Being a regular visitor to Mughal gardens and parks across Kashmir, I decided to visit the famous Dachigam wildlife park on the outskirts of Srinagar on a sunny cold Sunday (November 21) to show brown bears, leopards, black bears and monkeys to my two kids -- Mohammad Numaan (7) and Mohammad Adnaan (4). 

On the way, I was thinking about the safety of my kids given that they are scared to even mention the names of the wild animals. 

But they enjoyed the trip without any fear and even took pictures. 

This was my third visit to Dachigam National Park – the first with cousin, Mohammad Rafiq, in 2000 and second time with friends, Babar Chowdhary and Mohammad Meekhail, in 2010.

Dachigam is popular for the endangered Hangul or the
Kashmir stag - the only species of red deer to be found in India. The park is situated about 22 km from
Srinagar, covering an area of more than 141 sq. km. 

The actual beauty of the park lies in the deep valleys, rocky outcrops, steep wooded slopes and rolling alpine pastures. 

Being located in the mountainous area, Dachigam faces a huge variation in the altitude that ranges from 1600 m to 4200 m above sea level. This variation in altitude categorises the park into the upper and the lower regions.
Initially, the park was created to supply clean drinking water to Srinagar. Later, it was converted
to a protected area in 1910. Dachigam literally means “Ten Villages”, which stands for the number of villages that were relocated to facilitate its creation. It was declared a National Park in 1981 and since then it has been home to many rare species of animals.

Hanguls can be easily spotted in
winters when they hang out in the lower valleys. Other inhabitants include Musk Deer, Brown Bear, Leopards, Jungle Cats, Himalayan Black Bear, and a few species of wild goat like Markhor and Ibex.
One can spot rare birds like Black Bulbuls, Cinnamon sparrows, Himalayan Monals, Kashmir Flycatcher and colourful Pheasants. Golden eagle and bearded vulture or lammergeier can also be seen. 

To be continued....

Pictures by Mohammad Hanief