage: Full boot

Place of stay: Rituraj Homestay (https://goo.gl/maps/WNsLH41g5BW3HpPV7)

The fact that I will be making 3 trips to Dhanachuli this year, is way too overwhelming, considering I did not make a single trip before this year. Nevertheless, I enjoyed every chance to go there and I'm looking forward to many more such occasions. 

Once again, as it was last time, this was a totally unplanned trip. Since I was not aware about this trip, so I did not bring my camera gear from Hyderabad. Unfortunately, because of that, I missed to click a lifer Blue-capped Redstart male. It was so easy to see that bird all around multiple times, and everytime I saw it feeding nearby, I missed my camera so much. 

Atleast, I got to ID it well and I'm sure next time I go to Dhanachuli in winters, I'm definitely going to carry the gear along. 

TRIP 4: NOVEMBER 2024 

Total driving distance: 406 km onward and 406 km return  

Total time: 7 hours 40 minutes onwards and 8 hours return
Average fuel economy: 17.0 kmpl 
Car: Honda Amaze Petrol 
Passengers: 3 adults
Luggage: Full boot

Place of stay: Rituraj Homestay (https://goo.gl/maps/WNsLH41g5BW3HpPV7)

Route: via Bareily (not via Lakhimpur - Pilibhit)

The route via Bareily has significantly improved, resulting in a time saving of around 45 minutes in the entire journey. My objective in this trip was to take my chances with the Blue-capped Redstart but I never imagined that I will get another lifer, that too a difficult one like Upland Buzzard. I was casually sitting on the terrace enjoying the sun when all of a sudden I spotted the raptor hovering over my head. I picked up my camera, clicked it and when I looked into the Camera LCD, I was not sure what I clicked. Then I opened my book to ID the pic and I was shocked to see that it was an Upland Buzzard. 

Upland Buzzard (lifer)

I was on the lookout for Blue-capped Redstart male this time on the same tree where I missed it last year. It was really a chance sighting this time, as I spotted it only one of the four days I stayed here. But nevertheless, it was a lifer and I was so happy that I managed to get a beautiful shot. 

Blue-capped Redstart male (lifer)

All the four morning for which I stayed there, I went out for birding in the early morning hours. I walked around the property where I was staying, within a radius of 1 km. The morning hours especially were very fruitful. Although I did manage to click a few good shots even in the evening, especially the woodpeckers. 

My chance sighting brought me to this Scaly-bellied Woodpecker female, which I saw after nine long years. Last time I saw it was in the apple orchards of Khajjiar. That time I was using Canon 70D with Canon 400 f/5.6 lens (no IS). This time I had Canon R5 with Canon 400 f/4 and I am also 9 years experienced in photography. No wonder I got such a beautiful shot. But once again, a big shout-out to Canon R5 for being so phenomenal. My photography has significantly improved since I started using that gear. 

Scaly-bellied Woodpecker female

People might say that 400mm isn't a very good reach for Bird photography, more so if you are using a full-frame camera, like R5. And I would completely agree with that. Very often I have faced situations where I felt 400mm was getting a bit of a challenge. Imagine if I'm able to get these shots with 400 mm, what would happen if I start using RF 600mm f/4. Well, that's still far in the future and another 13 Lakhs from my savings. 

I gave about 20 minutes to this woodpecker, trying to find the best angle and trying to get as close as possible without scaring it off. I am definitely not disappointed with the results. 

Scaly-bellied Woodpecker female

After clicking the scaly-bellied woodpecker for 20 minutes, I moved ahead and saw a bird perching on top of a tree. I started clicking it thinking as the Rock bunting male. It was quite far for me to correctly identify it through the viewfinder. I just saw the bold streaking on the face and thought maybe I'm clicking the Rock bunting ale, but after I saw it in the LCD of the camera, I realized i clicked the Black-throated Accentor once again which I did last year. 

