Jungle Safari's
Area: Core Area: 520.82 sq km and Buffer Area: 797.72 sq km
Year of Establishment:1936
Best time to Visit: October to June
India's first National Park, the tigers' land, and the paradise of nature lovers, Jim Corbett National Park is the pride of Nainital District of Uttarakhand. Glorified by the name of the legendary hunter-turned conservationist Jim Corbett, the park is one of the best wildlife sighting destinations in the country. A gem on the necklace of the Himalaya, the park is the habitat of exotic species of animals including a good population of big cats.
The park is named after the renowned hunter-turned-conservationist Edward James Jim Corbett, who spent a major part of his life in this park vicinity and fought hard to turn this vulnerable forest into a protected area for the free movement of animals. Due to the constant support of the government and dedicated care of the park authority, the number of tigers is increasing day by day in the process encouraging global tourists to head to this promising tiger sighting spot of India.
This is the park where Save Tiger Project was launched for the first time. It was an initiative taken by the Government of India for the protection of the tiger population.
Geographical Information
This reserve forest area shares the ecological characteristics of Sub-Himalayan belt and ranks as a perfect eco-tourism destination. The park is Located between 29'25' to 29'39'N latitude and 78'44' to 79'07'E longitude. The average altitude of the region ranges between 360 m (1,181 ft) and 1,040 m (3,412 ft).
Flora in Corbett National Park
Corbett is covered with dense vegetation and around 488 species of plants are recorded in this park. Some of the various plant species found inside the park are Bel, Chbilla, Bakli, Dhak, Pula, Semal, Bamboo, Khair, Khingan, Sal, Sissoo, Ber, Kharpat, Kuthber, Rohini. The vegetation in Sal forests is dense and lowest in the Anogeissus-Acacia catechu forests.
Project Tiger in Corbett
To ensure the safety of India's national animal Royal Bengal Tiger in their natural habitat, and to save them from extinction the Government of India launched the Project Tiger program in 1st April, 1973. The project was first launched in the Dhikala Zone of Corbett with the motto of extending the 588 sq km area of the park. The project was initiated taking monetary help of World Wildlife Fund. Under the prevalence of this project the government has formed a Tiger Protection Force to trap the poachers. Moreover, to minimize human-tiger conflicts initiative is taken for funded relocation of villagers.
Different Entry Zones of Corbett
It is difficult for the wildlife lovers to visit the entire park at a stretch. Keeping in mind the vast area of the park, it is divided into different zones for systematic and regulated wildlife sighting. The reserve is mainly divided into four different zones namely:
General Information
Altitude: 385 m - 1100 m above mean sea level
Annual rainfall: 1400-2800 mm
Temperature range: 4C in winter to 42C during summer
When to Visit
Every year from November to mid June, Corbett National Park remains open to the public. Once the monsoon season bids good bye to the Nainital region the repair works of the road gathers pace. It is because most of the roads connecting Corbett to other parts of the state get washed away. During monsoon season, other than the Jhirna zone, the other three zones remain closed.