Wildlife Sanctuaries in Kashmir: All 14 in Jammu and Kashmir, With Animals and Best Time

Trikuta was a 31.77 km² sanctuary in the Trikuta hills of Reasi district, the same hills that hold the Vaishno Devi shrine above Katra. Tata Kutti in Poonch was declared in 2012 to replace it, the Supreme Court allowed the denotification in 2013 so the Shrine Board could expand pilgrim facilities, and a J&K government order of February 2024 records the whole sanctuary as denotified. The forest is still there, and millions of pilgrims walk through it each year. The hills still hold leopard, barking deer, goral, wild boar and grey langur, along with pheasants and the Himalayan birds that come down in winter. There is no safari here. The way to experience it is the quieter Ardhkuwari to Bhawan stretch at dawn, or the forest walk near Katra, between October and March.

If you are combining wildlife with the yatra, our Vaishno Devi guide covers registration and the track.

Jammu and Kashmir lists four national parks: Dachigam, Kishtwar, Kazinag and Salim Ali, though Salim Ali survives largely on paper and the department’s own area total counts only the other three. A national park carries stricter protection than a sanctuary, with no grazing or other rights allowed inside, which is why the two best places for wildlife in the UT are both parks. For the full park-by-park guide, see our article on national parks in Kashmir.

Dachigam National Park

Dachigam, about 22 km from Srinagar via the Harwan gate, covers 141 km² of the Zabarwan range. It has been protected since 1910, first as a royal hunting reserve and a catchment for Srinagar’s water supply, and became a national park in 1981. It is the only place where the hangul survives in viable numbers. The March 2025 census, run by the Department of Wildlife Protection with the Wildlife Institute of India, counted 323, up from 289 in 2023, as reported by Mongabay India. Lower Dachigam is the visitor zone, where Himalayan black bears are often seen in autumn and leopard, langur and over 150 bird species occur. Upper Dachigam, around Marsar lake, needs separate permission. In the Wildlife Institute of India’s latest management effectiveness evaluation, Dachigam scored 92.97%, the highest of 438 protected areas assessed, per ETV Bharat. Our Dachigam National Park guide covers the trails in detail.

Kishtwar National Park

Kishtwar High Altitude National Park is the largest protected area in J&K at 2,191.5 km², rising from about 1,700 m to over 4,800 m in the Chenab valley. There are no roads inside. It is trekking country for snow leopard, brown bear, musk deer and Himalayan snowcock, and it is best approached from Kishtwar town between June and September. See our Kishtwar National Park guide.

Kazinag National Park

Kazinag protects 89 km² of the Kazinag range in Baramulla, next to Limber and Lachipora, and was notified as a national park in December 2007, partly from land carved out of Lachipora. It was set up chiefly for the markhor, after field surveys showed a surviving population on the range. Like its neighbouring sanctuaries it is close to the Line of Control, and visitor access is limited.

Salim Ali National Park

Salim Ali National Park, or City Forest, notified in 1986, was a 9.07 km² park near the Dal Lake shore in Srinagar, named after the ornithologist. Most of it was turned into the Royal Springs Golf Course between 1998 and 2001, though it still appears on the official list. Read the story in our Salim Ali National Park article.

One more correction. Hemis National Park and the Changthang and Karakoram (Nubra-Shyok) wildlife sanctuaries are in the Union Territory of Ladakh, not J&K, since the reorganisation of 31 October 2019.

Hokersar is a wetland reserve and a Ramsar site, not a wildlife sanctuary. It is one of 14 wetland conservation reserves on the J&K list, and in winter these wetlands are where you see the most wildlife in Kashmir in a single morning. Between November and March, tens of thousands of ducks and geese arrive from Central Asia and Siberia, including mallard, northern pintail, common teal, gadwall and greylag goose. J&K has five Ramsar sites, all listed below, as per the Ministry of Environment’s Ramsar list.

Hokersar is the one to do if you have a single free morning in Srinagar. Reach it before 8 am on the Srinagar to Baramulla road near Zainakote and walk the bund with binoculars. For the lake itself, our Wular Lake guide covers boating and the drive via Bandipora.

The animals of Kashmir are mountain species. Deer, wild goats, bears and pheasants that live between 1,600 m and the snowline, plus a separate lowland set in the Jammu region. The table lists the ones visitors ask about, where they live and when you have the best chance. IUCN status is from the global Red List. The flora that shelters them changes with height, from chir pine and scrub in the Jammu hills to deodar, blue pine, fir and birch in the Valley, then alpine meadow.

