[ARAY]

-KodaiKanal-
A little bit about the place before we start the thread.
Kodaikanal was established in 1845 as a refuge from the high temperatures and tropical diseases of the plains. The earliest residents of Kodaikanal were the Paliyan tribal people. The earliest specific references to Kodaikanal and the Palani Hills are found in Tamil Sangam literature of the early Christian era. Much of the local economy is based on the hospitality industry serving tourism. As of 2011, the city had a population of 36,501. – Source Wikipedia.
A region whose origin runs along hospitality is definitely going to be a great one at that.

True to what was mentioned in wiki the people of the valley were very nice to deal with. Unlike other hill where life is rather callous things were a bit singular here. People were friendly and helped in whatever way they could. They spoke softly and acknowledged you as a guest in true sagacity. Local folks, be the Cab drivers, the shop keepers, the local traffic police or even guards at the tourist spots were soft spoken. I was assuming we were plane lucky with the people we have dealt with so far. Went for chocolate shopping and some other stuffs, things were the same. First price quoted by the seller were so rational we never bargained. The prices seemed very realistic.

The search for good spots near Hyderabad was tumbling away as the days went by. We have been travelling more often after the Duster came home. The other factor was our Kid. He is four but loves to travel. He was growing up and we could feel the pressure of academics in his school. Very soon we would not get a chance to pick up the Duster and start journey to an arbitrary spot over a random weekend. My kid on the other hand after the Himalayan trips even dreamt of mountains. He famishes sometimes if we don’t show him videos of our drive into the mountains.

Weather forecast for Kodai for our said dates of travel told a different story altogether. We knew it was the holiday season so booked hotels with the option of cancellation and 100% refund till last possible date. I was trying to gather information about the weather during our trip and 6 out of 10 URLs mentioned heavy rainfall. 4 of them however revealed absolutely sunny weather. This got the both of us a bit befuddled. Our last road trip was to Goa and WB had been some time, we needed a break for sure. Decided - worst case scenario we will sit at the hotel and soak in the peace and serenity of the area.

Weather forecast for 22nd Dec - 24th Dec was concerning


... and confusing too !


Offering our prayers to the Weather God we set sail for KodaiKanal.

Day -1
Route used. - Hyderabad - Bangalore - Krishnagiri - Dindigul - Kodai
Lets break it up
Hyderabad - Hosur - 615kms in 8 hours ( crossed Bangalore at 2-3am , that saved a lot of time, we stopped for Dinner with approx 40 mins break)
Hosur - Dindigul - 5.5 hrs ( NH 44 is excellent, we stopped for breakfast with 1 hr break)
Dindigul - Kodai - 4 hours ( We stopped several time while ascending soaking in the weather)

The weather was grand and it was sparkling Sunny. Road conditions were great with almost no traffic at all. Arguably the weather forecast had probably made many hold back to Kodai trip.
Note- I had read several members mention to start early from Bangalore to avoid heavy truck traffic till Krishnagiri. It was almost 3am when we hit Hosur and the truckers were just starting to wake up. Truck traffic was present but was not intense. The FasTag lane at tolls were clean and we hardly spent any time there.

Hyderabad - Hosur


Hosur - krishnagiri


Krishnagiri- Salem - Dindigul


Dindigul - Kodai



The road from Hyderabad to Hosur was pretty bland, except for the fact, monstrous humps now, have company of series of 10 consecutive humps at few crossings. I feel with villages and towns expanding exponentially the number of humps will just keep increasing.
While crossing Gondipalli, came across this massive Kia factory. Google maps still does not know anything as of December 2018. Pretty soon we should see images of the factory.







After departing from NH44 we were on gorgeous state roads. I had never seen such orange colored coconuts in my life. Stopped by to get a taste of that.The coconut was tremendously scrumptious and had enough solid flesh inside that tasted even better.


Just few kilometers before entering Kodai located this beautiful water fall just on the open road. That's when we saw throng was reasonable less.
Silver Cascade Falls enroute.


Started from Hyderabad at 8pm and reached the hotel at around 12:30 pm.
Our stay at Hotel Jai was booked via GoIbibo, had last day cancellation with full refund option. The idea was to stay close to the Kodai lake so take we can take a walk around lake every evening of our stay. The hotel had sufficient parking which was another priority for us.That stroll around the Lake was wonderful.


Road till Kodai was great and was a pleasure to drive the Duster AWD yet again on some mild ghats.

[ARAY]

Day 1, continued .

