[darklord]

Sure enough, as the car took the hairpin and reached the upper portion of the road, the shot of Malabar giant squirrel became better:





Some trees were in full bloom:



Roads continued to be patchy and shoulders had slush from yesterday's rain:



By 8:00, we were at the Top Slip check post. The guard there made entries in the register and sealed the receipt issued at Sethumadai. He showed hoof marks of a gaur who apparently visited early morning and also said there was a leopard lying on the check post's weights at about midnight.

This guy was apparently performing guard duties of his own:



There are tourist facilities of TN at Top Slip, but Parambikulam was our destination for the day.



We moved on towards Parambikulam:



All of a sudden, it became foggy:



We entered Kerala at 8:10:



Immediately greeting us was this:





We parked our car and went to the information center to report and collect our entry tickets.





The forest guard on duty was very courteous and asked if we had accommodation reserved or if we wanted one. When we answered in the negative, he asked us to wait as the first bus had left 10 minutes ago and the next bus had only 2 passengers so far, us!! We silently cursed our delay at Sethumadai check post.

Apparently, the information center issues tickets to enter Parambikulam only after a group of 18 to 20 forms, so we have to wait till one such group forms. Once a group forms, park entry tickets are issued and we have to drive till Parambikulam's reception office 2 km away, where we have facilities to park our vehicle, has a canteen, accommodation facilities if needed, a souvenir shop, and the safari booking office, where we have to purchase separate ticket for the safari.

Alternatively, one can book accommodation through the reserve's official website and you could drive without waiting and can go on safari in your own vehicle:
https://parambikulam.org/


The forest runs in its own time. Patience is an absolute necessity. We used the waiting time to click some photos.



There was a water tank nearby:



This Little cormorant was waiting patiently:



Grey wagtail?



This peacock flew down from a tree and gave this majestic pose. It was so close, I had to take a few steps back to get him in frame:



We waited for another 16 persons to come so that we can cross over into Parambikulam:

[discoverwild]

Originally Posted by Prodigy07

I thought the Lion Tailed Macaque can only be found near Valaparai belt.

But, during my recent visit to Tirumala I found couple of them roaming around the ghat roads.

The Lion-tailed Macaque is a rainforest species and is found only in the secluded spots of the Western Ghats in Tamil Nadu (Valparai, Theni, Tirunelveli), Kerala (Silent Valley, Periyar Tiger Reserve) and Karnataka (Dandeli region). Except for a few that are used to humans and walk the roads (Valparai), they are mostly arboreal (tree-dwelling) and do not venture to the ground below.

They do not have a presence in the Eastern Ghats. They are a Western Ghats endemic. So highly unlikely that you saw the LTM there. No chance of seeing the Nilgiri Langur there either.

I guess you are mistaken.

Originally Posted by darklord

This Nilgiri langur was not too keen on posing:
Attachment 1749923

But I did get a good one:
Attachment 1749922

Darklord, I missed checking put these pictures earlier. These are not the Nilgiri Langur but a cross-breed offspring of a Southern Grey Langur (Hanuman Langur) with a female Nilgiri Langur.

Well, how do I know? The Anamalai Tiger Reserve has been my second home for the better part of a decade, right from the mid nineties till about 2010. This particular troop of langurs had one female Nilgiri Langur with them and they lived right behind our rooms.

Nilgiri Langurs are almost jet-black with the facial mane being slightly darker than the ones here.

[darklord]

Originally Posted by discoverwild

Darklord, I missed checking put these pictures earlier. These are not the Nilgiri Langur but a cross-breed offspring of a Southern Grey Langur (Hanuman Langur) with a female Nilgiri Langur.

Wow!! I did look up extensively on both just because of the neither-here-nor-there color, but could not find conclusive evidence. Whilst I did briefly consider cross-breeding, I am too much of a novice on the matter.

Much appreciate you taking the time to enrich the thread with your knowledge. Hope you will follow the report till its end and make corrections if needed. Thanks.

[discoverwild]

Originally Posted by darklord

Much appreciate you taking the time to enrich the thread with your knowledge. Hope you will follow the report till its end and make corrections if needed. Thanks.

I'm not up to date with the taxonomy and classifications over the last decade as I have moved out of the wildlife scenario. There has been a huge upheaval in the names and it's confusing. I have no scientific background as such. Purely conservation-oriented. I used to work with the Forest Department on various programs and initiated educative eco-tourism at Top Slip. Been a while since I went there.

It will take a few more generations for this hybrid to stabilize and be classified as a separate species. A far more interesting hybrid that I got see pictures of was that of the Dhole (Asiatic Wild dog) with a domesticated one. This is because the Dhole and the common dog do not even belong to the same Genus, forget the species. So the offspring is actually an inter-genus hybrid and not a inter-species hybrid.

