Kerala Monsoon Travel ~ Summing Up

First allow me to thank you if you have read all the previous parts of this wonderful Kerala monsoon travelogue. If you have not you can read them from the links below:

Part 1: Cherai Beach

Part 2: Periyar National Park

Part 3: Munnar

Part 4 : Marayoor

Before I start summarising the trip, the most frequently asked question that I have received time and our again is:

Is it necessary to take RT PCR for those who travel from Kerala?

The Answer is NO. There is no vaccination certificate or RT PCR report required anywhere. No hotels, national parks or bus terminus.However you are expected to put on your mask in all public places.

The route that we followed was : Bangalore - > Cherai -> Periyar National Park -> Marayoor -> Bangalore

It was roughly 900 kms for the entire trip from Bangalore to Bangalore. We did the entire trip on road in our car ( Duster).






Cherai Beach

Cherai is a popular fisherman's village in the Vypin Islands of Kerala. It is near to Kochi.

Highlights: clean beaches, backwater, fresh seafood at affordable price.

Places to see:

• The Backwaters: The place where the lakes, lagoons and canals come together is where the heart of Cherai lies. The calm waters of Periyar along with coconut trees depict the perfect scene of nature altogether. 

• Kuzhuppilly Beach: Beautiful quiet beach. There are Indian pine trees on the shore leading to the beach. Its a nice place for some sunset photography.

• Munamam Break Water Point & Beach: This attraction is situated towards the northern end of the Cherai beach and is a beautiful place where the Periyar River meets the Arabian Sea. It is a perfect spot to sit and spend time with your family as well as friends while enjoying the scenic beauty. The sunset sure should not be missed out on

• Munamam Fishing Harbour: This attraction is what attracts millions of tourists every year to buy fish and all other fresh seafood from the fishers at Fisherman's Wharf directly. 

• Pallipuram Church: The foundation of the Pallipuram church was laid down in 1507 and comprises of an image of Mary placed on top of the altar. The cultural life of Cherai would not be complete without the festival at the church which is celebrated for 15 days every year.

• Pallipuram Fort: This fort lies amongst the most ancient European monuments in India with a three-storied hexagonal structure. It was repaired between 1596 and 1605 and has a frontage added to it in the Manueline style.

Ideal number of days to stay: 2

Stay: We stayed at LightHouse Beach Resort. It is a homestay newly renovated. I will write a review post separately.

Rate was 6k per night
Cleanlines: 4/5
Location: 4.5/5 ( its a beach access property)
Space: 3.5/5 ( it accommodates 2 families. The villa is a little congested for two families staying at the same time)
Overall rating: 4.2 / 5 ( Considering stay options at Cherai are still not many)


They have a caretaker who lives adjacent to the guesthouse.She can make tea, snacks or meals at additional cost.

Periyar National Park

The most popular National park of Kerala along with Eravikulam National Park. Its a great place to sight plenty of wild animals and birds in their natural habitat. The morning boat ride in the Periyar river is the best to spot wild dogs, sambhar deer, boar and a hoard of birds.

Highlights: flora and fauna, the boat ride in the Periyar river

Places to see:

• Periyar National Park : You should not miss the morning 7:30 am ferry ride.One can also book a guided trekking trip in the forest to spot animals and birds and also see some rare trees.

Ideal number of days to stay: 1

Stay: We stayed at Periyar House. It is a Government property. We booked through Goibibo.
Cleanlines: 3/5
Location: 4.8/5 ( its inside the forest )
Space: 3.8/5 ( Rooms are okay in size. Wish the furnitures were a bit more decent looking.)
Overall rating: 4 / 5 ( Considering the property is inside the wildlife sanctuary and very courteous staff )

Munnar

The most popular tourist destination of Kerala, a slice of heaven in nature's lap, Munnar needs no introduction.If there is only one single place that you can visit in Kerala then it should be Munnar.

Highlights: scenic beauty, mountains,waterfalls and most importantly tea gardens

Places to see: 

• Mattupetty Dam : Situated 13 km off Munnar at 1700m above the sea level, is highly famous for the Indo-Swiss live stock projects. This picnic spot is also popular among its visitors for various activities like speed boating and horse riding.

