The national parks, hill stations, reserves and towns in the Satpura range attract hundreds of thousands of visitors each year. Places listed here are from East to west •
Amarkantak (
NLK Amarakaṇṭaka), also called "Teerthraj" (the king of pilgrimages) is a pilgrim town and a
Nagar Panchayat in
Anuppur,
Madhya Pradesh, India. The Amarkantak region is a unique
natural heritage area and is the meeting point of the
Vindhya and the Satpura Ranges, with the
Maikal Hills being the fulcrum. This is where the
Narmada River, the
Son River and Johila River emerge. Popular 15th-century Indian mystic and poet
Kabir is said to have meditated on
Kabir Chabutra, also called the platform of Kabir situated in the town of Amarkantak. •
Bandhavgarh National Park, is one of the popular national parks in Madhya Pradesh located near satpura range in the
Umaria district of Madhya Pradesh, located north of Amarkantak. Bandhavgarh was declared a national park in 1968, with an area of 105 km2. The buffer is spread over the forest divisions of Umaria and Katni and totals 437 km2. The park derives its name from the most prominent hillock of the area, which is said to be given by Hindu Lord Rama to his brother Lakshmana to keep a watch on Lanka (Ceylon). Hence the name Bandhavgarh (Sanskrit: Brother's Fort). This park has a large biodiversity. The density of the tiger population at Bandhavgarh is one of the highest known in India. The park has a large breeding population of leopards, and various species of deer. Maharaja Martand Singh of Rewa captured the first white tiger in this region in 1951. This white tiger, Mohan, is now stuffed and on display in the palace of the Maharajas of Rewa. •
Kanha National Park is a national park and a tiger reserve near the range in
Mandla and
Balaghat districts of Madhya Pradesh, India. In the 1930s, Kanha area was divided into two sanctuaries, Hallon and Banjar, of 250 and 300 km2. Kanha National Park was created on 1 June 1955. Today it stretches over an area of 940 km2 in the two districts Mandla and Balaghat. Together with a surrounding buffer zone of 1,067 km2 and the neighboring 110 km2 Phen Sanctuary it forms the Kanha Tiger Reserve. Madhya Pradesh Forest Department. Retrieved 14 April 2010. This makes it the largest national park in Central India. The park has a significant population of royal Bengal tiger, leopards, the sloth bear, barasingha and Indian wild dog. •
Pench National Park is situated to the south of the Satpura. It is named after the name of the river Pench which flows through this area. This is the 19th project tiger reserve in India and was declared so in 1992. It has tropical moist deciduous forest. Meandering through the park from north to south. It is located on the southern boundary of Madhya Pradesh, bordering Maharashtra, in the districts of
Seoni and
Chhindwara. Pench National Park, comprising , out of which a core area of of Indira Priyadarshini Pench National Park and the Mowgli Pench Sanctuary and remaining of the Pench national park is the buffer area. The area of the present tiger reserve has a glorious history. A description of its natural wealth and richness occurs in Ain-i-Akbari. •
Chhindwara is one of the larger towns located in the Satpura range. It is situated on a plateau, surrounded by the lush green fields, rivers and sagwan trees. Chhindwara is surrounded by dense forest with diverse flora and fauna.
Pench and
Kanhan are two important rivers of Chhindwara. Chhindwara is an urban agglomeration and a municipality in Chhindwara district in the Indian state of Madhya Pradesh. It is the administrative headquarters of Chhindwara District. Chhindwara is reachable by rail or road from adjacent cities Nagpur and Jabalpur. The nearest airport is in Nagpur (130 km); however, a small airport (air-strip) is available at Chhindwara for landing charter aeroplanes/helicopters. •
Pachmarhi, a hill station in the range is located in
Madhya Pradesh, has a number of attractions from its forests, animal reserve, rivers and rocky terrain. It is a tourist destination for trekking, fishing and adventure activities. It is also known as 'Queen of Satpura', and became a destination for Bollywood film shootings. The highest point of the Satpura range,
Dhupgarh, is located in
Pachmarhi. •
Satpura National Park is located in the district
Narmadapuram of
Madhya Pradesh. It gets its name from the Satpura ranges. It covers an area of .
