Wednesday, March 4, 2009

Rara National Park Information


Rara National Park General Information Rara National Park in the far north western part of Nepal offers a representative sample of the region's flora and fauna. Sprawled over Mugu and Jumla districts, the heart of the park is the country's biggest lake, Lake Rara, from where the park gets it's name. The lake is as deep as 167m in places and drains into the River Mugu Karnali via Nijar Khola. Vegetation The park is mainly covered by coniferous forest while the area around the lake is dominated by blue pine. Rhododendron, juniper, spruce, oak and cypress are found around 3000m, while at higher altitudes pine, spruce and fir are more common. Mammals The rich vegetation of the park is home to the endangered red panda, musk deer, Himalayan black bear, leopard, jackal, Himalayan tahr, wild yellow-throated martin, wild dog, wild boar, common langur, rhesus maqaque and common otter. Birds During winter the park abounds in 272 species of birds such as coots, great-crested grebe, black-necked grebe, red crested pochard, mallard, common teal, merganser and gulls. Migrant water fowls and gallinaceous birds can be seen during certain seasons. Fish As for water life in the lake three species of snow trout are recorded so far. Best season Feb-April and Oct-Nov Trekking Many fantastic treks can be organised in this area, ranging from 3 days up to 30 days. Trekking here is completely unlike trekking in the more popular areas of Nepal. It is possible to fly into several local airports in the area to reduce trekking time or to use the airports to leave at the end of a longer trek starting from Bardia National Park We are a small family business based at Bardia National Park with many years of experience of organising treks in the remoter areas of Rara, Jumla, Mugu, Dolpo and Khaptad. We are all trained wildlife guides and also qualified trekking guides. We rely on personal recommendations for most of our business. For more information got to: http://bardiahideawaycottage.blogspot.com