Located in the Kundali Hills of the Western Ghats, the Silent Valley National Park holds a valuable treasure of rare plants and herbs. The Park is rich in its wildlife, and elephants, lion-tailed macaques and tigers are the most common residents of this park. Perhaps, nowhere else can you also find such a representative collection of peninsular mammals, over a 100 species of butterflies and 400 species of moths and other fauna like the ceylon frog moth, great Indian hornbill, the Nilgiri laughing thrush and the lion-tailed macaque.

The Park has a vibrant history. In late 1970's, the Kerala State Electricity Board decided to construct a Hydel Power Project in this region. But when in 1980, this region was declared a National Park, the area of the Hydel Project was not included. Protests led to the Board changing its decision.Consequently in 1984, the Park was again re-notified with the Project area included. Finally in 1986, the Park was declared the core area in the Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve.

The river Kunthi descends from the Nilgiri hills, at an altitude of 2000 mts above sea level and traverses the entire length of the valley and rushes down to the plains through the deep forest. This river never turns brown and is always crystal clear, perennial and wild.

Though smaller in size in comparison to the other national parks in India, what makes it different is the sylvan environment the region has, along with its high altitude peaks and several rivers that run through it. The Park also houses hundreds of species of butterflies and moths along with birds. Another valuable attribute of this Park is its reserve of rare medicinal plants and herbs.