HILL STATIONS - TAMILNADU

HILL STATIONS IN TAMILNADU, INDIA

KODAIKANAL - Kodaikanal , 'The Princess of Hill Stations"' is one of the most popular serene hill stations in India. With her wooded slopes, mighty rocks, enhancing waterfalls and a beautiful lake, Kodaikanal will mesmerize any visitor. In a state where scenery and terrain is perhaps more varied than in any other part of the country, where the forested slopes of the majestic hills of the western Ghats vie with the magnificent beaches of the Coriander coast, it is indeed difficult to decide which is the best feature of multi-faceted Tamil Nadu.

Located 120 Kms away from Madurai, Kodaikanal is a beautiful hill station and is at an altitude of 2133m on the southern tip of the upper Palani hills in the Western Ghats. Kodaikanal has a bracing climate where temperature do not vary much from summer to winter. Fruits like plums and plantains grow abundantly on the wooded slopes apart from a wide variety of flowers, among which is the famous Kurinji flower which blooms once in twelve years.

Kodai's most enchanting sights include the star shaped lake, spread over an area of 24 hectares where fishing allowed and boating facilities are available; one of the world's oldest Solar Observatories that was built in 1899; and the Orchidorium at the Sacred Heart College where about 300 species of orchids can be seen. There are also a number of picturesque walks like Coaker's Walk and Priest's Walk. Kodai's best view points are Pillar Rocks, and Green Valley View. Bear Shola Falls, Silver Cascade, Fairy Falls and Glen Falls are popular with picnickers while the Perumal Peak is a favorite with trekkers. The Kurinji Andover temple 3.2 Kms away is dedicated to Lord Subramanya. Located 120 Km/75 mile away from Madurai, Kodaikanal is a beautiful hill station at an altitude of about 2133 m on the southern tip of upper Palani hills in Tamil Nadu in the Western Ghats. A well known feature and the one that attracts a lot of tourists is the blooming of the famous Kurinji flower, which blooms once in12 years.

Yercaud - Poor man's Ooty

stations. No mention is ever made, even in passing, of Yercaud. Majority of the people even refuse to accept that Yercaud is also a hill station. Yercaud is, in a way, the poor man's Ooty, much like elandai pazham being the poor man's apple! If Ooty is the queen of hills, Yercaud is the princess! For the people in the Northern districts, suffering for centuries due to poverty, drought, famine, hunger and heat, the only silver lining is Yercaud. Yercaud which is 1515 meters above sea level is 333 sq. km in extent. The maximum temperature is 29 Celsius only. The population is 32,746 and most of the people are tribal. A number of buses ply from Salem to Yercaud and back.The only mode of travel from Salem to Yercaud is by bus. It takes an hour of

negotiating 20 dangerous hair-pin bends to reach the peak. One is gripped by fear as the bus negotiates the hair-pin bends: one breathes easy only after seeing the greenery on either side of the road signaling the end of travel! It is very scary if one looks down through the window! All along the route, monkeys playing pranks and violet flowers on trees makes one wonder where one is. There is greenery all round - this is a new experience, for the city bred. The forests make one energetic and enthusiastic, like a child.

Yercaud is yet another example of how the British appreciated our natural resources better than us. Yercaud is famous for coffee and pepper in much the same way Ooty and Kodai are famous for tea. The English used Yercaud as a summer retreat and their legacy is all over the place. Rows and rows of houses, much like ants moving in files, dot the entire hills. The number of places to be seen in Yercaud may not be many, but each one of them is really worth the visit. One of the important places is the Pagoda point. The Pagoda Point, is so known because a number of pyramid-like structures abound here. The Anjaneya temple is believed, by the locals, to be very powerful. One can get a full view of Salem from here.

You can go boating for Rs.20. The one kilometer lake is surrounded by trees all round. It is a pleasurable experience to go boating in this lake. Depending on one's budget one can take a two-seater or a six-seater boat. Right on top of the hill stands the Servarayan temple in which Lord Servarayan resides with his consort Kaveri.                  This deity, the local people believe, is the guardian angel for the 67 villages in and around Yercaud. This temple is inside a cave and one has to bend and go in. People go inside in batches of three.

