Karian Shola National Park, National park and UNESCO World Heritage Site in Western Ghats, India
Karian Shola National Park is a protected forest reserve in the Western Ghats of Tamil Nadu, featuring dense moss-covered rainforest mixed with grassland plateaus and rock outcrops. The terrain rises through different elevations, creating layers of forest zones that change as you move upward through the landscape.
The park was officially protected in 1989 after tea and coffee farming had already reshaped much of the Western Ghats region in the preceding centuries. Conservation efforts then became the priority for managing the land and its forests.
The park is home to Adivasi communities who have lived here for generations and celebrate their connection to the forest through seasonal festivals tied to harvests and wildlife cycles. Their presence shapes how the land is used and understood by those who visit today.
The park is best explored on foot using marked trails that pass through different forest zones and terrain types. Walking in the early morning hours often gives better chances to see wildlife and navigate the varied landscape.
A special shrub found here called neelakurinji flowers only roughly once every 12 years in sudden blooms that cover slopes with purple blossoms. These rare flowering events briefly transform portions of the landscape into flower-covered hillsides.
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