Great Himalayan National Park—Western Tragopan and other highlights

Itinerary

Day 1: Arrive in Chandigarh

After you make your way to Chandigarh, we proceed by car 7 hours to the Tirthan Valley, where we stay at the comfortable Sunshine Himalayan Cottage/Stone House.

Day 2: Sai Ropa to Goshaini to Rolla, Great Himalayan National Park

After a small drive to Goshaini we trek into the Great Himalayan National Park (GHNP). We spend the day doing a beautiful and fairly easy birding trek through remote Himalayan villages to our campsite at Rolla, a distance of about 11 km, which should take about 6-7 hours at a fairly slow birding pace! The hillside scrub lower down, and the forest higher up, will have plenty of birds, including Himalayan Black Bulbul, Chestnut-crowned and Striated Laughingthrushes, Ultramarine Flycatcher, and Pink-browed Rosefinch.

We will have a packed lunch with hot tea beside the Tirthan River, watching the antics of Plumbeous and White-capped Redstarts, and Brown Dippers, which should be feeding young at this time. Our team will set up tents on arrival, and we will end the day with dinner and a bonfire at the camp, at an altitude of 2,100 m.

Day 3: Rolla to Shilt Meadow

The trek to our next campsite in a meadow at Shilt is a short distance of about 6 km, but generally steep as we climb to 3,300 m. We walk through thick oak and conifer forests, full of Himalayan Monals. There will be several short stops to watch birds, and catch our breath—a reasonable level of fitness is required as this is a consistently steep climb. We have a good chance of seeing Himalayan Tahr, and even Himalayan Black Bear. The forest opens up as we approach Shilt, leading to wonderful views of the surrounding mountain peaks.

On arrival at Shilt, we will take a couple of hours rest, before our first proper search for Western Tragopan within the Shilt Thatch. At dusk, we may catch the remarkable roding display flight of a Eurasian Woodcock, whilst later in the night we hope to see Red Giant Flying Squirrels flying across from tree to tree.

Days 4 – 5: Shilt Thatch

Shilt is a grassy meadow surrounded by trees and rhododendron with a beautiful view across the valley towards the snow-covered Himalayan mountains, reaching highs of 4,000 m. This is the prime area for Western Tragopan in India – the least encountered of all the tragopans. It is only in the last few years that any photos of the bird in the wild have been taken. It spends much of its time in inaccessible areas of dwarf bamboo in steep ravines, and is far more often heard than seen, particularly at dawn. There is a local legend that ‘Jujurana’, literally ‘king of the birds’, was created by God and all the birds in the universe donated a feather each to give it colour and unparalleled beauty.

We have two full days in the Shilt Thatch area dedicated to finding the Tragopan! On the first day we will take the trail leading up to the peak of Rakhundi (3,600 m), at least as far as the Chordwari Falls. At this time of year we should hear Tragopans calling in the early morning, but seeing them is a different matter. We will need the help of our excellent local guides for a chance of locating them on the ground, foraging in the leaf litter—they can actually distinguish the sound of Himalayan Monal, Koklass Pheasant, and Western Tragopan!

Even without the tragopan, birding is excellent. We should see many Himalayan Monals, and other birds could include Koklass and Kalij Pheasants, Himalayan and Bearded Vultures, Golden Eagle, Speckled Wood Pigeon, Yellow-billed Blue Magpie, Spotted Nutcracker, Himalayan Woodpecker, Bar-tailed Treecreeper, White-cheeked Nuthatch, Grey Crested Tit, White-throated Tit, Western Crowned Warbler, Variegated Laughingthrush, Collared and Spot-winged Grosbeaks, Plain Mountain-Finch, Chestnut-eared Bunting, and several species of rosefinches. Both Spectacled Finch and Orange Bullfinch have been recorded here at this time of year and would be a bonus to make the trip! Amongst mammals, we are likely to come across Himalayan Goral, and maybe Bharal (Blue Sheep), and will probably see signs of Himalayan Black Bears—such as dug areas, and left fur—but would be lucky to see one.

Day 6: Shilt to Rolla to Ropa Roadhead

After early morning birding at Shilt, our final day involves a downhill trek of about 11 km (6-7 hours) back to the road at Ropa, and 30 minutes drive back to our cottage.

Day 7: Goshaini to Kullu, and on to Delhi

After an early morning breakfast, we drive back to Chandigarh to connect with our onward flights home.

Note re 24 April departure

Our 24 April departure will spend just one full day at Shilt and not two, i.e. just two nights camping there and not three. Instead we will include one extra night (day 2) at Sunshine Himalayan Cottage, and a full day’s birding in the Tirthan Valley from there, concentrating on a wide variety of species at this lower altitude.

Checklist

This checklist is the most accurate and useful checklist available for this area! Read more about our eBird-driven checklists.