National parks in Nepal
1.Royal Chitwan National Park (932 sq. kms)
Just a 5 hour drive from Kathmandu or a 4 hour drive from Pokhara or a 20 minutes flight from Kathmandu, Royal Chitwan National Park is proud to be called Asia?s best managed park and is home to over 50 species of mammals, 55 species of amphibians and reptiles and 525 species of birds. Wildlife that thrive here include; the great one-horned Asian Rhinoceros, Gaur, wild Bison, sloth Bear, four different species of Deer, the Rhesus Monkey and the black-faced Langur, the spotted Leopard, Royal Bengal Tiger, the fish-eating Gharial, the flesh-eating marsh Crocodile and the Gangetic Dolphin among many others. The birdlife too is very rich and varied and a delight for Ornithologists. A number of jungle lodges & camps operate inside and on the periphery of the park. They offer activities such as; elephant back safaris through the jungle in search of wildlife, nature walks, jungle drives to spot animals, canoe rides to see crocodiles & water-birds, tribal village visits etc; In the evenings, slide shows on Nepalese flora & fauna and Tharu tribal folk dances are also held.
HOW TO REACH THERE
Just a 5 hour drive from Kathmandu or a 4 hour drive from Pokhara or a 20 minutes flight drive from Kathmandu .The park is accessible by car or bus on the Kathmandu-Mugling-Narayanghat Highway and or through Mahendra Rajmarg Highway from Hetauda. It is about 6 hour's drive from Kathmandu to Narayanghat. Local buses are available to Tadi Bazar which is about an hour drive form Narayanghat. A 6 km walk or bullockcart ride brings the visitors to Sauraha, the park entrance. Also air services from Kathmandu to Meghauli for US$82 each way and Bharatpur US$65 each way are available. Local buses are available form Narayanghat to Park HQ. Kasara.
2.Langtang National Park
Situated in the Central Himalaya, Langtang National Park is the nearest park to Kathmandu. The area extends from 32 km north of Kathmandu to the Nepal-China (Tibet) border. Langtang was designated as the first Himalayan National Park in 1970-71, and was gazetted in March 1976. While the main reason for the park is to preserve the natural environment, an equally important goal is to allow local people to follow traditional land use practices that are compatible with resource protection. From mid-October to mid-December and from mid-February until mid-April the weather is usually clear but cold at higher elevations. From mid-April to mid-June, it is warm but often cloudy with thunder showers, spring flowers are at their best. Summer monsoon lasts until the beginning of October. During the winter months daytime temperatures are low and snow may occur even at low levels.
Situated in the Central Himalaya, Langtang National Park is the nearest park to Kathmandu. The area extends from 32 km north of Kathmandu to the Nepal-China (Tibet) border. Langtang was designated as the first Himalayan National Park in 1970-71, and was gazetted in March 1976. While the main reason for the park is to preserve the natural environment, an equally important goal is to allow local people to follow traditional land use practices that are compatible with resource protection. From mid-October to mid-December and from mid-February until mid-April the weather is usually clear but cold at higher elevations. From mid-April to mid-June, it is warm but often cloudy with thunder showers, spring flowers are at their best. Summer monsoon lasts until the beginning of October. During the winter months daytime temperatures are low and snow may occur even at low levels.
HOW TO REACH THERE
Public bus or taxi reach Dhunche (Park H.Q.) via Trisuli Bazaar from Kathmandu (approx. 7-8 hrs. ) A seasonal road reaches Syabrubensi.
Alternative routes from Kathmandu are public bus to Sundarijal or Melamchighat . From either point, trek through Helambu to Gosainkunda via Laurebina pass or cross Ganja La pass (5106m) to reach Langtang Valley.
Sagarmatha National Park covers an area of 1148 square kilometers in the Khumbu region of Nepal. The Park includes the highest peak in the world. Mt. Sagarmatha (Everest 8848 m.) and several other well known peaks such as Lhotse, Cho Oyu, Pumori, Ama Dablam, Thamerku, Kwangde, Kangtaiga and Gyachyung Kang.
As Mt. Sagarmatha and the surrounding area is of major significance not only to Nepal but to the rest of the world, its status as a national park since 1976 is intended to safeguard its unique cultural, physical and scientific values through positive management based on sound conservation principles
The summer climate is cool and wet and winter is cold and dry. Almost all of the annual precipitation, averaging less than 1000 mm, falls during the summer monsoon, from end of May to September. Climatically, the best time to visit the park is between October and May, except for December to February when, daytime temperatures often drop below 0 C and there is heavy snowfall.
HOW TO REACH THERE
Fly in and out of Lukla, followed by 15 days walk.
Bus to Jiri and trek for 21 days, flying back to Kathmandu from Lukla.
Fly in and out of Phaplu and trek for 16 days.
