In search of the Western Tragopan with Asian Adventures

Meals: Dinner

After you make your way to Chandigarh, we proceed by car 8 hours to the Tirthan Valley, where we stay at the comfortable Sunshine Himalayan Cottage/Stone House.

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner

Full day birding in Goshaini.

Overnight stay at Sunshine Himalayan Cottage/Stone House.

Key Species: Crested Kingfisher, Spotted Forktail, Wallcreeper, White-capped Redstart, Plumbeous water redstart, Little Forktail, Spotted Forktail, White-capped Redstart, Crested Kingfisher, Brown Dipper, Ultramarine Flycatcher, Indian Paradise-Flycatcher, Himalayan Prinia, Dark-sided Flycatcher

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner

After a small drive to Goshaini, we trek into the Great Himalayan National Park (GHNP). We spent the day doing a beautiful and fairly easy birding trek through remote Himalayan villages to our campsite at Rolla, a distance of about 11 km, which should take about 6 hours or so at a birding pace! We will have a packed lunch with hot tea beside the Tirthan River, and dinner with a bonfire at the camp, at an altitude of 2,100 m.

Overnight stay.

Key Species: Wedge-tailed Green-Pigeon, Rufous Sibia, Chestnut-crowned Laughingthrush, Yellow-billed Blue Magpie, Kalij Pheasant, Speckled Wood-Pigeon, Himalayan Woodpecker, Red-billed Blue-Magpie, Chestnut-tailed Minla, Rufous-gorgeted Flycatcher, Pink-browed Rosefinch, Ultramarine Flycatcher, Brownish-flanked Bush Warbler

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner

The trek to our next campsite in a meadow at Shilt is about 6 km, and generally steep as we climb to 3,300 m. We walk through thick oak and conifer forests, full of Himalayan Monals. We have a good chance of seeing Himalayan Tahr and even Himalayan Black Bear. On arrival, we will do our first proper search for Western Tragopan within the Shilt Thatch.

Key Species: Himalayan Monal, Western Tragopan, Cheer Pheasant, Kalij Pheasant, Koklass Pheasant, Hill Partridge, Speckled Wood-Pigeon, Rufous-naped Tit, Gray-crested Tit, Western Crowned Warbler

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner

Shilt is a grassy meadow surrounded by trees and rhododendrons with a beautiful view across the valley towards the snow-covered Himalayan mountains, reaching highs of 4,000 m. This is the prime area for Western Tragopan in India – the least encountered of all the tragopans. It is only in the last few years that any photos of the bird in the wild have been taken. It spends much of its time in inaccessible areas of dwarf bamboo in steep ravines and is far more often heard than seen, particularly at dawn. There is a local legend that ‘Jujurana’, literally ‘king of the birds’, was created by God and all the birds in the universe donated a feather each to give it color and unparalleled beauty.

We have two full days in the Shilt Thatch area dedicated to finding the Tragopan! On the first day, we will take the trail leading up to the peak of Rakhundi as far as the Chordwari Falls. We will return to camp at Shilt in the evening. Even without the tragopan, birding is excellent. We should see many Himalayan Monals, and other birds could include Himalayan and Bearded Vultures, Golden Eagle, Speckled Wood Pigeon, Yellow-billed Blue Magpies, Spotted Nutcrackers, Grey Crested Tits, Western Crowned Warbler, White-throated Tit, Collared and Spot-winged Grosbeaks, Plain Mountain-Finch, Chestnut-eared Bunting, Rusty-flanked treecreeper, Rufous-naped tit, Rufous-breasted accentor, Dark-breasted Rosefinch. Both Spectacled Finch and Orange Bullfinch have been recorded here at this time of year.

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner

After early morning birding at Shilt, our final day involves a long downhill trek of about 16 km (7-8 hours) back to the road at Ropa, and the short drive back to our cottage.

Key Species: Kalij, Alpine accentor, White-collared Blackbird, Himalayan Woodpecker, Scaly-bellied Woodpecker, Yellow-billed Blue-Magpie, Eurasian Nutcracker, Red-billed Chough, Dark-sided Flycatcher, Himalayan Bluetail, Golden Bush-Robin.

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner

Full day of birding in Goshaini. Overnight stay at the Sunshine Himalayan Cottage/Stone House. 

Key Species: Himalayan bluetail, Rufous-bellied niltava, Brown-flanked bush warbler, Rock bunting, Rufous-Gorgeted Flycatcher

Meals: Breakfast

After an early morning breakfast, we drive back to Chandigarh to connect with our onward flights home.