We contacted Gurudongma Tours after reading other trip reports on the Internet recommending them and I visited the home of Jimmy Singh and also met Catherine Lobo in Kalimpong when I was in the area during September 2005. This was shortly before their main tour guide and partner in the business, Peter Lobo left the company in circumstances that caused us both some concerns regarding his character. If this seems rather a sweeping statement and possibly offensive, I think it is important here to make the point that Catherine, his wife, remained loyal to the company and her business partner, Jimmy Singh, who had done so much to help Peter Lobo develop his birding skills including making him a partner in the business. I think the fact that Peter Lobo now operates using the Gurudongma name and with most of the web page details taken from their site also speaks volumes about the man. We therefore decided to stick with Gurudongma Tours & Treks and trust that the interim replacements for Peter Lobo would prove adequate. A chance meeting with Peter Lobo at Dibru Saikhowa, where he was also leading a group confirmed we had made the correct decision. He managed to spoil a days birding for us by taking a local guide with him, knowing that the man had been paid to guide for us by his former company, I am pleased to say that despite this inconvenience we met with more success in that area than his group, honesty and integrity have their rewards. 

Our trip was to have started with a 10-day visit to Namdapha NP, but sadly had to be rescheduled at the last minute when the authorities closed the park to visitors for a Tiger census. This of course meant that some of the species we wanted to see only found there and other areas south of the Brahmaputra River were lost to us. We were offered a full refund, but decided to continue with the rescheduled tour hoping that it would still prove productive. Our itinerary was changed to start with two days at Dibru Saikhowa, Four nights at Kaziranga, four nights at Pakke Tiger Reserve, five nights at Eagles Nest and the final night at Nameri Reserve. 

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Thanks must go to General Jimmy Singh for his last minute changes to our itinerary and to our logistics manager, Sudesh Pradhan for his excellent on the ground arrangements for food, accommodation and transport, all of which were both comfortable and of a high standard, including camp beds and a shower tent with adequate hot water daily in the areas where camping was the only viable choice. 

A local guide had been arranged for Dibru Saikhowa and we also had the services of a local guide called Dhiren from Kaziranga who accompanied us for the entire trip and Sudesh himself was to be our guide for Pakke and Eagles Nest, both of which are at the western end of Arunachal Pradesh. Sudesh apart from keeping tabs on all the logistical arrangements also accompanied us on all our birding walks and proved to be an excellent guide, who in our opinion will easily replace and probably surpass the aforementioned Peter Lobo. He has already acquired a good knowledge of birdcalls and other identification details of a good number of species, he has good eyes and most importantly he can communicate to his clients and direct them accurately onto what he sees. Equally importantly for us, he doesn’t raise false hopes and expectations about what can be seen in certain areas, he is honest and realistic about what is likely, which helps you to make best use of your time. I think the total of 327 species seen on this trip, 40 of which were new to my already extensive India list are proof that our confidence in Sudesh and Gurudongma Tours & Treks is justified. 

Places visited and birds seen are listed below, I have confined the list to the more difficult and important species for the area, highlighting in bold print the new birds for either or both of us, rather than print huge lists of everything seen. 

22^nd February : Dibrugarh to Tinsukia for three nights in Hotel Urmila, which was adequate, but I believe shortly to be converted into a hospital.

Roadside birding : White-vented Myna, Rufous-winged Bushlark and Thick-billed Warbler 

23^rd February : Dibru Saikhowa Wildlife Sanctuary. On this day we travelled by local ferry boat upstream to visit an area of thick grassland on the north bank of the Dibru River opposite Dighaltarang and despite a break to shelter from heavy rain we were rewarded with good views of Jerdon’s Babbler, Chestnut-capped Babbler, Rufous-vented Prinia (cinerascens race), Smoky Warbler, Northern Lapwing, Black-breasted Parrotbill, Rufous-fronted Babbler and a fleeting glimpse for me of Marsh Babbler. After lunch back at the little lodge where we took the ferry from, we again travelled upstream to another area on the south bank of the Dibru River with some good grassland and cultivated areas and were rewarded with Buff-bellied Pipit, Hen Harrier, Common Kingfisher, Asian Openbill and for Bill only a brief glimpse of Black-browed Reed Warbler. 

