Travel style · Kashmir
Wildlife and birds in Kashmir
Snow leopards, red pandas and black-necked cranes
Winter snow leopard trips in Ladakh and Spiti, red pandas in Singalila, cranes in Bhutan's Phobjikha and Arunachal, hornbills in Namdapha and the birding ridges of Kumaon. Timed to the season, with trackers who live there.
Photo: KennyOMG · CC BY-SA 4.0 · CommonsMountain wildlife is shy and seasonal. Snow leopards come down to lower valleys in February and March, cranes arrive in Phobjikha around late October, and the Kumaon forests are loudest with birds in spring.
Kashmir is a 135 km long valley at about 1,600 m, ringed by the Pir Panjal and the Great Himalaya. Come April to June for tulips and meadows, September to November for chinar and saffron, January to March for snow in Gulmarg. Six to eight nights covers Srinagar, Gulmarg, Pahalgam and Sonamarg.
Trips
Wildlife and birds trips in Kashmir
Photo: Fulvio Spada from Torino, Italy · CC BY-SA 2.0 · Commons
Comfort
Kashmir in autumn: saffron, chinars and Aru
Private car with driver
2 places
Where to go
Experiences
Days that fit the style
Photo: Mike Prince from Bangalore, India · CC BY 2.0 · Commons
Aru to Lidderwat along the stream
A long but steady walk of about 10 km each way leads from Aru village through fir forest and meadow to Lidderwat, where…
Photo: Irfanaru · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Commons
Tarsar and Marsar lakes trek from Aru
From Aru, this trek climbs via Lidderwat and Shekwas to Tarsar, a deep blue lake below steep peaks at about 3,800 m, th…
Photo: Oliver139 · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Commons
Meet the herders' camps above Aru
From June to September, Gujjar and Bakarwal families camp in the meadows above Aru with goats, sheep and horses. A slow…
Photo: Jyoti Chaurasia · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Commons
Morning wildlife walk in lower Dachigam
Lower Dachigam is a broad, gentle valley floor of forest, orchards and meadow along the Dagwan. A guided morning walk o…
Photo: Tahirshawl · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Commons
Listening for the hangul rut in autumn
In autumn, hangul stags bugle across the forested slopes of Dachigam during the rut. Hearing their calls at dawn, and w…
Photo: Jyoti Chaurasia · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Commons
Birding along the Dagwan river
The Dagwan river and the mixed forest of lower Dachigam are good for birds, especially in spring when summer visitors a…
Wildlife and birds elsewhere