Himachal :The Great Himalayan National Park

The entire higher Himalayas is the home of the snow leopard

A VIEW WHILE GOING ACROSS THE TREK TO GHNP

PISTOL BUTT IN TREES : YOU CAN USUALLY

SEE THESE ON TREES ON THE SLOPES

HIPPO POINT: CHECK THE ROCK LOOKS LIKE WHAT


Forests for long have cradled rivers and streams to flow towards the plains and infuse lifeblood to many civilizations. Glacial melt as cold as the word itself rushes through stones through rocks changing directions , varying dimensions sometimes flowing below the ground sometimes over the rocks and yet making the same vibrations in your ears and the nerves and the brain .This sparkingly clear water has been disciplined in its flow and noise for ages. Even our forefathers sat on the same sand at sairopa hearing the same noise and threw a pebble on the water. The pebble richocheyed over the rocks and reached the other side where stands a forest rest house : accomodation for the trekkers to the Great Himalayan National Park. Welcome to the gateway of this park ... welcome to Sai ropa.

Few kilometres uphill along this stream can be motored. At the end you see a market with a traditional look . Shops of Wood , thatched roofs some better constructed but all having the same hospitality. Walk along this stream and you will find the lap of nature . Nature Fotography could be done nowhere else . You see butterflies , flowers and greenery all the way and alongwith it the clear water rushing into the opposite direction bubbling with energy.
Sometimes you see a few shops and stop for tea smoke aor maggi. Sometimes you observe fields of Ganja and other times orchards of apples. you venture into one of these and pluck a green unripe apple. The taste is bitter initially but the feeling is sweet :the feeling of having eaten a himachali apple right from the orchard.

Small rapids cascades are encountered and and then a bridge across the stream. Imagine a stream flowing in a valley with a hanging bridge that connects the two slopes . As you proceed the river goes much below you and you can hardly see the water but the music is still playing in your ears . Hold on and you see an excellent cascade -locally called hippo point : so called because the water falls on a big rock which has the same shape as of a hippo. Another half a kilometre and you have reached the gate of the park. Proceeding further is a challenge as the body is tired but the spirits are still alive.
The major preservation in this park is for the snow leopard , martens , serow etc . HImachal is known for multicolored birds called pheasants.

http://www.greathimalayannationalpark.com for more details