Black-throated Accentor

Almost every day, atleast once a day, a mixed flock hunting party of Tits and warblers visit my place of stay in Dhanachuli. And as always, these mixed flocks are there for about 5-10 minutes. If you are lucky enough, they do come out front on one of the bare branches and give you a chance to click these magnificent beauties. You have to be fast, but you do get a chance. Once again, R5 does wonders in these occasions and I managed to click this Tit up-close. 

Black-throated Tit

I was surprised to find this Lesser Whitethroat in one of those mixed flocks of Tits and Warblers. I never knew this bird prefers to be hunting in those mixed flocks. And I never knew this bird is found in this altitude too. Last I saw this bird, was in Greater Rann of Kutch. Even though i got a bare sky background, but the shot wasn't bad. It was near and I got the feather streaks too. 

Lesser Whitethroat

This is such a rare Tit to spot. It was in the mixed flock of other Tits. When I saw it, I could not get enough time to get a good sharp shot. And in that mixed flock of 50 odd Tits, this was the loner. I tried to search if there were any other individuals of Coal Tit, but I could not. It is definitely rarer than other Tits and I hope someday I get a better shot than this one. 

Coal Tit

Black-throated Tit

One morning, there was a flock of Greenfinch, but they hurried so fast going downhill, that I could barely managed to get this shot on an electric wire (not the idle shot for birds). It did flew from this wire to a tree, but by the time I could run and reach an angle to click on that tree, they just took off. Next time I go to Dhanachuli, I will try to find this one. Hopefully I can get them somewhere feeding on the ground. Supriya got a beautiful shot of this bird in Makku in 2019. If I stay in Dhanachuli for a few more days, I'm sure I will get a chance to click them again. This is the perfect altitude for them and they do feed on the farmland of hills, so I might have a chance to click them again, hopefully. 

Yellow-breasted Greenfinch

There were atleast 20 Treepies in and around my place of stay, but they are always inside the dense foliage, where I know they have their nest, or mostly sitting on top the tree where I don't get a good enough eye-level shot. However, once of the mornings when I trekked down a new route, I noticed them sitting on top of a tree, but this time the tree was further downhill making a good bokeh with the deep valley beyond. Not only I good a good eye-level shot, but it was clean and sharp with a wonderful bokeh. What more do you need in bird photography. 

Grey Treepie

The best shot of Greater Yellownape we clicked in Kalimpong. This time did not see the male, but for this species, even the female is equally beautiful. Just the throat part, which is yellow in male and rusty in female. Got a good near-full-frame shot and it followed with the sighting of the vocal White-throated Laughingthrush. 

Greater Yellownape female

I heard the call of White-throated Laughingthrush coming from somewhere downhill. I went down immediately trying to explore the area hoping I would find it. And there was a spot on an abandoned, freshly harvested green-pea farm, where the entire flock of White-throated were feeding on the ground. I had to climb up a set of stones to come up to eye level with these birds. I waited there for 15-20 minutes, saw them feeding and trying to get the best angle for my clicks. 

White-throated Laughingthrush

White-throated Laughingthrush

In one of those mixed flocks, got to click this one along with the Tits. Although I remember having the best shot of Grey-hooded Warbler in Makku, but i still keep trying. Who knows you might just end up getting a really good shot. After R5, I try to click as much as possible. I know because of the eye-tracking technology, I might end up having a shot worth keeping for lifetime. 

Grey-hooded Warbler

The most taken for granted bird in the hills, is this Blue Whistling Thrush. However, I still feel, given the perfect lighting conditions, there will be fewer birds as beautiful as this one. 

Blue Whistling Thrush 

Red-billed activity is very noticeable during the morning hours. I did not see it much during the evening. Once morning I got such beautiful shots, where the parents were probably collecting the fruits for the chicks. Didn't see the chicks though, but the way they were collecting the fruits, it seemed as if they were either taking it to their nests or taking it somewhere else where the chicks were there. Otherwise they wouldn't be collecting multiple fruits at once. They would rather be eating those right away. 