Satpura National Park, and along with the adjoining
Bori and
Panchmarhi Sanctuaries, provides of unique central Indian highland ecosystem. The terrain of the national park is extremely rugged and consists of sandstone peaks, narrow gorges, ravines and dense forests. Satpura National Park, being part of a unique ecosystem, is very rich in biodiversity. The animals here are the tiger,
Indian leopard, sambar, chital, Bhedki, nilgai, four-horned antelope, chinkara, bison (gour), wild boar, wild dog, bear, black buck, fox, porcupine, flying squirrel, mouse deer, Indian giant squirrel, etc. There are a variety of birds. Hornbills and peafowl are common birds found here. The flora consists of mainly sal, teak, tendu, Phyllanthus emblica, mahua, bel, bamboo, and grasses and medicinal plants. •
Bori Wildlife Sanctuary, is located in Madhya Pradesh. Bori Wildlife Sanctuary includes India's oldest forest preserve, the Bori Reserve Forest, established in 1865 along the Tewa River. The sanctuary covers an area of , located in the northern foothills of the Satpura Range. It is bounded by the Satpura National Park to the north and east, and by the Tawa River to the west. The sanctuary, together with Satpura National Park and the Pachmarhi Sanctuary, forms the Pachmarhi Biosphere Reserve. The sanctuary is mostly covered in mixed deciduous and bamboo forests, part of the eastern highlands moist deciduous forests ecoregion. It is an important transition zone between the forests of western and eastern India. Dominant trees include teak (
Tectona grandis), dhaora (
Anogeissus latifolia), tendu (
Diospyros melanoxylon), among others. Large mammal species include tiger, leopard, wild boar, muntjac deer, gaur (
Bos gaurus), chital deer (
Axis axis), sambar (
Cervus unicolor), and rhesus macaques. •
Multai is a town and a
Nagar Palika in
Betul district in the
Indian
state of
Madhya Pradesh. Multai is one of the southern cities of Madhya Pradesh, occupying almost half of the Satpura plateau. Considering the small villages around, it occupies a large area in width of the Satpura range between the valley of the Narmada on the north and the bearer plains on the south. Forests lie to the west of the city between the districts of East Nimar and Amravati. It lies on the Northern bank of the
Tapti. Multai is located at . It has an average elevation of 749 metres (2457 feet). Multai is the holy place and origin for river Tapti. The daughter of Surya, the Sun God, Mata Tapti is worshiped here in two different temples
Prachin Mandir and
Naveen Mandir. The Multai town is decorated on Akhad Saptami Tapti Janmotsav and an annual
Mela is organized on this occasion. In Multai town there are many ancient Hindu Temples, dedicated to Lord Shiva and Hanuman. •
Muktagiri is a Jain pilgrimage centre, located on border of Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra in India. It comes under Bhainsdehi tehsil of Betul district or Baitul district in Madhya Pradesh, India. It is 14 km away from Paratwada, Dist. Amravati, Maharashtra. Muktagiri is 7 km away from Kharpi village on Paratwada - Baitul road. Muktagiri is also called as 'Mendhagiri'. There are 52 temples on the mountain, surrounding a waterfall. The waterfall is generally visible only when there is enough rainfall in the area. One can plan trip to Muktagiri between June and September to see the waterfall. A lot of monkeys can be seen near the 10th Temple – Bhagwan Sheetalnath temple – near which the waterfall is located. The 10th Temple is an ancient temple and is inside an ancient cave. The cave is prone to stonefall (which is generally said to happen only during night). Also, lot of honeybees are at a large distance from the cave. The 1st Temple, 10th Temple, 26th Temple and 40th Temple are the main temples. •
Chikhaldara is a hill retreat in
Maharashtra located in Satpura ranges in Amravati District. It has a number of rivers, waterfalls, dense forests, rocks, mountains, trekking, and cool air. It has various viewing points such as Bhimkund waterfall, Devi point waterfall, Vairat point (highest point), Gavilgarh Fort, Prospect point, Mozari point, coffee garden, Panchbol point, etc. It is the only hill station in Vidharbha region of Maharashtra. Also it is the origin point of many river such as Pili, Chandrabhaga, Shahnoor, Bichhan, Sapan, Sipna, Dolar, Bholeshwari, etc. •
Melghat Tiger Reserve is a tiger reserve located in northern part of Amravati District of Maharashtra State in India. The Tapti River and the Gawilgadh ridge of the Satpura Range form the boundaries of the reserve. In 1985 Melghat Wildlife Sanctuary was created. The Tapi river (also known as Tapti river) flows through the northern end of the Melghat Tiger Reserve, through a forest which lies within the catchment area of the river system. Many different kinds of wildlife, both flora and fauna, are found here. And there many river flowing through the reservoir such as Sipna river, Khurshi River, Dolar river, Garga River, Khapra River, etc. •
Gugamal National Park is another national park located in Maharashtra and in
Satpura range has an area of . Built in 1974, this park is located in
Chikhaldara and Dharni Tehsils of Amravati District, Maharashtra, India. It is part of Melghat Tiger Reserve. The forest in rugged and hilly area of Melghat is typical southern dry deciduous forest. This consist mainly of Tectona grandis, Ain, Tiwas, Aola, Lendia, Dhawada, Kusum are the important tree species. Bamboo is widely spread in the forests. There are some orchids and strobilanthes in the upper hills. The area is rich in medicinal plants. The area is rich in wild mammals including tiger, panther, sloth bear, wild dog, jackal, hyena, chousingha, sambar (largest deer) gaur, barking deer, ratel, flying squirrel, cheetal (a deer), nilgai, wild boar, langur, rhesus monkey, and macaque. Also found here are 25 types of fish and many varieties of butterfly. Crocodiles were re-introduced in a systematic manner in March 1990 and February 1991 in Siddu Kund in Gadga river near Dhakna and Hathikund in the Dolar river in the Gugamal National Park. •
Toranmal is a hill retreat in
Maharashtra. Its Gorakhnath Temple, dedicated to
Lord Shiva and visited by thousands of devotees on
Mahashivratri. Pilgrims often walk barefoot for days from surrounding areas in the Nandurbar district and across Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh and Gujarat to make the
yatra to Toranmal through
Shahada. •
Shoolpaneshwar Wildlife Sanctuary, covering , is located in Narmada district of Gujarat. It has 575 species of flowering plants, with vast patches of bamboo and it comprises a deciduous forest with semi-evergreen trees. Many type of animals like sloth bear, leopard, rhesus macaque, chausinga, barking deer, pangolin, herpetofauna, birds including Alexandrian parakeet are found here. •
Mohgaon Haveli, in
Saunsar,
Pandhurna District of Madhya Pradesh is famous for its only
Ardhnarishwar Shivlinga in World. • Gotmar mela in
Pandhurna District is also very famous. ==Legacy==