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Our a/c Toyota Qualis jeeps are powered by 2600
cc engines and time-tested in the Spiti terrain taking you to on
one of the highest motorable road in the world visiting age old
monasteries and some fascinating scenarios to reach the Kullu valley
dwarfed by huge deodar forests and the snow-crowned rocky peaks
of the Parvati and Barabhangal ranges. The valley is a home to friendly,
devout and hard-working hill people, and to Tibetan refugees and
nomadic shepherd.
Detailed
Tour Program
Day - 01 - Arrival New Delhi -
Escorted to Hotel for rest. O/n Hotel Delhi Day - 04 - Narkanda-Sarahan - Morning
birding on the trail to Hatu peak. Drive to Sarahan (1920 m /
5 hr.) a village surrounded by apple orchards and dominated by
Srikhand Mahadev Peak (5155 m) and is famous for Bhimakali Temple
and a pheasant breeding centre. Rest of the day birding around
the pheasant breeding center. One can expect White-throated fantail,
Grey-headed canary, yellow-billed blue magpie, Common rosefinch,
Crested bunting, Lammergeier, Common kestrel, Changeable hawak-eagle,
Common tailorbird etc. Overnight in Hotel Srikhand.
Day - 05 - Sarahan - Sangla - Morning drive to Sangla (2900 m / 6 hr.) through the breathtaking gorges of the Greater Himalayas. Evening bird walk at Sangla. One can expect Brown dipper, Common Raven, European goldfinch, Fire-fronted serin, Lesser cuckoo, Booted eagle, Dark sided flycatcher, Western crowned warbler, Tree pipit etc. Overnight in tents. Day - 05 - 06 - Sangla - Local birding drive leisurely to Chitkul (2 hr.) stopping for birding en route . Chitkul is the last inhabited village surrounded by green fields and high mountain peaks. For birders the special ones are Red-headed bullfinch, White-winged grosbeak, Gold crest, pink-browed rosefinch, Slaty blue flycatcher, White-tailed rubythroat, Rufous vented & Rufous napped tit, Spot winged tit, White cheeked nuthatch, Blue-capped redstart, Brambling etc. The quaint little houses, temples, gompas and the people of Baspa valley conjure up a perfect image of Shangri-La. Return to Sangla in the evening. Overnight in tents. Day - 07 - Sangla - Nako - Drive to Nako via Khab (one of the most pretty drives in this region - from the confluence of Sutlej and Spiti rivers the road ascends into steep & winding drive with sparse vegetation and one can enjoy the view of snow clad Reo Purgill Peak). Stop at various places to look for birds. Near Nako, one can see Chukar, Pied wheatear, Golden eagle, Mountain chiffchaff, Golden oriole, Black redstart, Blue rock thrush, Hill pigeon, White-capped water redstart etc. Overnight in hotel / tents. Day - 08 - Nako - Pin Valley National Park - (breakfast, lunch, dinner)This drive is via Tabo. We will make a brief stop here to see this 1000 year old monastery. We will also make stops on the way for birding. Overnight in tents. Day
- 09 - Pin Valley National Park - We will explore surrounding
areas for birding. Look for Himalayan snowcock, Tibetan snowfinch,
Eurasian eagle owl, Common swift, Long-tailed shrike, red-billed
& yellow-billed choughs, tickell's leaf warbler, Horned
lark, Citrine and White wagtail etc. Overnight in tents.
