Chhatra Sagar

Rajastani man 

Dam and Cliff's Shadow

Reading outside our tent on top of the dam

Walking the farm with Harsh

Driving in the desert at Sunset

Antelopes Herd

Cocktail Hour by the fire

After checking out of Jawai Leopard Camp, we were driven by Vijay to Chhatra Sagar Camp. We were amazed once again how the roads and infrastructure of India have improved. I used Google maps and it was accurate in estimating arrival times and suggesting shortcuts.

Rohit, our friend, suggested that we must spend the night at Chhatra Sagar. It turns out to have been a fabulous experience. Cathy loves looking at the stars in Rajasthan. We often spend the nights at locations far removed from city lights. This allows us to see the stars filling the night sky. In Los Angeles, there is so much ambient light we very rarely see many stars. Rohit thought this place would be perfect.

We arrived a few hours later at Chhatra Sagar. These are luxury tents. They are permanent. The tents are heated, they have two rooms, etc. These are not your Boy Scout pup tent. We walked up the stairs to get to the top of the dam and we were met by Harsh one of the descendants of the Thakur, and co-owner of the resort. He immediately explained to us there is no tipping, and everything is included, INCLUDING ALCAHOL. After showing us to our tent, he suggested lunch. It was probably the best food we have had on the trip. It was delicious. No menu they just serve you. Soup, vegetables, Chicken, Dal, Naan, whatever drink you desire. If is all home cooked recipes from the owner’s family. We were stuffed at the end. 

In the late 1890’s the local Thakur Chhatra Sagar (a Thakur is like an Indian Prince) built a dam. The dam created a large reservoir and a wilderness area. The reservoir allowed farming to flourish in this area. It showed great foresight on his part. He changed the ecology of the region for the better, improved the lives of the farmers and saved wilderness areas for perpetuity. 

The dam is quite wide at the top. Chhatra Sagar is another tent resort, this one is located directly atop the dam the Thakur created. It is a damn crazy idea! The descendants of the Thakur built this tented camp about 17 years ago. It is WONDERFUL! It is totally quiet here, you only hear the birds chirping. The visual is wonderful, from your tent you look out over the reservoir towards the unspoiled land on the other side. I was totally dubious continually asking myself “Why am I staying in a tent on top of a dam?”. The answer of course was: because Rohit said we would like it, and we trust Rohit.

They then offered us a nature walk to look at the birds or a visit to their farm and local village. We chose the farm and village tour. We hopped in the jeep and headed for the farm.

We walked the fields where Harsh showed us how they irrigate and the different crops they grow: wheat, anise, etc. We then drove to the small village and walked around. The people were all friendly inviting us into their houses and work areas. I took many pictures of the Rajasthani faces. The men wear turbans, the women are veiled. Other places in India we have been, if you take pictures of people they want money, here no one asks for money, they are happy to just have a look at the picture on my camera then they usually waggle their heads as Indians do (and we can’t) signifying either they like the picture or not, there is no way to tell.

We then drove slowly through the desert as night was falling. We saw antelopes, jackal, along with giant herds of goats and sheep.

We returned back to our tent on a dam and read for a while. We had such a large lunch (not our usual pattern, where we usually skip lunch) we decided to delay dinner. They lit a large fire and served drinks. Cathy and I were the only people by the fire at that time and Raj (another member of the family) gave us a great lesson about stars. He pointed out constellations and stars to us. It was like having a personal celestial tutor. Other guests eventually joined us by the fire. One couple living in the Cotswolds were quite nice and we spent a lot of time talking to them. They joined us for dinner. They served goat as the meat. I don’t particularly like goat and would certainly not order it. Here there was no option, skip it, or eat it. Knowing me, of course I ate it. It was delicious. If they hadn’t told me it was goat I would have had no idea. It was small chunks of meat in a gravy.

I would definitely list Chhatra Sagar as a not to be missed visit. What impressed us the most was the total lack of pretense. It was just nice hosts, great food and wine. There was nothing snobby. All thanks to Rohit!