Showing posts with label Jim Corbett National Park. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Jim Corbett National Park. Show all posts

Thursday, December 11, 2008

Reaching Jim Corbett National Park

Jim Corbett Park MapThe best visiting season of the Jim Corbett Natiional Park is from November 15 to June 15. The Corbett Park remains closed between June 16 and November 14, when the monsoons flood the river beds and cut the fragile road links.

To Get there there are three main means:
By Air : Phoolbagh, Pantnagar at a distance of 50-kms is the nearest airport. Delhi at a distance of 300-kms is the nearest international airport.

By Rail : Ramnagar is on the broad gauge track from where the road transport options have to be availed to reach the park. For faster trains and connections to other parts change the train at Moradabad.

Jim Corbett ParkBy Road : Dhikala is 300-kms from Delhi, 145-kms from Lucknow and 51-kms from Ramnagar. The route from Delhi covers Hapur-Murababad-Ramnagar. The turn off is some 7-kms beyond Muradabad to the left, marked by a small board. The route from Lucknow covers Bareilly–Kichha–Rudrapur–Doraha–Kashipur. Ramnagar is connected by frequent buses to and from Nainital and Ranikhet, 112-kms north. Buses arrive every half hour or so after the eight hour trip from Delhi. Delhi Transport corporation run a semi deluxe service, and most of the alternatives are pretty basic.

Other Attractions In and around Jim Corbett National Park are:
Ramnagar : Ramnagar is situated in the rich farm belt of Terai, on the southeastern fringes of the great forests. The busy market town of Ramnagar is the main administrative centre for Corbett National Park and Project Tiger. Ramnagar makes a fishing base camp. At Lohachaur, 15-kms north along the River Kosi, good anglers are in with a chance of landing the legendary Mahseer, a redoubtable battling River Carp. Permits to have a go must be sought from the Project Tiger office in Ramnagar. Most of the resorts also arrange all inclusive fishing trips.

Jim Corbett ParkWildlife Viewing : Chital, Sambar, and various other Deer species find refuge in the Savannah grasslands known as the Maidan, behind the campsite to the south, and Tigers are occasionally drawn in looking for prey. Two hour elephant rides, explore this sea of grass, rarely penetrating far into the deep jungles beyond; try to convince your Mahout or Elephant driver to venture in, as they can be quite magical. Come at dusk or dawn and not in the heat of the day as you probably won’t come across much more than deer among the tall grass that time. Tiger-sightings are few and far between, but you may be rewarded with fresh pug marks.

Jeep Safari in Corbett : Jeeps Safari, is the most convenient way to travel within Corbett national park, and can be rented for the park trips from Ramnagar, from the KMVN Tourist Lodge and other travel agencies . One bus each day goes to Dikhala from Ramnagar, stopping at the Forest Rest houses en route. Banking and other important tourist facilities are available at Ramnagar and Lucknow.
Note : Bring binoculars, remain quiet, and don’t wear bright colours or strong perfumes.

Sir Jim Corbett StatueEntry Inside The Corbett National Park : Visitors are advised to reach the gate half an hour in advance to complete the formalities for entry into the park.

Tourist Information Centres : All visitors to Corbett National Park have to obtain permits from the park administration centre at Ramnagar. The closest of the various gates into the Corbett national park, 1-m from central Ramnagar, is on the road to Bijrani camp, 11-km away, a base for day trips. Dhangarhi Gate, 18-kms along the highway north to Ranikhet, provides access to the northern and north western portion of the Jim Corbett Park along the Ramnagar River valley, and to the main camp of Dhikala.

For staying at the Jim Corbett National Park there are many resorts in and around the place. So if you want an adventurous holiday go ahead, search for some good booking site and book now.

History of Jim Corbett National Park

Jim Corbett ParkHistory of Jim Corbett National Park tells us that some areas of the park were formerly part of the princely state of Tehri Garhwal. The forests were cleared to make the area less accessible to Rohilla invaders. The Raja of Tehri formally ceded a part of his princely state to the East India Company in return for their assistance in ousting the Gurkhas from his domain. The Boksas, a tribe from the Terai, settled on the land and began growing crops, but in the early 1860s they were evicted with the advent of British rule. The British forest department established control over the land and prohibited cultivation and the operation of cattle stations.