Red-billed Blue Magpie

The Green-backed is another very common sighting in Dhanachuli, in all weathers, be it summer or winter. I have seen it multiple times, on multiple days, and on multiple occasions. 

Green-backed Tit

I was trying to get the flying shots of Magpie, the sun still did not come out, the lighting was still low, maybe that was the reason I did not get a very sharp image. I could have increased the exposure though, that could have made it look a bit sharper. 

Red-billed Blue Magpie

The below 4 shots of woodpeckers were clicked during one of the evening treks. 

The best Himalayan Woodpecker male shot was clicked by me in Makku, holding the walnut in its beak. I really wish, I had my current gear during that time. 

Himalayan Woodpecker male

All these below woodpecker shots are no doubt my best shots for this species. Even though these shots are in the sky background, but the clarity is good, the reach was okay, and the sharpness is just beautiful. 

Himalayan Woodpecker female

Brown-fronted Woodpecker male

Brown-fronted Woodpecker female

This Jay was feeding on one the harvested farms of Raju. I saw the flock of Jays sitting and feeding there, took my time and angle to get this flying shot, but ultimately got it. I won't say I'm 100% satisfied, the noise level is a bit more, the light was less, the sharpness is not perfect, still it is a good shot to have. 

Black-headed Jay

I had been contemplating whether this is the Kashmir nuthatch or the White-tailed Nuthatch. I really wasn't sure whether it was Kashmir one or not. It is indeed very hard to find out on the field about the difference, so i settled for white-tailed only as it is more common and Kashmir is rarer to find. 

White-tailed Nuthatch

Grey-backed Shrike

Last year got the male of Rock Bunting, this time got the female. The sky background isn't always the greatest of all, but atleast the shot was clean, sharp and within more than acceptable reach. 

Rock Bunting female

This bird made me run the most. I even played its call, but somehow it didn't bother to respond. It just didn't come out of the foliage and I was forced to click it from within the leaves and twigs. 

Striated Laughingthrush

Booted Eagle

View from Dhanachuli

Indian Red Admiral

Purple Sapphire

This trip was well planned in advance, hence I had the chance to bring my camera. I'm not sure whether it was my luck or was it the season, but bird watching was just awesome this time. I got a lot of beautiful shots, some of them very near to my, with a lot of details and resolution in the pics, and with some good bokehs. I am sure, I can even print some of these pics with full size canvas prints. They were like full frame shots clicked with a full frame camera of 45 MP. At these distances and in such beautiful light, any camera gear would do justice to the birds. I was just lucky that my gear is a more than decent gear needed for birding. If I ever get the 600 f/4, my gear would become the "Ferrari gear" for birding. For now, I can safely call it the "Audi gear".

TRIP 5: FEBRUARY-2025

Total driving distance: 406 km onward and 406 km return  (To-and-fro Lucknow)

Total time: 7 hours 45 minutes onwards and about 8 hours return
Average fuel economy: 13.5 kmpl 
Car: Audi A4 Petrol 
Passengers: 2 adults
Luggage: Full boot

Place of stay: Rituraj Homestay (https://goo.gl/maps/WNsLH41g5BW3HpPV7)

Route: via Bareily (not via Lakhimpur - Pilibhit)

Total trip summary from Hyderabad to Dhanachuli

This trip was primarily to attend a wedding in Dhanachuli. It was a long drive from Hyderabad, with 3 pit-stops in between (Pench, Panna and Lucknow). I planned to stay for atleast 15 days this time. I was carrying my camera gear, the weather was good, I had a lot of time at my disposal, and I managed to get some amazing photographs. The quality of the photographs itself is a proof that I got a lot of time to spend here. I did not go anywhere other than the village of Dhanachuli, all birding was done within walking distance of my house and I got multiple opportunities to click the same bird from multiple angles, to sort and keep the best shot that I liked at the end of the trip. 

