Eco-trail Itinerary
Best time to visit: Early spring (March-April), autumn (September-October) and winter season (November-February).
Point of Interest: Hike through the warm broadleaf forests rich in birds, plants, butterflies and wildlife. Experience local way of life, culture, festivals, performances, sports, arts and crafts, hotstone/hotspring bath at the five community managed eco-camps, which are unique.
Hike to local cultural sites and natural features such as bats cave and limestone caves and experience river rafting and elephant rides.
Facilities and Services: Each eco-camp has two eco-lodges with twin beds in each lodge and camping area with kitchen, dining, toilet/bathroom, fencing and drinking water facilities. Facilities at each camp are built on 50 decimal government land using locally available materials such as wood, bamboo, stone, mud and other materials. The community management groups provide services such as meals, local guides, village tours, cultural performances, local sports, hotstone/hotspring bath and many other services.
Day 1 Arrive Paro – Thimphu
Day2 Thimphu – Punakha
Day3 Punakha – Trongsa
Day4 Trongsa – Zhemgang
Day5 Zhemgang - Royal Manas
Day6 Royal Manas sightseeing
Day 1: Gomphu – Pangtang
Gomphu is the first eco-camp located at an altitude of 1457 meters above sea level. Gomphu can be reached from either Zhemgang or Gelephu. From Zhemgang, it takes 3 hrs to reach Gomphu and from Gelephu it takes about 5 hours. The eco-camp at Gomphu is located in the forest just above Gomphu Park Range Office. The facilities include two eco-lodges, two Bathroom and toilets, dinning, kitchen, water supply and camping facilities. The facilities are built using local materials such as wood and stone.
The hike from Gomphu to Pangtang can be either along the traditional route which takes approximately 4.5 hours or along the motorable road, this takes about an hour. The Eco-trail passes through mixed broadleaf forests and thick undergrowths with numerous birds
Such as barbets, hornbills, bulbuls, doves, wood pecker and cuckoos, see Annexure 4.
The traditional route starts with a descent for about 1.5hours and ascents for another hour before gentle descent again. The road has well maintained slope and is much easier than traditional route. One can even ride a bike from Gomphu to Pangtang.
Mamung is the spot where people usually stop for lunch. It is approximately half way to Pangtang, with small settlements in Mamung, fresh oranges are available during winter. The Trekking trail actually descents further until Pangtang which is at the level of Mangdichhu. It is a beautiful valley with settlements and government offices.
Day 2: Pangtang – Shilingtoe
Pangtang lies at an altitude of 239 meters above sea level. The camp is located on the right bank of Mangdichhu while trekking towards Shilingtoe thus, overlooking Pangtang settlements and the river itself. The trail starts with gentle descent and occasional short climbs. The entire trek will take about 4 hours and the last leg before reaching Shilingtoeecocamp is a climb for over half an hour. The trail is very rich for bird watching with many birds such as thrushes, drongos, hornbills, partridges, pheasants, bulbuls, tree pies, barbets, eagles, fowls and many other species, Annexure 4.
Day 3: Shilingtoe to Pangbang
Shilingtoe is located at an altitude of 420 meters above sea level. The camp is on the way to a village and provides a good view of the area due to its location at a higher alleviation. Birds such as bulbuls, barbets, thrushes, hornbills, kingfisher, cormorant, wagtails, trogons and many other species can be seen along the trail between Shilingtoe to Pangbang, Annexure 4. The hike from Shilingtoe to Changazam suspension bridge takes about 3 hours and on the way one can see religious cave, bat cave and a twin waterfall (Lelang). From Changazam, there is a motorable road to Panbang which connects to Indian Manas Tiger Reserve.
Besides the services and products mentioned in the Annexure 3, the Powgilodue which is Celebrated by Pangtang community is also celebrated by theShilingtoe community. Tashibji village which is about an hour walk from Shilingtoe celebrates an annual tsechu on the 14th and 15th day of the 10th Bhutanese month.
Day 4: Pangbang to Norbugang
The camp site at Pangbang is located at a place called Anilademba at the junction of Mangdi Chhu and DangmeChhu at an altitude of 160 meters above sea level. It is now connected with motorable road to Panbang which connects to Indian Manas Tiger Reserve. Twin waterfall near Changazam Panbang eco-camp
The same road is also one of the entry and exit points into Royal Manas National Park from the Indian Manas. Panbang communities celebrate annual tsechu from 8th to 10th day of 11th Bhutanese month. Various mask dances are performed at the SonamChoelingDratsang.
The other attractions at Panbang and Bhutan Manas include boating, river rafting, and elephant rides and wildlife watching. The Park Range Office at Manas coordinates these services. While Boating and river rafting along the Manasriver, one can see goral, capped langurs, cormorants and many other bird species besides the beautiful landscape. Norbugang can be reached either from Bhutan Manas or from Nanglam under Pemagatsel Dzongkhag. The trek between Pangbang- Norbugang will take approximately 6 hours and is the longest trek of all. Most of the birds sighted along the Shilingtoe-Pangbang eco-trail are also found along Pangbang-Norbugang eco-trail. The eco-camp at Norbugang is located at a place Royal Manas National Park-Gomphu-Manas-Norbugang Eco-trail called DorjiJadram. The road from Nanglam to Pangbang has reached till Tsheshengzor, with another 2.5 hours walk to the camp. This road is also one of the entry and exit points to reach Royal Manas National Park. The five villages along the trail from Nanglam to Norbugang conduct Tsechus and among them the Tsechu at Nimshongborang village is unique and entertaining. It is held annually from 8 to 10th day of 5th Bhutanese month and from 9 to 10 of 8th Bhutanese month.
After Norbugang, one could also exit via Nanglam and Samdrupjongkhar.