Increase of bird species in Valley of Flowers

Increase of rare bird species in Valley of Flowers (25th August, 2016): Good news for those who are bird watchers. Six new species of birds have been found in Valley of Flowers in Uttarakhand. The scientists have used GPS technique and wild life photography to observe the activities and voices of the new bird species.

The scientists from Wild Life Institute of India, Dehradun reached Valley of Flowers during 12^th – 20^th August, 2016 to the research on the birds habituating in this area. As per the observation, six new rare species of birds have been identified. These species are pink-browed rosefinch, common rosefinch, variegated laughing thrust, red fronted bullfinch, common kestrel, large build crow. A study was also done last year on birds in the valley. At that time only three rare species were found, and those were related with grey wagtail bird species. These new species are showing the indications of increase in the bird species, which is a good sign for biodiversity. Though there are some 30 more bird species, these are common birds found in other areas also.

The six new bird species are commonly found in Europe and China. These species are rarely found in any other part of the country. The bird watchers can enjoy the bird species of the park, due to discovery of new species of birds. The scientist community is also very excited, and will go to the study next year in August, 2017.

Valley of Flowers is one of the sought after tourist destinations for nature lovers. One has to trek to reach to this place. Normally this place opens in the month of June and gets closed by October every year.

Salient features:

• Valley of Flowers is a national park located in the district of Chamoli, Uttarakhand.
• The area of this park 87.5 sqkm.
• Valley of Flowers was declared the national park in 1982.

For more on Valley of Flowers please click

How to reach Valley of Flowers, please click

Mussoorie

Mussoorie town

Mussoorie: Cool and exhilarating in summer and then mantled in casual snow for winters; inviting all the year-round; the perfect spot for a magnificent scenery; a quiet walk; an evening out and a cool night’s sleep.  It is situated between high mountains to the north and the flat Doon valley below.  From a particular hilltop, on a clear day one can see the Ganga and Yamuna trailing their way from the hills into the plains.

The town started to develop during the first decade of the nineteenth century when Captain Young constructed the first building near Mullingar.  In 1826, Landour became a sanatorium for British troops, and the entire area covering the township was taken on lease from the Maharaja of Tehri Garhwal for the nominal sum of Rs 1120.  The Municipal Board came into being in 1873.  In 1880, the ex-Amir of Afghanistan, Yakub Khan was placed under detention here in the Bellevue Estate.  During 1884, the Duke and Duchess of Connaught chose Mussoorie as their summer residence.  By this time several Indian princes had been attracted to this place and they built their own summer residences here.  Gradually schools and  public institutions also developed and it became a popular summer resort, first for the princes and Britishers and later for the tourists.

 Like Dehradun, Mussoorie too is known for its public schools, many of them started by the Britishers. Prominent among them are the Wood Stocks, Wynberg Allen, St. Georges, Hampton Court etc.  If Dehradun is famous for the IndianMilitaryAcademy, Mussoorie boasts of the Lal Bahadur Shastri Institute of Indian Administrative Services. 

During summers, the Mall is packed with merry crowds of holiday makers. 

Long queues are a normal feature at the booking booths of the ropeway that takes visitors to the 2142 mtr  top of the famous Gun Hill for a panoramic view of the snow-clad Himalayas. A morning stroll along the winding Charleville Road takes one to the pine-scented HappyValley and the Tibetan township. Located here is a cliff-hanging Buddhist Shrine with ceremonial trumpets and acolytes reciting ancient scriptures.  In the Himalayan twilight, one can also see  the twinkling lights of Dehra Dun far off in the valley below.

Trees in Himalaya

Himalaya is one of the youngest chains of mountains in the world. There are varieties of wild life present in the whole region of Himalayan mountains. The plants are very crucial for many reasons like oxygen, retaining water and maintaining ecological balance in the region. The Himalayan vegetation starts from an altitude of 1500 mtr. up to 4000 mtr. After the altitude of 4000 mtr., the vegetation vanishes due to heavy snowfall causing the damage to all types of plantation. After any high altitude above 4000 mtr., it is very rare to see any type of big plants. 