• Echo Point : Located between Kundala Lake and Mattupetty dam is Echo Point.The place is extremely beautiful. However there is a lot of garbage that needs to be cleaned.Also there are a lot of hawkers and shops at the entry of the place which makes it look very congested.But once you get inside, the beauty of the place surely takes away all the not so pleasant first impressions.

• Cattle Point : Indo Swiss Dairy Farm is a cattle development and research centre that spreads over an area of 469 acres of lush green grasslands and is home to a variety of high-quality cattle. The farm rears about 400 heads of cattle and is the headquarter of the Indo-Swiss Livestock Project that was launched in 1963 on mutual agreement between the Swiss and the Indian Government.

• Kundala Lake and Dam : Situated in the laps of the lush jungle is Kundala Dam & Lake laying 23 km off Munnar. This arch dam is famous for its Kashmiri-Shikara boat rides and pedal boat rides.

• Top Station : Top Station is the highest point in Munnar at 6276 ft. It is the top place to visit in Munnar to enjoy the panoramic view of the majestic Western Ghats and valley of Theni District of Tamil Nadu.However you need to walk 2km to reach the view point.

• Tea Gardens : Perched at several feet over the sea level and boasting of misty skies above and green carpeted fields below, these splendid Tea gardens in Munnar are a must-visit for every traveller.

• Tea Museum : Located in the Nallathanni Estate of Tata Tea, the KDHP Museum is a tea museum housing old machinery used for tea processing, photographs and other memorabilia.

• Photo Point : A place on the road to Madupetty Dam where the road curvature gives beautiful views of surrounding tea gardens. The green tea fields and the blue sky gives the perfect landscape for any picture.

• Pallivasal Tea Estate and Waterfalls : The beautiful Pallivasal tea estate also has the Palliasal waterfalls.The waterfall cascades down a rocky slope and doesn't quite have a height but the force it gushes with is sure to captivate one and all. When we went we did not found too many tourist just 4 or 5 people, but its definitely a beautiful place in Munnar and should not be missed

• Spice Garden Tours : Some of the spice farms arrange spice garden induction tours in which the guide will show you the spice plants and later you can buy from their in-house shop. Its a good learning tour if you have never been to spice tours before.

• Eraikulam National Park : Located a 45-minute drive away from Munnar, the Eravikulam National Park (also known as Rajamalai Wildlife Sanctuary) is a UNESCO world heritage site. Elephant, Nilgiri langur, Nilgiri marten, Atlas moth (largest in the world), lion-tailed macaque, small-clawed otter, and a rare tiger or leopard are some of the main animal species that can be spotted here.There is a Government bus ride that will take you till the view point from where you can walk and enjoy the surroundings.

Ideal number of days to stay: 4

Stay: We stayed at various hotels. You can book your stay through any booking website.

Marayoor

A less popular destination of Kerala, Marayoor is very close to Chinnar Wild Life sanctuary. Marayoor has sandalwood reserve forest, the only one of its kind in Kerala.

Highlights: scenic beauty, Sandalwood reserve forest

Places to see:

• Chinnar Wildlife Sanctuary : A protected wildlife sanctuary, Chinnar boasts of beautiful landscape views along with a rich flora and fauna. Wildlife enthusiasts can take the jeep ride inside the national park or do a trekking. The most important fact about Chinnar WLS is that it is the only rehabilitation centre for Indian start tortoise in India. The entry to the national park has a giant statue of the star tortoise to represent its rehabilitation.

• Thoovanam Waterfalls : Thoovanam waterfall is a stunning waterfall located inside Chinnar Wildlife Sanctuary in Marayoor. Thoovanam waterfall is formed by the Pambar River and is the most popular waterfall in Marayoor. There are treks till the waterfall.