After a heavy lunch we rested for a couple of hours and thought of exploring places in close proximity to the Kodaikanal lake. Asked the gentleman at the reception and he recommended the Upper lake view.


It took us 15 minutes to reach the spot and boy the view was marvelous !
Kodaikanal Lake as seen from the spot.




Parking space is not enough but Since we arrived late sufficient place to park was available.


Few shots before the Dusk.


The Kong Island feel !






Few houses clinging on to the hills nearby.


The valley after Sunset


The rest of the evening was spent taking a stroll around the Kodaikanal Lake.
There were numerous shops selling Chocolate and the prices seemed reasonable.




Kodai Lake at night


Headed for dinner at Hill Top cafe.




It was almost Christmas and every place was decorated.


Parking at Hill Top.


Day one was excellent and happy to see very few tourists in the area. Maybe the weather prediction held back most. The night sky was clear and the moon was shining on the valley.

Parting shot for the day at Kodakanal Lake Junction

[ARAY]

Day 2 ( A long one)

Day 2 was a long one which started at 6am on a chilly Sunday morning. Reminded me of the days in Tawang in Arunachal which was spent getting the permits.
To be precise it was on 22nd December 2017, I was applying for the permits to take my vehicle to Bumla Pass in Arunachal. What a throwback coincidence .
For entering Berijam lake in Kodai all vehicles need permit. Only 20 private vehicles are allowed and 100 local taxis are allowed. A total of 120 permits are issued. Some shared Vans are allowed too I guess but they acquire separate permits.
The queue starts forming as early as 5am. I reached the spot at 6:15am. I was 5th in the Private vehicle queue.
District Forest office (DFO) is located at the heart of Kodai city and can be reached easily.

The DFO opens at 8am and form distribution starts by 8:20am-8:30am. Things are decent and organized at the private vehicles queue.
Form distribution process is overlooked by the forest rangers and dedicated queues are maintained for the Taxi and the Private vehicles.

The location



District Forest Office


Other than standing in the queue for 2+ hour rest of the process is seamless and peaceful. Once the form is handed over, you are allowed to enter the DFO premises and fill them up. At the main office you would need to show your License and sometimes the RC at rare occasions. I was worried they might ask for a photocopy of the license but fortunately they just match the license number.

The Blessed Form


The queue, while submitting the form, had to wait again for 30+ mins but after waiting 2+ hrs for getting the form this seemed very normal.


The entire process finished after 4 hours. Came back to the Hotel around 10am.
Berijam Gates open at 11am and are open till 3:30pm. Hotfooted through breakfast at the hotel, discussing the route with my better half. Touring in Kodai just like any other Hill station needs some planning to avoid traffic and one ways. Now here comes the tricky part.

Let me explain Why
These are the list of places that are tourist spots.


These are the places we planned to Visit


Berijam and Mannavaur Lake



Post the right turn the entire stretch leading to the Moir point is unidirectional all the way. The issue is if you want to be the first few to enter the Berijam Lake check post ( and you should to encounter some wild life) you will need to cross the point that takes the road to Poombarai and Mannavaur lake. A complete circle of the track or a shortcut via Upper lake road will take you back to the junction. That's a good 15+ kms via heavy traffic and hilly roads that will take you 2.5+ hours.



So this was the final route planned for the Day
Hotel
Silent Valley
Berijam Lake ( Exhausted a substantial part of the day there)
Moir Point
Pine tree forest
Guna Cave ( I was skeptical about this spot as the latest images showed the cave being covered by authorities)
Pillar Rocks
Golf Club (Would be on the way)
Green Valley
Dolphins Nose
Coakers walk (conclude the rest of the evening there)




The drive from the Hotel to the Moir Check point was typical drive through semi crowded narrow roads. Most of the local guys maintained lane discipline except few ZoomCar and Revv guys from Bangalore. Since we were pretty early the menace was within acceptable limit.
Post Moir point Forest Guards asked to show the permit again and I made an entry in the log book.

At the Moir Point Gate


Silent Valley was extremely Misty and never got a clear Shot




Moderately Good roads on the way


Few Shots of Duster on the way




Duster and the gorgeous Lake


Drive inside the Forest

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dvQ3TnobabI

After stopping at few spots for photos finally reached Berijam Lake


The Lake just before reaching the actual Entry


The View of the lake was majestic and reminded us of Betab Valley in Kashmir.
Parking at the Lake


Near the entrance to the lake


Forest Department Quarters (for a moment I regretted staying in a metro city)


The Berijam Lake




The calmness and the location were epic.