The Himalaya is full of variety of wildlife species. Trees cover large part of the temperate region of the Himalayan national park. The conifer species are spread across a major part of varying altitude. The few example are cedar, blue pine and spruce etc. Each of the upper coniferous belts has its unique oak characteristic which provides acorns to rodents and birds.

White oak: Pinus roxburghii and blue pine

Green oak: fir and spruce

Brown oak: This forms mainly the pure community at the tree line.

The fungi and the lichens on the oak trees become food for animals and the birds.  Himalayan yew is found in abundance in the fir forest leading to a cool micro climate.

The most attractive and abundantly found flower rhododendron arboretum can be traced between 1500 mtr. To 3000 mtr. There are four species of maple which can be found between 1500 mtr. To 3000 mtr.

Plant species                                                     Altitude (mtr.)

Alder                                                                     1,500 – 2,000

Horse chestnut /khnor                                     1,800 – 3,000

Dogwood                                                             1,800 – 2,800

Pencil Cedar                                                        1,800 – 3,000

Holly / Kaluchha                                                2,000 – 2,800

Deodar / Cedar                                                   2,000 – 3,000

Maple                                                                   2,200 – 3,000

Maple                                                                   2,500 – 3,200

Silver fir / Tosh                                                  2,500 – 3,200

Boxwood / Shamshad                                      2,500 – 3,000

Hazelnut / Bhuti badam                                  2,500 – 3,200

Birch / Bhoj patra                                             3,000 – 4,000

Himalayan high altitude fir                            3,000 – 4,000

The above trees shall be seen any abundance on the trek routes in the Himalayan routes. Many treks may cover almost all the trees and plants. The beauty of the Himalayan trek lies in its wild life,scenic beauty of valleys, mountains, meadows, lakes etc.

Sir George Everest

Sir George Everest

Sir George Everest was British Surveyor General of India from 1830 – 43 who spent much of his time in Mussoorie, Uttarakhand in India. The name given to the highest peak in the world is after Sir George Everest. Sir George was the successor of Col. William Laubton, the great Yorkshireman, under whom almost the major part of the subcontinent was mapped by Survey of India.

Sir George bought the Park Estate in Mussoorie located on the western edge of town in 1833 and lived here for almost a decade before retiring to England. This beautiful building was later changed to a cowshed. The Survey office of Sir George was located near Castle Hill Estate in Londour, which was acquired by the government few decades ago. The office remains neglected and needs renovation to get back to its past glory. Everest has also lived in a smaller house (now a ruin) overlooking the Doon valley, called Logarithm

Mussoorie.....read more

Interestingly, the Mount Everest name has very little to do with Sir George. After Everest’s retirement in 1843, the work of Survey of India was continued under Andrew Scott Waugh. Till 1852, the Mount Everest was not considered the highest peak in the world but was considered much lower than Kanchenjunga (8,586 mtr.). The altitude of Kanchenjunga was declared in 1840 and it was only in 1852, the survey measured Everest’s elevation as 8,839.81 mtr. The peak XV (Mt. Everest) got the pride of being highest peak in the world in 1852.

Andrew Scott Waugh wanted the peak to be named for after the name of his predecessor – Sir George Everest. Some geographers argued and expressed reservations, that the local name of the peak should be retained – Chomolungma in Tibetan. But after considerable time and debate, 1865 the mountain was given the official name as Everest and Sir George got immortalized.

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Dronagiri mountain in Himalaya

Dronagiri Update

In our last post on Dronagiri mountain and the mythical wonder herb SanjiviniButi, we had described how Lord Hanuman had ripped out one of the hilltops above the Dronagiri village and carried it away to Lanka so that the Lankan royal physician Susena could himself identify the SanjivinuButi and administer it to the mortally wounded Laxman.