24^th February : Dibru Saikhowa Wildlife Sanctuary. On this day we were deserted until mid-afternoon by our local guide and our boat put us ashore on the island north of Guijan downstream from where intended following an engine failure, with the result we headed in the wrong direction and only reached our lunch stop very late at Kolomi after wading through several streams on a wet morning. We did however manage to see Hodgson’s Redstart, Crested Kingfisher, Spot-billed Pelican, Temmink’s Stint, Spotted Owlet, Lesser Adjutant, Sultan Tit, Greater-necklaced Laughingthrush, Yellow-vented Flowerpecker, Scarlet-backed Flowerpecker, Oriental-pied Hornbill, Stork-billed Kingfisher, Nepal Fulvetta and for Bill only Black-breasted Thrush. After lunch we looked in vain for Jerdon’s Bushchat, but managed to find Pied Falconet, Long-billed Vulture, Changeable Hawk Eagle and Dusky Warbler. 

25^th February : Borajan Forest and drive to Kaziranga. Quite a nice location to visit before an early lunch and the long drive to Kaziranga. Easy walking, but a little disturbed by local pedestrian and some motorised traffic, but we found Asian-barred Owlet, Greater Racket-tailed Drongo, Small Niltava, Emerald Dove, Banded Bay Cuckoo, White-rumped Shama and Speckled Piculet and we spotted a colony of Greater Adjutant on the road near to Kaziranga, where we stayed at the comfortable Bon Habi Resort for the next four nights. 

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Kaziranga National Park. One of the problems with visiting Kaziranga and a number of other parks where large mammals roam free is that you have to take an armed guard with you, most of the birding has to be from a jeep and worst of all the parks close for lunch from noon until 2.00 p.m. Kaziranga is a large park and effectively having the day split in two parts means it is difficult to get to the northern areas nearest to the Brahmaputra River and return to the exits in time unless you drive straight through the southern areas without stopping, which is difficult. This problem was resolved for us because the northern areas were closed to visitors because they were apparently too wet, even though they were burning to regenerate the vegetation in the very dry southern areas! 

26^th February : We headed for the eastern end of the park on our first morning where there is a good mixture of woodland, open water and grassland habitat. We were not able to get near enough to the areas in the north near to the Brahmaputra to have much hope of seeing Bengal Florican, but a good variety of birds were recorded and it was the best area of the park for water birds. About 90 species were seen during the morning including Dark-throated Thrush, Yellow-footed Green Pigeon, Pallas’s & Grey-headed Fish Eagle, Changeable Hawk Eagle, Greater and Lesser Spotted Eagle, Pied and Hen Harrier, Greater and Lesser Adjutant, Purple Heron, Cotton Pygmy Geese, Spot-billed & Great White Pelican, Abbott’s Babbler, Spot-winged Starling and Stork-billed Kingfisher. After lunch we decided to walk the dirt road behind the tourist complex at Kohora along the river towards the Mikir Hills. Once away from the complex and residential area there is good habitat here and it is nice to get away from the park areas where armed guards and jeeps are always required. The birding was quite good and included such gems as White-browed Piculet, Streaked Spiderhunter, Black-backed Forktail, Crimson Sunbird, Green-billed Malkoha, Large Woodshrike, White-throated Bulbul, Blue-throated Barbet and Asian Fairy Bluebird. 

