Sloth Bear Foundation - To protect and preserve the endangered sloth bears and their habitats from destruction

National Parks and Sancturies

BIRDING TRAILS OF NORTH INDIA

The Sloth Bear Foundation is a non-profit, self-reliant and independent organization registered as a trust. Participation in tours and expeditions contributes the needed money to fund the SBF conservation and rehabilitation projects.

Visit Corbett National Park, Nainital & Sat Tal, National Chambal Sanctuary, Agra, Bharatpur, Ranthambhor National Park, Sultanpur Lake and the wetlands of Delhi 16 nights & 17 days Best Time to Visit: October - April (c) D.K.Bhaskar
ITINERARY :
Day 01 Arrive New Delhi	Meals: on own Arrive Delhi International airport. You will be met and transferred to the hotel.
Day 02 Delhi-Corbett National Park	Meals: breakfast & dinner Morning birding at Okhla barrage for white-tailed stonechat, rosy pipit, waterfowl etc. Drive to Corbett National Park (6 hours) after lunch. Overnight stay in cottages at Tiger Camp.
Day 03 Dhikala Forest Lodge (Corbett National Park)	Meals: breakfast, lunch & dinner Drive early morning to Dhikala tourism zone, birding en route. Arrive at the main tourist complex, Dhikala - check in. Afternoon visit to the grasslands for birding. Overnight stay at Dhikala Forest Lodge. Birding in the lower jungle track along the Ramganga river is very rewarding for water birds such as river lapwings, waders, mergansers and other waterfowl. While relaxing at the lodge or visiting the grasslands one can see large-tailed nightjar, jungle owlet, spot-bellied owl, common stonechat, black francolin, purple and crimson sunbird, golden-fronted leafbird, black-shouldered kite, hen harrier, changeable hawk-eagle etc.
Day 04 Corbett National Park	Meals: breakfast & dinner Morning elephant safari through the grasslands and dense forests. This is the best mode of transport for wildlife viewing. Return at 0900 hours for breakfast and then spend time till lunch on a watchtower overlooking a water hole. Drive to Tiger Camp. Arrive Tiger Camp for dinner & overnight stay. Some of the best birding areas of Dhikala are Sambhar Road and Khinanauli. One can expect to see great slaty woodpecker, great hornbill, puff-throated babbler, white-rumped shama, Pallas's fish eagle etc.
Day 05 Corbett National Park	Meals: breakfast, lunch & dinner Morning walk at Kumeria. Return for lunch. Afternoon drive towards Jhirna for forest birding. Overnight stay in Tiger Camp. One can look for black bulbul, brown-eared bulbul, brown fish owl, little & spotted forktail, yellow-bellied and white-browed fantail, crested laughing thrush, black-winged cuckoo shrike, little heron, wallcreeper, red-breasted parakeet, short-billed and long-tailed minivet, brown dipper, ashy-crowned sparrow lark etc.
Day 06 Corbett National Park-Pangot	Meals: breakfast, lunch & dinner Drive early morning to Corbett Falls stopping en route at Dabka causeway to look for ashy crowned sparrow lark. After birding at Corbett Falls continue to Pangot. Arrive for lunch. Overnight stay in a cottage at Jungle Lore Birding Lodge. Afternoon leisurely birding in and around the lodge. One can see crested woodpeckers such as greater yellownape, scaly-breasted, speckled piculet etc. Large flocks of slaty-headed parakeets, numerous spotted and oriental turtle doves, grey bushchat, russet sparrow. Cuckoo: indian, oriental, large-hawk and eurasian. Large-billed crow, grey treepie, black-headed jay, maroon oriole, large cuckoo shrike, tits such as rufous-naped, black-throated & yellow-browed and smaller numbers of black-lored and green-backed. White-tailed nuthatches, chestnut bellied nuthatches and bar-tailed treecreeper.
Day 07 Pangot	Meals: breakfast, lunch & dinner Full day birding at Cheena Peak, Kilbury & Timla Pani. Overnight at Jungle Lore Birding Lodge.
Day 08 Pangot	Meals: breakfast, lunch & dinner Another day of birding at Pangot village, Baggar and Gughu Khan. These walks can be very rewarding. Overnight stay at the lodge. One can see crested serpent-eagle, mountain hawk-eagle, Woodpeckers such as brown-fronted, stripe-breasted, rufous-bellied etc. Thrushes such as dark-throated, mistle etc. Striated prinia can be see in the terraced fields. Warblers such as tickell's leaf-warbler, greenish, golden-spectacled, grey-hooded. Flycatchers such as asian brown, rusty-tailed, ultramarine, verditer, tickell's blue, rufous-bellied Niltava etc., orange-flanked bush robin, blue-capped redstart. Laughingthrushes such as white-throated, striated & streaked, chestnut-crowned etc. Look for accentor, upland pipit, blue-winged minla, whiskered yuhina etc.
Day 09 Pangot-Sat Tal	Meals: breakfast, lunch & dinner Drive to Sat Tal (2 hours) in the morning. Birding along the way. Birding around Sat Tal. Overnight stay at Green Glen Lodge. The entire drive is through the forested area of Cheena Peak Range via Snow View Point and Kilbury. One can see a variety of Himalayan species along the way such as lammergeier, Himalayan griffon, blue-winged minla, spotted & slaty-backed forktail, rufous-bellied woodpecker, rufous-bellied niltava, khalij pheasant, variety of thrushes etc. More than 200 species have been recorded at Pangot and surrounding areas. The numerous perennial & seasonal creeks are home to an amazing variety of flora and fauna including the Leopard, yellow-throated Himalayan martin, Himalayan Palm Civet, ghoral, barking deer, sambhar, Red Fox etc.
Day 10 Sat Tal-Lal Kuan	Meals: breakfast Full day birding with a guide. One can see a variety of Himalayan species such as red-breasted accentor, chestnut-headed tesia, greater & lesser yellow-naped woodpecker, blue-throated barbet, rufous-chinned laughing thrush, black bulbul, dark-throated thrush etc. Transfer to Lal Kuan at 1600 hours. Connect overnight train to Mathura at 1850 hours. Overnight in air-conditioned sleeper class train.
Day 11 Mathura-National Chambal Sanctuary	Meals: Rooms Only Arrive Mathura at 0430 hours. Transfer to Chambal early in the morning (3-hour drive). Morning boat cruise with a guide to see Indian skimmer, black-bellied tern, large flocks of migratory waterfowl, cranes such as common, demoiselle and sarus; fish-eating crocodile and marsh mugger; Gangetic dolphin; turtles etc. Afternoon birding on the banks of the river. Overnight stay at Chambal Safari Lodge or return to Agra in the evening.
Day 12 National Chambal Sanctuary-Agra-Bharatpur	Meals: Rooms Only Morning visit to the Taj Mahal. Transfer from Agra to Bharatpur (1½ hours), arriving Bharatpur by noon. Afternoon birding in the wetlands of Bharatpur. Overnight in the hotel.
Day 13 & 14 Bharatpur	Meals: Rooms Only One full day of birding in Keoladeo Ghana National Park on foot and cycle rickshaws with a birding guide.
Day 15 Bharatpur-Ranthambhor National Park	Meals: dinner Drive to Ranthambhor National Park (5 hours) in the morning stopping en route at Bund Baretha for birding. Afternoon birding outside Ranthambhor National Park. Overnight in the resort. The birds that one can expect around the resort are grey francolin, sirkeer malkoha, painted sandgrouse, Indian courser, yellow-wattled lapwing, southern grey shrike, Isabelline wheatear, desert wheatear, variable wheatear, ashy-crowned sparrow lark, greater short-toed lark, blue rock thrush, common buzzard etc.
Day 16 Ranthambhor National Park	Meals: breakfast & lunch Morning & afternoon tiger-tracking in Ranthambhor National Park in open trucks and jeeps (if available). You can have the option of going to the park for tiger-tracking or visiting the 1000-year old fort. Connect train from Sawai Madhopur (railhead for Ranthambhor National Park) at 2100 hours to New Delhi.
Day 17 Delhi-onward journey	Meals: On Own Day 17 Delhi-onward journey

