Trekking in the Himalayan forest

I and nine of my friends planned to trek in the Neora Valley National Park from Lava. The trek was really special to us. It was supposed to be special because of the terrain - high altitude grassland it was. Of course there were pine forests covering the mountain like green patches too. A number of animals like Red Panda, Tiger, Goral, Himalayan Black Bear, Wild Boar, Wild Dog and Clouded Leopard and birds like Redstart, Whistling Thrush, Golden Headed Black Finch, Niltava, Yuhina are found in this National Park. Due to wide range of altitude variation, the climate condition of the national park varies from tropical to temperate or even Sub-alpine in Rachilla Danda area.

Our 4-day trek started from Lava through the richly forested hills and valleys to reach the 3152 Meters high, Rachela Pass at the India-Bhutan border. The return trek was through the farmlands and villages of Rishi River Valley with its ethnic hamlets, cardamom plantations, cascading streams and waterfalls.

It was in the end of May 2006 that we all reached Lava guest house driving from Siliguri. It was a superb view of dense forest on one side and an old monastery on the other side from the guest house. We left the guest house the next day by 6:00 AM and started towards the Neora Valley National park. It was an hour’s drive from the guest house to the zero point, from where the trek started. The Northern boundary of this National Park is contiguous with the forest of Sikkim and Bhutan and harbors of endemic species of flora and fauna. Ten of us in a group started to trek with couple of forest guards. My friend Nitish, started to explain us about various kinds of flora and fauna present in the region and it was quite an experience for me.

After trekking about couple of kilometers, we came to a halt where we spotted Jungle Wagtail. It had perched on the muddy tracks and was enjoying its morning feed. Jungle wagtails are birds that are not easily seen everywhere and it was a rare experience for me too. Walking through this narrow muddy road was a superb experience in itself. Forest on either side, morning warm sunlight kissing the forest floor like beams of divine rays is a different feels altogether. Since these are rain forests, most of the sunlight is absorbed by the canopy leaving the forest floor cool, moist and dark. Most fascinating aspect of these forests is that, there are still quite a lot of undiscovered species of flora and fauna. High altitude Himalayan forest is one of the Earth`s most spectacular natural wonders and may be one of the oldest living ecosystem on Earth. While walking through muddy road sides, in the afternoon, all of a sudden, heavy shower started. We were all drenched from top to bottom, water even found the way to our boots and bags etc, we went straight through bumpy roads without stopping. Finally we reached under a spreading tree, in the hilly terrains, whose trunk was like a cave. The surroundings became dark and the non stop sounds of rain were enough for provoking our hunger for thrill, excitement and adventure. After reaching the forest bungalow, we took our bath and got fresh, had our dinner and then sat around to discuss the whole day experience. We were dog tired and went to bed.

When we woke up, it was a sunny morning. After taking our breakfast we started to walk. Delight itself, however, is a weak term to express the feelings of a naturalist who, for the first time, has been wandering by himself in a Himalayan forest. Among the multitude of striking objects, the general luxuriance of the flora and fauna bears away the victory. The elegance of the grasses, the novelty of the parasitical plants, the beauty of the flowers, the glossy green of the foliage, all tend to this end. A most paradoxical mixture of sound and silence pervades the shady parts of the wood. The noise from the insects is so loud, that it may be heard even in a vessel anchored several hundred yards from the shore; yet within the recesses of the forest a universal silence appears to reign. We walked in the thick forest enjoying every minute of thrill and discovering virgin natural forests, dense bamboo groves, colourful canopy of rhododendron trees, lush green valley, meandering rivers and streams with snow-capped mountains in the backdrop. A large network of streams and torrents spread across the forest sustaining a large variety of luxuriant vegetation, mammals, birds and reptiles mesmerized us.

After walking about for several hours, we stopped for some time in a beautiful landing-place in the forest and had some dry food. When we reached Rechila Top, we were spellbound with a magnificent view of the Kangchendzonga Range and the valley of Bhutan on the other side. During the course of our trek we also enjoyed the pleasure of camping at the riverside among large rocks near the Rishi River in Alubari. Our Neora Valley trek was a bird watching tour, leisure tour, adventure tour and a wilderness tour all packed into one. It is undoubtedly a dream trek for all nature lovers.