I had been looking at a redstart female for quite a few days, but was not able to make out whether it was Blue-fronted or Blue-capped or the Black Redstart. Female redstarts are always very tough to identify in the field. But when I saw the blue-fronted male, I realised that Dhanachuli actually had 3 redstart species at its altitude. I just loved the angle that I got, the perfect lighting, the perfect bokeh, the perfect illustration shot. The colour combination of this male is just so beautiful, you can keep looking at it for hours and hours. When I see these type of birds, I start feeling that they only justify if we use a good gear to capture a good image. They deserve the best of the equipment to bring out the best of their beauty. 

Blue-fronted Redstart male

In my last trip of Dhanachuli in November-24, this Blue-capped Redstart was my lifer. However, the blue color on its cap wasn't quite vivid. I guessed maybe it was still not it's breeding season, or maybe it was a first winter individual. I was fairly certain that I will be getting the Blue-capped in all its glory, in this trip. I wasn't disappointed either. Since the first day, it gave me multiple opportunities to get all possible angles to get many many shots. I finally settled with this shot, which gave me the perfect angle for the cap to be visible in the prefect light. 

Blue-capped Redstart male

The challenge with Tit is that they are very finicky and hardly give you any time to focus and click. But because they are always in a flock, so you will end up getting a shot which you like. This individual was carrying some nest material but i finally managed to get a good close-up shot. 

Black-throated Tit

Streaked Laughingthrush

Green-backed Tit

Oriental White-eye

Rock Bunting female

Grey Bushchat male

Himalayan Buzzard

Black Redstart female

Himalayan Bulbul

This was only the second time i saw this bird. The first time was in Garhwal, and this time in Kumaon. Didn't get a great shot, but it was better than what I clicked last time. The lemon rump is still not visible though. 

Lemon-rumped Warbler

Had been trying this bird for many days and I gave many hours to get a perfect shot. Reach wasn't an issue as it always used to spend its time on the plum tree right in front of my house. The only challenge was that the vegetation was thick and I had to wait for hours and hours to get the perfect angle and for it to come out in the open branches. Finally I was super happy with this shot, not because it turned out to be sharp and clean, but primarily because, the catch light in its eye showed the reflection of the entire house where I was staying. If you zoom in this image, you will find a 2 story house with a balcony visible in its eye. You can imagine how close the bird was and the resolution that I could pull from that shot. fell in love with it as soon as i clicked it. 

Russet Sparrow male

Red-vented Bulbul

Sitting outside in the sun in the morning hours having a sip on your cup of coffee, don't ever let your guards down. It is mandatory to carry the camera gear with you all the time. You just don;t know what is going to appear over your head. The location of Dhanachuli is so perfect and the entire valley in the front, gives a perfect setting for these raptors to fly over. You just can't afford to not be aware of it. That is how I got this shot of Bonelli's Eagle. It is hard to get them perched, it is easier to get a flying shot instead, especially if you are staying at a heavenly location like Dhanachuli. 

Bonelli's Eagle

Griffon Vulture

Small Copper (lifer)

Apricot flower

Plum flower

I was carrying my RF 100mm f/2.8 Macro L series lens this time along with my 400 f/4 prime. One day when I saw the himalayas in their full glory, I switched lenses and clicked a landscape shot. And it turned out to be really good. No mobile camera these days can match this clarity, I can bet that. I tried the same shot with my Z Fold 6 camera, nowhere close to be honest. 

The Nanda Devi view from our home

This was my first time sighting of a Himalayan Jackal in Dhanachuli, both male and female. 

Himalayan Jackal male

Himalayan Jackal female

15 days stay in Dhanachuli ended so soon, that I was left wanting more, same like everytime i visit this place. 5 trips to this magnificent place until now, and I always feel like going back again and again. For some people, this place seems to be very boring. I would agree that it is quite laid back in that sense, but if one has a hobby related to nature, especially bird watching, then this can be your paradise on earth. Let's see when I get a chance to visit again.