One of India’s best known trekking route, Sandakphu is the highest peak of West Bengal located at the inside the protected Singalila National Park. Covering an area of 78.60sq km, Singalila is one of India’s small national parks, and one of only seven that border another country – in this case, Nepal. With alti-tudes ranging between 1,900m and 3,600m, Singalila is also West Bengal’s highest national park. The National park unique combination of high altitude and a subtropical climate has resulted in a distinctive ecosystem of trees growing beyond the snowline and some very rare fauna. No special permit is required from the Forest Department to enter the park; however, for extensive bird watching, it is worth getting permission to walk the trails inside the park, other than the designated trekking routes. One of the best places for bird watching is between Singalila entrance at Tumling and Gairibas, near a place called Batasi. Around 120 bird species can be seen here.

Birds commonly seen:

Scarlet minivet, Kalij pheasant, Blood pheasant, Satyr tragopan, Brown parrotbills, Fulvous parrotbills, Rufous-vented tit, Fire-tailed myzornis, Golden-breasted fulvetta, Sibia etc.