Located
in West Bengal, extreme north western boundary of Darjeeling District, the
Singalila National Park is the high altitude Rhododendron and orchid country
which encompasses the higher reaches of the Himalayas. It has it's own
peculiar natural beauty and rich in flora and fauna. Singalila wildlife
sanctuary is a natural paradise for the endangered red panda, whose
population has dwindled considerably. A project for captive breeding of the
red panda in the Darjeeling zoo is operational for subsequent release of the
stock in their natural habitat.
Location of Singalila National Park :
Rail, road and air routes via New Jalpaiguri, Siliguri and Bagdogra,
connect Darjeeling from Calcutta and Delhi.
Flora at Singalila National Park :
The vegetation of these virgin forests mainly alpine, changes with the
range in altitude. The main tree species found are the Rhododendron,
Magnolia, Oak, Hemlock, Silver Fir, Juniper, Mailing Bamboo, Buk, Kawla,
Bhujpatra etc. Other flora include primulas, aconitums, gentians, arisaemas
and orchids adorning the forest clearings.
Fauna at Singalila Wildlife Sanctuary
:
The park endorse many leopards, serow, pangolin, elephant, chinkara takin,
red panda, barking deer etc. It is an ultimate paradise for birds such as
pigeons, doves, sibia, minivet, magpie, cuckoo, hornbills, Kaleej pheasants
and a large number of migratory birds.
Trekking the Park :
The
park is known for its treks that offers panoramic views of Himalayan peaks
through a mist of pristine forests and mountain flowers. Maneybhanjang (
2134m) at a distance of one and a half hours by road from Darjeeling is the
starting point to one of the popular trekking routes in the eastern
Himalayas, via Tumling (2900m) or Tonglu (3050m) - Gairibans(1900m) -
Sandakphu ( 3636m)(35Km) - Phalut (3605m) - Rimbik (2286m) and back to
Manebhanjyang. The park area is enclosed within this trek route beyond
Tonglu or Tumling. The trekkers have the provision to halt at Meghma/
Tonglu, Gairibans, Sandakphu and Phalut for the nights.
Another exotic trek starts from Maneybhanjyang to Mekhma (2600m)that takes
around 4 hours, then to Tonglu or Tumling and from there to Gairibans
through dense forests and wild flowers. This trek is a natural habitat for
wild flower lovers particularly in March-April when rhododentrons bloom in
white, scarlet, pink and yellow and large white and pink flowers of the
magnolias, orchids along with beautiful birds adorn the way.
Best seasons :
The best seasons to visit the place is during March to June & September
to November, when the temperature of the region is pleasurable.
