Tourism in Along

Along also known as 'Aalo' is a town located in the West Siang district of Arunachal Pradesh.  The town of Along has many tourist places including wildlife sanctuaries and religious tourist places bordering the town.



Akashi Ganga is one of the religious tourist place of Arunachal Pradesh. Many devotees from across the state and northeast visit this pilgrimage site in large numbers.  The town of Along also has many wildlife sanctuaries spanning across the town and the state of Arunachal. These forests and sanctuaries has many varied fauna species and are tourist hotspots for the adventurous activities they offer. Filled with natural and scenic beauty, the town is majorly filled with forest area and hence it has four wildlife sanctuaries. Nature lovers come from far and wide to visit this place. With the passage of time, the small town from a state in the northeastern part of India, has gained a lot of exposure owing to better transport and communication and hence today serve many visitors and tourists coming to the city. Discussed below in details are the tourist spots one must never miss on visiting this wonderful town.

Yordi Rabe Supse Sanctuary

The Yordi Rabe Supse Wildlife Sanctuary is a recently notified and almost unknown wildlife sanctuary located in the West Siang district of the state of Arunachal Pradesh. It covers an area of over 495 sq kms. This sanctuary was declared in 1996 but the sanctuary boundary was notified in June 2007. However, the rights of the local community are yet to be settled which may eventually alter the boundary of the sanctuary. The sanctuary is administered by the Divisional Forest Officer, Along Forest Division.

Terrain of Yordi Rabe Supse Sanctuary

The sanctuary is situated in the mid-altitudes of the Eastern Himalayas, with altitudes ranging from 1500 to 2500 meters. The terrain is rugged and hilly.

Climate in Yordi Rabe Supse Sanctuary

The Yordi Rabe Supse Wildlife Sanctuary has sub tropical climate with temperatures ranging from 0°C to 24°C. In winters, temperature falls below freezing point in higher elevations. The area receives over 2500 mm of annual rainfall which occurs mostly in months from July to September.

Fauna in Yordi Rabe Supse Sanctuary

The sanctuary has a number of animal species including tiger, clouded leopard, Asiatic black bear, serow, goral and snow leopard. There are also birds like Rufous necked Hornbill and chestnut-breasted hill partridge.

How to reach Yordi Rabe Supse Sanctuary

By Road:
The Yordi Rabe Supse Wildlife Sanctuary is well connected by roads. There are bus services and private vehicles available from the nearby towns.

By Air:
The nearest airport is Mohanbari in Dibrugarh and the nearest railway station is in Silapathar. There are also helicopter services to Along.

Mouling National Park

The Mouling National Park is located in the Upper Siang district of the state of Arunachal Pradesh. The park covers an area of 483 sq kms. It was declared a National Park in the year 1986. This national park has been recognized as one of the 18 biodiversity hotspots of the world.

Origin of Mouling National Park

The name Mouling is said to have derived from the highest peak of the region named Mouling. The name ‘Mouling’ is believed to have been originated from ‘red blood’ in regard to one of the tree species with red latex found in this region. The park has two ranges: the Ramsing range accessible from Bomdo village and the Jengging range accessible from the Lissing village. Trekking and hiking are the main activities for tourists in the park.

Terrain of Mouling National Park

The terrain of the national park is rugged with an altitude range of 750 to 3064 meters at the highest point of Mouling peak. The terrain is steep with steep slopes covered with dense evergreen and semi-evergreen vegetation. There are many streams and rivers which originate from the national park.

Climate in Mouling National Park

The climate of the Mouling National Park is sub-tropical. The rainy season is from April to September, though moderate rainfall occurs throughout the year. The average rainfall is about 2500 mm per year. The temperatures vary from 15oC to 38oC. Snowfall is also experienced in high altitudes during winter season.

Flora and Fauna in Mouling National Park

One of the significant features of the Mouling National Park is the existence of tree species of both tropical and temperate zones. Tropical species like Duabanga grandiflora, Bischofia javanica, and Ailanthus grandis along with temperate species like Betula alnoides, Exbucklandia populnea and Engelhardia spicata are together found in the national park.

Animal species like red pandas, deer, Hollock gibbon, spotted linsang, takin, serow, tiger, wild buffalo, panther, hog deer, barking deer, sambar python are found here. Among avifauna, there are bird species like chesnut-breasted hill partridge, greater spotted eagle, beautiful nuthatch, Rufous-throated wren-babbler which are found in this park. Amphibian species like Boettger’s Xenophrys, tree frog Kurixatus and pied warty frog are also sighted.

How to reach Mouling National Park

By Road:
Road communication is the best way to reach the park; there are no motorable roads up to the boundary of the park. One has to walk a few kilometers from the end of the motor-able road.

By Air:
The nearest airport is the Dibrugarh airport. Helicopter service is also available from Naharlagun.

By Rail:
The nearest rail station is the Murkeongselek Railway Station located about 30 kms from Naharlagun (Itanagar) town.  

Kane Sanctuary

The Kane Wildlife Sanctuary is located in the West Siang district in the state of Arunachal Pradesh. The sanctuary is spread over an area of 55 sq kms. The wildlife sanctuary is bounded to the north and the west by the Siji River and its tributary. The Kane Wildlife Sanctuary though was declared earlier in 1991 as a sanctuary, but it was notified in April 2007 with an initial area of 31 sq kms, which was later expanded to the present 55 sq kms.

