Wayanad - October 2010

Wayanad – October 2010            

I am gonna try and write as much as I remember of these trips as I am writing about the past. Wayanad has been memorable to me and here I am to share the trip with all.

As always this was a well planned trip and we had our tickets booked to Calicut and we had decided to take the public transport from there. So we boarded the train at Chennai Central and the next morning around 9ish we reached Calicut. Since we were very hungry we decided to eat something at the railway canteen before we proceeded with our journey. Post breakfast we went to the local bus stand and took the bus to a place called Kalpetta. The roads were pretty much bad at many points in the hills.
We could see the weather changing as we started climbing a bit and started to cross the different hills to reach Wayanad. Once we reached Kalpetta which is supposed to be a small village in the Wayanad district we took an auto from there (Was sent to us by the resort themselves) to reach the resort which was located amidst the variety of plantations.

Initially before booking accommodation as always, I went through a lot of resorts and finally decided to zero in on Wynberg as it sounded more interesting because firstly it was mentioned as an eco friendly resort and the number of activities that you get to do there. 

So finally we reached our resort and checked in to our Deluxe cottage that we had reserved prior to coming. The entire place felt very interesting with lots of trees and plantations around. The approach road is pretty much bad and would be a single lane road where usually its easier to go on tractors. We were given tender coconut as we arrived and were shown our way to the cottage.

The first impression of the much searched for resort was very good and we were happy with our choice. The package we booked for included all meals and when we had our first meal is when we realised it was cooked in home style and that the owner’s mother was the one who taught the cook to make the variety of vegetarian dishes. We had an awesome lunch and started out on our plan to do some sightseeing and the first place we headed to was the Edakkal Caves the same evening. These caves are situated at a distance of about 16 kms from Sulthan Bathery which is supposedly the largest town in Wayanad district. There were 3 caves and these were considered to be one amongst the earliest sites of human settlement. Each of these caves has ancient stone scripts, symbols, weaponry figures etc. It was at a good altitude and one has to walk all the distance after parking the vehicles. If you go there in a bus or any other public vehicle, you will have to walk about a KM before you start climbing the caves.

Though we went till the base of the caves it was a great challenge for me especially to climb the caves as they were very steep and you will realize after climbing some distance that you have just touched the base of the cave as such.

 So after much excitement to see the caves, I also climbed and after a point it was all rocks and you have to manoeuvre your way through. It was slippery in some parts because of some water coming from the hilss. It was fun, at the same time adventurous. At one place to go from one rock to another, they had erected a ladder which was absolutely steep and as I climbed up I was very scared to look back. I climbed and climbed but then at one point of time, I decided I couldn’t go further and stopped midway and decided to wait for my husband who was absolutely fit and enthusiastic about going all the way to the caves on top.

I should admit here that my fitness was nil and that was the main reason I was finding it difficult to go up. So I stopped and was waiting for a while before I decided to come back to the base and wait there instead of standing midway. When I was about to climb down and I looked at the ladder I didn’t have the courage to actually come down as it was really scary. There were more people and so I decided to just tag along with them and walk down and gaining courage I started down. Some places were only rocks and I had an amazing experience of slipping and falling on one of the rocks and someone had to give me a hand to help me get up as the rock was slippery and I couldn’t get up on my own.

Once my husband arrived I saw the pictures of the cave and was repenting why I did not go up. Anyways it was too late by then and we had to move on. On our way it started to rain and we reached a point where there was a dam (Karapuzha) and to see that we had to again climb a number of stairs. Good fun and it was very eventful day at least for me. We stopped for tea in one of the road side shops and in that chill weather the tea was so soothing and I was waiting to get back to my resort.

Upon reaching, we freshened up and had an amazing dinner where the owner was also there. Before I write more, I should say a few words about the owner of the resort. He constructed this eco friendly resort more as a passion towards plantation tours, nature walks and that is what his resort offers to travellers as well. He arranges for birding, wildlife treks, plantation tours etc. He also conducts a lot of classes on these subjects and most of his audience are foreigners.

