Bird Watching near Club Mahindra, Kanatal (Uttarakhand) In the winter month of Dec drove from Dehradun to Club Mahindra Kanatal. Kanatal is at an altitude of appx 7500-8000 ft. The distance from Dehradun is 78 kms and 38 Kms from Mussoorie. The road for Kanatal is very scenic and the mountains are clad with snow from the Dhanaulti area. Kanatal being at a high altitude is suitable for bird watching.

There is Kaudia forest range in the close affinity of Kanatal Resort. Kaudia forest range is a dense forest consisting of a variety of trees like Deodar, Pine & Oak trees. We took Jungle Safari for around 6 km one-sided and could see a variety of birds like Himalayan Bluetail, Black bulbul, Red-billed Blue Magpie, Great Barbet, Grey Francolin etc. We, at the time of Sunrise and Sunset, walked in the woods and could see bird species of Rock Bunting, Black-throated Thrush.

On the morning of 18th, Dec'22 around 7.30 AM walked inside the gate of Kaudia forest for around 3 kms and could see the Chestnut tree. Waited at the Chestnut tree patiently and to our surprise saw the foraging of birds after some time. The birds were moving across the tree for chestnut berries. We can see the birds Variegated Laughing thrush, Rufous Sibia, White-capped Redstart, etc on the chestnut tree. The trip to Kanatal for bird watching is a good experience and a must-visit destination.

The Himalayan ranges in the background make bird photography much more interesting and challenging. I have also included the video of some of the birds seen on a recent Kanatal trip in my YouTube channel. Thanks, Maneesh Rajvanshi Member Id : 2751145