That was about the SanjivaniButi, but the interesting traditions and myths surrounding Dronagiri village do not end there. We had the opportunity to meet one of the inhabitants of Dronagiri village and he was able to enlighten us about the myths and traditions of his village. Here we recount what he told us for the benefit of our readers.

It seems that when Hanuman reached Dronagiri, he sought directions from the local people about the hill-top where the SanjiviniButi could be found, but none of the men-folk were ready to disclose this secret. Hanuman then approached an old woman and recounted the plight of Laxman and Ram to her, again requesting that the hill-top be pointed out to him. The old woman was a kind soul and without saying anything she pointed a finger in the direction of the hill. We all know that thereafter Hanuman lifted the whole hilltop to Lanka when he couldn’t identify the particular herb himself.

Local tradition takes an interesting turn at this point. Since the concerned hilltop happened to be the right shoulder of Dronagiri ParvatDev, the local deity, the residents of Dronagiri no longer worship Lord Hanuman. Also, because ParvatDev was betrayed by a woman, till this day no woman may enter the temple of ParvatDev as per local tradition and they have to perform puja from a distance. The prasad of ParvatDev is also not distributed among the womenfolk of the village.

It is a fact that without exception, all villages in Uttarakhand have their own local deities. Thus it is not without reason that Uttarakhand is also known as Devbhoomi, the Land of Gods. For the most part these local deities are considered to be manifestations or avatars of Goddess Durga, Lord Shiva or Lord Vishnu. But in many places the local deity’s identity is linked to some prominent local natural spectacle or formation. Dronagiri ParvatDev is a great example of one of these.

There are two categories of local deities, there are those who are aloof and can only be worshipped. And then there are the more social ones who actually interact with their devotees through a human intermediary called a paswa. Dronagiri ParvatDev is in the latter category and during certain festivals and times he interacts with his devotee through the paswa. What is most interesting is that the paswa, who otherwise is a healthy able-bodied person, loses the use of his right arm as long as the spirit of ParvatDev is in him. The right arm just goes limp from shoulder downwards and he carries out all his activities such as distribution of Prasad etc with his left arm exclusively. It may be recalled that Lord Hanuman had ripped off a mountaintop from Dronagiri which happened to be the right shoulder of ParvatDev.

The residents of Dronagiri village will return around early May once the snow starts melting. We at Dream Mountain will be organizing a trek to this fascinating village and its surroundings sometime in the latter half of May 2016. Those who are interested in joining us can register their interest with us at Dream Mountain.

Dronagiri mountain trek

Sanjivinibuti of Dronagiri

High altitude trekking in Uttarakhand Himalayas

With the advent of spring, the snow starts melting at higher reaches of mountains in Himalaya. The adventure takes a shift towards high altitude which are above 4000 mtrs. The trek enthusiast start pondering the trek conditions of different trek routs. The few famous trek routs are Kuari pass, Nanda devi sanctuary trek, Gaumukh trek etc.

Kuari pass can be reached by four routes and one of the routes is known as Lord Curzon trek. All the treks are used for the trekking purpose. It is advisable to go in a group with guides and porters as most of the the trek routes have no habitation and any mistake may lead you to problem. The trek normally starts from April months and ends by November every year due to heavy snow fall blocking the route after November. Till April the most common route for Kuari pass is from Auli or Tapovan. The base point is Joshimath for all the trek routes except for the route from Nandaprayag.

Nanda Devi sanctuary trek also opens after the month of April and the base point is Joshimath. From Joshimath, after night halt, trekkers go to Lata village which is around 20 km from Joshimath to start the trek. The perimeter of this sanctuary is about 120 km with an area of 640 sq km. Nanda Devi sanctuary comprises of some of the most outstanding peaks of the Central Himalayas clustered between Gangotri and Milam glaciers. Among all these peaks, Nanda Devi is the most popular with its top shaped like a camel’s hump.