I could locate few species of birds in the area


-

[ARAY]

Day 2 ( Continued)
The restricted Road in the Berijam lake



In google maps this is the road that connects to Mannavaur lake, some day I hope this road opens up for tourists.


A temple near the Parking of Berijam Lake


The egress route from Berijam lake is the same as ingress. There are few viewpoints on the way which we skipped while entering and decided to cover on the way back.

Dense Forest view point ( mushroom forest )








3D render of the GPX data collected

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RvD5...ature=youtu.be

Gradient Analysis


By the time we finished exploring the entire lake and the forest area it was pretty late in the afternoon. Had a quick lunch at Moir point ( there are few shops and eateries in the area) and headed for Pine Tree Forest.

Few Shots enroute the Pine tree forest






As I had read earlier, Guna Caves were covered and fenced by the authorities and the mist and fog took away what else we had to see there.
Kodaikanal Golf Club is a private membership club with an 18-hole, par 71 Golf course. It is located about 6 kilometres southwest from the center of Kodaikanal in Tamil Nadu, South India at an elevation of 2,220 metres. - Source Wikipedia.


Pillar Rock was next in line and we headed for that. Entry ticket is Rs 5 per head.




Next was Coaker's Walk
Coaker's Walk, discovered in 1872, has been named after Lt. Coaker. Located on the southern slopes of this beautiful hill station, Coaker's Walk is a paradise for nature lovers. Its 1 km from the lake of Kodaikanal, this place is known for its long winding paths amidst the forest.

Old Picture of Coaker's Walk - Source Wikipedia


Entry into Coakers walk

Entry tickets are applicable and charges are extra for cameras. Closing time is 7pm

It was getting pretty late however managed to click few shots.
View of the valleys from Coaker's Walk










Day two ended on a great note. Covered the places we wanted and were able to spend sufficient time at Berijam lake. I was a bit tired after navigating through traffic had dinner at the Hotel and called it a day.

[ARAY]

Day 3
Day 3 was a long one too , the drive back to Hyderabad through Bangalore in Christmas would take up some time. Woke up late, had breakfast and went out to an adjacent nursery that belonged within the hotel premises. Wife engaged in some sapling shopping to be taken back to our home in Hyderabad. I was busy clicking away some photos with the mobile.
I never expected a simple camera phone with its artificial background blurring would prove me wrong.

Here are few sample shots from the Nursery












After loitering around the Hotel premises and Nursery we took leave and started for the Solar Observatory.

The Morning rush


Plan for Day 3


Reached the Observatory gates and the Guard informed that no mobile or Cameras are allowed. Like good citizens, followed what was told only to our dismay. Couples inside were clicking away photos and selfies with mobiles. So we don't have any photos of the museum but we have good memories.

The walk from the main gate of the Observatory to the museum has its own charm. After a long time we were without mobiles or cameras it was a different kind of selfless and happy moment. The campus is huge. The place had a lot of information to share and a very old telescope kept away in one of the rooms. People spent hours seeing the planets through it but was just a playback from digital media.

Our next destination was Poombarai Village. Started to climb the mighty mountain, mist and fog started accumulating. Stopped at the U junction for Poombarai as it was extremely foggy. Few cabs came from opposite side and informed that even Mannavanur lake was all covered in mist and they could hardly see a thing.

Misty affair


We were heart broken and sad. Googled Poombarai village at the spot saw few pictures and became even more sad. Poombarai was a bad miss and so was Mannavanur lake.

Poombarai village ( google earth)




Mannavanur lake


However at one of the places met this guy


We stopped at few places before we said Goodbye to KodaiKanal




Decided to head back to Hyderabad via the Perumalmalai or Perumal Peak. Once we exited out of Kodai roads were getting wider at few places.




Somewhere close to Perumal Hills




Finally Perumal Hills




The road from Kodai exit to Palani was excellent with some great views.




Drive at the Perumal and Palani Hills

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nnKFG8OBTxk&t=

Encountered the Palai Dam too and that place looked magnificent. Checked in Google map and Ghat road had almost ended. Decided to stop and enjoy the valley and we were awestruck with the vastness of the Dam. Even the terrain was of a different type.

GPX Playback and 3D render

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yxlqW9mkrMs

Palai Dam


The terrain




Stopped by one last time in TN before Sunset.


