On the Eastern Himalayas below the Tibetan plateau lies, on the Indian side, another much smaller flat piece of land called Ziro. This area is in the state of Arunachal Pradesh at an altitude of 6000 ft. Some distance away and a little higher at 6500 ft is a forested valley with rare species of plants and trees - the Talley Valley. Access to this valley is through the small settlement of Ziro which actually is a group of villages inhabited by the Apatani tribal community. Ziro falls in the state highway connecting Itanagar, the state capital and other settlements in Arunachal Pradesh.

Steeped in tradition, the Apatanis customarily protects their environment with their belief that trees and plants have spiritual powers and therefore not to be touched. They make full utilization of their relatively flat land in the mountains by cultivating paddy and also rear fish in the same area, a unique practice not to be found elsewhere.

'Talley' in Apatani dialect is the name of a plant and to many other tribes the word means paradise, this forest area is the real botanical treasure trove and favours the growth of a much larger diversity of interesting plant species. The plateau is clad in pine trees and as you move further towards the Talley valley, a dense forest of silver fir trees greets you and you trek further on to find more species including the beautiful Rhododendron.

Imran Ali: A true son of the soil, Imran was born in a village close to Kaziranga National Park. A chance encounter with an Australian bird watcher while he was aiming for a spotted dove with catapult changed his life. He was greatly impressed by the words of the birder and today he is not only an avid bird watcher himself but goes out of his way to do his bit to conserve wildlife and nature. Imran has been escorting our birding and wildlife tours for some time now and is universally appreciated for his jovial nature and for his knowledge of birds and wildlife. He is very flexible and goes out of his way to meet our guests' needs. He has led important groups like Massachusetts Audubon Society, Harvard Natural History Society etc. QUOTE: "Our guide's knowledge of park birds/animals was excellent." - Lloyd and Debbie Olson, Washington, USA.  UNQUOTE

# TOUR CALENDAR 2010
# TOUR CALENDAR 2011