27^th February : On our second day at Kaziranga we started with an Elephant ride from Mihimukh just inside the main central entrance in the hope of spotting Bengal Florican and Swamp Francolin, but whilst the latter was heard, neither were seen. I wouldn’t have missed the opportunity of a ride on Elephant back, but it is not the most comfortable form of transport and not the best way of birding, but we did spot Streak-throated Woodpecker. A similar mix of species were seen has the previous day with the addition of Rufous-bellied Eagle and a stunning male Pied Harrier, definitely one of the birds of the trip. After lunch we headed for Panbari Reserved Forest, some really good woodland that is south of the main park and stretch into the Mikir Hills. These woods are definitely worth a couple of visits if time permits and we started our first visit with a brief distant view of Blossom-headed Parakeet and then followed the calls to get our best ever views of Great Hornbill followed by Pygmy Wren Babbler at the other end of the size spectrum. We also found Asian Fairy Bluebird and Lineated, Blue-throated and Blue-eared Barbet. 

28^th February : We started our last day at Kaziranga with an early morning return to Panbari where apart from great views of Hoolock Gibbon we had some great birds, for me this was definitely the best area of Kaziranga. The morning’s list included Blossom-headed Parakeet, Jerdon’s Baza, Lesser-necklaced Laughingthrush, Grey-bellied Tesia, Dark-necked Tailorbird, Crested Goshawk, White-rumped Shama, Yellow-vented Flowerpecker, Blue-winged Leafbird, Ruby-cheeked Sunbird and Plaintive Cuckoo. After lunch we visited the western end of the park where we again found a good mix of water birds plus Brown Fish Owl, Red Junglefowl, Dollarbird, Lesser Coucal, Chestnut-capped Babbler and finally a distant scope view of Swamp Francolin. 

1^st March : We spent the morning driving north into Arunachal Pradesh to Khari in the Pakke Tiger Reserve, arriving at the park entrance at lunchtime. We walked along the main jeep track towards Khari and found Orange-bellied Leafbird, Great Hornbill, Barred Cuckoo Dove, Silver-eared Mesia, Blue-bearded Bee-eater, Sultan Tit, Ultramarine Flycatcher and a large flock of Wreathed Hornbill. We were to spend four nights camping at Khari and the facilities provided by Gurudongma were very comfortable.  

2^nd to 4^th March : Pakke Tiger Reserve. Khari camp is sited in the centre of the reserve just above a shallow river and surrounded by good broad-leaved mixed forest in the Himalayan foothills and we spent the next three days walking the local trails accompanied by the compulsory armed guard. We didn’t encounter any dangerous animals during our stay, but the guard did fire a shot when chasing off a group of poachers, so they certainly are necessary. A good mixture of birds were found including Lesser Coucal, Chestnut-headed Bee-eater, Ruby-cheeked Sunbird, Abbot’s Babbler, Speckled Piculet, Rufous Woodpecker, Greater Flameback, Long-tailed Broadbill, Blue-eared Kingfisher, Sultan Tit, Yellow-bellied Warbler, Slaty-bellied & Chestnut Headed Tesia, Pied Falconet, Crested Goshawk, Jerdon’s Baza, Great Hornbill, Vernal Hanging Parrot, Crested Bunting, Blue-bearded Bee-eater, Black-backed Forktail, Maroon Oriole, Spot-throated Babbler, Lesser-Necklaced Laughingthrush, Broad-billed Warbler, Green-billed Malkoha, Red-headed Trogon & Rusty-bellied Shortwing. 

5^th March : Khari to Khelong, Eagles Nest Sanctuary. Nothing new seen on our walk out of the reserve then five hours were lost at the river crossing when our driver tried to cross in a section too deep for the vehicle and flooded the engine. Gurudongma are not able to provide their own vehicles and drivers because of local regulations, but thanks to Sudesh rather than the driver, we eventually got going and arrived at Khelong camp after dark. We did at least add Small and Oriental Pratincole to our lists and did have a day of relaxation. 

