Simlipal National Park

Simlipal national park, located in the forest belt of northern Orissa ,originated primarily as a hunting ground for the royalty. It was formally designated a tiger reserve in 1956 under Project Tiger in May 1972. It was elevated to a national park status in 1979.
Twelve rivers cut across the attractive terrain and there are innumerable waterfalls.
The mugger is quite often seen along many of these rivers. The Park also holds tigers, leopards, elephants, sambar, chital, chausingha and mouse deer, the tiniest member of the deer family.
In this Park nature has epitomized the beauties of a pulsating tropical forest – its hypnotic rhythm of rolling hills and rich valleys, its sylvan glory on red and saffron soil, its playful brooks and amid rocky glens, its perennial rivers with crystal pools, cascading rapids and gorgeous falls, and its azure blue sky are unmistakably picturesque and awe-inspiring. The perennial water regime owes itself to the unique geological and geomorphological qualities, unique in the country. The National Park receives 2500 millimetres of rain annually and its summer stands humbled by its verdure. Winters are severe and its valleys are subject to deep pool frost. Varying soils and moisture regimes join up to generate biomic compositions ranging from semi-evergreen to dry deciduous forests. Besides tiger, leopard and wild dog, other notable fauna of Simlipal includes elephants, sambar, muntjac, gaur, wild pig, chital, chousinga, mouse deer, giant squirrel, pangolin, langur, rhesus macaque, large pied hornbill, peafowl, red jungle fowl, spur fowl, mugger and python. Hyena, jackal and vultures make up the scavenging contingent. By some estimates, if all the large animals of Simlipal are placed on one side of a scale and ants, termites and insects on the other, the ‘little ones’ would weight more than the giants! Quite naturally, if millions of ants exist, then thousands of creatures must exist who feed on them. The normally secretive scaly pangolin is on such animal. It has evolved mouth parts almost exclusively adapted to a diet of ants and termites. Its long sticky tongue and powerful claws are capital of ripping stone-hard termite mounts, but since it eats only soft-bodied prey, it ahs no teeth. The sloth bear is another creature which feasts on the jungle’s abundant supply of ants and termites, but this ‘jungle joker’ also eats wild fruit and roots. Birds, lizards and snakes join to complete this crucial food chain which leads eventually to apex predators such as the tiger itself. Once a hunting preserve of the State of Mayurbhaj, present Simlipal National Park was saved largely because the maharajas would tolerate no other human intrusion in its precincts.

Season
The park is open from November to June. By June, the temperature goes up pretty high- as much as 40ºC- so it’s better not to visit Simlipal at this time. Winters, however, are pleasantly cool; the coldest it gets is about 14ºC.

Access
Simlipal has two entry points, one at Lulung, and the other at Joshipur. The nearest railhead is at Baripada, about 50 from Simlipal. Baripada has direct rail connections to all of India’s major metropolises: Delhi, Calcutta, Chennai and Mumbai, in addition to regular trains from Hyderabad, Guwahati and other cities in the region. Baripada also has extensive road links to other cities and towns within Orissa and other states. From Baripada, regular buses leave for Lulung (a distance of 30 km) and for Joshipur (65 km). Alternatively, taxis may be hired to get to Simlipal. Private cars or taxis can be used to drive around the park.