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SANCTUARY SPOTLIGHT

Neora Valley National Park

Established in 1986, the park boasts a rich bio-diversity and is home to the red panda, the clouded leopard and the musk deer. There are orchids, rhododendron, bamboo, oak, ferns and sal to be discovered in what is some of the last remaining virgin wilderness of the country. With Bhutan and western Sikkim to its east, the forests here consist of tropical, sub-tropical, sub-temperate and temperate vegetation. You enter the park from the small village of Lava (7016ft) or from Samsing (3000ft). Permission to enter must be obtained from authorities at these two villages.

Area: 88sq.km in the Darjeeling district.

Best time to visit: March to June, September to November

Mammals: Clouded leopard, red panda, musk deer, five species of civet, black bear, sloth bear, wild boar, leopard, goral, serow, barking deer, sambar, Himalayan flying squirrel and thar.

Birds: Bearded vulture, Himalayan griffon, red legged falcon, pigeons, doves, great pied hornbill, whistling thrush and other migratory birds.

Reptiles: King cobra, common cobra, krait, green pit viper, blind snake and lizards.

How to get there:

Road: Regular buses run from Siliguri to Kalimpong (32km from Lava) or to Chalsa

Rail: Darjeeling (30km)

Air: Bagdogra (100km)

Where to stay:

At the forest bungalows at Lava (32 km from Kalimpong) and at Samsing (18km from Chalsa). Tents are also available at the Suntale Khola forest resort, from where you can trek to Neora valley.

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