[AJITHAAA]

Glad you decided not to stay at Top slip and chose Parambikulam. The accommodation at Top slip are pathetic at best. The mattresses match the age of the British era buildings. The common restaurant has very limited options and if you want anything special, you need to drive down all the way to get ingredients and then they will prepare it for you. And the day we camped there it rained heavily, so no power and hence no water in the morning for all the basic needs. It was hell for all the women folk who had stayed there. The Kerala side did not open till 8:00 am and any decent place driving in the other direction was a good 15-20 kms away. The best part(worst part) of that journey was we had to get recommendation letter from TN secretariat and submit it at the Pollachi DC office for room allocation. When we crossed over to the Kerala side, it was paradise, affordable and no bureaucratic hoops to jump through.

[discoverwild]

Originally Posted by AJITHAAA

Glad you decided not to stay at Top slip and chose Parambikulam. The accommodation at Top slip are pathetic at best. The best part(worst part) of that journey was we had to get recommendation letter from TN secretariat and submit it at the Pollachi DC office for room allocation. When we crossed over to the Kerala side, it was paradise, affordable and no bureaucratic hoops to jump through.

Welcome to Top Slip, Ajithaa. The major reason behind why facilities are bad at Top Slip and better at Parambikulam is the influx of non-paying politicians. It's an ideal destination for these guys owing to the proximity to Coimbatore and Pollachi.

However, Parambikulam is isolated for Keralites, because of its one way route through Top Slip (TN). Kerala also has a more effective tourist mechanism (safari, treks, accommodation) owing to very good officials at the top (have personally interacted with 3 wildlife wardens/field directors, who worked a lot on eco-tourism. We were allowed to travel through the route in our own vehicles with a guide then. The new cemented "art" and arches are after I left the place.

Top Slip unfortunately bears the brunt of all the "crowd", weekend visitors, drunk politicians throwing their weight around, local bigwigs, favoritism and corruption. It's because we have Top Slip that Parambikulam is what it is today. An isolated wilderness.

There were talks of opening up a road that exists through Vazhachal on the Chalakkudi side as a direct access from Kerala to Parambikulam. This is has been fought tooth and nail by conservationists. The day, their voices are muffled, expect Parambikulam to go downhill too.

[darklord]

Originally Posted by AJITHAAA

Glad you decided not to stay at Top slip and chose Parambikulam.

We didn't stay at Parambikulam either. We just went for the day safari there. But thanks for the tip.

Originally Posted by discoverwild

Welcome to Top Slip, Ajithaa. The major reason behind why facilities are bad at Top Slip and better at Parambikulam is the influx of non-paying politicians. It's an ideal destination for these guys owing to the proximity to Coimbatore and Pollachi.

One day trip is not much of an experience to comment, but the officers at Parambikulam, compared to the general attitude of government officials in Kerala, was courteous and helpful. Same was the case of tribals employed as guides and watchers. It felt like the ecotourism activities at Parambikulam was functioning as a well-oiled machinery and that they really care about what they were doing.

[benbsb29]

The writeup as well as pics are a welcome treat for the eyes.
Love the tree canopy over the roads, a sight that is fast diminishing.

[darklord]

We have been waiting for about 30 minutes now. Only one family with 5 members have turned up till now. We have not even reached the half-way mark.

The officer came out of his office and talked to us. He asked us if we had breakfast, all of us replied in the negative. He thought for a minute and decided to let us go to the reception area 2 km away where they had the canteen. He hoped that by the time we had our breakfast, there will be enough numbers for the next safari bus.

Tickets issued, entries made, tentative bus's name written on the receipt (Lapwing), he waved us on.



Just as we moved, the peacock we saw earlier decided to make a flypast. Noticed it too late for a proper photo:



We just want to see you:



The road to the reception area had undergone some patchwork apparently:





We saw a herd of spotted deer by the roadside.



Every breath you take, every move you make, every bond you break, every step you take, I'll be watching you:



The rest of the herd:









There is better music in the woods:



Road to sustentation:



Ten minutes later, we reached the gates of the reception area. The welcoming committee:





There was enough parking space, which was more or less empty. We parked our car and went to the canteen to have breakfast:



Idli and vada were the items on the menu. Two plates of idli-vada and one each extra vada and two tea cost us ₹90. The taste, on the contrary, was rich.

After breakfast, we walked to the reception office to book safari tickets. Seeing the parked safari buses, I was a little apprehensive about photography. Upon inquiring at the office, nobody else had turned up yet. We were disappointed and was preparing for another long wait when the officer asked, "are you willing to take you own vehicle for the safari? We will get a guide for you." I must have said "yes" multiple times, the officer was smiling. The officer issued tickets and assigned a guide for us.



The guide was a super cool and informed guy from the tribal community. After initial pleasantries, we set off for the safari. We were extremely happy; we could do the safari in our own pace and the car's shotgun seat presented minimal obstacles for photography.


Our greeter as we approached ecotourism zone's gate:

[darklord]

The greeter in full regalia:



Welcome:



The road has undergone repair in some places:



Why did the peacock cross the road?