The cave extends beyond the temple and the locals say it extends all the way to the Kaveri in Karnataka, a distance of 480 km. Very few have explored the full cave. One of the shopkeepers Mathaiyan said, "I have tried going inside this cave once. I could go only 3 km. I did this after a strict fasting for 41 days. After 3 km. it is pitch dark; no ventilation; snakes all over. it is believed some saints, in the days gone by, had traveled the full length. Tippu Sultan was supposed to have hidden in this cave during a war." To the south east of the temple is a very old well and it is a wishing well. The locals believe if they are able to throw at least one stone, from three picked up from the temple, inside the well, with their backs to the well, they will succeed in whatever they plan to do. If one walks down from the Temple, one reaches Killiyur falls. Water, falls from a height of 300 m. During the rainy seasons, the locals say, these falls are very dangerous. Next to the Servarayan temple is the Raja Rajeswari Amman temple. There is also the Jothi Samadhi ashram. The massive Rajarajeswari idol is installed in a sitting posture, and 4.5 feet tall. One can buy prasad, gem stones and lucky stones. There is also a hall for meditation. One can get a full view of Namakkal and Salem from the "Ladies Seat". The Anna Park is a quiet place to relax.

The annual flower show is in May. Cardamom, pepper, orange are the main crops in Yercaud. Seasonal fruits are produced in plenty. The majority of the local population consists of daily wage-earners in the coffee estates. 30% of the houses were built during the British Raj. The British legacy is there to be seen and felt in a number of places. A number of hotels built to International standards are well ensconced among trees. To enjoy every bit of nature in this hill, the British paved roads and built dwelling units. If the early architects of this hill station were to see the roads today, they would be shocked! The roads are pathetic - full of craters, ill-maintained, uncared for. The only hope is, Yercaud gets its fair share of the Central Government's increased budget for tourism. The English who returned to their native land, after our Independence, would certainly have felt a sense of anguish and a tinge of sadness at being forced to leave this wonderful place, surrounded by Nature. October and November are the best months here. Foreign tourists are more during the other months. Since Dassera holidays are in October, there a lot of tourists from Bangalore. In November tourists from North India visit Yercaud, taking advantage of Diwali holidays. Yercaud is less expensive than other tourist destinations and is preferred by the middle class. By car, the expense is Rs.400 only, for a full tour of Yercaud. Travel guide charges are Rs.150 only - the entire family can tour Yercaud on a budget of about Rs.1000.

KODAIKANAL SIGHT SEEING

Lake View : A magnificent star-shaped lake glitters like a jewel amidst the Emerald Green wooded slopes. This 24 hectare lake is skirted by 5 Kms long. Blacktopped road is a focal point of Kodai. This lake was created in 1863 by Sir Vere Hentry Levinge(1885), who was the Collector of Madurai, retired and settled in Kodai. He constructed the bund to form a lake and stocked the lake with fish. He brought the first boat from Tuticorin. In 1890, a boat club was formed and the members sailed in the boat.

BOAT SERVICES  1. T.T.D.C Boat House (9.00 A.M to 5.30P.M)  Pedal two seater Rs 15 ( 30 Mts)  Pedal four seater Rs 25 ( 30 Mts) Rowing four seater Rs 20 ( 30 Mts)  2. Kodai Boat Club (9.00 A.M to 5.30 P.M) Pedal two seater Rs 20 ( 30 Mts) Pedal four seater  Rs 30 ( 30 Mts)  Single boat rowing Rs 20 ( 30 Mts)  Double boat rowing Rs 30 ( 30 Mts)  3. Carlton Hotel Boat House  Pedal four seater Rs 52.25 (1 hour)  Rowing six seater Rs 36.60 (1 hour) Shikara two seater Rs 105 (1 hour)

Bergium Lake : The Lake which supplies drinking water to Periyakulam town is 21 Kms from Kodaikanal (Beyond the Pillar Rocks). It is a fine picnic spot offering beautiful scenery. In 1864,Douglas Hamilton wrote : - "The Vicinity of this lake is in my opinion by far the best sight on the Hills".

