Adventures in Northeastern India

Arrive in Delhi. We shall receive you just outside the international airport and shall transfer you to your hotel. Please note we have not planned any activities on this day as we are currently not sure on the arrival time of you flight. Nevertheless, after a long journey the day can be spent at leisure to
unwind and prepare for your exciting adventure in eastern India. Overnight will be at Delhi.

This morning you will make your way to West Bengal and begin your adventures in North-Eastern India. You being by flying to Kolkata. Overnight at a hotel near Kolkata airport.

Our next destination is Sundarbans Tiger Reserve. The journey toSundarbans is completed in two parts:

Part 1: Drive from Kolkata airport to Gothkhali Jetty, a drive of 3hrs.

Part 2: At the jetty you take a boat journey of 2hrs to get to Sundarbans Tiger Camp. You should arrive at the camp in time for a late lunch.This afternoon we can explore the area in and around the lodge for lessercats and birding.

Sundarbans National Park is the largest estuarine mangrove forest in theworld. The forest is located on the delta formed by the convergence of themighty Ganges and Brahmaputra rivers and covers a total area of 9630 sq.kms. The terrain comprises mainly of mangrove swamps and estuaries.derives its name from the mangrove tree “Sundari” (Heritiera fomes) thatprovides valuable fuel to the inhabitants of the area. The park wasdesignated as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1985 due to its richbiodiversity and for being home to the largest Tiger reserves in the world.

Due to the geographical constraints of the landscape, it is only possible to travel into the interiors of the forests via boats and ferries throughbackwaters, hopping from one island to another. In fact, experiencing nature and wildlife though boat rides is unique to this National Park and its main attraction.

Overnight will be at Sundarban Tiger Camp

Accessing the farthest points is not possible if you focus on short safaris, thus we have planned two full day private safaris. The picturesque landscape and the variety of birds that inhabit Sundarbans National Park are the ideal settings for photographers to capture the raw, natural beauty of the park.

It is advisable to carry a beanbag or some form of stabilizer as the boats move due to the tidal change. Twice a day the whole forest sinks due to diurnal tide. Low tide and high tide determine what time one can venture to certain parts of the park. Spend the two days exploring these unique mangrove forests of the largest River Delta in the world. Returning to the camp in the evening. Overnight will be at Sundarban Tiger Camp.

This morning you make your way back to Kolkata in the similar way that you arrived here in the Sundarbans – first half of the journey by boat and the remainder by road. Rest of the day is at leisure. Overnight will be at Hotel near Kolkata airport

Early this morning you shall fly to Jorhat. Close to Jorhat is a small but beautiful wildlife sanctuary called the Hoollongapar Gibbon Sanctuary. This sanctuary is home to 7 species of primates including the Hoolock Gibbon – the only ape found in India. It is an isolated protected area of evergreen forest. After having lunch and settling-in you will take a short visit to the park. The park is to be explore on foot. Overnight will be at the Thengal Manor.

Early this morning we go in to explore the Gibbon Sanctuary. Morning is a better time to explore. Please note you will often find these primates in high canopies and might have to go off the path to get a better look. In doing so we need to be aware that these evergreen forests are also home to leeches. These are much smaller than the ones that you find in evergreen forests of Borneo, but after you visit a thorough check is advisable. You shall return to the Manor for a late breakfast, following which you will check-out and make your way to Kaziranga National Park. The journey to Kaziranga will take you about 2.5hrs by road. Your home at Kaziranga will be Diphlu River Lodge, located at the edge of a river creek that divided the buffer from the core area of the park. Diphlu is perhaps the best lodge in the park’s vicinity. In April 2016, Diphlu River Lodge was honoured to have had the opportunity to host the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, HRH Prince William, and Catherine Middleton, on their state visit to India. This afternoon take your first jeep safari into Kaziranga National Park. Overnight will be at Diphlu River Lodge

We have planned two safaris for each of these days in different zone for you to explore the park in its entirety.

Kaziranga National Park situated in Assam is a UNESCO world heritage site recognized as the single largest undisturbed and representative area in the Brahmaputra Valley floodplain. The fluctuations of the Brahmaputra River result in spectacular examples of riverine and fluvial processes in this vast area of wet alluvial tall grassland interspersed with numerous broad shallow pools fringed with reeds and patches of deciduous to semi-evergreen woodlands. Kaziranga is regarded as one of the finest wildlife refuges in the world. The park’s contribution in saving the Indian one-horned rhinoceros from the brink of extinction at the turn of the 20th century to harbouring the single largest population of this species is a spectacular conservation achievement.

