National Parks In India

Mount Harriet National Park

Mount Harriet Island National Park is found in the Andaman and Nicobar islands in the Ferrargunj tehsil. It is a national park, spread over an area of 46.62 sq km and is also considered as Andaman and Nicobar Island’s highest point. For the britishers staying in these island, the national park was considered as a famous picnic spot.

The place has the name from the name of Robert Christopher Tytler’s wife. He was the soldier in the british forces, who was appointed as officiating Superintendent of the Convict Settlement in the Port Blair region, because of his knowledge of nature and passion for photography, from the year of 1862 till 1864.

The park is well known for the animals such as saltwater crocodiles, wild pigs, robber crab and turtles.

The coordinates for the Mount Harriet in the islands are 100 to 140 N Latitude and 920 to 940 E Longitudes. The chief commissioner of the british forces came here for setting up the summer headquarters in Mount Harriet. Since the port blair city is clearly visible from the hill top, the sight was highly sought after and from here the Ross Island and Havelock Islands were also seen.

General Information

State	Andaman and Nicobar Islands
District(s)	Ferrargunj tehsil
Established	1979
Nearest city	Diglipur
Time zone	IST (UTC+05:30)
Area	46.62 km² (18.00 mi²).
Elevation	459 meters
Climate
Precipitation	3,180 mm
Temperature
Summer	31 °C
Winter	23 °C

History

Spread over an area of about 47 sq kms, the Mount Harriet National park is found in the district of Andaman and it was set up as a national park in the year 1979, with location at a distance of 20 kms from the capital town of port blair. This town is also the nearest airport from the national park.

Mount Harriet served as the headquarters for the british Chief Commissioner during the summer months. From the high point of the national park, the visuals are seen in the surrounding regions quite clearly.

Most of the people coming to the Mount Harriet Park go for the trek up to madhuban, which is a natural trek and is famous. Along this trail, a large number of birds, butterflies and variegated animals can be seen, providing an exotic experience for the guests who come to the Andaman and Nicobar islands.

Before the commencing of the trek, permission is needed from the Chief Wildlife Warden located in Haddo. If tourists are wishing to stay overnight in the Mount Harriet park, they need permission from the warden.

There is a national park in Mount Harriet towards its northern side, where a wildlife tour is possible for the tourists. In the national park, tourists can have a sight of large elephants that are being trained for carrying large logs. A ferry or taxi can be availed from the Chatnam Wharf to the Bamboo flat, where beautiful views of the natural sights of Andaman and Nicobar Islands is possible.

Best Time To Visit- Detailed Information

To visit the Mount Harriet National Park, the most suitable time is from the January month to that of March.

Distance From - National Park

From the city of Port Blair, the Mount Harriet National Park is found at a distance of about 10 kms.

How To Get There

From the Andaman Teal House, regular buses can be boarded to reach the Mount Harriet National Park. Also, vehicle ferry service can be taken from the Chatham Jetty towards the Bamboo flat, on the port blair side. The cost of ferry per person is charged at Rs 4, while it takes about 20 minutes to travel up to the national park in the ferry. 10 minutes is the time for traveling from Bamboo flat Jetty towards the Check Post, which is about 7 kms distance and from the check post to the mount Harriet park is about 3 kms. Inside the forest is located the check post, which is reached by climbing the hills and going through various U turns. Entry fee is to be paid here while tickets for the camera are also issued.

Things To Do In - National Park

The national park is well known for the aboriginal animal life and for the large expanses of green forest of the tropical nature. Fauna that is common and known in the region consists of Andaman wild pig, saltwater crocodile, robber crab and turtles. Elephants are trained for picking up and carrying logs in a region called madhuban nearby. For those interested in birdwatching, the forest guesthouse on the Mount Harriet top is an interesting place. Trekking trails are found in the region, which have been well marked in the area with one of these going into the beach at Madhuban.

People can reach the summit with the help of the vehicle and the experience is beautiful, with a point on the way known as the famous Rs 20 point, which is said that the picture of the scene is same as in this particular currency note.

The time for visiting the site is during the evening with the sun in the setting position over the Mount Harriet and the islands beyond.

Location Map

Accommodation

Foreign tourists are permitted to stay in the island for not more than 30 days, which can further be extended if prior permission is taken for more 15 days. Immigration authorities can allow for such stay. The places in the Andaman and nicobar islands which can be used for stay are Middle Andaman Island, South Andaman Island, Neil Island, Little Andaman Island, Long Island, Havelock Island, Baratang, Diglipur, North Passage and the Mahatma Gandhi National Marine Park. Some of the known resorts in these islands are:

• Peerless Resort
• Fortune Resort Bay Island, Marine Hill, Port Blair
• Megapode Nest; Tel: - (03192) 232207; 232380
•  Sun Sea Resort; Tel: - (03192) 238330; 238314

Sun Sea Resort and Megapode Nest are also possible for booking by Tourism help ( Tel: 033-24550917) at Kolkata.

Port Blair: Port Blair is having plenty of hotels with various price ranges. At the highest order for the choice of people is  5-star Charles Correa-designed Fortune Resort Bay Island.

(INR 3,450/- 03192-234101, www.fortunehotels.in). The Megapode Resort which is owned by government has standard rooms for INR 1,800/-, eco-cottages for INR 3,000/- and deluxe rooms for INR 2,000/- (232207, www.aniidco.nic.in). Their Megapode Camping Resort, which is located while going to Corbyn’s Cove beach, has been started since November-April and provide tents facilities from INR 1,000/ - 2,000/-.

Havelock:  in this place, the best staying option is Barefoot Resort (INR 4,800/ - 7,000/- ; www.barefootindia.com). For those wishing for less expensive accommodation, Barefoot offers comfortable cottages facing the sea which have their own dive centre, Barefoot Scuba (INR 2,200/- ; Beach No. 3, Café Del Mar; non-divers welcome).

Weather

Altitude: 60 – 200m over m.s.l

Temp: Min 230 C; Max 310 C

Rainfall: 300 cm

Photo Gallery