Although, there are many other interesting treks, but the last trek which shall be discussed is Gaumukh – Tapovan – Nandavan trek. This trek route falls in Uttarakashi district, which is also famous for the origin of the sacred river Ganga from Gaumukh. People visit Gaumukh for religious purpose, but many trek this route till Nandanvan for its scenic beauty. The total length of this trek is around 56 km, which can be completed in 5 to 6 days. The trek is surrounded by beautiful peaks like Bhagirathi peaks, Shivling mountain etc.

All the treks mentioned above are few of many treks in Uttarakhand. The journey to these treks will definitely give you immense pleasure and a total different experience of the adventure tourism. 

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Tourism related blogs

Latest tourism related news and articles 

Sanjivanibuti of Dronagiri

Uttarakhand Health Minister recently announced that he had made an appeal for funds to the Union Health Minister to enable the State government to start seriously looking for the mythological SanjivaniButi. We have no idea how seriously Delhi is pondering on this proposal but this is not the first time that attempts have been made to identify this mythological miracle herb.

Those familiar with the Ramayana will recall that during the battle of Lanka, Laxman was mortally wounded by an arrow shot by Ravan's brother Meghnad. The Lankan royal physician Susena advised that the only way to save Laxman was by administering him some lifesaving herbs that were available only in the Himalayas The herb SanjiviniButi was one of them.

     Hanuman was asked to get the herbs but not being a physician himself, he got confused on reaching Dronagiri hill with its profusion of different exotic herbs. So he did exercised the only logical option of carrying away the whole hilltop so that Susena could himself identify the required herbs. Laxman was saved but this story of the life-restoring SanjiviniButi continues to exercise our interest and imagination to this day.

      But coming back to our Health Minister's statement, we need to remember that AcharyaBalkrishna of PatanjaliYogpeeth, Haridwar has already made the claim that SanjiviniButi has been discovered and identified by a Patanjali team which visited Dronagiri village in the Himalayas for that purpose in end 2008. However, the Patanjali team was careful to couch its claims in ambigious language to convey that what the team claims to be the Sanjivinibuti is the nearest that may be interpreted to be the mythological miracle herb. The Uttarakhand government had also sent a team to Dronagiri to search for the elusive miracle and it too came back with ambigious reports.

     The inhabitants of Dronagiri village on the other hand, appear to be immune to all the excitement that is exercising the minds of the rest of the world. For them life goes on as usual in the idyllic village and they are satisfied in the knowledge that the village enjoys the benevolent gaze and protection of DronagiriParvatDev, the local deity. Of course even today they nurse an atavistic grudge against Lord Hanuman for carrying away their hilltop,because unfortunately that particular hilltop snatched away by Hanuman happened to be one of the shoulders of the ParvatDev and for that reason Hanuman is not worshipped by the inhabitants of the village. 

Dronagiri village is indeed blessed by ParvatDev by way of spectacular location and surroundings. The mountainsides above the village are rich in high-altitude herbs and a herbologist's paradise! Locals claim that it is common to see the monal(State bird of Uttarakhand) and the bharal(State animal of Uttarakhand) in the fields surrounding the village. Dronagiri is also on the way to the ChangaBanga peaks.

     At a height of around 12,000 feet, Dronagiri village is totally snowbound during winters and its inhabitants move to their winter villages(in winter, as you would have guessed), and return back to Dronagiri in early May. This year, Dream Mountain is scheduling a trek to Dronagiri area around end May or early June. The trek package will include stay in Dronagiri village, visit to base-camp of ChangaBanga, visit to Nandi Kund, exposure to local dance and culture and an introduction to the local traditional knowledge in exotic himalayan herbs.

