Wildlife - Tour in Sasan Gir National Park

Location : 64 km from Junagadh and 32 km from Verawal.

Area : 1412 sq km.

Best time to visit : December to March.

Access : Air : Nearest airport is Keshod 90-km via Veraval. One can catch daily flight from Mumbai to Keshod. Drive to Gir from Keshod or Rajkot (166-kms) airports. Rail : Meter gauge rail line of 395-kms from Ahemdabad. There is also a railway station at Sasan Gir (1km). Road : Distance of 400-kms from Ahmedabad via Rajkot, Junagadh and Mendarda. State Transport buses are also available from Junagadh and Veraval between November and June.

Climate : Winter minimum 7-15 Summer 33-45 degrees Monsoon June to October.

Introduction : Sasan Gir National Park and Wildlife Sanctuary is the only abode of lions outside Africa. The Gir sanctuary is a 1412 sq.km mosaic of habitats-deciduous forests, rolling grasslands, thorn scrublands, semi evergreen riveraine flora, seven rivers, marshes and lakes, which combine to make it one of the best wildlife preserves in India. This is the world''''s last stronghold of the Asiatic lion, and has one of the country''''s largest panther populations, making it India''''s greatest wildlife reserve of big cat sightings. The myth that Gir lions are tame was created by the famous ''''lion shows'''' during which selected prides of lions would come to a bait on calling by forest officers. The lions were used to human presence and behaved like pet dogs and cats in the vicinity of tourists. Some of the lions of Gir are dangerous and have mauled over 200 people in the last few decades.

Wildlife Species : Sasan Gir National Park has some of the largest panthers, along with the Asiatic lion, forest deer, sambhar, spotted deer, blue bull (nilgai), Indian gazelle (chinkara), the world''''s only 4 horned antelope (chowsingha), wild boar, hyaena, jackal, hare and other mammals are also found in the forest. Interesting birds at Sasan Gir National Park are the paradise flycatcher, grey drongo, grey & painted francolin, painted sandgrouse, bush quail, crested hawk eagle, crested serpent eagle, bonnelli''''s eagle, shikra hawk, sirkeer cuckoo and white necked stork. The Kamleshwar dam in the middle of the sanctuary is home to a record population of marsh crocodiles. The Lion safari at Gir offers a fair cross-section of habitats and wildlife of Gir.

Vegetation : Sasan Gir National Park has tropical dry deciduous, thorn scrublands, semi-evergreen riverine flora.