Valley of Flowers National Park in India | History, Location, Geography, Climate & Biodiversity of Valley of Flowers National Park.

 

Valley of Flowers National Park is an Indian national park which was established in 1982. It is located in Chamoli in the state of Uttarakhand and is known for its meadows of endemic alpine flowers and the variety of flora. This richly diverse area is also home to rare and endangered animals, including the Asiatic black bear, snow leopard, musk deer, brown bear, red fox and blue sheep. Birds found in the park include Himalayan monal pheasant and other high-altitude birds.

At 3,352 to 3,658 meters above sea level, the gentle landscape of the Valley of Flowers National Park complements the rugged mountain wilderness of Nanda Devi National Park to the east. Together, they encompass a unique transition zone between the mountain ranges of the Zanskar and Great Himalayas. The park stretches over 87.50 km² and is about 8 km long and 2 km wide. It lies completely in the temperate alpine zone. Both parks are encompassed in the Nanda Devi Biosphere Reserve (223,674 ha) which is further surrounded by a buffer zone (5,148.57 km² ). Nanda Devi National Park Reserve is in the UNESCO World Network of Biosphere Reserves.

The park is open only during summer from June to October and is covered by heavy snow for the rest of the year.

History –

Documented explorers –

The place was little known to the outside world due to its inaccessibility. In 1931 , Frank S. Smythe, Eric Shipton and R. L. Holdsworth, all British mountaineers, lost their way while returning from a successful expedition to Mt. Kamet and happened upon the valley, which was full of flowers. They were attracted to the beauty of the area and named it the "Valley of Flowers." Smythe later authored a book of the same name.

In 1939, Lady Joan Margaret Legge, (21 February 1885 —4 July 1939) a botanist deputed by the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, arrived at the valley to study flowers and while traversing some rocky slopes to collect flowers, she slipped and died. Her sister later visited the valley and erected a memorial near the spot.

Prof. Chandra Prakash Kala, a botanist deputed by the Wildlife Institute of India, carried out a research study on the floristics and conservation of the valley for a decade, beginning in 1993. He made an inventory of 520 alpine plants exclusively growing in this national park and authored two books — "The Valley of Flowers — Myth and Reality" and "Ecology and Conservation of the Valley of Flowers National Park, Garhwal Himalaya".

Location –

Getting to the Valley of Flowers requires a trek of about 17 km (10.5 mi). The nearest major town is Joshimath in Garhwal, which has convenient road connections from Haridwar and Dehradun, both about 270 km (168 mi) south of Joshimath. From Delhi, one can take the train to Haridwar and then travel by bus to Govindghat via Rishikesh. Govindghat is approximately 24 km before another important destination of Badrinath. It is also possible to drive from Delhi to Govindghat, a distance of about 500 km.

Govindghat is a small place close to Joshimath (around one hour driving distance), where the trek begins. From Govindghat, shared taxis up to 4 km and then a trek of less than 11 km (8.6 mi) brings trekkers to Ghangaria, a small settlement located about 3 km (about 2 mi) from the valley. One can also hire a porter, mule or helicopter to reach Ghangaria. The trek from Govindghat to Ghangaria is common to the Gurudwara Shri Hemkund Sahib Sikh Temple at Hemkund and a trekker is likely to find many Sikh pilgrims on the route. As one nears Ghangaria, one is greeted by fields of perfumed wild flowers, wild rose bushes and wild strawberries by the sides of the path. Visitors to the Valley of Flowers need to get a permit from the Forest Department, at Ghangaria. The permit is valid for three days. Only visiting and trekking are allowed during the day time.

Visitors are not allowed to stay inside the National park and accommodation can be obtained at Ghangaria. The best time to visit is between July and early September, when the valley is full of flowers, just after the outbreak of monsoon.

Geography –

The Valley of Flowers is nestled in the Pushpawati river valley which is in the upper expanses of Bhyundar Ganga river near Joshimath in Garhwal region. The lower reaches of Bhyundar Ganga near Gobindghat are known as Bhyundar Valley. The Valley of Flowers, which lies between 30⁰ 41' to 30⁰ 48'N and 79⁰ 33' to 79⁰ 46'E, in the Pushpawati valley is 20 km northwest of Nanda Devi National Park across the wide valley of the Bhyundar Ganga. It is one of two hanging valleys lying at the head of the Bhyundar valley, the other being the shorter Hemkund valley which runs parallel to Valley of Flowers some 10 km south. Valley of Flowers runs east—west approximately 15 km in length with average width of 6 km. A small tributary of Pushpawati river originates from Tipra glacier from Gauri Parbat in the east and flows through the Valley of Flowers.

The area lies on the Zanskar range of the Himalayas with the highest point in the national park being Gauri parbat at 6,719 m above sea level.

Climate –

Being an inner Himalayan valley, the Nanda Devi Basin has a distinctive micro-climate. Conditions are generally dry with low annual precipitation, but there is heavy monsoon rainfall from late June to early September. Prevailing mist and low cloud during the monsoon keeps the soil moist, hence the vegetation is lusher than is usual in the drier inner Himalayan valleys. From mid April to June temperatures are moderate to cool (19⁰ C maximum). The Valley of Flowers also has the micro-climate of an enclosed inner Himalayan valley, and is shielded from the full impact of the southwest summer monsoon by the Greater Himalaya range to its south. There is often dense fog and rain especially during the late summer monsoon. Both Basin and Valley are usually snow-bound for six to seven months between late October and late March, the snow accumulating deeper and at lower altitudes on the shadowed southern than on the northern side of the valleys.

Ecology –

Biodiversity –

The Valley of Flowers is a high-altitude Himalayan valley that has long been acknowledged by renowned mountaineers, botanists, and in literature. It has been recognized internationally for over a century and is referenced in the Hindu religion. Local people have visited the valley since ancient times. Indian yogis are known to have visited the valley for meditation. The Valley of Flowers has many different colorful flowers, taking on various shades of colors as time progressed.

The Valley of Flowers has gained importance as a region containing a diversity of alpine flora, representative of the Western Himalayan alpine shrub and meadows ecoregion. The rich diversity of species reflects the valley's location within a transition zone between the Zanskar and Great Himalayas ranges to the north and south, respectively, and between the Eastern Himalaya and Western Himalaya flora. A number of plant species are considered threatened. Several have not been recorded outside of Uttarakhand. Two have not been recorded in Nanda Devi National Park. The diversity of threatened species of medicinal plants is higher than has been recorded in other Indian Himalayan protected areas. The entire Nanda Devi Biosphere Reserve lies within the Western Himalayas Endemic Bird Area (EBA). The Valley of Flowers National Park is the second core zone of the Nanda Devi Biosphere Reserve. Seven restricted-range bird species are endemic to this part of the EBA.