To meet his girlfriends, of course:



White-throated kingfisher, more of an evidence shot:



A faraway shot of a couple of Indian brown mongoose:





If the elephants didn't prosecute you first:



The road led us on. There were signboards at multiple places for various project sites, which were closed to general visitors:



This Grey junglefowl walked away at first:



But then took pity on us and gave this majestic pose:



After passing through a tribal settlement, a couple of forest guest houses, and Thunakadavu treetop hut, all by the reservoir side, we reached the Thunakadavu dam site.





It was a serene place:



Caught in the act:



After clicking a few photos, we moved on and encountered another peacock flaunting his wares by the roadside:



We waited for a while, hoping he would turn around and give us a full display, but he terminated his show abruptly:



The road forked near a small temple. The guide asked us to take the right, the way towards Kannimara teak.

[Dragonheart22]

Originally Posted by discoverwild

Good trip.

The birds as per your order -
1. (Fishing) Open-billed Stork
2. (Yellow wagtail) - It's the Grey Wagtail.
3. Yellow-browed Bulbul (This should be Yellow throated Bulbul)
http://www.conservationindia.org/gal...lYellow-browed is a lot more yellow, this has yellow restricted to the face and body is grey 4. White-browed Bulbul

Awesome Travelogue, wish to bike down to Kerala once again!

[darklord]

A sign at the fork:



This guy didn't disappoint:



There used to be a road, perhaps. Now it is just loose pebbles and some ditches. I don't think they are going to fix it anytime soon either. Be prepared to take hits by loose stones and pebbles if you are driving your own vehicle. We didn't scrape the underbelly of the Ritz anywhere though.







There is a grassy open area (so-called "vayal") en route that often has good sightings. Unfortunately, we were really unlucky. There was zero sighting for us.

IIRC, the distance from the fork to Kannimara teak is 6+6 km. It took us about 25 minutes to cover the distance, and finally, we arrived at the teak:









Our guide pointed to the remnants of an old teak a bit away and told it was the teak they cut down before trying to cut down Kannimara.





After spending about 10 minutes, we drove back. This time though, this guy was waiting for us at the vayal:





We reached the fork by 11 and proceeded towards Parambikulam township.

We passed in front of Thunakadavu dam:



One of the better sections:



We soon came across the Thunakadavu dam view point.





So many colors in a single tree branch:



After clicking a few pics, we moved on to the next stop, valley view point.

[prince0407]

Dear darklord,

The images are stunning. Seems you are a wildlife and photography buff too. And boy, the detailing you have adopted to describe your journey and experience! It's amazing. The image of the peacock in its flight is the one that fascinated me the most. What a sight!!

It was indeed an escape from madness- an escape to the lap of nature. Keep sharing such stories. It inspires others to get closer to mother nature.

Regards,
Pratyush

[darklord]

Originally Posted by benbsb29

The writeup as well as pics are a welcome treat for the eyes.

Love the tree canopy over the roads, a sight that is fast diminishing.

I am pretty sure the photo doesn't do justice. It was a creating a tunnel effect and mixed with the good surface and the light fog, was mesmerizing. I am sorry, now, that I didn't ask to stop before clicking.

Originally Posted by Dragonheart22

Awesome Travelogue, wish to bike down to Kerala once again!

Originally Posted by prince0407

The images are stunning. Seems you are a wildlife and photography buff too. And boy, the detailing you have adopted to describe your journey and experience! It's amazing. The image of the peacock in its flight is the one that fascinated me the most. What a sight!!
It was indeed an escape from madness- an escape to the lap of nature. Keep sharing such stories.

Thanks guys, for the kind words.

AFAIK, Parambikulam doesn't allow the entry of two-wheelers.

It inspires others to get closer to mother nature.

I can relate to your sentiment; however, I am not even sure she wants anything human near her. Even with strict monitoring, people doesn't hesitate to litter; lots of food waste in the Vazhachal-Malakkapara route. Even with the recent wildfire tragedy, we saw a bunch of people smoking away to glory. No respect to laws, no respect to nature, no respect to wildlife. May be the remaining wildlife will be thankful if the roads are to be shutdown forever.

[darklord]

We drove slowly along the road, scanning for any wildlife:



I stepped out for a few quick shots of the Valley view point:







A shikra?



We moved on and drove past the forest and police stations and arrived at Parambikulam round:



The monument celebrating total tribal literacy:



We didn't stop and drove on to Parambikulam dam, the last point before we turned around:







We had taken a little above 2 hours to cover the distance.

We spent a few minutes and turned back towards the reception area.



An abandoned old fuel pump near the round:



Our guide had previously mentioned that he had skipped breakfast and we had offered to wait for him at Parambikulam round while he ate from a nearby eatery. So we took a 15 minute break at the round.



Parambikulam Post Office:



A few shops and eateries at the round:



The locked information office:



The nursery and watchtower:



We set off at 12 noon. The return drive will be shorter as we won't take the detour to Kannimara.


The off-bound tunnel entry:



Since it has been declared a tiger reserve, even if a tree falls down, you can't remove it or use it:



Since it was noon already, we had limited hopes of any sighting. While me and the guide kept looking for sightings, my friend kept his eyes on the road: