Orchid walk in the Panchase forest

Orchids are hard to see if you do not know where to look. Many are small epiphytes growing high on trees, flowering for a few weeks a year. Panchase's mix of subtropical and temperate forest, mist and moss suits them, and surveys have recorded around 125 species here, including three not known anywhere else. Many grow as epiphytes on tree trunks and branches, rooted in moss rather than soil, while others grow on rocks or the forest floor.

Walk with a local guide who knows the forest, and go slowly. Spring brings the first flowers and rhododendron; the monsoon months bring many more orchids, along with leeches and rain. Look at trunks, branches and mossy rocks, and use binoculars for the high ones. The forest also has birds such as laughingthrushes and, with luck, monkeys. A macro lens or a phone with close-up mode is useful for the smallest flowers.

The forest is protected: do not pick, dig or buy wild orchids, which are threatened by collectors. Photograph them instead. Finish at a homestay for tea and ask your hosts what the forest gave their grandparents: fodder, medicine, firewood and stories. Researchers have also recorded over 600 flowering plant species here, and local healers still collect some of them for medicine. Ask your guide to show you plants used in village households, and leave everything where it grows.