ABOUT EAGLENEST

Located in West Kameng district of Arunachal Pradesh, Eagle Nest Wildlife Sanctuary derives its name from Red Eagle division of the Indian army which was deployed here in 1950. Nestled in the Himalayan foothills, it is connected to Sessa wildlife sanctuary in the north-east and Pakhui Tiger reserve to the east. Eaglenest forms a part of the Kameng protected area complex (KPAC),which is the largest contiguous closed-canopy forest tract of Arunachal Pradesh, and includes Eaglenest, Pakke, Sessa, Nameri, and Sonai Rupai sanctuaries and associated reserved forest blocks. The complex covers 3500 km2 in area and ranges from 100 metres (328 ft) to 3,300 metres (10,827 ft) in altitude.
The eastern half of Eaglenest and Sessa sanctuaries is inundated by the Tippi River and western half by several smaller streams including Buhiri Nadi and Dihung Nadi which drain into Brahmaputra.
The sanctuary is a home to atleast 15 species of mammals including Bengal tiger, Asian elephant, red panda, Asiatic black bear and the vulnerable, Arunachal macaque and gaur. This area is extremely important for the survival of Asian elephant. Elephants regularly move up from the Assam plains to the Eaglenest ridge at an altitude of 3250 m in summer, perhaps the highest altitude that elephants reach in India. It is a major birding area sheltering atleast 454 species of birds including cormorants, herons, black stork, Oriental white (black-headed) ibis, ducks, hawks, eagles, kites, harriers and vultures.
Eagle Nest Wildlife Sanctaury is also notable for unpaved road running from its base to Eaglenest pass at 2,800 metres (9,186 ft) allowing good access to the entire altitudinal range, making it accessible to the military, scientists and ecotourists.

WHEN TO GO ?

The best time to vsit the sanctuary is November to March when safari is allowed .The sanctary can also be accessed on foot, bikes and motorcycles.