Terrain of Kane Wildlife Sanctuary

The wildlife sanctuary spans an altitude of 120 to 1500 meters and is mostly hilly with densely vegetated slopes covering it. There are a variety of plantations in the sanctuary.

Climate in Kane Wildlife Sanctuary

The sanctuary receives an annual rainfall of 2,500 mm mostly during the south-west monsoon months of July to September. The temperatures range from 50C in winters to 320C during summer.

Fauna in Kane Wildlife Sanctuary

The Kane Wildlife Sanctuary has a number of animal species like the wild cats, deer, elephant, black bear, gaur and bird species like white-winged duck, Rufous necked hornbill, broad billed warbler, Sibia etc.

How to reach Kane Wildlife Sanctuary

By Road: The best way of transportation to the sanctuary is by road. One can get private vehicles and buses from Along and other nearby towns.

By Air:
The nearest airport is in Lilabari in Assam located about 274 kms away from West Siang. There is also a helipad in Along.

By Rail:
The nearest railway station is in Silapathar.

There are accommodation facilities in Along and other areas close to the park. The best time to visit the park is from October to April.

Dihang Dibang Reserve

The Dihang Dibang Biosphere Reserve is a biosphere reserve spread across the districts of Upper Siang, West Siang, Lower Dibang valley and Upper Dibang valley districts of the state of Arunachal Pradesh. This biosphere was constituted under the scheme of Man & Biosphere Programme.

The biosphere reserve covers the high mountains of the eastern Himalayas and Mishmi Hills. The Mouling National Park and the Dibang Wildlife Sanctuary are located fully or partly within this biosphere reserve. The biosphere reserve is spread across an area of over about 5112 sq kms. The core zone of the reserve has area coverage of 4095 sq kms and the buffer zone is spread over 1017 sq kms. This reserve forest was declared in the year 1998.

Terrain of Dihang Dibang Biosphere Reserve

The habitation of the biosphere reserve ranges from tropical wet evergreen forests in the river gorges to sub tropical, temperate, alpine and permanent snow in the high altitudes. The region is one of the least explored regions in Arunachal Pradesh. The region comprises of a variety of habitats: snow clad peaks, glacial lakes, freshwater ponds and forests types like sub tropical broad leaved forest, sub tropical pine forest, temperate broad leaved forest, temperate conifer forest, sub alpine scrub, alpine meadows, tropical and wet evergreen forests.

Flora and Fauna in Dihang Dibang Biosphere Reserve

The biosphere reserve houses around 50 species of rhododendrons, over 1500 species of flowering plants, tree ferns like Cyatheasp., Angiopteris sp., and medicinal herbs like Mishmi teeta and caoptis teeta. There are also orchids, fodder, and fuel and timber plants available here.

The Dihang Dibang Biosphere Reserve has a number of endangered animal species like the Sclater’s Monal, takin, red panda, tiger and Himalayan musk deer. There are also species like red goral, Asiatic black bear, flying squirrels, mammal species like spotted leopard, clouded leopard, snow leopard, golden cat, jungle cat, marbled cat, leopard cat, blue sheep, bison, sloth bear, red fox, Assamese macaque and otter found in this reserve.



There are also a number of birds and avi-fauna species like the Temmick’s tragopan, , Blyth’s tragopan, pale capped pigeon, purple cochoa, Nepal cutia, pale blue flycatcher, wedged billed wren babbler, water pipit, Japanese bush warbler, Isabeline wheatear, black faced, chestnut-eared, pine buntings found in this reserve. One can also find the Rufous tailed babbler in the reserve. Around 45 species of insects including moths and butterflies and a number of reptiles can also be seen in the biosphere reserve.

How to reach Dihang Dibang Biosphere Reserve

The Dihang Dibang Biosphere Reserve can be accessed by road. There are taxis and private vehicles available from Along and other neighboring towns.

Akashi Ganga

The Akashi Ganga, located in Along is one of the significant pilgrimage sites in Arunachal Pradesh. It is believed to be associated with the legend of Sati (Lord Shiva’s consort) recited in the 8th century Kalika Purana.

Legend of Akashi Ganga

According to legend, when Sati immolated herself after the insult by Daksha, Shiva saw and on fury took the corpse of Sati and performed the Tandava dance (dance of destroy). Seeing this destroying dance, other Gods and Devatas went to Lord Vishnu pleading to stop Shiva. Vishnu then cut the corpse of Sita with the Sudarshan Chakra. Doing this, the body cut and fell in different parts of the earth. Doing this, it is said the head of Sati fell about 1-2 kms away from Malinithan towards Along.

Significance of Akashi Ganga

The sacred kund in Akashi Ganga is the chief attraction of this place. There is also a temple nearby the kund. About a hundred meters down from the temple through a spiral path, the pilgrims can see  a sparkling object in the ‘kund’, but once the pilgrims go down and notice, it becomes invisible. Many pilgrims come every year to take a holy dip in the kund and wash off their sins. This place is called Akashi Ganga and is regarded as a sacred place. It presents a spectacular view of the Brahmaputra flowing below.