Gorumara National Park

4.4

Location: QQ4W+GXX, West Bengal 735101, India.

Estimated Visiting Time: 3 to 5 hours.

Gorumara National Park is a national park nested in the northern part of West Bengal, state of India. Located in the ‘Dooars region’ of the great Himalayan foothills, the national park is a medium-sized park with both grasslands and forests. Amidst lush greenery, Gorumara National Park was established in 1992. It is primarily famous for its Indian rhinoceros population, which has become an attraction as well. The park is so rich that it was declared the best among the protected areas in India by the Ministry of Environment and Forests for the year 2009.
The lush greenery situated beside the Himalayan range looks heavenly, without a doubt. Whether you are a nature lover or not, we highly recommend you visit this national asset if you are visiting Jalpaiguri.

Attraction

Gorumara National Park gathers a lot of tourists for a number of reasons. For example, located at a distance of 80 km from Jaldapara, the park is situated on the bank of rivers ‘Murti’ and ‘Raidak’ in the Terai region of ‘Dooars’ on the foothills of the Eastern Himalayas. As we all know, the Himalayas have their own reasons for attracting people. On top of that, Gorumara is famous for its Asiatic, one-horned rhino, bison, Asian elephants, peacocks, and many other resources. The river area, fresh oxygen, lush greenery, breathtaking backdrop, charming birds, and curious animals all make Gorumara a heaven for nature lovers. Inside the park area, there are a few watchtowers that visitors can enjoy to the fullest while maintaining safety.

1. The Rhino Observation Point is to observe Rhinos. It is situated opposite the Gorumara forest bungalow.

2. Jatraprasad Watch Tower is named after a legendary elephant.

3. Chandrachur Watch Tower (also known as the old Khunia Watch Tower) is situated near the ‘Murti forest bungalow.’

4. Chukchuki Bird-watching Point is really good for birding
Apart from these, if you have a kid or teen in your family, the aura of this park can help to facilitate wildlife observations. Furthermore, the park forest bungalow is an old wooden rustic cottage that reminds us of the bygone classic British era. It also has a watchtower overlooking the salt reservoir. To be honest, Gorumara National Park is a hard to refuse one. Hope you explore all the areas of this park to the fullest.

History

The historical connection of Gorumara National Park takes you back to the British era. Having been a ‘reserve forest’ since 1895, Gorumara National Park was declared a ‘Wildlife Sanctuary’ in 1949 (on account of its breeding population of Indian rhinoceros). Besides being 3 decades old, the park was granted official status as an ‘Indian National Park’ on 31 January 1992. Originally, the park was as small as 7 sq. Kilometres only. However, over time, Gorumara has grown by incorporating neighboring lands to about 80 sq. km. along with a vast diversity of flora and fauna.

Inside/Outside Views

As the Gorumara National Park falls in the Indomalayan realm, naturally, the whole area is blessed with many plants, animals, flora, and fauna. For example, inside the park, the primary ecoregions and their corresponding to the biomes are:

1. The area contains the ‘Terai-Duar savanna’ and grasslands of both tropical and subtropical grasslands, savannas, and shrublands biome.

2. ‘Sal forests’ with common teak, rain tree (also popular as Shirish or Albizia saman lebbeck), and ‘Bombax’ (sometimes known as silk cotton tree or Shimul tree). Along with this, the Bamboo groves, terai grassland, fresh vegetation, and tropical riverine reeds are found in this park.

3. The park has also recorded 50 species of mammals, 22 species of reptiles, 194 species of birds, 7 species of turtles, 27 species of fish, and numerous macro as well as microfauna.

4. If you are enthusiastic about the deep forest, you will get to know that the park is rich in large herbivores, which include Indian rhinoceros, gaur, Asian elephant, chital, sloth bear, and beautiful sambar deer. Small herbivores, including some barking deer, hog deer, and wild boar, also exist here.

5. If you like birds, the Gorumara National Park will not disappoint you as you will enjoy many of them, including submontane forest species like the scarlet minivet, sunbird, spangled drongo, Asian paradise flycatchers, and Indian hornbill.

Opening Hours

Tuesday 6 AM–5 PM

Wednesday 6 AM–5 PM

Thursday 6 AM–5 PM

Friday 6 AM–5 PM

Saturday 6 AM–5 PM

Sunday 6 AM–5 PM

Monday 6 AM–5 PM

Entry & Others Fees

Entrance charges at Gorumara National Park:

The jeep safari costs 2200 Rs that can accommodate up to 6 tourists at a time.

Near Restaurants

Near Hotels

How to Reach

By road: It is situated in Jalpaiguri’s ‘Dooars region’ area. From the busy area of West Bengal, the Gorumara National Park is only 30 to 35 km away. Kerala is well connected with other major cities like Kolkata, Midnapore, Chennai, Siliguri, Delhi, Ghaziabad, Mumbai, etc. And from Jalpaiguri city, you will get local transport to reach the site.

By air: The closest airport, ‘Bagdogra International Airport‘ (which is an international one), is almost 50 kilometers away from this area, which is in Siliguri, West Bengal. You can visit this place from outside of India. From the airport, you can easily get local transport to reach the site.

By train: The closest railway station from the Gorumara National Park is only 35 km away at the ‘New Jalpaiguri Junction Station.’ This station is well connected with major areas of the country. From the station, you will get local transport so that you can reach the site.

Tips for Travellers

Please wear suitable and comfortable clothes according to both culture and seasons.
Don’t forget to follow the code of conduct.
If you are visiting West Bengal for the first time, try to visit in a group for safety purposes.
Please stay away from total strangers.