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> Great Himalayan Sanctuary |
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Great Himalayan Sanctuary |
Western Tragopans, bharal, leopards and snow leopards
keep company here with forktails, wagtails and Himalayan Magpies.
Washed by the Tirthan river, the Great Himalayan National Park
is about as close to heaven as you will get on earth. This is
one of the world's finest, least explored Himalayan wildernesses.
Made for adventurous trekkers, birdwatchers, sensitive naturalists
and lovers of wild flowers, these rich coniferous forests, alpine
meadows, snow-capped peaks and glaciers together form the Great
Himalayan National Park, the largest protected area in Himachal
Pradesh. It is one of only two national parks in the world to
house a significant population of the endangered Western Tragopan
(the other is in Pakistan) and is in some ways a living remnant
of the Himalayan ranges before the advent of human civilisation.
A treasure trove of rare medicinal plants and biodiversity,
this forest has a special allure that only those who go there
can ever fully appreciate or comprehend.
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Animals you will see |
Actual sightings are rare. The snow leopard,
one of the most elusive cats in the world is so beautifully
camouflaged in the high altitude rock and scrub that it is seen
only by the most fortunate or the most patient. As you trek
along the riverbank, you could, at the most, flush a musk deer
from its cover. The Himalayan brown and black bear haunt the
upper reaches, as do leopards, wolves, the Himalayan red fox,
civets, jungle cats and martens. The bear and civet are vegetarian
for a large part of the year. Different habitats and prey preferences
keep competition to a minimum, enabling the co-existence of
a wide range of predators. Several other threatened mammals
like the serow, Himalayan tahr, goral, ibex and the blue sheep
find a home here. Rhesus macaque and common langur are the major
primates frequenting trees and trekking trails. Half-eaten oak
leaves with holes bored are generally the handiwork of the Himalayan
flying squirrel. The calls of these rodents echo across the
valley at dawn and dusk and with luck you may see one gliding
gracefully from tree to tree, using air currents to adjust its
trajectory for up to 100 m at a stretch! The Russel's viper
and Himalayan pit viper comprise the main reptilian population,
though skinks and lizards are also quite common.
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Animals you may see |
Actual sightings are rare. The snow leopard, one
of the most elusive cats in the world is so beautifully camouflaged
in the high altitude rock and scrub that it is seen only by
the most fortunate or the most patient. As you trek along the
riverbank, you could, at the most, flush a musk deer from its
cover. The Himalayan brown and black bear haunt the upper reaches,
as do leopards, wolves, the Himalayan red fox, civets, jungle
cats and martens. The bear and civet are vegetarian for a large
part of the year. Different habitats and prey preferences keep
competition to a minimum, enabling the co-existence of a wide
range of predators. Several other threatened mammals like the
serow, Himalayan tahr, goral, ibex and the blue sheep find a
home here. Rhesus macaque and common langur are the major primates
frequenting trees and trekking trails. Half-eaten oak leaves
with holes bored are generally the handiwork of the Himalayan
flying squirrel. The calls of these rodents echo across the
valley at dawn and dusk and with luck you may see one gliding
gracefully from tree to tree, using air currents to adjust its
trajectory for up to 100 m at a stretch! The Russel's viper
and Himalayan pit viper comprise the main reptilian population,
though skinks and lizards are also quite common.
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Birdwatching |
Of the 183 species of birds recorded, 132 are
passerines and 51 non-passerines. (Passerines are perching birds,
especially songbirds that are often no more than the size of
a sparrow.) The prolific pheasant population is one of the highlights
of the park. The endangered cheer pheasant is found on the grasses
along the slopes but the park is most famous for the endangered
Western Tragopan. The Himalayan Monal, Koklass and Kaleej bring
the tally to an impressive five species of pheasant in just
one park. The Cinereous Vulture, Himalayan Griffon, Lammagier
and Golden Eagle are some birds of prey and the Oriental Hobby,
Yellowbilled Chough, Himalayan Whistling Thrush, Variegated
Laughing Thrush and Little Forktail are some smaller avians
that you may chance upon as you walk the mountain trails. The
Brown Dipper, Whitecapped Redstart, Great Hill Barbet and Mrs
Gould's Sunbird are some of the other delightful birds here.
Brown and Redheaded Bullfinches, Verditer Flycatcher, Firebreasted
Flowerpecker, Redtailed Minla, Striated Laughing Thrush, Black/Whitecheeked/Redvented
and Redwhiskered Bulbuls, Alpine Swift, Brownfronted Pied Woodpecker,
Desert Wheatear are other representatives of the avifauna of
the region.
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Best Time for Viewing |
Any trek from early light to dusk will throw
up sightings to a watchful eye and an attentive ear. There is
no "best time", but mornings certainly hold extra
promise for sightings.
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Climate |
Temperatures may rise to 30°C in the summer
and drop to -5°C in winter. The area sees heavy rain in
the monsoon and snow in winter. The summer monsoon brings some
welcome rain, which occasionally results in flash floods. Precipitation
at Tirthan Sanctuary is about 1,500 mm, though the rainfall
varies across the valley.
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