Ghariyal at Jim Corbett ParkThe British administration considered the possibility of creating a game reserve there in 1907 and established a reserve area known as Hailey National Park covering 323.75 km2 (125.00 sq mi) in 1936 . The preserve was renamed in 1954–55 as Ramganga National Park and was again renamed in 1955–56 as Jim Corbett National Park. The new name honors the well known author and wildlife conservationist Jim Corbett, who played a key role in creating the reserve by using his influence to persuade the provincial government to establish it.

The reserve does not allow hunting, but does permit timber cutting for domestic purposes. Soon after the establishment of the reserve, killing and capturing of mammals, reptiles and birds within its boundaries was prohibited. The park fared well during the 1930s under an elected Jim Corbett Parkadministration.

But during the Second World War, it suffered from excessive poaching and timber cutting. Over time the area in the reserve was increased—797.72 km2 (308.00 sq mi) were added in 1991 as a buffer for the Corbett Tiger Reserve. The 1991 additions included the entire Kalagarh forest division, assimilating the 301.18 km2 (116.29 sq mi) area of Sonanadi Wildlife Sanctuary as a part of the Kalagarh division. It was chosen in 1974 as the location for launching Project Tiger, an ambitious and well known wildlife conservation project. The reserve is administered from its headquarters in the district of Nainital.

Jim Corbett ParkJim Corbett National Park is one of the thirteen protected areas covered by World Wildlife Fund under their Terai Arc Landscape Programme. The programme aims to protect three of the five terrestrial flagship species, the tiger, the Asian elephant and the Great One-horned Rhinoceros, by restoring corridors of forest to link 13 protected areas of Nepal and India to enable wildlife migration.

Jim Corbett National Park

Jim Corbett National ParkJim Corbett National Park is the oldest park of India, being the first one to be established. Jim Corbett National Park was named after the famous hunter Jim Corbett who played the most important role in its development in 1936. It was initially established as Hailey National Park. Situated in Nainital district of Uttarakhand, the park acts as a protected area for the critically endangered Bengal tiger of India, the secure survival of which is the main objective of Project Tiger, an Indian wildlife protection initiative.

Some important points about Jim Corbett National Park's Geography:
  • The Longitudinal and Latitudinal Coordinates of the of Jim Corbett National Park are 29°32′00″N 78°56′7″E / 29.533333, 78.93528
  • Time zone is IST (UTC+5:30)
  • Area of the Jim Corbett National Park is 521 km² (201 sq mi)with an Elevation of 1,210 m Corbett River(3,970 ft)
  • Precipitation of 2,800 mm (110.2 in)
  • Temperature in Summer 32.5 °C (91 °F) and in Winter 14.5 °C (58 °F)
  • Nearest city is Ramnagar
  • District(s) is Nainital
  • Visitation in 1999 was 50,000 which is expected to be 70,000 expected in 2010
  • Governing body is Project Tiger, Government of Uttarakhand, Wildlife Warden, Jim Corbett National Park
A total of 488 different species of plants have been recorded to be in the park. Tree density inside the reserve is higher in the areas of Sal forests and lowest in the Anogeissus-Acacia catechu forests. Total tree basal cover is greater in Sal dominated areas of woody vegetation. Healthy regeneration in sapling and seedling layers is occurring in the Mallotus philippensis, Jamun and Diospyros tomentosa communities, but in the Sal forests the regeneration of sapling and seedling is poor.

Camp Fork Tail CreekJim Corbett National Park is a heaven for Tigers as well as its prey, which include four kinds of Deer, Wild Boar and some lesser-known animals. Leopards are mostly found in the hilly areas of the park. Some nocturnal cats found here are the Leopard Cat, Jungle Cat and Fishing Cat. Sloth Bear is found in the lower regions of the park while the Himalayan Black Bear is seen in the higher hills only. The Dole or Wild Dog, though they can be seen in the southern areas of the park along with the Jackal.

Some of the smaller animals residing in the Jim Corbett National Park are Himalayan Palm Civet, Indian Gray Mongoose, Common Otter, Blacknaped Hare and Porcupine. Elephants are one of the main attractions of Jim Corbett National Park. Along the Ramganga River shores, one can even spot the long-snouted, fish-eating Gharial Crocodile and the ‘Mugger’ Crocodile. Also seen on the rocky hillsides is the Ghoral or Goat Antelopes. The Langur and Rhesus Monkeys are well distributed through out the park and warning the whole Jungle with alarm calls when they see either a Tiger or Leopard from tree-tops.
Bengal Tiger in Corbett National Park
To know about the history of Jim Corbett National Park Click Here!
For Information about reaching Jim Corbett National Park and sight seeing around it Click Here!