Bird sightings depend greatly on season, timing, and patience.

Sightings mentioned in the itinerary are only a guide and cannot be guaranteed.

Extension available to Shaheen Bagh

Services and accommodation can be provided in Delhi as well.

We can customise this tour.

Extensions to Harike, Gujarat and Rajasthan can be added to this tour.

Tour Cost (on per person basis)
Valid till September 2006

Paying persons UK (£) UK (£) US ($) US ($)

Category A B A B

2 to 3 persons 1540 2563 1337 2228

4 to 8 persons 1337 2228 1150 1920

Single room supplement 286 480 220 369

Above cost includes only :

Accomodation on twin sharing basis

1 night in Delhi for A Hotel Park Royal or similar

for B Hotel Sunstar or similar

4 nights in Corbett for A 3 nights in a deluxe cottage at Tiger Camp and a night in Dhikala Forest Lodge in a standard room

for B 3 nights in a standard cottage at Tiger Camp and a night in Dhikala Forest Lodge in a standard room

3 nights in Pangot for A & B Jungle Lore Birding Lodge

1 night in Sat Tal for A & B Hotel Green Glen Lodge

1 night in National Chambal Sanctuary for A & B Chambal Safari Lodge

3 nights in Bharatpur for A Bharatpur Forest Lodge or Laxmi Vilas Palace

1 night in Ranthambhor for A Tiger Den or Tiger Moon Resort

for B Hammir Wildlife Resort or similar

2 nights in overnight train for A & B Chambal Safari Lodge

Meals as per the itinerary

Birding with local guides at all places

Jungle visits as per the itinerary

Park entrance fees in Corbett National Park, Bharatpur, Ranthambhor and National Chambal Sanctuary

All surface transfers

Above cost does not include :

Optional tours/excursions

Personal & incidental expenses

Tips, laundry, phone calls, bottled water, alcohol, camera fee etc.

Meals unless specified and meals in transit

Monument entrance fee

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