 So we had a long chat with him during dinner and he told us about what different we can do in this trip. He offered to take us for a wildlife safari in the Bandipur national park and we were pretty excited about the whole thing. He also suggested that one of the mornings he would take us on a plantation tour and show us through the rubber plantations and the other variety of spices that are grown there.

So we were getting excited about our next day trip to the jungle and after a hearty breakfast we were strolling around the place and taking pictures of the resort and the variety of birds and tress we came across. After lunch we started on this much awaited jungle trip along with another couple who were from the UK. We were taken in a car till Bandipur and we settled for a drink at the Jungle Inn lodges.

After a while we boarded the safari jeep which was a open one, and we had an armed guard and another nature lover who joined us from there. I learnt about him later that he visits the reserve almost every month to spot the tiger and also attends the tiger census. Befriending him was fun because he knew so much about the jungle and could easily spot many birds. This safari went on for 3 hours and they covered about 25 kms and I should say that it was one place where you could forget everything about the outside world and blend with nature.

The silence of the jungle, the sounds of birds chirping here and there, the smell of animals all these cannot be explained but can only be experienced. We did spot some deer as usual, Sambar deer, Bison and many different varieties of birds. This was the first time I ever came across not one but many Bison's few feet away from the vehicle. We could see they were scared and were trying to run away from us. After all we were invading their territory. We went through many more trails and the 3 hours passed so memorably that I am still waiting for an opportunity to get in to the jungle for many more such trips.

So once our safari was done, we came back to the Jungle Inn lodge where they were ready with some pakodas and hot tea for us. Once done, we started our way back to the resort. 

The next morning we started on our plantation tour just after our coffee and it was fun. Each of us were given sticks to walk through the mushy area of the plantations and were told to carefully keep our steps as it can be very slippery. I nodded and realised the next step I took inside the resort I skid and fell and my husband was heartily laughing out.

We continued on our plantation tour and came across some spices like pepper, betel leaves, then coffee plantations, pineapple, yam,  ginger, lemon, pumpkin, what not and finally through the entire rubber plantation. We were explained how rubber gets collected and even saw the machine where they process and dry the rubber in to mats and other forms. 

By the time we got done with this it was pouring heavily and all of us got back drenched and after a good shower settled for a hearty breakfast. Evening was for us and as it was raining we decided to spend time inside the resort. There was one more day left with us and we used that day to explore all around the plantations, the area little away from the resort and enjoyed our stay thoroughly. We went back the same way to Calicut and did some shopping there before we bid goodbye and started our way back to Chennai.

Back to writing old trips

Hi, After a very long gap of no blogging or I should say I wasn't even travelling for a while, I am back to writing and have got a new look to my blog page with only travel experiences. Blogging is something I started very late and hence never wrote about the many places I travelled before. Hence am considering to write about all my past travel experiences as well and would be posting them as and when I complete and most of them would be with pictures.
In the mean time the start of this 2012, I also started my own travel consultancy purely as a passion towards travelling and holiday planning. More details on the same can be found on my facebook page Sojourn-Take a break. I am sure my blog page or I should say I am making it in such a way that it would be useful for travellers who always look for some extra bit of information about various places before they plan their travel. That is exactly what I do and what I intend to do for my business - Explore various blogs and help with personalized planning.
In case you find any contents not right or would like to share some experiences, please do write to me at sojournconsultant@gmail.com.
Look forward to my posts on various places.

Coorg - Was a heaven post monsoon

Coorg – September 12, 2011

This is gonna be quite a long one. One, reason being this would be a wonderful read for my own self when I want to and secondly might be of little help for someone wanting to plan one.

Coorg – This trip was planned way before in May 2011. We had booked our timeshare at Club Mahindra and got a 7 day vacation free. Hence, we planned our trip to a place that we could drive down to.

Much excited we started our drive on 10^th September from Chennai to Bangalore.  Left home at 5:15 AM and after filling fuel started from Adyar at 5:45 AM. Reached Vellore at 7:35 AM and stopped for breakfast at Hotel Aryas (On the right side of the road). After breakfast resumed our drive to Bangalore at 8:15 and reached Bangalore at 11:30. The day was spent at a friend’s place.