• Sandalwood Reserve Forest : At a distance of 5 km from Marayoor Bus Station, Sandalwood Forest is a naturally grown forest situated in Marayoor, Kerala. It is the only place in Kerala that has a natural sandalwood forest. There are more than 65,000 trees. The forest department has a nursery as well where anyone can buy sandalwood saplings.

• Ezhuthala Cave Rock Paintings : At a distance of 4 km from Marayoor Bus Stand, Ezhuthala Cave is a prehistoric cave situated inside Chinnar Wildlife Sanctuary in Marayoor. Known for its ancient rock art, it is one of the popular places to visit in Marayoor.

 The Ezhuthala cave paintings, said to be one of the most beautiful depictions in red ochre of the             prehistoric era in the country, are being ruined by the ravages of time in the absence of scientific preservation and protection.

• Dolmens : Dolmens or Muniyaras are the prehistoric burial chambers situated at Kovikadavu village near Marayoor.The magnificent Muniyaras or Dolmens belong to the Stone Age and are older than 10, 000 BC. The dolmens belong to to the Megalithic age. Apart from the dolmens of the Stone Age, several dolmens of the Iron Age exist in this region especially on the left side of River Pambar.

To reach you have to walk long distance in the forest. Also the dolmens are not very well maintained .

Ideal number of days to stay: 3

Stay: We stayed at a heritage property Chandana Royal. The options for stay in Marayoor is limited.
Cleanlines: 4/5
Location: 4/5 
Space: 5/5 ( Rooms are huge. Furnitures are wooden and very aesthetic
Overall rating: 4.1 / 5 

Marayoor , Kerala Monsoon Travel - 4

Unknown to a lot of people, Marayoor or Marayur is a very less touristy place. Being crazy travellers, we were aware of the place but there was never adequate information on the internet since it is not a popular tourist destination even though it just lies on one side of Chinnar Wildlife Sanctuary.We left Munnar a day before the usual plan as it was raining all the time. 

Marayoor is at a distance of 42 km from Munnar and the drive from Munnar to Marayoor is one of the best drives we have done so far. The road SH17 passes by Eravikulam National Park and the magical Kanan Devan Hills. So in case if you are visiting Eravikulam NP from Munnar, you will be travelling a part of the scenic road and get to enjoy a good part of the beauty, but that is only 40% of the whole show.

We left our hotel at around 11 am. First we stopped by a bakery to grab some tea and biscuits. There are plenty of bakeries in Munnar  just like in Bangalore and it is a very known thing that in Bangalore the majority of the bakeries are either run or owned by Keralites. But it seemed to us that bakeries in Munnar add less sugar in the tea compared to bakeries in Bangalore! ( at least in the ones we have tried).

Next we went to a spice shop. We got bags full of cardamon, cinnamon and tea. Cardamon is very fresh and less priced in Munnar. In Munnar we saw shops were selling Sri Lankan cinnamon as well as our Indian ones.

We left Munnar and started to follow SH17. Inspite of the rain for the last few days, the roads were good. As the road approaches Eravikulam NP, the scenic beauty increases. Till Eraikulam National Park there was a good number of cars on the road. The entrance to the National Park is on the highway and so there was a traffic congestion but after we crossed the gate, traffic got reduced. We got the road all for us, except for some cars and bikers which was rare and few.

After crossing Eravikulam, the road starts getting more scenic. We really could not find adequate words to describe how magical it looks and feels.Just image that from the road, you are looking far and what all you see is different layers of mountains all covered in so many shades of green. There is the strong wind blowing on your face and the sun playing hide and seek with you because of the clouds that are moving so very fast. At some places on the far away mountains you see the sun peeking through the clouds and that part of the mountain looks bright green while the other parts of the same mountain looks bottle green.You notice some tiny waterfalls in some faraway mountain - waterfall that has formed because of the heavy rain for the last two days and which might vanish if the Sun shines bright for the next two days. You see all these while breathing the mountain fresh oxygen saturated air, listening to the birds chirping away and standing on the side of a road which is done on a stepped mountain where one side is high and the other side is low and both the sides have tea gardens that are in your reach. Indeed magical is the only word I find to describe such a place! We took some time lapses and will share the videos here, once its uploaded in YouTube. Check it here --> Click Here