It was inscribed for being the world’s major stronghold of the Indian one horned rhino, having the single largest population of this species, currently estimated at over 2,000 animals. Along with the one-horned rhinoceros it is also home to other globally threatened species such as the Bengal tiger, Asiatic elephant, wild water buffalo, eastern swamp deer, hog deer, capped langur, hoolock gibbon and the sloth bear. Along with the mammalian species the park is also home to numerous avian species and the count of the same will be close to 300 species.

This morning after breakfast we drive to Guwahati airport. It is a drive of about 4-4.5hrs. We will have a quick lunch in one of the hotels in and around Guwahati and catch our flight to Bagdogra.

Overnight will be at Sinclair’s

Our start this morning is early to make our way to Singalila National Park. The drive to Singalila takes place in two parts: Siliguri to Manebhanjan (entry point to the park – about 3.5hr drive time) – this will be done in an air- conditioned Toyota Innova.

The drive to Manebhanjan is a nice scenic drive as we climb into the lower eastern Himalayas. There is some birding to be done as we drive up, but we can not make too many stops as we need to get to the park entry in time. Entry into the park is allowed only till 1400 after which entry is restricted. At Manebhanjan we switch over to the epic heritage SUVs – the Land Rover. Our exciting adventure begins here, we now enter what is lovingly known as the Land of Land Rovers. Only these vehicles can be taken into the park so there is no choice about the vehicle to use to go inside.

Most who visit this park are trekkers who climb to its highest point –Sandakphu peak. There is one road which runs through this park on whichwe will climb to about 9000ft (quite close to Sandakphu) to reach our homein the park – Habre’s Nest. This road is also the India – Nepal border, so while climbing up everything on the left of the road lies in Nepal and everything on the right of the road is India. While climbing you go through beautiful, forested stretches of Bamboo, Rhododendron with many Magnolia trees as well, these forests open into open stretches which offer stunning views of the Kanchenjunga and its surrounding peaks.

The next few days our explorations will be close to Habre’s Nest where our trackers are going to focus on finding the Red Pandas. The general flow of the day though flexible is largely as follows:

At dawn, the trackers would leave to search for the red pandas. While at the lodge – we the guests arise to a stunning sunrise on most days. We can then take a short hike or spend some time at the bird hide or simply enjoy a hot cup of coffee and an early breakfast. A cup of coffee is always worthwhile as it does get quite cold. You can expect the lowest temperature (even in March) to drop below zero. It’s not always that cold but one does look forward to soaking in some sun The trackers return to the lodge by 0730 or 0800. Depending on the news of the sighting we then hike to the location where they were spotted by the trackers. In case there was no sighting we still take a hike through this lovely forest in search of wildlife and birds. Some interesting species to seek out are Red Panda, Yellow-throated Marten, different types of sunbirds (some favourites are Fire-tailed Sunbird, Mrs. Gould’s Sunbird and Green-tailed Sunbird), Satyr Tragopan, Eurasian Nutcracker, Hill Partridge, Fire-tailed Myzornis, Red-headed Bullfinch and different species of Yuhinas and Tit.

This exploration in the morning is for a couple of hours. Please note we can spend limited time observing the red panda in order to avoid disturbing them. The team at Habre’s Nest is very strict about the same and if you do not follow protocol and cause disturbance, they will not let you stay for more than just 5-10 minutes. If we conduct ourselves responsibly then we can enjoy the sighting a little longer.

Overnight will be at Habre’s Nest.

Much of this day is spent returning back home. You can choose to wake up early and take in the views of the Himalayas and take a short hike for birding.

After breakfast (usually at around 0830) we check out and make our way to Manebhanjan.

Quick tip: Views of the Kanchenjunga from Tonglu village enroute is spectacular and deserves a quick stop to photograph. Once at Manebhanjan we transfer into Toyota Innova and head to Bagdogra airport to catch our flight back home. It is most likely that today we will need to do a packed picnic style lunch while on the move to Bagdogra, alternately we can grab a bite at the airport.

We connect onto our flights.