 Maenam
Wildlife Sanctuary, South Sikkim
Location:
Maenam Wildlife Sanctuary is situated just above the Tendong
Hill in the Northern Corner of the South District. The sanctuary
can be reached from Ravangla, which is only at a distance of
26 kilometers. It is 65 Kms from Gangtok, the capital town of
Sikkim.
Landscape and Attraction:
"Maenam-la"- the term stands for the treasure house
of the medicines. The name suggests a rich collection of different
medicinal plants available is the region.
This sanctuary is famous for two reasons. Trekking and rich
forest covers teeming with high altitude rare Himalayan species.
This temperate forest shelters Red Panda, Goral, Serow, Barking
Deer, Marbled-Cat, Leopard-Cat, Civet-Cats, Blood Pheasant,
Common Hill Partridge, Magpies, Black Eagle, Blue necked Pitta,
Sunbirds and different other types of animals and birds.
The sanctuary occupies an area of 36.43 square kilometers. The
altitude of the sanctuary ranges between 2300 meters to 3263
meters. The streams which originated in the eastern side of
the sanctuary come to an end in the in the Teesta River and
those which lies in the western flank gradually drains into
the Rangit River. The sanctuary possesses a grandstand view
of the Tista River flowing far below a through unreachable gorge.
A fabulous trek to Maenam Peak and further
to Bhaledunga originates from Ravangla passing through the virgin
track of alpine forest with a commanding view of Kunchenjungha
snow peaks. Many tourists come to visit the sanctuary to get
the taste of  adventure
in terms of trekking. The trek from Maenam to Ravangla will
take about 4 hours. There is another trek route of Maenam to
Borong village. The best season for trekking in this region
starts from March and continues to the end of May.
On the top ridge of the sanctuary there is
a historical Buddhist Monastery named Maenam Gumpha. The Queen
of Sikkim set this up in 1969. Apart this there is a temple
of Lord Shiva, which is worshiped by the local villagers. For
the villagers this is a sacred place.
 Accommodation:
The best way to stay in the sanctuary is tent as no permanent
accommodation is available. The trekkers can also explore the
sanctuary based in Ravangla, where the option of hotels is available.
Climate:
The climate of the Maenam Wildlife Sanctuary is basically wet
and moist. The average rainfall of the forest is over 300 cm.
During the winter there is a regular snowfall in the higher
areas of the sanctuary. The time between Novembers to May is
the best period to view snow peaks as the sky remains clear.
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