Day - 10 - Pin Valley National Park-Pang Mo - Drive in the morning via Kaza, Kibber and Kye monastery. We will camp in the scenic meadows of Pang Mo. At Kaza, we will have rooms for wash and shower for and hour or two. At the camp site one can look for Hume's short-toed lark, plain mountain finch, rock bunting, black redstart etc. One can expect to see Blue sheep, Pika, Red fox etc. Overnight in tents. Day - 11 - Pang Mo-Chattru - Drive in the morning to Chattru stopping to look for birds at Losar & Kunzum Pass. After crossing the pass we will enter Lahul. We will look for birds in the meadows of Lahul and Chattru. Today we may see the Great rosefinch, Snow pigeon, Green sandpiper, Red-billed & yellow-billed choughs, Himalayan griffon etc. Overnight in tents. Day
- 12 - Chattru - Manali - Kullu - Goshaini - Drive
in the morning from Chattru stopping to look for birds at
Rohtang Pass. One can look for Monal, Khalij, Rosy pipit.
This area remains less explored so we may have some special
birds here. After crossing the pass we will head towards Goshaini
via Manali. Overnight at Raju’s Lodge.
Day - 13 - Birding Trek begins - Goshaini 1540 m - Rolla, 2040 m - 15 Km - In the morning we start out on a nice birding trek along Tirthan . Birds to be Spotted : Ultramarine Flycatchers, Pink-browed Rosefinches, several laughing-thrushes, warblers, Bush warblers etc. Asian Barred Owlet and Big flocks of Slaty-headed Parakeets, Brown Dippers, Plumbous Redstarts and White-capped Water-redstarts are in plenty. The trail has a gradual gradient all the way through coniferous and broad-leafed forests taking about 5-6 hrs to reach our destination at Rolla. Day - 14 Rolla, 2040 m - Shilt, 2900 m - 04 Kms - Today we commence on a short but very steep trek to reach Shilt, through coniferous and broad leafed forests with occasional meadows. This dense jungle is home to the Monal flying beautifully out of the trees. Birds to watch out for at Shilt include Lammergeiers, Golden Eagles and Himalayan Griffons.Shilt is a grassy meadow surrounded by trees and rhododendron with a beautiful view across the valley towards the snow covered mountains reaching highs of 4000 meters . Evening wander around Shilt to look for pheasants including the Western Tragopan. This elusive species prefers to rest in an inaccessible spot in thick dwarf bamboo in steep ravines. One also goes along a ridge through bamboo and forests . Birds to watch for include Monals, Collared and Spot-winged Grosbeaks, Plain Mountain-finches, Red-Eared Buntings and several rosefinches. Day - 15 - Shilt to Kharongcha - Today we decend downwards to Kharongcha the starting point of the corezone of the Great Himalayan National Park . Birds to watch for are Koklas pheasants , Bar-tailed Treecreeper . Himalayan Woodpecker, Long-tailed Minivet, White-Cheeked Nuthatch. O/n Camp at Kharongcha. Day - 16 - Kharogcha- Gushaini - Today we get back on the same path to the road head at Gushaini. Birds to watch include various species of Laughingthrushes like the Variegated Laughing-Thrushes and Kalij Pheasants. Today is a small trek and the rest of the day can be spent at leisure at Raju’s Lodge. Day - 17 - Morning - Depature to Delhi by Flight Afternoon Free. Evening flight back back home. Number
of Persons : Minimum 6, Maximum 12
Cost per person : US$1500 (includes all ground fees). Additional, separate charge: US$200: Kullu-Delhi transportation Trek Rating : Easy. Trekkers should be in good physical shape, able to hike at altitude (up to 3,400). Some days will require 6+ hours on trails hiking to reach destination. There will also be rest days where trekkers can either rest or do shorter day hikes. The
price for the package includes:
- Domestic Flight Ticket to and from Kullu-Delhi. - All accommodation in the above mentioned properties. - All trek logistic support: porters, cooks, personal porter (to carry client’s main clothing and gear pack of each trekker). - All meals during trek/tour. - All ground transport in deluxe a/c Qualis Jeeps. - A fluent English-speaking guide who will be with you from Day 01 to Day 15. - All entrance fees to monuments in Delhi, all Great Himalayan National Park Admission Fees and Park Video & Camera Fees. - A list of required and suggested gear needed by trekkers will be provided to participants. The above rates do not include:
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