Next day morning (September 11^th – Day 1) started at 5:45 and started our drive to Coorg. Stopped for a tea at Bannarghetta road and resumed our journey at 6:00 AM. Stopped for breakfast at Kadhambam restaurant (After Chennapatna). We reached this place via Nice road at 7:00 AM. Finished breakfast and started our drive back at 7:45 AM.

Proceeded towards Mysore and took the bypass after Srirangapatna (The road that leads to Krishna raja sagar dam and Renganthittu Bird sanctuary). After travelling some distance on this less crowded road, you join the bypass road that leads to Mangalore which is the Mysore – Mangalore highway (SH88). From here we bypassed Hunsur, went through Piriyapatna, Bylakuppe, Kushalnagara, Sontikoppa and reached Madikeri at 11:30 AM. The road towards Madikeri seems to have been newly laid and was very smooth. The last lap was little bad with pot holes but was manageable as the distance was short. We reached our resort around 11:30 AM. After all our check in formalities at Club Mahindra Kodagu Valley, we freshened and stepped out to eat lunch. Had lunch at one of the restaurants at Hotel Coorg International. Food was very tasty and after a sumptuous lunch went back to the resort for a good nap. The day was spent indoors watching TV.

Day 2 - The second day started after a good night’s sleep. We left the hotel at 9:15 AM and went in search of a nice place to have breakfast at Madikeri and landed at a nice vegetarian canteen. The place was very neat and small and served very homely breakfast. Was worth the try and we decided we would do our breakfast there till our stay at Coorg. The name of this place is Krishna Canteen (Near Hotel Fort View). Post breakfast proceeded towards Thala Cauvery (The birth place of Cauvery). It was a wonderful drive through paddy fields and valleys. The road condition was fine most of the times except at few places. Reached the temple and there was a view point from there and had to climb appx 300 steps and it was a blind view point where there was no walls constructed. The weather has been amazing ever since we reached Coorg and it has been very cold all through the day with slight drizzle once in a while. We also covered a place called Bagamandala which was 8 Kms before Thala Cauvery. This place had a temple and a stream that was called the Triveni Sangam as 3 rivers confluence here. After spending some time there, we had lunch at a small mess which again was simple but good food and left back to our resort. Rest of the day was spent again indoors.

Day 3 – As usual started around 8:30 in the morning for breakfast and post that visited the Abbey Falls. The drive was pleasant with the roads being narrower and with sharp curves. After parking our car, we started to walk down the pathway to reach the falls. It was about 500 meters down and the path was easy to walk with broader steps. It wasn’t very steep. The roar of the falls could be heard much before reaching the spot. The moment we reached the falls the view was absolutely breathtaking. Since this was just after the monsoons the falls was at its best flow. The roaring sound of the water and the water hitting our face was just awesome. There was a hanging bridge that was right across the water giving direct view of the falls and the river below. Standing on that bridge itself was a wonderful experience as you would tend to get drenched because of the water from the falls hitting directly. After spending some time there enjoying the water we started our walk back. The walk up was not very tiresome as the steps were much broader and easier to walk. After some refreshments started from there and visited the Omkareshwara temple, Madikeri fort and went for lunch at a place that served very homely meals. After a good lunch came back to the resort and spent some time in the evening walking around the resort and enjoying the places inside

