" Writing means sharing. It's part of the human condition to want to share things - thoughts, ideas, opinions." - Paulo Coelho.
I am also sharing my small travel experiences here. Please do comment or send feedbacks to improve my travelogue !!!!!!!!!!
Team : Neethu George, Anna Neenu George, Aswathy Jose and Myself
Date : 08.02.2015
Highlights : Thekkady boating, Grape garden, Ramakkalmedu windmill farm and view point
Travelogue :
we were planning this trip for few days as a one day trip of 5 members but Aju my cousine couldn't join due to his change in work schedule. So we four planned to start in early morning (our first trip together). Another hidden interest was to explore my new Canon EOS 1200D which i bought recently.
5.30 am :
We started from our home at Pala, Kottayam, Kerala 30 minutes late as per my plan in our Alto K10. We entered KK road ( NH 220 ) at Kanjirappally and headed towards Kumily to reach there by 7.30 am.
6.15 am : Unexpected startling view road side
We ( not only we but all the travellers there) were forced to stop our car at the road side to see a beautiful valley fully covered with dense mist. i am short of words to describe.... here we go with a picture
Pardon me for poor focus and quality of pictures as a first time SLR camera user
7am :
Stopped for a cup of black coffee and moved forward. we passed beautiful places like mundakayam, kuttikanam etc to reach kumily by 7.30 am. we then drive to thekkady which is around 4 kms from kumily. There are a lot of budget and luxury hotels ,home stays and resorts in kumily and kumily thekkady route.
7.40 am:
We reached entrance gate of Thekkady Peryar tiger reserve forest and paid entry and parking fee. ( Rs 33 per person and parking fee Rs 75 for car ) make sure about the number of people as this ticket is needed for booking boating ticket. in case of any discripancy we have to come back all the way here again to take ticket.
we entered Periyar tiger reserve forest and has to drive for around 1.5 kms to reach the parking area. As always it is mind cooling to drive through the forest with cold breeze coming through the windows.
8am :
We parked our car and we (me and my wife) walked to the boating ticket couter which is 600 m away . but to my surprise there was no rush at all in contrary to my two previous visits (once i couldnt do boating as ticket was not availabe). Ticket charge was Rs 225 per person . booking starts 90 minutes before each trip. You can also book ticket online from www.periyarfoundation.org . the boat timings are as follows
we then went back to parking areato have our breakfast which we brought from home. It was really tasty chappathi and chicken curry which my sister prepared. you can always expect some of our ancestors with no respect to grab your plate. there were afew watching us from tree top but didn't turn up may be they knew it was made by my sis. Better to have food from kumily if you plan some other way.
9 am :
We moved to the boating areaby walking. i was very much enthusiastic to take few snaps with my new camera but had to delete most due to my great camera skills. Another thing worth mentioning was that the whole place was kept clean and tidy But......... don't use toilets near the boating ticket counter especially ladies .use the one near parking area ( people responsible should be prosecuted ).
9.30 am :
We were seated in Vanajyosthna boat in the lower deck. to get tickets in upper deck you have to book online or ask specifically at ticket counter.Wearing life jackets was not mandatory but i felt should be made mandatory ( we need tragedies to happen to make rules strict). The life guards Mr Shinu and Baiju were really helpful explained about birds animals and the history of the place and dam in detail which i found as an improvement from my last visit.
9.40 am :
we started our boating, it was beautiful to watch the scenery, birds and animals but i was more interested in taking pictures. The photo courtesy to the life guards who taught me various features of my camera and allowed me to stand outside to take photos
11.10 am :
We finished our boating ( 90 minutes) and was planning to move to our next destinations. Those who want to stay in thekkady for one day there are myriads of activities in and around like
11.45 am :
Our next destination was to visit a grape garden which none of us have seen. So we head towards kambam a town in Tamilnadu . there are lot of grape gardens on both sides of the road but on enquiring local people we were totally disappointed as they told us that they just had harvest season and you can't see ripe grapes. But we moved further for few more kms and decided to come back but one person asked us to go 2 km further and here we go ( Romba thanks Annai.....)
It's a different feeling to walk through the garden with ripe grapes above you will love it !!!!!
