6 Wildlife Sanctuaries to Explore in Uttarakhand

This sanctuary has been set up primarily with the object of conserving the musk deer (Moschus leucogaster) and its habitat. Intensive efforts have been initiated to conserve this rare species. Other mammals found in this sanctuary include the Bengal tiger, Indian leopard, Himalayan jungle cat, civet, barking deer, serow, goral and Himalayan brown bear. Many species of high altitude birds are also found in this sanctuary.

Binsar Wildlife Sanctuary is perched on top of the Jhandi Dhar hills in the Himalayas. From a place called Zero Point in Binsar one can see the Himalayan peaks like Kedarnath Peak, Shivling, Trisul, and Nanda Devi. Binsar was established in 1988 for the conservation and protection of the shrinking broad leaf oak forests of the Central Himalayan region, and it has over 200 bird species.

Pt. Govind Ballabh Pant High Altitude Zoo is a high altitude zoo situated in Nainital, Uttarakhand. Established in 1984 and opened to the public in 1995, it is situated on the Sher Ka Danda hill at a height of 2,100 meters (6,900 ft) above sea-level and is spread over 4.6 hectares (11 acres). It is the only High Altitude Zoo in north India, besides those in Darjeeling and Sikkim. Over the years it has become a popular tourist attraction.

Gangotri National Park is a national park in Uttarkashi District of Uttarakhand in India, Its habitat consists of coniferous forests, alpine meadows and glaciers. he park harbors Western Himalayan subalpine conifer forests at lower elevations and Western Himalayan alpine shrub and meadows at higher elevations. Vegetation consist of chirpine deodar, fir, spruce, oak and rhododendrons.

Jim Corbett National Park is the oldest national park in India and was established in 1936 as Hailey National Park to protect the endangered Bengal tiger. It is located in Nainital district and Pauri Garhwal district of Uttarakhand and was named after Jim Corbett, a well known hunter and naturalist. The park was the first to come under the Project Tiger initiative.

Rajaji National Park is an Indian national park and tiger reserve that encompasses the Shivaliks, near the foothills of the Himalayas. The park is spread over 820 km2. and three districts of Uttarakhand: Haridwar, Dehradun and Pauri Garhwal. In 1983, three wildlife sanctuaries in the area namely, Chilla, Motichur and Rajaji sanctuaries were merged into one. The Ganga and Song rivers flow through the park.