Day 4 – As usual the day started with breakfast and we headed straight to Dubare Elephant camp. This is a place where they train elephants for different purposes. To go to the elephant camp you need to take a boat to the other side of the river and there are boats for this purpose at very minimal cost of Rs 20 both ways. Unfortunately since it was prior to Dussherah, we were told that all elephants were taken away to Mysore only that morning. There was one elephant and we went on a short ride and after that came back to the other side of the river. Since it was post monsoon the river Cauvery was at its full flow and the sight was just amazing. There were some people who were pestering us to take to rafting and I was not very comfortable doing a rafting. I definitely am scared of the feel that I might fall in to the water knowing its an adventure sport. However, the other 2 were convinced that they wanted to raft and compelled me to join them as well stating that I would be missing something id I don’t go along with them. After much persuasion from them I decided to join them. I have always been for boating everywhere however the thought of rafting especially when there are rapids scared the shit out of me.  We were 3 in a boat along with a guide and it was a 7km raft with 3 rapids. We were all set for the ride and the guide thought us some basic commands and some basic instructions that we had to follow. It all sounded good and he mentioned he would teach us some safety commands after we start our ride. It was very smooth and the water was almost still at most of the places and the feel was absolutely good with the Dubare forest on one side, the sound of birds, the sound of water, the sound of air.... Beautiful feeling it was. So now was the time for us to hear more commands from him. The worst was coming from him to add to my fear. He was telling about the rapids and told us that in case we happen to fall in to the water we need to just lie flat and that the water would push us a little further and he can come and pick us up. Lying flat because he mentioned there are rocks everywhere and chances that we might get hit in our legs if we just try to float as is. So that was enough to add to my fear. Now I was eagerly waiting for the 1^st rapid and was asking him many questions and he was patient enough to answer them. He said it was a simple rapid and it would be fun. So just before we were approaching we were asked to row fast and there we were at the 1^st one and I still remember how the boat hit on a huge rock and rotated in the swirl before landing at a safe place and by then we were inside out of water. This one was enough to get that fear factor out of me. It became fun then on and I was eagerly waiting for the next one not knowing how good or bad that was gonna be. Before the 1^st and 2^nd there was quite some distance and we were just enjoying nature as we were rowing. The 2^nd was supposed to be a simple one with a small drop and that’s it, it was supposed to be. We were supposed to be rowing real fast to cross the rapid without getting stuck in the rocks. SO we were all geared up once again, and just as I thought we were in and out of water and crossed the 2^nd one, I realised that our boat got stuck in a huge bush right in front of the rapid. It was nightmarish for me as the water was absolutely forceful and the boat was sitting in a bush and was not moving an inch and because of the force of water the guide also couldn’t push the boat. It was scary but at the same time fun too. The guide now had to slowly get down in the water and he found some place to rest his feet for support and tried hard to push the boat away from the bush. It was getting a little difficult because of the force of water. However with the help of other 2 guys in the boat, we somehow managed to get out of that rapid and it was good fun. So once again it was all calm and the guide warned us that the 3^rd which is the last one is very forceful and there are all chances of falling inside and he warned us to hold the rope real tight and not let go in case we fall. So my nightmare never ended. Though I was enjoying everything, I wanted to get out of that place without falling anywhere. The 3^rd one approached we rowed fast and there was a drop once again and as he had rightly mentioned it was very forceful and our boat literally sank inside the water before coming up and the boat was filled with water. This was an experience of a lifetime for me. Now he made a round in the same area and parked the boat right in front of the rapid and I was again scared that he was gonna ask me to get out of the boat to drain the water off as that’s what he was mentioning to us. He asked me to handover everything to him including my specs and asked me to lean in front of the boat holding the rope tight. He said he was gonna make the final one very adventurous. He took control of the waves and the way he went towards the rapid made the boat vertical and it went inside the water literally and came back to normal. It was ecstasy. Since I was inside the boat kneeling I went completely inside water and he repeated the same for about 5 times before I screamed to him to stop that. The water was forcefully hitting on the face and it was real fun. I think that was the most unforgettable part of the trip and I still don’t think that I would ever have the courage to go for something like that all over again. This experience can only be felt and I have tried hard to express it in words.

So that was fun filling and we headed straight to a restaurant as we were very hungry. Had good food and visited  this place called Nisargadhama. Good place and was very calm, full of bamboo trees. After that we called it a day and returned to our resort.

Day 5 – We were all prepared to leave Coorg after a fun filling and memorable holiday. It was drizzling ever since morning and we had one more place to cover before we headed to Bangalore. It was Bylakuppe – The Tibetan settlement. So we stopped at that place around 10 AM and the place gave a feel as if we were in some other country. The whole place was nice and it was supposedly the prayer time at the Monastery. It was good and after spending a while there and after a bit of shopping, we headed straight to Bangalore nonstop.