Back to flat lands


Kodaikanal was a great place. Loved the weather and the local folks. People are good if you are good to them. The weather God played his cards both for and against. We loved the fact that there was very less traffic on the roads and thus made all the places even more beautiful. We missed Poombarai and Mannavanur but they are just 1100 kms from Hyderabad.


Summary -
Fuel expense ~ Rs 12,500
Hotel - Rs 6700
Toll ( fastag) - 1900

Route used -
Going - Hyderabad - Bangalore - Hosur - Dindigul - Kodai ( Non Stop)
Return - Kodai - Palani - Dharapuram - Gandhinagar ( merge back to NH44) - Hosur - Hyderabad (Non Stop)

Berijam Lake - Some may say taking your own vehicle to Berijam is overkill. Trust me driving through that forest has its own charm and one should not let go off that opportunity easily.

Road conditions are excellent throughout.
Road conditions at few places in Kodaikanal had minor issues.

Folks from in and around Bangalore should try the Palani route. It's very scenic and the drive would be a lot of fun. Sharing the GPX analysis to understand the gradient change better.


Parting shot from the hills, atleast for few days.


Hope this helps fellow Bhpians and Travellers.

[Eddy]

Thread moved out from the Assembly Line. Thanks for sharing!

[PrasannaDhana]

A very detailed travelogue!

Kodaikanal is my favourite destination as it is just 3 hours from my place. And for a person living in 40* C temperatures, Kodaikanal comes as a great relief.

One more thing about driving from Dindigul to Kodaikanal, ascending from foothills you would realise that you can do good speeds on the ghats unlike other hills like the Ooty or the dangerous Kolli hills. It has always been a pleasure driving in Kodaikanal.

The temperature is also pleasant for most of the part. Not too cold and not too warm. And I totally agree with the nature of Kodaikanal people that you have mentioned. They are gentle and very hospitable.

[cp171185]

Wonderful pictures & lovely content. Rated 5* without doubt. Last picture is too good. Great work here. Some of the pictures are wallpaper material.

As you from Hyderabad as well, would you mind taking lovely pictures of my car?

[coolmind]

Nice travelogue aray.
I seriously wonder you make the trips so frequently and most of them without breaks.
I am yet to make a visit to kodai. I should plan some time soon in near future.
Have you felt 2 days is too short to cover all places?
Have you missed any nice places because of time constraint?
How would it be taking a zoomcar at kodai for local conveyance?
Will be waiting for your advice.

[V.Narayan]

Thank you for a detailed essay and for those delightful and eye-catching photos.

[Thermodynamics]

Wonderful log ARAI, it is a nice overview of Kodaikkanal given the fact it is one of the most beaten destinations in Tamil Nadu. But not many do homework as much as you. Information on access to Berijam lake is useful. 3D rendering of GPX data and Gif animations are your signature. I find them intriguing and therefore have subscribed to your channel.

One question from Berijam lake, is the old British escape route still accessible for trek from Kodaikkanal to Munnar via Berijam lake - Mattupatty dam ? I have read in another thread (munnar to kodaikanal- thro the forest) that HVK Sir did that route in the good-old days on a motorcycle.

[yogeshsom29]

Beautiful Travelogue & has enough info for someone to plan the trip to this gem.

Pictures are drool-worthy & seriously wall paper material.

What a tech & factful touch by GPX renderings, awesome.

[Stryker]

Very good travelogue and some really good landscape images. Thanks for sharing.

Driving through the night on the BLR-HYD highway must have been mind numbing, especially since the road is amazing and there is hardly any traffic to keep you alert. I don't prefer night journeys and I avoid them at all costs. Of course, it means time saved, etc., but I still feel it is a risk.

[gadadhar]

I was there in Kodai during the same dates and on the same roads except Berijam, not sure if I crossed your duster somewhere (my ride was a black Fortuner if you happened to notice). I stayed in Hotel Hamas which is right next to the lake on Day 1 and Le Poshe on Day 2. We drove in on 22nd Dec through Vathalagundu Kodai route and exited through Palani route on 24th Dec morning

[Samba]

Excellent travelogue. The pics are as-usual brilliant with the right amount of description. Rated - 5*

Till date i had a wrong notion that Kodaikanal must be more calm and quiet than the other popular hill-station's but i was wrong! Am left with Kodaikanal memories from the 90's.
Two hours of standing in a que to get the form followed by another 30 mins to get the permit was just too much. Plus from one of your pic, i could see the morning traffic jam with cars parked on both sides of the road.

Now a days i seriously feel, its best to visit popular tourist destination's in off-season.