Eastern Himalaya: Red Panda Tea… (trip)
Eastern Himalaya: Red Panda Tea and Elephant Trail
- New Jalpaiguri rail station, West Bengal
- Culture & Nature
| from £931* per person | 22 Days | Year-round |
| Comfort accommodations | Exertion level: 3 | |
| Operator: Social Tours | 12 people max | |
The rich biodiversity and cultural diversity of East Himalaya has further reaching effects and extends the region in a compact zone from Bay of Bengal to the snow capped ranges of Mt.Kanchenjunga and Mt.Everest.
The topography varies from the estuarine landscape, passing through low foothills reaching upto the highest mountains of the world, the Mt. Everest and the Mt. Kanchenjunga. A massive area is covered with snow glaciers feeding a large network of rivers, the major ones being the Brahmaputra, Ganga, Lohit, Dehing, Jiabhareli, Koshi, Rydak, Torsha and Teesta. The areas below the snow are mainly used for forestry, agriculture, grassland habitations and infrastructure such as dams, reservoirs and roads. The forest cover is about 140,000 sq. kms even after losing about two third of the forest in the last few decades. The East Himalaya is the home of more than a hundred indigenous communities, with unique cultures & origin.
The biodiversity explored till date provides mind boggling figures, about 8000 species of angiosperms of which 3200 are endemic, 800 species of birds, 150 species of reptiles, 80 species of amphibians, 200 species of fishes and the list continues.
More than 80 wild relatives of crops belonging to cereals, millet, pulses, oil yielding plants, spices and fruits have been recorded here in scientific studies.
Keeping in view whatever little that has been described, the ecological importance of the region is beyond question. The ethnic diversity is so vast that more than 50% of the population and their cultures are still waiting to be explored.
Mt.Kanchenjunga, towering at 28,156 feet, the third highest mountain in the world is considered as the Guardian Deity of the region and dominates the landscape of the whole area including Darjeeling Hills, Dooars-the foothill forests, Sikkim state and the Kingdom of Bhutan.
Your experience in this tour includes unique opportunities to visit the picturesque and remote Himalayan villages, Tea Plantations, and some of the outstanding ecological sites, and interact with the local community. Enjoy a taste of their lifestyle and be a part of it while staying with them, experience local crafts, cuisine and even be entertained in their local cultural tradition. The people of villages are your hosts. They have proudly retained most of their cultural tradition and self-sustaining lifestyle.
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Locations visited/nearby
India, Asia
Special information
- This is a custom departure, meaning this trip is offered on dates that you arrange privately with the provider. Additionally, you need to form your own private group for this trip. The itinerary and price here is just a sample. Contact the provider for detailed pricing, minimum group size, and scheduling information. For most providers, the larger the group you are traveling with, the lower the per-person cost will be.
Itinerary
Day 1:Arrive at Badogra airport/New Jalpaiguri rail station/Kakarvitta border. Proceed to Darjeeling tea garden. Overnight at Darjeeling heritage tea bungalow (Dinner).Day 2 & 3: Volunteering with our local conservation team and villagers in Salamandar study and monitoring activities. Tea garden treks, cultural and community experience will also be a part of the project.Overnight at Darjeeling heritage tea bungalow (Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner).
Day 4: Proceed to Darjeeling heritage town by heritage toy train.Visit Himalayan Mountaineering Institute, Everest Museum, Himalayan Zoo, Tibetan Refugees' Self-help Centre. Overnight at The Swiss Hotel which is almost 90 yeard old with heritage architecture, excellent location and good facilities. This is a part of our Darjeeling Heritage conservation initiative (Breakfast, Lunch,Dinner).
Day 5:Morning visit to Tiger hill ridge and after breakfast transfer to Hee-Bermiok(located adjacent to Barshey Rhodendron Sanctuary in West Sikkim, one of the key- natural habitats of endangered Red Pandas, birds, butterflies, Rhododendrons and Magnolias. Excellent view of Mount Kanchenjunga range is a bonus. You will be able to have Limboo heritage and cultural experience as well).Overnight at Hee Tourist Lodge or in Home stays (Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner).
Day 6, 7, 8: Soft trek with overnight camping through the dense forests to understand the conservation challenge and key- habitat preservation for Red Pandas and reach Barshey top. Overnight at trekking hut or in tents(Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner).
Day 9: Free day.Overnight at Barshey top(Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner).
Day 10: Morning trek down to Hilley where the 4 x 4 jeep will take you to Kalimpong for a lunch break and short visit to the heritage sites. Proceed to Kolakham village( a tiny village adjacent to the pristine Neora Valley National Park at the tri-junction of Sikkim, West Bengal and Bhutan - another key-habitat of the Red Pandas).Overnight at Neora Valley Jungle Camp - one of the recent initiatives of Help Tourism to support the village community in sourcing alternative livelihood through Ecotourism and reduce dependence on forests(Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner).
Day 11, 12, 13:Habitat survey and monitoring with our local volunteers, treks, cultural and community visits. Overnight at Neora Valley Jungle Camp (Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner).
Day 14: Proceed to Central Dooars - the most important and disturbed migration corridor of Elephants from Bhutan, Assam, Meghalaya and Arunachal Pradesh.Overnight at Chilapata Jungle Camp - adjacent to Chilapata Wildlife Sanctuary that lies in between Jaldapara WLS,Buxa Tiger Reserve and Assam Dooars. The Jungle Camp has been set up to create opportunities for nature-based tourism activities and also employment opportunity for locals (Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner).
Day 15 & 16: Monitoring and study of elephant corridors, migration pattern and conflict level. Cultural and community visits will be a part of the trip since the area is dominated by many tribal people such as the Mech,Rava, Bagania and Coach.Stay at Chilapata Jungle Camp(Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner).
Day 17:Proceed to Ultapani in Central Manas where the highlight of the trip would be to work with our local team on Golden Langur and elephant conservation. Overnight in Guest House or in tent(Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner).
Day 18: At Ultapani (Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner).
Day 19: Proceed to Kokilabari where Help Tourism, Local Bodo conservation organization and forest department have jointly initiated the first Community & conservation-based tourism model of Northeast India to protect and preserve Manas that had witnessed large-scale devastation during the political unrest. The project is dedicated to revive Manas and set it free from the Danger list of World Heritage Sites, UNESCO.Overnight at Manas Maozigendri Jungle Camp (Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner).
Day 20 -21:Patrolling, monitoring the elephants, Rhino, Bengal Floricans. Stay at Manas Maozigendri Jungle Camp (Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner).
Day 22 : Return to Guwahati and take a flight back to Calcutta/Delhi(Breakfast)
More information from Social Tours:
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