yet again ... getting lost ... then enjoying self-discovery ...

Traffic jam in Tirthan valley Published in Deccan Herald's Spectrum here . The unedited version placed below.  Thanks are due to the team at Deccan Herald and Himalayan Ecotourism .  Image Credit: Himalayan Ecotourism Gushaini, in the lower Tirthan valley of Kullu district ( Himachal Pradesh ), is synonymous with the Great Himalayan National Park ( GHNP ). Till a few years ago broadly two categories of people used to visit the valley. Those seeking the peaks and valleys of GHNP – be it for treks, wildlife sightings, silences or else - and the anglers lured by trout in the Tirthan river! Their numbers were low; read manageable. Today, their numbers have been overtaken by the quintessential tourist. Those who come – with friends or family - looking for a good time, away from where s/he stays. These include people coming for weekends and those who add Gushaini to other destinations nearby or not so nearby. This summer I visited Gushaini after a gap of fe...

Title: The Great Himalayan National Park - The Struggle to Save the Western Himalayas Authors: Sanjeeva Pandey and Anthony J Gaston Publisher: Niyogi Books Year of Publication: 2019 ISBN: 978-93-86906-71-7 Number of pages: 364 Number of sections: 15 Price: 1,500/- A new book on the Great Himalayan National Park offers compelling insights into the quest to save the region Thanks are due to the team at First Post . Roughly 15 years ago, during a workshop organized for reviewing conservation projects, after an engaging speech, the presenter (a forest department officer) was asked “ This all is great, but what of the National Park and the project after you? What do you tell the people in the villages? ”. “ I tell them not to trust the Forest Department ” was the response. The capturing presentation and striking response were my first introduction to Great Himalayan National Park (GHNP) and Sanjeeva Pandey. Two treks in GHNP in recent years, have left m...

Treks in GHNP are to be undertaken to be believed. Absence of roads (and even khachhars) makes it, well uncommon. Sheer Himalayas, if one has to be succinct. This list has been put in place over 2 trips and a lot of fun. Image Credit: Nirlep Dhutwalia Alpine Chough Ashy Drongo Ashy-throated Warbler Bar-tailed Treecreeper Bearded Vulture Black Bulbul Black-chinned Babbler Black-lored Tit Blue Whistling Thrush Booted Eagle Brown Dipper Chestnut Thrush Chestnut-crowned Laughingthrush Chestnut-eared Bunting Citrine Wagtail Coal Tit Common Hoopoe Common Kestrel Common Myna Common Pigeon Crested Kingfisher Previous Pieces Sanctuary Asia Deccan Herald Dark-sided Flycatcher Fulvous-breasted Woodpecker Grandala Great Barbet Great Cormorant Great Tit Green Bee-eater Green-backed Tit Grey Bushchat Grey Treepie Grey Wagtail Grey-backed Shrike Grey-headed Canary Flycatcher Grey-hooded W...

This post carries a piece published in Deccan Herald on 6 th  June, 2017 - In the lap of nature, high on the mountains.  Thanks are due to Sanju (and colleagues) for being with us throughout and the fun we had. Himalayan Ecotourism, Stephan Marchal and Sanjeeva Pandey helped with planning. Arpan forms the other half of the ‘we’ here. All images in this post including that on the Deccan Herald website are taking during the trek by Nirlep Dhutwalia. A warm thank you for sharing your experiences then and images later. The article on Deccan Herald here . Unedited text placed below. With the bus engine roaring our second trip, within 12 months, to trek in the Great Himalayan National Park ( GHNP ), had just begun. People fall in love with other people - we had trekked up and down its mountains to fall in love with GHNP . I sat besides the large window, staring out into the roads which looked unreal – quiet, empty and lights falling on them - as 9 th June met th...

This post shares a piece which appears in Sanctuary Asia – October 2015 issue - Mountain Musings.  We stands for Arpan and I. The trek - like most that is good in life -happened by chance and we have since been on a trek in GHNP again! Thanks and more thanks are due to Sanju (and colleagues) for being together along the treks and bearing our eccentricities, Stephan and team at Himalayan Ecotourism for enabling the trek and Sanjeeva Pandey for GHNP as it is and more. One after another, six Himalayan Vultures came into view as we sat in the large balcony of a small hotel adjacent to the river. They kept close to the hill side, appearing exceptionally stunning against the blue sky. The vultures did not perch even once in the half an hour that we spent watching them, more than once adjusting our own positions to their movements. I felt as if I could lie on my back and watch them soar for all eternity. They seemed to share that sense of freedom; a longing for great expanse...