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6^th to 9^th March : Eagles Nest Sanctuary. We spent four full days in the Eagles Nest Sanctuary, the first day spent walking and driving up to Sesni Camp arriving at lunchtime and spending the afternoon exploring further along the trail. The second day was spent mostly walking in the early morning and then driving to the higher Bompoo Camp or at least to just below Bompoo where the road had collapsed and the makeshift bridge couldn’t carry a vehicle. The afternoon and the morning of the third day were spent in the Bompoo area and then we walked and drove back down to Sesni for another two nights and a full day exploring that area. Not having yet been to Nandapha I cannot compare the two areas, but Eagles Nest Sanctuary was certainly a good location and we would have liked to explore the upper areas of the sanctuary if time and roads had allowed. On this point we did meet another British birder at Sesni, travelling with another well known local guide by motorbike descending from Bompoo and during our conversation did initially form the impression that Gurudongma had perhaps taken us to the wrong area despite what we had seen. However despite his impressive collection of tapes and talk of what he had seen in the area during his guided tours, we soon realised here was another guide who relied on talk and modern technology to impress clients and with our combined experience we were not so easily taken in by the smooth chat. The mention of a species of Laughingthrush that doesn’t exist and the suggestion that Blue-fronted Robins, described has scarce in all field guides, could be heard calling everywhere in response to tapes did not impress us, nor did other claims. Sudesh also pointed out that it is impossible at present to do the whole Eagles Nest area in the time we had available because of the collapsed road below Bompoo and a landslide blocking the road to vehicles near the Eagles Nest Pass. Sudesh, our ‘less experienced’ but more down to earth guide took the view that the lower area he had chosen offered the best opportunities for good birds and our list seemed to confirm this. The list for the four days included Long-tailed & Beautiful Sibia, Golden-throated & Blue throated Barbet, Dark-throated & Long-tailed Thrush, Grey-winged Blackbird, Cutia, Lesser Yellownape, Hill Prinia, Rufous-naped Hornbill, Rusty-fronted Bronzewing, Black-faced & White-crested Laughingthrush, Mountain Hawk & Black Eagle, Golden Babbler, Coral-billed Scimitar Babbler, Brown & Grey-headed Bullfinch, Pygmy Wren Babbler, Grey-chinned Minivet, Greater Rufous-headed & Grey-headed Parrotbill, White-tailed & Beautiful Nuthatch, Fire-breasted Flowerpecker, Maroon-backed Accentor, White-spectacled & Large-billed Leaf Warbler, Lesser Racket-tailed Drongo, White-browed Shrike-Babbler, Chestnut-headed Tesia, Bay Woodpecker, Red-faced Liocichla, Yellow-throated Fulvetta & Collared Owlet. 

10^th March : Sesni to Nameri Wildlife Sanctuary. We walked some of the sections of the road down from Sesni, which goes through some good forest habitat before starting the drive to Nameri and again good birds were seen including Long-tailed Sibia, Red Junglefowl, Wreathed Hornbill, Orange-bellied Leafbird, Slaty-backed Forktail, Maroon Oriole, Streaked Spiderhunter & Oriental Hobby. We arrived at Nameri, which is a very comfortable tented camp with hot showers and a restaurant operated by one of the government agencies in time for lunch then crossed the river to the reserve itself accompanied by the usual armed guard. Our main target here was White-headed Duck, which can be found in small wetlands within tropical forest and had been recorded here two weeks earlier. Sadly we were to be disappointed, the bird had flown or was disturbed by our approach when the local armed guard lead us through thick undergrowth, rather than along the clear path from which we exited the site. We did see some other good birds including Common Merganser, Great Thick Knee, Small Pratincole and Black Stork. 

11^th March : Return to Guwahati and home. We decided against a last morning early river trip in favour of an extra couple of hours in bed because we didn’t consider it was likely to produce anything new, but the trip ended on a high note when our guide called us from our tent to look at a Daurian Redstart flitting around in the trees alongside the camp fence. 

It was a good trip and we would have no hesitation in recommending Gurudongma Tours and Treks to other birders who value honesty and integrity and of course good birds and home comforts. 

Reference books used :

• Birds of the Indian Subcontinent – Grimmett & Inskipp (pocket and full size with text on bird calls)

• A Birdwatchers Guide to India – Kazmierczak & Singh