     Those interested to join in the trek can check for our detailed programme which will be announced here. (http://www.dreammountain.net/fixed-trekking-departures/)

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Hot water springs in Uttarakhand

Hot water springs are very much in vogue for the tourists in the developed countries. In India, it is still in the underdeveloped stage. There is no systematic tourism in this sector. Uttarakhand has around 62 hot springs out of total 320 in India. The state department is taking step in the direction to develop these geo – thermal hot water into wellness spa. These places could become world class destination for the tourists interested in hot water spring spa. The whole idea is to replicate the already established system at other places. This concept of tourism is especially designed for high end tourists, the niche segment. At initial phase the places which have been selected are as follows:

1                    Gaurikund in Rudraprayag

2                    Madkot in Pithoragarh

3                    Rishikund on the way to Gangotri

4                    Suryakund in Chamoli

    

It is estimated that more than Rs. 400 crore will be spent on each destination and would take at least three years to complete. These places shall have spa complex, yoga / meditation centre, golf course, dance and aerobatics complex and amphitheatre. The implementing agency shall be Uttarakhand Tourism Development Board (UTDB), which shall be assisted by New Zealand Geo Thermal Association,  Geo thermal Institute of University of Aucland and Geological Survey of India (GSI).

The GSI has already conducted the survey of the above destinations in November, 2015 and a competent agency is also set to put the report regarding feasibility, economics and viability of these projects. The report shall cover the exact source of hot spring, analysis of fluid type / geochemical and geological understanding.

The market of hot water spring is very lucrative and is estimated around USD 50 billion and is considered one of the fastest growing tourism segments. The countries dominating this segments are China and Japan with 51% and 43% with Europe.  India hosted the first meeting of the Hot Spring Industry Forum in Delhi in October 2013 which paved the way to the formation of Global Hot Spring Initiative.

More on hot water spring please click.

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Poaching of musk deer

The lawmakers and the wildlife experts fear that the forests of Uttarakhand and Nepal – China border have become hunting ground for musk – bearing stag . Musk is a strong scented secretion glands of male musk deer, normally used for perfume and medicinal use in China and its neighbours. This very thing makes the deer vulnerable to hunters and poachers due to its demand in the international market. The population of the musk deer in Uttarakhand was 274 in 2003 and 279 in 2005. The last census was taken in the year 2008, when the count was 284 as per the official record. There are two musk deer sanctuaries in Uttarakhand – Askot (Pithoragarh district) and Kedarnath (in Chamoli and Rudraprayag district). There are no statistics on the population of the musk deer in these two sanctuaries.

The hunters and poachers of India and Nepal hunt the deer and coordinate closely to make trade on the musk pod. The animal parts are smuggled from this area to other places of commercial interests.   Due to lack of forest staff, the poachers have easily been carrying out this activity. The poachers set forests on fire to disturb the habitats of the deer, and snare those that come out in order to escape the fire. There have been the cases of seizing the musk pods from the poachers. The last musk pod was seized in 2014. Prior to that, in 2012, two musk pods were seized.  The districts – Chamoli, Uttarakashi, Pithoragarh and Bageshwar are vulnerable to this poaching. 

The weight of the musk pod is around 100-250 grams making it is to carry. So, it’s not very difficult to smuggle this item on the borders. The solution to resolve this problem lies by strengthening the information between forest, police, informers etc.  As per the official record, against sanctioned positions of forest guard of 3650, only 2700 have been filled. So, by improving the networking and strengthening the areas where there are vacuums, this menace can be prevented. 

For related article, please click.       

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New evidences of snow leopards in Uttarakhand

The Uttarakhand forest department found evidence of the presence of snow leopards in six valleys during the survey conducted to study the population of the endangered cat in the upper reaches, an official said on Monday (8^th Febraury, 2016). The 15-day survey in June 2015 – the first in the state to map the population of the endangered high – altitude species – was conducted in the hill state and the evidences of its presence were found in six, said Uttarakhand chief wildlife warden.

The snow leopard, a species found at an altitude of 3,000 m, is a Schedule I animal under Wildlife Protection Act of India and is listed as
“endangered” by International Union for Conservation of Nature. Uttakhand is among the five states in the country, including Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, Sikkim, and Arunachal Pradesh where snow leopards have been sighted. Presence of snow leopard has been recorded on the camera traps in Gangotri and Nanda Devi earlier. However, this is the first time that their evidence in 6 valleys out of 16 has been recorded.

