Munnar and Thekkadi

Thoughts about Kerala always invoke an image of Backwaters, Coconut Trees, Snake Boats and the unique Chinese fishnets . This is a very traditional image of Kerala in minds of everyone and I was no different till I visited it some years ago. I had traveled a lot in India including the south but Kerala had been evasive before I made a determined tour.

I was exhausted after a hectic 2 years long vacation-less stretch in the office and decided to take a cool trip with Kesari Travels. Generally, I like arranging the trips myself and explore the novelty but this time I was in no mood to trouble my mind with stress of planning.

Guided tour started with Kochi – Ernakulam which was all as expected. I don’t really like big cities as all of them have the same problems to offer, heavy traffic, congestion, noisy narrow streets and polluted dirty water bodies. The long queues and rush of tourists around is good enough to exhaust you before you could reach the destination.

Fortunately next day we started for Munnar. My mind was completely blank as my knowledge about Munnar could be described with a single liner …. A hill station in Kerala. That was all I knew.
Kerala is a densely populated state and you never get a feeling of being out of town anywhere. Populated roadsides continue almost throughout the state. I was just wondering on the size of Kochi as it did not seem to end. After a couple of hours we entered the hilly region and countryside began. The surroundings started looking lush green, earth covered with dense forests and Tea estates.

Weather in Kochi had been hot and humid whereas now it started getting cold. As we moved higher the surrounding became more and more scenic. First feel of Munnar brought a fresh cool breeze to the mind. By lunch time we reached the town. It was cloudy and raining.

I love to see green hills when it is raining. I can spend hours looking at hills with thick cover of trees and their peaks completely engulfed in clouds. It is one of the best visuals seen in the Western Ghats during monsoon.
After lunch we setup for Eravikulam National park which hosts the highest peak in Kerala. Local ‘jeeps’ carried us to the entrance and then there was a long endless queue for the bus which carries the visitors to the top. After an hour or so we could get into the bus and were taken to the point from where one has to walk. There was fog around and we were told to walk up the hill with a visibility of barely 20 feet to spot animals. My family loves climbing hills in such weather so we had no complaints. On the way we met our disappointed companions returning back. They had not been able to see any animal but we carried on. We were more interested in the scenery and the walk in clouds. Spotting animals was just an added benefit.

Surrounding and the weather was exactly to our liking and we kept walking till we reached a stream of water. A few fogless moments offered amazing views which lasted for some seconds and again everything was engulfed under the thick blanket. That was when my daughter spotted wild goat grazing nearby.

We started descending from this point and were again back in the queue for bus. It was raining so people were cramped under a tree. The leaves of the tree overhead offered little protection but it was a picture to be captured in the camera.

By evening we were back to the hotel where we had had lunch earlier and were told that there was another 45 minutes of travel to reach the place of stay, a hotel called ‘Fort Munnar’.
I was desperately looking for a cup of tea and spotted a stall across the road. The stall offered one of the best glasses of tea in my life. The glass was bigger than usual and the concoction was made from the fresh local tea leaves. Nothing tests better than a hot cup of masala tea in a cold rainy evening.

Drive to the hotel was tiresome but the hotel was beautiful. It is located on a ledge and has a valley behind it. They have even created a small park and a view point on a rock to see the valley. Our room was located exactly above the rock and the valley could be seen from the window. In the morning, the fog removed itself for a while and we could see the valley covered with thick forest. There was a dam at the bottom and the water was shining like silver. Like all good dreams this scene lasted for a few minutes and the curtain of fog covered the valley again.

Interestingly there was a hill immediately across the road, near hotel but the fog had completely hidden it. It became visible only when we started for Munnar town around 9 o’clock. Weather in Munnar changes fast. No sooner did we start the clouds vanished and there was clear sunlight. Drive to Munnar was thrilling because of the narrow road. At times, the driver had to reverse the bus to let the vehicle arriving from opposite direction pass. This drive offered amazing views.
First there was a waterfall .

Then there were tea gardens, covering the hills under blue sky. One must visit Munnar for these sublime views.

Munnar is a small town and is blessed with large water reservoirs and 7 months of rain. Next item on the cards was a visit to Mattupetty dam. We were probably early so were saved from the queue. Boating is a standard thing to do for all visitors, especially when you travel with a company. Kesari’s Kerala visit was full of boating events, minimum one everyday. Although there was nothing new in boating the dam offers some picturesque views.

Evening was free and that was the best time I enjoyed in Munnar. Went for a walk upto the waterfall. Weather had changed its mood again, it was cold and rainy so there was hardly anyone on the street. Long walks amid clouds and the green surroundings is the best experience in hills and one must not miss it.

Next day we traveled to Kumily. This small town is situated near the famous Periyar reservoir. It is a huge lake surrounded by thick forest, which houses wild life. Kumily is also famous for spices.
An interesting thing about Kerala is the variation in plantation. At sea level there are coconut trees and paddy fields which is quite common in India. As you travel upwards towards Munnar, you can see large tea gardens. Go down at lower altitude to Thekkadi and you can experience spice gardens. A further downward journey towards Allapuzza and you can see rubber plantations. All this is very unique.
Boat trip in the Periyar lake had its usual woes. Tourist rush, full boats, unruly tourists making noise and rushing to take pictures when any animal was spotted are very common. We were just in time to catch the last boat tour. The boat supervisor was frustrated of instructing people and was probably waiting for the tour to end.
Having said that, I wouldn’t undermine the beauty of the lake. It is a fantastic lake with a thick forest cover around. Birds sitting on the trunks of trees submerged in the water is a picturesque visual. Moreover, once the boat travels away from the shore, usual noise stops and you are in the serene environment enjoying the nature.

I could spot dear and dragon lizards from my seat.

The boat trip takes about an hour. My patience and calmness paid. I was in the first row and immediately in front of the supervisor who was tired of appealing people to be calm and stationary. Perhaps my silence and adherence to his instructions impressed him and he vented out all his complaints to me in Malayalam and English. Suddenly my camera, inspired the photographer within him. He took it from me and started taking pictures. There was an elephant and a herd of wild buffaloes about half a kilometer away from us. It could be seen from the other side of the boat. He captured them in camera for me.

We spent the night in a fantastic resort called Spice Garden. It offers cottages surrounded by a small forest. Next day we were back at the sea level.

Munnar and Thekkadi changed the image of Kerala in my mind. Thick forests, cloudy hills, rainy climate and large water reservoirs come to my mind before coconut trees and backwaters when I think about Kerala now.
I am not satisfied with just a three days stay in the hills of Kerala and looking for the next season of Neelkurinji. It is a flower which blooms on the hills of Munnar once in 12 years. Probably that is the time for my next trip.