BNHS camp to Namdapha - October 27 to November 1st, 2012

Arunachal Pradesh has really smitten me in 2012. Within 6 months of my Eaglenest trip, I am again back in this beautiful region in North-Eastern India. From the North-Western tip of Arunachal bordering Bhutan  in April for hardcore birding, this time it is post monsoon to the south-eastern tip for hardcore insect watching. Despite the long travel, rigours and quite a bit of roughing out, this is one area that really gets me excited. The North-Eastern Himalayan region is one of the two Bio-diversity hotspots in India, the other being the Western Ghats. It boasts of an amazing array of beautiful flora and fauna, a good number of which is endemic. Post monsoon is not a great time to see birds, but another very interesting activity beckons nature lovers – that is the insect watch. Never mind if this gets thrown in with leeches. We are duly informed that there are 4 different species of leeches – some bio-diversity indeed!

After a long and arduous  overnight bus  journey from Guwahati, our BNHS group finally reaches our first campsite at Gibbon-land. It is a campsite especially set up for us with very basic tent facilities and we are going to spend two exciting  nights here and the remaining three at Deban Forest Rest House about 13 kms deeper into the interior. When I say basic it means bare tents with our own sleeping bags. No electricity, mobile towers, internet or all those frills that city slickers take for granted. We find our way around with our own torches. A mini generator provides us with a bulb during dinner time and a mercury lamp for the few hours of the  light trap. In comparison our accommodation at Deban was sheer luxury! A bed to sleep on and attached baths along with a beautiful view of the Namdapha River!!! However, if you love nature, do not let these lack of what we consider necessities deter you.  It just means that we are rolling in the lap of nature & moreover mercifully spared the hordes of  tourists that throng most of our pristine places with blaring music, loud talk, and inappropriate behaviour. Anyway, the mere mention of leeches and creepy crawlies is enough to keep them away! For more information see the last section on Information and acknowledgements.

This blog will introduce you to the beautiful insect life of the area. The sections are Butterflies, Moths (yes they are beauties too), other interesting & equally beautiful creepy- crawlies  and finally some breathtaking scenes, flora and of course we humans. My Macro lens has been put to full use. Yes it is macro photography throughout the trip. In many cases scientific names have been used; but do not be overwhelmed by them.  This blog is in 2 pages. To go to the next page, please take your cursor on the right side of “Home” at the bottom of each page and click on “Older Posts.”

Come join me as I recapture the wonderful memories of my forays into this enchanting and totally different world & enjoy the cyber - ride!