Thirty nine pieces of evidence, including dropping and scats were found. The dropping will be sent for DNA analysis. DNA analysis will help subtract duplication and identify the number snow leopards. With all these findings, it is expected that the state will now be covered under the Global Snow Leopard and Ecosystem Protection programme that includes 12 range countries, where the elusive the big cats are found.

Through this project, the forest department shall be able to do better habitat management of the species. In 2013, 12 snow leopard large countries including India, Russia, Afghanistan, China, Kazakhstan, Nepal, Bhutan, Pakistan, Kyrgyzstan, Mongolia, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan signed the ambitious Global Snow Leopard and Ecosystem Protection Programme in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan.

Conservationists say the number of snow leopards have decreased due to the receding snowline and poaching in the hill state. The lack of population map of snow leopards in Uttarakhand had created a hurdle for the state’s inclusion in the project Snow Leopard launched by the Union ministry of environment, forest and climate change in 2009. Under the project, state had to identify the snow leopard habitats and draft management plans. The Centre, under the project, provides funds for the research, including the use of camera traps and satellite collaring to collect more data on the elusive big cat. Snow leopard prefer steep rugged habitat with broken terrains, rocky outcrops. These landscape give the elusive cats a clear view and good cover to hunt the prey.    

Visit www.dreammountain.net for more on Uttarakhand tourism, ecosystem, wildlife etc.

Deoria tal - Chopta - Tungnath - Chandrashila

Deoria tal

One of the exotic and beautiful places in Uttarakhand is the Deoria tal –Chopta – Tungath – Chandrashila circuit. To reach Deoria tal, you have to trek 2.5 km from Sare village which is last road head 220 km from Rishikesh. The trek is steep and very exciting, which shall give you breathtaking scenery of Chandrashila peak. After reaching at the top of the mountain, you sudden explore this lake and the Himalayan range behind it. The famous Chaukhmba peak is the prominent one. The reflection of the Chaukhamba peak can be seen on the surface of the Deoria tal lake.  The moment you reach here and see the aura of this place, you forget your tiring journey and the trek. The fresh air and the lake in the midst of the Himalaya would take you to a totally different world. One can stay overnight here. Dream Mountain provides overnight stay here by the lake side.

Chopta 

 It takes 6 – 7 hours from Rishikesh to reach here at Sare village by motor road (200 km) and 2.5 km trek further (2-3 hours). After staying one night and another day till noon here, one can move further to Chopta which is only 25 km by road from Sare village. The tourists get a totally different view at Chopta which is famous for its big lush green meadows. In Chopta, there are few short treks, which can be enjoyed by going from one meadow to another. One can spend whole day here and crave to stay here for more period. The next day is kept for Tungnath and Chandrashila trek, since the trek starts from Chopta.     

Tunganth - Chandrashila trek

Tungnath-Chandrashila is one of the most sought after treks in Uttarakhand. Visitors from India and abroad can be seen here in these places. Chandrashila summit is the end of this trek. If you are lucky and the weather is clear, the majestic view of Himalayan range will take your breath away. This trek is normally completed in a single day, which is around 10 km. After the completion of the trek at Chopta, one can move further down to Ukhimath which is 30 km from here. This should be done in order to reduce the journey time next day.

Chandrashila summit

The above circuit is very interesting as the people don’t know that these places are so nearby and missing anyone of these places would mean missing one whole tourist destination. There have many instances when people visit Chopta and miss other places or vice-versa. Dream Mountain offers this circuit to enjoy three types of destinations on a single itinerary. You would get a lifetime experience after this journey. 

The travel itinerary is shown below :

Delhi to Rishikesh - 220 km 

Rishikesh to Sare - 200 km

Sare to Chopta - 25 km

Chopta to Ukhimath - 30 km 

Ukhimath to Risshikesh - 190 km

 For a better look at the distances and altitudes please visit : http://www.dreammountain.net/chandrashila-trek/.

To know about other treks please visit : http://www.dreammountain.net/trekking-in-uttarakhand/