    view on the way

There are a few designated viewpoints that will fall on the road, one is the Anaimudi view point. Although there are no signboards as such, but many people do stop for a view.The road passes through the very famous Kanan Devan estates. We also stopped to take a few pictures and enjoy the scenic beauty of the very very beautiful Kanan Devan Hills.The name Kanan Devan has an interesting story.When the first British men came to Munnar, they took the help of two local Madhuvan tribal mean as their local guide who would help them to survey the land. The madhuvans were the early tribal people living in the area.Modern history describe them as descendants of a group of people who migrated from the Africa about 55,000 years ago.They are considered to be the earliest inhabitants of the Western Ghats. The two local Madhuban men's names were Kanan and Devan and hence the British named the hills as Kanan Devan.

    Kanan Devan Estates

    Kanan Devan Estates

    Kanan Devan Estates

    Kanan Devan Estates

As we crossed Kanan Devan and moved further, the vegetation of the land changed. So far it was tea gardens all around, now tea gardens started getting replaced by huge stretches of shola forests.Sholas are the local name for patches of stunted tropical montane forest found in valleys amid rolling grassland in the higher montane regions of South India, largely in Kerala, Karnataka and Tamilnadu.The Shola forests of South India derive their name from the Tamil word solai, which means a 'tropical rain forest'.

As we approached more towards Marayoor, we entered the Marayoor Reserved Forest. An attendant at the checkpost took our details and allowed us to enter the reserved forest. Just a few metres inside the forest, we noticed that both the sides of the road are bounded by barb wires so that no one can enter the forest. As we were discussing amongst ourselves as what could be the reason, we saw a big banner in green which states 'Sandalwood Reserved Forest'. It made sense then, as why there were barbs on either side of the road.We also saw a Government nursery who had sandalwood saplings for sale in case anyone is interested. Later when came to know that this is the only place in Kerala that has natural sandalwood forest and every tall tree that we saw in the sandalwood Reserved Forest was a sandalwood tree.

We stayed at a heritage hotel Chandana Royal. The interiors of the hotel is outstanding. It is done on traditional Marayoor styled royal homes. Inside the hotel there is an abundance use of wood furnitures, railings, ceilings and lots of antique things. Apart from the interiors the location of the hotel is excellent. It is just adjacent to the Karimutty waterfalls, if I am not wrong with the name. The food is average except for the daal ( lentil soup) but the restaurant staffs are extremely courteous Marayoor does not have too many hotels as the tourist inflow is  less, but its still a good idea to book a hotel before going. The hotel industry is not so organised so whenever we called any hotel, they would give a rate, when we reached there they had a different rate and if your negotiation skill is good you will get another rate. 

Entry to the Chinnar wildlife sanctuary was just a few metres away from our hotel. There are jeep rides inside Chinnar WLS although we did not do it. From the hotel balcony we got some of the spectacular view of the far away mountains and the Thoovanam Waterfalls. The icing on the cake was on the next day when we saw double rainbow in the sky. The rooftop is also accessible to guests from where we got a 270 degree view. It was a view we will never forget...so vast and so beautiful.If you are staying in Marayoor this hotel is a recommended.

    Marayoor

    Marayoor

    Marayoor

Apart from sandalwood, Marayoor is also famous for its sugarcanes. We searched locally if we can get to buy some sandalwood pieces but we did not get much luck, maybe a good search in the nearby Marayoor main market would have been more fruitful.However the commodity that is found easily in Marayoor is fresh jaggery made from the locally grown sugarcane plants.

The next day after the normal checkout time we started heading back for Namma Bengaluru. We had to go through the Chinnar WLS. We spotted some birds such as the hoopoe and Indian roller and a mongoose.Some of the views were stunning.Marayoor was really rewarding for us in this trip, the weather stayed good, the stay was good and the scenic beauty was mesmerising. We never had much expectations but were amply rewarded.

In the last concluding blog, I will write about the trip itinerary and all related details. Till then...Byee.