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Day 101: While India can’t match Africa for breadth and depth of animal life in the wild, we were given some small hope by our trusty Lonely Planet India that we might be able to eyeball a tiger in Ranthambore National Park, about 3 hours drive south from Jaipur.

Loaded by the local ticket mafia into large open-topped trucks, we glided through jungle tracks with all the secrecy and silence of a souped-up hummer, passing by deer of various kinds, clans of long-tailed monkeys, a fair few peacocks and even a jackal - but no tiger.

When all hope seemed lost, word came from another passing monster truck that there had indeed been a sighting up ahead, whereupon our driver really stepped on the gas to make it to the likely tiger-sighting spot. And there we came upon our tiger, lying on the dirt track, and not in the least bit put out by the arrival of four vehicles bearing down upon him carrying their cargo of photograph-snapping tigerseekers.

As we noted at the time, this was the first tiger we had ever seen, in the wild… on a dirt track.

Andrea, to whom we owe inspiration for this wildlife mission, and Kate were delighted with the discovery of this gracious feline. So here’s cheers to the mighty tigers of Ranthambore National Park.