BHUTAN: Kingdom in the Sky

GEOGRAPHY

Landlocked Bhutan is situated in the eastern Himalayas and is mostly mountainous and heavily forested. It is bordered by Tibet (China's Xizang Autonomous Region) to the north and northwest and by India's states of Sikkim to the west, West Bengal to the southwest, Assam to the south and southeast, and Arunachal Pradesh (formerly the North-East Frontier Agency) to the east. Sikkim lies between Bhutan and Nepal, while West Bengal separates Bhutan from Bangladesh by only sixty kilometres.

Early British visitors to Bhutan reported "dark and steep glens, and the high tops of mountains lost in the clouds, constituting altogether a scene of extraordinary magnificence and sublimity." The mythical region of Shangri La refers to Bhutan. One of the most rugged mountain terrains in the world, it has elevations ranging from 160 metres on the Assam border to more than 7,000 metres above sea level, in some cases within distances of less than 100 kilometres of each other. Bhutan's highest peak, at 7,554 metres above sea level, is north-central Kulha Gangri, close to the border with China.

The Black Mountains, in central Bhutan, form a watershed between two major river systems, the Mo Chhu and the Drangme Chhu (chhu means river). Peaks in the Black Mountains range between 1,500 metres and 2,700 metres above sea level, and the fast-flowing rivers have carved out spectacular gorges in the lower mountain areas. The woodlands of the central region provide most of Bhutan's valuable forest production. Western Bhutan has fertile, cultivated valleys and terraced river basins.

In the south, the Southern Hills, or Siwalik Hills, the foothills of the Himalayas, are covered with dense deciduous forest, alluvial lowland river valleys, and mountains that reach to around 1,500 metres above sea level. The foothills descend into the subtropical Duars Plain in Assam. Rhinoceros, tigers, leopards, elephants, and other wildlife inhabit this southern region.

Bhutan: Kingdom in the Sky
Dates and costs
8-20 April 2009
A$$4400 per person twin share, $4860 single, starting and finishing in Bangkok.
Full Tour Description: Kingdom in the Sky

1-13 May, 2009 (FULL)