The hangul deserves its own line. It is a Central Asian red deer found nowhere else in India, and it once ranged across the Valley in thousands. Habitat loss and poaching pushed numbers under 200 in the 2000s. The recovery to 323 by 2025 is the best wildlife news Kashmir has had in decades, and it is why Dachigam was shut to visitors during the 2026 autumn rut. The rest of the Valley’s story is similar. Every large mammal on this list depends on the same few forest blocks, which is why so many of the 14 sanctuaries sit on the Pir Panjal and Zabarwan ranges.

The two halves of J&K offer completely different wildlife trips. Choose by season and by what you want to see.

There is no single best month. Altitude decides it. The high Valley sanctuaries open up as the snow melts in May, Dachigam is best when the hangul come down in winter, and the Jammu sanctuaries are pleasant only in the cool months.

For the general season guide, including snow and the tulip weeks,

see our best time to visit Kashmir page and the seasonal notes in places to visit in Kashmir.

Dachigam has the most formal entry system of any wildlife site in Kashmir, and Thajwas around Sonamarg now has an online booking portal of its own. Permission comes from the Department of Wildlife Protection, through the Wildlife Warden, Central Division, in Srinagar or at the Harwan gate. Entry is booked online through the department’s Dachigam booking portal, from around Rs 100 per Indian and Rs 500 per foreign visitor (Rs 15 for Indian students, free under 10), with still cameras charged extra. Groups are capped at 15, one person’s photo ID is uploaded at booking (a passport copy for foreigners), bookings cannot be changed, and the park is closed every Tuesday. Entry is during daylight only, so confirm gate hours with the warden’s office. Upper Dachigam needs separate written approval. The park also closes for set periods. In 2026, for example, all entry was suspended until 31 October during the hangul rut, on the recommendation of the Wildlife Warden, Central Division, as reported by UNI. It has also closed during census weeks in March.

The department’s Thajwas Wildlife Sanctuary booking portal lists the same fee schedule as Dachigam, from around Rs 100 per Indian visitor, so check whether your Sonamarg walk needs a booking before you go. The other roadside sanctuaries, Gulmarg, Daksum and Overa-Aru along the Aru road, have no separate entry ticket for walking public trails, though the Gulmarg gondola and local pony rides are paid. Lachipora, Limber, Kazinag, Tata Kutti and Bani are in sensitive border or remote areas, so ask the district wildlife office before planning anything there.

Rules Inside Every Protected Area

• No drones without written permission from the Department of Wildlife Protection.
• No plastic, no litter and no feeding animals. Bears that learn to raid bins near Gulmarg and Pahalgam end up in conflict.
• Keep to marked trails and go with a local guide or forest watcher in Dachigam and the remote sanctuaries.
• Wear muted colours, keep voices low and carry binoculars. Most sightings here are at distance.
• Leave if you meet a bear on the trail. Back away slowly and never get between a mother and cubs.

These six steps work for Dachigam, Hokersar or any of the Valley sanctuaries.

1. Pick the animal, then the site. Hangul means Dachigam, markhor means Hirpora, waterbirds mean Hokersar, and bears mean Dachigam in autumn or Overa-Aru in spring.
2. Check closures the week you travel. Look for Dachigam’s Tuesday closure and any rut or census closure, Mughal Road status for Hirpora, and Amarnath Yatra restrictions around Baltal in July and August.
3. Get permission where needed. For Dachigam, book online or through the Wildlife Warden’s office in Srinagar ahead of your visit, with a photo ID for every visitor (passport copy for foreigners).
4. Book a local guide or forest watcher. They know where the hangul have been feeding that week, which matters more than any map.
5. Start at first light. Leave Srinagar by 6 am for Dachigam or Hokersar. Activity drops sharply by 10 am.
6. Pack for distance viewing. Carry 8x or 10x binoculars, a telephoto lens, a warm layer, water and your own rubbish bag.

These routes fit wildlife into a normal Kashmir or Jammu holiday rather than a dedicated expedition.

If you are heading north from Jammu by road, our Jammu travel guide and Patnitop guide cover stops between the plains and the Valley. For getting to Srinagar in the first place, see how to reach Kashmir.

Jammu and Kashmir’s 14 wildlife sanctuaries split cleanly into two trips. The Valley sanctuaries reward a summer or autumn visit built around Pahalgam, Gulmarg and Sonamarg. The Jammu sanctuaries suit a winter break around Jammu and Katra. Add Dachigam for the hangul and Hokersar for winter birds, and you have seen the best of Kashmir’s wildlife without a single expedition. If you would like the hotels, transfers and a Dachigam morning arranged together, our Kashmir tour packages can be customised around these sanctuaries, and the Kashmir travel guide covers everything else.