Fly in to Tumlingtar from Kathmandu and a 10 day walk to the par
5.Bardia National Park (968 sq. kms)
Royal Bardia National Park situated in western Terai of Nepal is one of largest undisturbed parks in the region. The park is the home of many endangered animals, reptiles and birds – including the elusive Royal Bengal Tiger. A few years ago, under a successful wildlife project several young one-horned rhinos where translocated here from Royal Chitwan National Park. Over the years, Bardia has also been a good place for tiger viewing – a rare event anywhere. Recently sightings of a group of wild elephants have further enhanced the wildlife experience possible in this beautiful and unspoiled sanctuary. A stay in this park is recommended with the combination of a short raft trip down the Karnali and Bheri rivers or with a trek to Dolpo and the Rara lake area in far western Nepal.
HOW TO GET THERE:
The park can only be entered by road. There are regular flights from Kathmandu to Nepalgunj. Nepalgunj, from where public buses serve the far Western Terai. To reach the park headquarters at Thakurdwara, it is necessary to alight at Motipur and walk 8 km north of Lihalpur on the Nepalgunj-Surkhet road and drive west along the fair weather road inside the park to reach Thakurdwara. This usually takes 3-4 hrs. by 4 WD vehicle. The Mahendra Rajmarg is the main highway which crosses the park. 6.Shey Phoksundo National Park
Shey Phoksundo National Park is situated in the mountain region of Western Nepal, covering parts of Dolpa and Mugu Districts. Gazetted in 1984, it is the largest national park in the country with an area of 3555 sq. km. The main objectives of the park are to preserve the unique trans-Himalayan ecosystem with its typical Tibetan type of flora and fauna and to protect endangered species such as the snow leopard and musk deer.
Much of the park lies north of the Great Himalayan Range. Kanjiroba Himal lies at the southern edge of the trans-Himalayan region of the Tibetan plateau. The high Dolpa plateau in the northeast of the park is drained by the Langu (Namlang) River. The southern catchment of the park is drained by the Jugdula and Suligad Rivers, which flow south and drain into the Bheri River. Nepal's second largest lake, Phoksundo, lies at 3660 m in the upper reaches of Suligad.
HOW TO GET THERE
The easiest and shortest route to reach the park is to fly to Juphal airstrip in Dolpa from Nepalgunj or Pokhara. From there, it is an easy one day walk to reach the park guardpost at Suligad and three days walk to reach park HQ. at Sumduwa. - Alternate routes are to fly to Jumla and trek about 10 days to the Phoksundo and Shey areas.. An adventurous route begins in Dhorpatan crossing several high passes before reaching Dunai, the District HQ. of Dolpa.
7.Rara National Park
Rara National Park is located in northwest Nepal about 371 km air distance from Kathmandu. The park headquarters is about 32 km north to Jumla. Most of the park including Lake Rara lies in Mugu District, with a small area in Jumla District of Karnali Zone. This is the smallest park in Nepal (106 sq. km) with the country's biggest lake (10.8 sq. km) at an elevation of 2990 m. The lake is oval shaped with an eastwest axis and has a maximum length of 5 km and a width of 3 km. The maximum depth of the lake is 167 m. The park was gazetted in 1967 to conserve the unique beauty of Lake Rara and to protect a representative sample of flora and fauna of the Humla-Jumla region.The elevation of the park ranges from 1800 m to 4048 m, Chuchemara Lekh is the highest point. The lake is in a deep basin, the northern and eastern rims which form part of the park boundary. The lake drains to Mugu Karnali River via Nija Khola. The lakeside pasture in the south gives way to the steep slopes of Gurchi Lekh, its crest culminating at Chuchemara in a horse-shoe shaped opening to the south drained by the Jiun River. On the west, river valleys cut through a ridge which form the natural boundary to the park.
HOW TO GET THERE
Rara National Park can be visited either from Jumla (2.5 days trek) or from Surkhet (10 days trek).
The park covers a unique ecosystem of the mid-mountain region of Western Nepal and is situated at around 3000 m elevation. The upland is a rolling plateau with grasslands intermixed with oak and coniferous forests.
The summer is cool and wet, whereas, the winter is cold and dry. The monsoon begins in June and ends in September with rainfall averaging less than 1000 mm. Occasional snowfall in winter with chilling wind is another characteristic.
HOW TO GET THERE
Plane flight to Bajhang (Chainpur) from either Kathmandu, Nepalgunj, or Dhangadhi followed by a two-day walk. Plane flight to Doti (Dipaya) from places mentioned above, and a three-day walk.
Plane flight to Bajura (Kolti) from above mentioned places and a four-day walk.
Plane flight to Accham (Sanphebagar) from above places and a two-day walk.
There is a fair weather motorable road from Dhangadhi to Dipayal via Bhasu Lekh. From Dipayal is a three-day walk to reach the park HQ. at Khaptad.