So there came the end of an awesome, fun filling, memorable vacation and drive.

Kolli Hills

Kolli Hills

This was as mentioned earlier planned well in advance weekend trip. Started on a Saturday morning at 5:30 from our house in Adyar. It took us till 8 AM to reach Dindivanam due to the heavy truck traffic on GST. Non avaiability of diesel in the bunks also added to a 45 minute delay. Reached The Highway Hotel at 8 and had a good breakfast. It was a decent place and the food was good too. After 45 minute started our non stop drive to Kolli hills. Since we were driving down we had a print of the route from Google maps and in spite of that kind of missed our way due to non availability of sign boards.

Though not much of a deviation, we went inside the city of Kallakurichi and had to touch the route from Chinna Salem. I should say I was amazed by the highways. The state highways have been so well maintained and the roads were just butter smooth. Very spacious 4 lane almost on all the state highways we touched.

The map that we printed did help us a lot and we were finally at the foot of kolli hills. The entire route was so amazing with paddy fields on either sides and it was all green throughout. May be because we just went at the start of the monsoon.

Finally we reached our destination “Nallathambi resort” by around 3 PM. It was a wonderful drive up hill with about 72 hair pin bends. The bends were pretty steep and it was a fun drive and a bit scary one too.

Though we had booked the accommodation well in advance we were made to wait as the rooms got filled by some college kids. We did pack some tamarind rice and took some chips along not knowing if we would get anything on the way. In fact that food helped us survive till 4:30 PM when we actually got the room. We freshened up before starting to explore the place. We visited a view point that was a KM away from the village named “Solakkadu”. Then we visited another place that was like a park, however there was nothing great. The view from every place on the hill was just breath taking. There are no words that can describe it. The un polluted air and the chilly breeze that hit the face is also something that cannot be described.

We reached our resort and ordered some dinner. Dinner was very homely and there weren’t too many varieties as they do not have any vegetable suppliers on the hill and they procure everything from the villages at the foot hills. Hence the choice was limited but very tasty as well.

That was day 1 at Kolli. The next day we started pretty early. Had steaming hot breakfast at the resort and started our way to the Akash Ganga waterfalls. The details of this waterfall can be seen on the following website:

I was very sceptical to walk down as it was a falls to which you need to walk down 1000 odd steps. Climbing down the stairs was also not so easy as after half a distance of going down I realised that my legs started trembling. Hence I had to give breaks to even climb down. Steps were steeper at few points and narrower as well. The view however was breathtaking on all sides. It was as if I was walking endlessly and could hear or see no falls anywhere. When I was really tired of climbing down, I could at a distance hear the roar of a waterfall and I got very excited to see how it would be and I forgot about my trembling legs and walked down very fast. At one point the stairs came to an end and I was so happy, but the next second I realised that there were some rocky terrain that I needed to cross to go to the waterfall. These were pretty sharp rocks and it was a bit scary to walk on them and I was walking with a constant fear that I would fall any moment.

The moment I crossed this terrain what I saw was an amazing sight and one would forget the number of steps climbed down. It was a fall from a height of about 300 meters and true to its name it looked as if it was falling from the sky. We were standing at a distance of about 300 meters and in spite of that the water was hitting on our face.

Spent some time enjoying this natural beauty and it was time for us to climb up and I was so scared at the thought of getting up those 1000 steps. It was pretty difficult, but somehow by taking breaks I managed to reach the top safely. From there we went back to our resort and it was time for us to pack and leave.

It was again a good drive down the hills though it felt as if we took more time coming down than the time we took to go uphill. Went straight to Namakkal temple and from there started our journey back to Chennai. We took a different route this time around and came via Thuraiyur, Perambalur and NH 45 from then on. Once again butter smooth highways.

Reached Chennai by 9 PM. Overall it was a very nice weekend and had good fun.

*Since am writing this blog almost after 2 months of my trip I haven’t provided the complete details of timings, highways etc*