Dachigam National Park

Located very close to Srinagar (22 km), Dachigam National Park with its splendid forests and magnificent scenery is easily accessible. Of all the many sanctuaries in the state, the one at Dachigam is the best known. At one time the exclusive hunting preserve of the Maharaja of Kashmir, it was declared a national park in 1951, and owing to a strictly enforced conservation programme, the Hangul population, once 150, now stands at over 400 animals. The two sectors of the Park Upper and Lower Dachigam are spread over an area of 141 sq km. and altitudes vary between 1,700 and 4,300 metres. Two steep ridges enclose the Park with its great topographical variety deep ravines, rocky outcrops, steep wooded slopes and rolling alpine pastures. Tumbling down from the Masrar Lake (4,300m), up in the high ranges, the Dachigam River winds through Lower Dachigam.