Jim Corbett National Park, Uttarakhand

The National Park is located in the Indian state of Uttarakhand, in the Kumaon-Himalayan foothills. Jim Corbett National Park takes its name from the Legendary Hunter turned conservationist and naturalist of the same name. Jim Corbett worked as the Colonel in the British Indian Army and was known as a hunter of many man-eater Tigers and Leopards and was widely praised by the locals in Kumaon. Jim Corbett played a huge role in the establishment of this nature reserve which was finally established in 1921.

jim-corbett-national-park1
Photo by Wolfgang Maehr, CC BY 2.0 

Jim Corbett National Park is spread across an area of 520.8 square kilometers and is visited by nearly 50,000 visitors each year. The terrain comprises of hills, ravines, marshlands, moist deciduous forests, a lake, and vast grasslands. The park’s temperate climate makes it accessible most times of the year, and attracts a large number of visitors each year.

Climatic Conditions

Being located in the Himalayan foothills, the park enjoys one of the most pleasant climates. With foggy winters not dropping below 5 degree Celsius and summer temperature not rising above 40 degrees, Jim Corbett is one of the most wonderful wildlife reserves in India. However, due to being located in a tropical mountainous region, the park can be inaccessible due to heavy rains during the monsoons.

Best Time to Visit

The Jim Corbett National Park is open from the 15th of November till the 15th of June each year. The best time when most wild and rare animals can be easily spotted is between the months of December and February. The winters in Jim Corbett national park are pleasant, chilly and sunny and most animals can easily be spotted.

Wildlife at Jim Corbett National Park

The variable terrain at Jim Corbett National Park, it is home to a huge verity of flora and fauna with a total of 586 bird species, 33 species of reptiles and amphibians and around 25 species of animals that can be found here.

Animals – Tiger, Elephant, Deer, Hog Deer, Sambar Deer, Barking Deer, Leopards, Jackals, , Rhesus Macaque, Common Langur, Himalayan Goral, Wild Boar, Common Otter, Small-clawed Otter, Smooth-coated Otter, Marten, black bear, sloth bear, Indian porcupine and Indian pangolin etc.

Birds – More than 580 species of bird are found here, with the most common of them being Pelicans, Great Crested Grebe, Greylag Geese, Indian Shag, Cormorants, Darters, Grey Heron, Black-winged Kite, Osprey, Fishing Eagle, Himalayan Long billed Vulture, Crested Honey Buzzard, Nightjars, Owls, Green Pigeons, Parakeets, Cuckoo, Coucal, Woodpeckers, White crested Kalij Pheasant, Whistling Thrush, Woodshrike, Tree Pies, Egrets, White-necked Crested Serpent Eagle, Blackheaded Orioles, Paradise Flycatchers, Black Partridge, Blue-tailed bee-eaters, Swifts, Redstarts, Swallows, Warblers, Bulbuls, Hoopoe, Larks, Mynahs, Finches, Storks, Black-necked Storks, White-capped Redstart, Spur winged Lapwing, Peregrine Falcon, Crimson-breasted Barbet, Magpie Robin and Red Jungle fowl etc.

Reptiles – Gharial, Mugger Crocodile, Indian Python, King Cobra and Monitor Lizard etc. can be found here.

Distance from Nearby and Major Cities

  • Rishikesh – 140 kilometers
  • Nainital – 143 kilometers
  • Dehradun – 174 kilometers
  • Delhi – 238 kilometers
  • Chandigarh – 322 kilometers
  • Lucknow – 439 kilometers
  • Jaipur – 498 kilometers
  • Amritsar – 530 kilometers
  • Allahabad – 649 kilometers
  • Srinagar – 907 kilometers
  • Kolkata – 1447 kilometers
  • Mumbai – 1635 kilometers
  • Hyderabad – 1699 kilometers
  • Bangalore – 2288 kilometers
  • Chennai – 2327 kilometers

Nearest Airport – The national park is 50 kilometers away from the closest domestic airport at Phoolbagh. The closest international airport is at New Delhi which is 238 kilometers from Jim Corbett National Park. However there are no flights that are currently available from Delhi to Phoolbagh.

Nearest Railway Station – The closest Railway station from the park is 12 kilometers away, in Ramnagar. Trains to Ramnagar are available via Delhi and all other Railway stations in Uttarakhand.

Road Accessibility – The Jim Corbett National Park is well connected with roads and can be reached via most towns in Uttarakhand and Delhi.

Accommodation Facilities

The tourism office for lodging facilities at the park is located in Delhi, at Barakhamba Road and also in Ramnagar where on-spot booking services are available. Bookings can also be made online via official website. There are several decent and mid ranged lodging facilities available in Ramnagar as well.

Entry Fee

For information on entry fee, please visit: http://www.corbettnationalpark.in/corbett-tiger-reserve-tariff.pdf

About Rohit

An architect by profession, Rohit Agarwal is a curious traveller, seeking out the minutest detail about the places he travels to, and that’s what one will find in his writings. His writings have appeared in various blogs, he’s currently trying to bring forth as many different places a traveller who shares the same level of curiosity like him would like to visit through his writings.

Leave a Comment