An honest note
Chopta is high and cold, and the monal, like all pheasants, takes patient early starts. The meadows, the peaks and the trek reward you regardless of how the bird search goes.
Getting there
~6–7 hr drive from Rishikesh into the Garhwal high country
Best for
Himalayan monal and high-altitude pheasants, meadows and mountain birding
The land
Alpine meadow and rhododendron-conifer forest in Garhwal, Kedarnath WLS
Good to know
High and cold; the gateway trek to Tungnath and Chandrashila
What it is
Chopta is the high Himalaya at its most beautiful — meadows, monal and the trail to a temple in the sky.
High in Garhwal, within the Kedarnath Wildlife Sanctuary, Chopta is a place of alpine meadows and rhododendron-conifer forest beneath the great peaks — and a fine destination for high-altitude Himalayan birds. The Himalayan monal, Uttarakhand's iridescent state bird, displays here, alongside other pheasants and montane species, and the short trek up to Tungnath — the highest Shiva temple in the world — and Chandrashila summit gives sweeping mountain views. It is wildlife, scenery and a touch of pilgrimage, in the high country.
The reason to come
Monal in the meadows
The Himalayan monal — a pheasant of almost impossible iridescence — is Chopta's signature, displaying in the high meadows and forest edges. Seeing one catch the light against the snow peaks is among the great sights of Himalayan birding.
The monal
The dazzling state bird of Uttarakhand, at home in Chopta's high meadows — the prize sighting.
The high birding
Other pheasants and montane species in the rhododendron and conifer — rich high-altitude birdlife.
Tungnath and Chandrashila
The short, steep trek to the world's highest Shiva temple and a summit of sweeping peak views.
Meadows below the giants
The accessible high Himalaya.
Chopta brings you into genuine alpine country — meadows, snow peaks, high-altitude wildlife — without a major expedition, by road and a short trek. It is one of the more accessible windows onto the high Himalaya's birds and scenery, with pilgrimage and views folded in.
When to come — honestly
Spring blooms, autumn clarity.
March – June
Best
Spring into early summer, when the monal displays, rhododendrons bloom and the meadows are at their finest before the monsoon.
September – November
Good
Autumn, clear and crisp, with good birding and the sharpest mountain views before winter snow.
The monsoon makes the high roads and trails difficult, and deep winter brings snow. Spring is the classic season for monal and flowers; autumn offers the clearest peaks. Both mean cold at altitude — come prepared.
Sacred high country
Pilgrimage and the alpine
Chopta and Tungnath sit in deeply sacred Garhwal, where the high meadows and peaks are woven into Hindu pilgrimage — the temple at Tungnath is part of the Panch Kedar. The wildlife shares the landscape with faith and footfall.
Growing tourism in this fragile alpine zone brings pressure — litter, crowding, construction — and visiting lightly and responsibly matters here more than most places.
We run Chopta with local guides who know the monal grounds and the trails, and we tread carefully in fragile, sacred high country.
Beyond the obvious
Three ways to read Chopta.
The monal search
Early starts in the high meadows for the iridescent Himalayan monal.
Tungnath and Chandrashila
The short, steep trek to the high temple and summit views.
High-meadow birding
The wider montane birdlife of the rhododendron and conifer forest.
Why Wild Voyager
We run India on our own ground.
India is one of three countries we run with our own guides and vehicles, not booked through a middleman. In Chopta that means working the high meadows for the monal with local guides, and folding in the Tungnath trek and the peaks.
We operate it, not a middleman
Our team handles the permits, the zones and the timing, so we answer for your sightings — not a stranger hoping it works out.
We base you in the right zone
Chopta's monal grounds and trails are best known to local guides. We run it with them, timed for the displays and the clear weather, with the Tungnath trek built in.
We guide for wildlife, not a checklist
Our naturalists work the alarm calls, the tracks and the light — they would rather earn you one real sighting than tick a list.
Journeys
Trips through Chopta
Where to stay
Where you’ll stay in Chopta
Signature Collection
Luxury Collection
Classic Collection
Wildlife you may see
Pair Chopta with the Garhwal
high country.
Chopta's meadows and monal, with the Tungnath trek and Garhwal's peaks, make a high-Himalayan trip of wildlife and scenery. We route the birding and the trekking together.
Plan a Chopta trip