The staggering Namdapha National Park, spread over 1985 sq km of dense forest in far eastern Arunachal Pradesh, is an ecological hotspot with a mind-boggling array of animal and plant species and habitats ranging from warm tropical plains to icy Himalayan highlands. Namdapha is famous for being the only park in India to have four big cat species (leopard, tiger, clouded leopard and snow leopard). It’s also a birdwatcher’s delight, with around 500 recorded species.
The park is a long haul from anywhere, and visiting can be a pain unless you’re travelling with a tour operator. Aborcountry Travels & Expeditions has a good grasp of these jungles.
The gateway to Namdapha is Dibrugarh in Assam, from where you need to travel about 150km to get to the small town of Miao. From here it’s a 26km drive to Deban, where the park headquarters are located