Brynt Park : This Park is situated on the eastern side of the lake. It is noted for flowers, hybrids and grafts. Cut flowers are exported from here. A glass house which shelters over fine varieties of flowers can be seen here. Flower show conducted every year during May, as a part of Summer Festival is to be seen by one and all. The Flora and Fauna Museum is maintained by the Sacred Heart College. A Theological Seminary was founded in 1895. It is devoted to the archaeological remains and the flora and fauna of the hills. One of the best Orchidorium in the country with more than 300 species is also located here. It is about 5.6 Kms from the lake. A Spanish Father Ugarthe, contributed his major collections to the Museum. A wide ranging collection of birds classified into ground birds, water birds, tree birds and large high flying birds such as Black Eagle, Bengal Vulture, Honey Buzzard, Crested Hawk-Eagle.

Coakers Walk : This hill-edge path way was identified by Er. Coakers in 1872. About a Kilometer from the lake, Coakers Walk runs along a steep slope on the southern side of Kodai. It offers some of the best views of the Plains. Entry fee is collected per head here.

Silver Cascade : This is Located on the Ghat road leading to Madurai and is about 8Kms from Kodaikanal. The overflow of Kodai Lake comes down here as 180 feet high falls. If the temperature of water suits, tourists can take bath Kodaikanal is rich in Flora and Fauna. It has a unique plant. The Kurinji, which blossoms once in 12 years, makes the hill slopes a "Blaze of Purple".

Bear Shola Falls :About 1.6 Kms from the lake, Bear Shola Falls can be reached through a picturesque rugged hill path. This is an ideal picnic spot.

picturesque, green Udhagamandalam better known as Ooty is the most popular hill station in the South. Located in the Western Ghats at a height of 2240m, Udhagamandalam is the headquarters of the Nilgiris district where the two Ghats meet. Nature has been generous with this region which is by far the most beautiful in the state. Apart from coffee and tea plantations, trees like conifers, eucalyptus, pine and wattle dot the hillside in Udhagamandalam and its environs. Summer temperature is rarely higher than 25°c with a minimum of 10°c and winter is are distinctly cooler with a high of 21°c and a low 5°c. Curiously enough, this slice of paradise remained unknown to the great southern dynasties and it took the British to discover it in the early 1800s. They were however, not the first inhabitants of this land as a tribe called Todas had been living there long before the British came, claiming that the Nilgiris had been their home since time immemorial. But the credit for modernizing Udhagamandalam and making it accessible goes to the British who constructed the first railway line in the area and made it the summer capital of the Madras Presidency. About Udhagamandalam : Settlement in Udhagamandalam began in 1822 with the construction of the Stone House by John Sullivan, the then Collector of Coimbatore. The bungalow which is locally called Kal Bangla is one of the landmarks of Udhagamandalam and is now the Chamber of the Principal of the Government Arts College. Not many years after the construction of the Stone House, several other English cottages with pretty gardens, large bungalows of top officials in the Government are built.

Even today the atmosphere of the Raj lingers in places like the Club where snooker was invented by a subaltern named Neville Chamberlain, the Nilgiri Library with its rare and valuable collection of books on Udhagamandalam and St. Stephen's Church which was Udhagamandalam's first church.

The cemetery near the church has the oldest British tombstones in the town and include those of John Sullivan's wife and daughter among other prominent personalities. South Indian Tea has gained recognition far and wide. India is the fifth largest tea producing belt in the world after China. In 1991, South India exported 50 million kg to over 30 countries. Tea and Tourism Festival is celebrated in the Nilgiris Jointly by the Department of Tourism, Government of Tamil Nadu and Ministry of Tourism, Government of Tamil Nadu and Ministry of Tourism, Government of India in every January/February. Cultural programmes, visits to Tea Estates and factories, fun and frolic etc., mark this celebrations. Come to Nilgiris, during this festival, when tea lovers from all over the world converge. An occasion not to be missed.

South Indian Tea has gained recognition far and wide. India is the fifth largest tea producing belt in the world after China. In 1991, South India exported 50 million kg to over 30 countries. Tea and Tourism Festival is celebrated in the Nilgiris Jointly by the Department of Tourism, Government of Tamil Nadu and Ministry of Tourism, Government of Tamil Nadu and Ministry of Tourism, Government of India in every January/February. Cultural programmes, visits to Tea Estates and factories, fun and frolic etc., mark this celebrations. Come to Nilgiris, during this festival, when tea lovers from all over the world converge. An occasion not to be missed.

