[jacs]

Place looks virgin. You should not have made it public .

[manavdotcom]

Govt is Planning to Already ! this is an alert to visit this before they start putting polluting boats in the lakes..

[discoverwild]

Originally Posted by manavdotcom

If you are looking for a new place to explore, unspoilt, un adultrated raw nature this is IT.

Pardon me for bringing this topic up, but I couldn't resist it because this is something close to my heart. What you get to see in green slopes of tea are nothing but green deserts which do not help support life.

100s of sq.kms of tropical evergreen forests and sholas were felled, cleared and rampaged to make these estates. Valparai (220 sqkms) and Meghamalai (100 sqkm) are just two examples. These estates do not satisfy the needs of animals, birds, insects, reptiles and other beings except the greed of man.

These rainforests are the primary reasons why we enjoy water throughout the year. It has been documented that 1 acre of tropical evergreen forest provides 1 lt. of water/second throughout the year.

Corporate greed exceeds humanitarian values. Regular felling of native trees and expansion of estates are happening almost always in collusion with the state management. Rampant spraying of pesticides and illegal dumping of effluents have almost sterilized most streams which are almost devoid of fishes and other crustaceans.

I request all members to please be aware and voice your concern.

My apologies in case I offended anyone. My intention is only to raise awareness on the sorry state of our jungles today.

[mallumowgli]

I would second Discoverwild regarding tea estates. Similar to this Kannan Devan hills is one of the ecological disasters of Western Ghats

But that doesnt take away the beauty and wonderful snaps that you have posted, manavdotcom!!

[2500cc]

This place is so serene, look at the water in the lake ion one of the pictures, it is so transparent. This itself speaks that this place is indeed virgin . Nice find Manav.

[Funda]

Thank You DiscoverWild. This is really sad to know, what human greed is causing to nature.

Manav, your pics are excellent. Do you have any idea when would be a good season to visit the place? When did u visit, I am interested in a similar weather where you have clouds but not much of rain.

[manavdotcom]

I went in Sep 1st week. We were actually searching for rain but never encountered any :(

[vinair]

Originally Posted by discoverwild

Pardon me for bringing this topic up, but I couldn't resist it because this is something close to my heart. What you get to see in green slopes of tea are nothing but green deserts which do not help support life.

100s of sq.kms of tropical evergreen forests and sholas were felled, cleared and rampaged to make these estates. Valparai (220 sqkms) and Meghamalai (100 sqkm) are just two examples. These estates do not satisfy the needs of animals, birds, insects, reptiles and other beings except the greed of man.

These rainforests are the primary reasons why we enjoy water throughout the year. It has been documented that 1 acre of tropical evergreen forest provides 1 lt. of water/second throughout the year.

Corporate greed exceeds humanitarian values. Regular felling of native trees and expansion of estates are happening almost always in collusion with the state management. Rampant spraying of pesticides and illegal dumping of effluents have almost sterilized most streams which are almost devoid of fishes and other crustaceans.

I request all members to please be aware and voice your concern.

My apologies in case I offended anyone. My intention is only to raise awareness on the sorry state of our jungles today.

I couldn't have found a better quote than this! amazing! really appreciate those valuable words because every time when I see these tea estates, the same questions ring in my mind too! These tea estates are reminders of how we humans have wiped off a once thriving ecology and converted their natural habitats into nothing but pure business! How shameless we are!!

[SajiNSalin]

We had visited Meghamalai last weekend. The road from Chinnamannur is freshly laid tarmac and a beauty to drive. Some of the hairpin curves remain to be asphalted, but even these portions are gravelled and in good condition. Extensive work is on to complete an excellent road to the small town. The place is beautiful and the road up has very little traffice. Of course this may change shortly because of a large number of waterfalls all along the route. We stayed in WoodBriar tea estate bungalow. The estate has over 6000 acres of tea. The road from the town to the estate is strictly four wheel drive, but in a year or so, it will also be asphalted.

[Chillout]

Originally Posted by SajiNSalin

We had visited Meghamalai last weekend. The road from Chinnamannur is freshly laid tarmac and a beauty to drive.

I am planning to drive down from Theni for day trip and wasn't sure about the road conditions, i wanted it to be a day picnic as all hotels are booked. I assume its okay to drive an Ecosport to most of the places to see in and around Megamalai. Could you please let me know places to see, I can plan accordingly.

[SajiNSalin]

This trip is best enjoyed with an overnight stay in Briar tea estate. This is a 6000 acre tea estate and is simply out of the world. The road from Chinnamanur, where you turn off from the Theni highway, is freshly asphalted,except for some curves. The Ecosport will have no difficulty in reaching Highways town. The road from the panchayat building to the Briar tea estate requires high ground clearance and will be in first gear for about 6 km. I am sure the Ecosport can do it, but drive slowly and and be careful about underbody hits. There are very limited accommodation options, and is more or less told in the early pages of this travelogue. The panchayat accommodation is very basic and there are some homestays a little before Highways town. But my recommendation would be to book the Briar tea estate bungalows on their website. The climate is very good now and there was no rain when we visited.

[Kartik Kumar]

Originally Posted by SajiNSalin

The road from the panchayat building to the Briar tea estate requires high ground clearance and will be in first gear for about 6 km. I am sure the Ecosport can do it, but drive slowly and and be careful about underbody hits.

How long a drive is it from the Panchayat building to the WoodBriar estate (I'm assuming Cloud Mountain Bungalow)? And does it go around the lake and then over a small bridge? Google maps doesn't allow you to trace a route all the way - basically stops before the road reaches Senthil Mess.

[SajiNSalin]

Kartik, all the three Woodbriar bungalows are in the same locality. There is a very rough road leading to the bungalows from Senthil's mess. You need a high ground clearance vehicle to cover the approximately 6 km. I have a Duster AWD so this drive was not a problem, but it was six kilometres in first gear. When we stayed there, a Tavera and an Innova also managed this stretch. Yes, the road goes round the lake; as you drive in you will have the lake on your right and then you cross a small bridge to reach the bungalows. We stayed in Sand river and it was a very cosy place. There seems to be some effort on improving the road; could see some work going on. May be in a year's time it will be asphalt all the way to the bungalows and beyond.

[PearlJam]

Hi @SajiNSalin, I had a few questions:

1. Is the road from Chinnamannur to Panchayat building (Highways town) doable in a low slung sedan?
2. Any idea if the Woodbriar group has secure parking in Highways town to park our vehicles, and whether they have facility to pick up the guests in their SUV for the last 6 kms?

Thanks!

[DrANTO]

Originally Posted by SajiNSalin

Kartik, all the three Woodbriar bungalows are in the same locality.

I have been to Meghamalai 6 months ago and it is indeed a beautiful place. I have gone to a place called Maharajamedu (8-10 km) from Meghamalai town and roads were pathetic. I was in first (most of the time) and second gear in my Bolero through out the entire stretch. We saw a Bison and wild elephant at Mahararajamedu. A must see place if you visit Meghamalai.

BTW how did you book accomodation at Woodbriar estate Bungalow ? Tariff also if you don't mind.