GREAT HIMALAYAN NATIONAL PARK: A Trekker’s Paradise

Located in the state of Himachal Pradesh, the Great Himalayan National Park has been described as undoubtedly the most pristine mountain landscape and perhaps the planet. From the Andes to Nepal and Tibet, to the mountains of Eastern Europe and Western China – the pressures of a growing human population have left the landscape – even so-called “national parks’ – overgrazed, denuded of timber, devoid of wildlife and covered with signs of animals and their shepherds. Ironically, here in India, home to over a billion people, it is still possible to find vast virgin forests and endless fields of wildflowers and ranges of unnamed, unclimbed summits.

Born at the turn of the millennium, The Great Himalayan National Park (GHNP) is one of India’s newest national parks, situated in a remote corner of the Kullu District of Himachal Pradesh. Amongst many valleys that Kullu has, the GHNP consists of the pristine parts of the Tirthan, Sainj, Jiwanal and Parvati valleys named on the four rivers that originate in the park.

Spread in an area of over 754 square kilometers, the GHNP is next to the Pin Valley National Park, Rupi-Bhaba Wildlife Sanctuary and the Tirthan and Sainj Wildlife Sanctuaries making it one of the biggest areas for wildlife conservation in the whole Himalayan range. This jewel in the crown of the Himalayas consists of luxuriant oak forests, flaming rhododendron trees, crystal clear sparkling rivers, jagged virgin peaks and some of the rarest of animals, birds & medicinal herbs found nowhere else in the whole world.

Its home to about 215 species of birds with pheasants like the Western Tragopan, Cheer, Monal, Koklash and Kaleej along with other birds like the white throated tit & the Lammergeyer. GHNP is home to the elusive snow leopard along with having other mammals like the Himalayan Brown & black bears, Common Leopard, blue sheep, musk and barking Deer, Ghoral , Serow & the omnipresent Redfox. It’s also a repository of rare medicinal herb like Jatamansi, Kadoo, Patish and the recently found Nag Chatri along with & hundreds more which continue to be the main source of income for local population. However conscious efforts are being made both by the park authorities to minimize human impact and provide alternative income generation methods to locals such as ecotourism.

In June 2014, the Great Himalayan National Park was added to the UNESCO list of World Heritage Sites.The Unesco World Heritage Site Committee granted the status to the park under the criteria of “outstanding significance for biodiversity conservation.

There are several treks conducted around here. Here are some of the lesser known treks in the Sainj valley area. All the treks as follows start from Shanghar. 

ABOUT SHANGHAR:

It is a remote & exotic Himalayan hamlet at an altitude of around 2050 mts (6700 feet) ASL situated in Sainj valley surrounded by GHNP and is home to beautiful golf ground like natural meadow which said to be belonging to local devta (god) hidden from onslaught of regular party tourists. Shanghar is basically 55 kms while coming from Mandi (Chandigarh side) and 45 kms while coming from Kullu (Manali side).