PLACES OF INTEREST: Botanical Garden: A variety of exotic and ornamental plants adorn this garden which is the venue for the Flower Show held in May every year. There is a fossil tree trunk 20 million years old in the midst of the garden. Lake: This artificial lake was constructed in 1824 by mr. John Sullivan, the then Collector of Coimbatore. Boating is possible from 08.00 hrs to 18.00 hrs on all days. The lake garden and toy trains rides are other attractions. Udhagamandalam: This Queen of hill stations, known as Ooty, is in Nilgiri mountain ranges in Tamil Nadu. At a height of 2268 meters, Ooty is known for its salubrious climate and scenic beauty. The nearest airport is Coimbatore (100 Kms). By rail it is connected by narrow gauge. By road it is 152 Kms from Mysore, 293 Kms from Bangalore & 271 Kms from Cochin. Government Museum: The Government Museum, Mysore road, has items of tribal objects, district's ecological details and representative sculptural arts and crafts of Tamilnadu.

The Mukurthi Peak & Mukurthi National Park: Mukurthi Peak is about 40 Km/24 mile from Ooty. The Mukurthi National Park is located on the South Eastern corner of the Nilgiris Plateau. The area contains a viable population of Nilgiri Thar (Hermitages hilocrius). The silent Valley is located on the Western side of these ranges. Fascinating feature of the Mukurthi Sanctuary is its endemism and relationship with Himalayan Flora and Fauna. Ketty Valley View: Located on the road to Coonoor, this idyllic spot is a cluster of tiny Villages that extend to the plains of Coimbatore and Mysore plateau. Pykara: Situated about 21 Kms/13 Mile on the Ooty-Mysore Road, boasts of well protected fenced Shoals, Toda settlement, undisturbed grassy meadows and also a good wildlife habitat. The Pykara Dam and the reservoir attracts many tourists. Glenmorgan (17 Km/10 Mile): This is an Electricity Board. (EB) winch carries staff from Glenmorgan view point to power house at Singara. All the four Kms of the winch track passes through undisturbed shoals and wildlife habitat. Prior permission of EB authorities should be obtained to enter the view point zone. There are about ten Toda (tribal) settlement.

Upper Bhavani : 10 Km/6 Mile from Korakundah and about 20 Kms/12 Mile from Avalanchi. Some of the best shoals like the Thar Shola lies Enroute. The area is a rich and undisturbed wildlife habitat. From Bangithappal via Sispara one can trek to Silent Valley. Avalanchi : Located at a distance fo 28 Km/17 mile from Ooty, a beautiful lake surrounded by a thick shoal where even sunlight cannot penetrate and abundant with a wide variety of avifauna is a Nature Lover's Paradise. Western Catchments : It is about 20 Kms/12 Mile from Parsons Valley. It consists of Rolling Grassy downs interspersed with temperature shoals occupying depression and valleys. Mudumalai Wildlife Sanctuary: Lying in the Nilgiris District abutting Kerala & Karnataka State, this is situated at an elevation of 1000 meters and extends over an area of 321 sq. Kms. The wildlife includes Elephant, Gaur, Tiger, Panther, Sambar, Spotted Deer, Barking Deer, Mouse, Wild Boar, Porcupine etc. Doddabetta: It is the highest peak (2623 meters) in the Nilgiris and is 10 Kms / 6.2 Mile from Ooty. It lies at the junction of Western & Eastern Ghats and offer beautiful vistas of the Nilgiri Hills ranges. There is a telescope house run by TTDC.

Kalhatti Water Falls: It is located on the Kalhally slopes and about 13 Kms/ 8 Mile from Ooty. Wenlock Downs: A vast expanse of understanding landscape offering Gymkhana Club, the Government Sheep Farm and Hindustan Photo Films Company besides pleasure of long stroll on quiet road. Elk Hills: A wide range and uninterrupted view of Ooty and the Love dale Valley can be had from here. Snowden Peak: Situated at the Kothagiri Road, it offers a picturesque view of Mysore. Trekking Routes: A number of Trek routes have been identified. Trekking is also organized in breath taking picturesque routes. Hang - Gliding: Hang - Gliding courses are also organized during March to May every year, with the assistance of Dept. of Tourism. Angling: Good trout, Carp and mixed water fishing is possible in various streams and lakes in the Nilgiris. Fishing license for a fee is issued by the Assistant Director of Fisheries, Fish Dale, Udhagamandalam near bus stand.