We bought fresh grapes (needless to say yummy ...), crushers and juice from there. This place was around 7 kms from kumily.
On the way to this place we also saw huge penstock pipes carrying water from mullaperiyar dam hydroelectric project and also a monument in the memory of Colonel John Pennycuick who was the British engineer behind the Mullaperiyar Dam
1.45 pm:
3 pm: Ramakkalmedu windmill field
It is worth watching hundreds of windmills rotating just close to us in the background of scenic hills and valleys
3.30pm:
we reached Ramakkalmedu view point. five years back when i visited this place there was only one shop at the base but now there are several tea and snack shop and a hotel being under construction. the place has two hills one with the stone sculpture of kuruvan and kuruvathi which is called kerala view point and the other hill which is more picturesque called tamilnadu view point.
I am also sharing my small travel experiences here. Please do comment or send feedbacks to improve my travelogue !!!!!!!!!!
Team : Neethu George, Anna Neenu George, Aswathy Jose and Myself
Date : 08.02.2015
Highlights : Thekkady boating, Grape garden, Ramakkalmedu windmill farm and view point
Travelogue :
we were planning this trip for few days as a one day trip of 5 members but Aju my cousine couldn't join due to his change in work schedule. So we four planned to start in early morning (our first trip together). Another hidden interest was to explore my new Canon EOS 1200D which i bought recently.
5.30 am :
We started from our home at Pala, Kottayam, Kerala 30 minutes late as per my plan in our Alto K10. We entered KK road ( NH 220 ) at Kanjirappally and headed towards Kumily to reach there by 7.30 am.
6.15 am : Unexpected startling view road side
We ( not only we but all the travellers there) were forced to stop our car at the road side to see a beautiful valley fully covered with dense mist. i am short of words to describe.... here we go with a picture
 |
| On the way near peerumedu : a road side view |
 |
| near peerumed |
7am :
Stopped for a cup of black coffee and moved forward. we passed beautiful places like mundakayam, kuttikanam etc to reach kumily by 7.30 am. we then drive to thekkady which is around 4 kms from kumily. There are a lot of budget and luxury hotels ,home stays and resorts in kumily and kumily thekkady route.
7.40 am:
We reached entrance gate of Thekkady Peryar tiger reserve forest and paid entry and parking fee. ( Rs 33 per person and parking fee Rs 75 for car ) make sure about the number of people as this ticket is needed for booking boating ticket. in case of any discripancy we have to come back all the way here again to take ticket.
we entered Periyar tiger reserve forest and has to drive for around 1.5 kms to reach the parking area. As always it is mind cooling to drive through the forest with cold breeze coming through the windows.
8am :
We parked our car and we (me and my wife) walked to the boating ticket couter which is 600 m away . but to my surprise there was no rush at all in contrary to my two previous visits (once i couldnt do boating as ticket was not availabe). Ticket charge was Rs 225 per person . booking starts 90 minutes before each trip. You can also book ticket online from www.periyarfoundation.org . the boat timings are as follows
 |
| Ticket counter at Thekkady - boating timing and fare |
we then went back to parking areato have our breakfast which we brought from home. It was really tasty chappathi and chicken curry which my sister prepared. you can always expect some of our ancestors with no respect to grab your plate. there were afew watching us from tree top but didn't turn up may be they knew it was made by my sis. Better to have food from kumily if you plan some other way.
9 am :
We moved to the boating areaby walking. i was very much enthusiastic to take few snaps with my new camera but had to delete most due to my great camera skills. Another thing worth mentioning was that the whole place was kept clean and tidy But......... don't use toilets near the boating ticket counter especially ladies .use the one near parking area ( people responsible should be prosecuted ).
9.30 am :
We were seated in Vanajyosthna boat in the lower deck. to get tickets in upper deck you have to book online or ask specifically at ticket counter.Wearing life jackets was not mandatory but i felt should be made mandatory ( we need tragedies to happen to make rules strict). The life guards Mr Shinu and Baiju were really helpful explained about birds animals and the history of the place and dam in detail which i found as an improvement from my last visit.
9.40 am :
we started our boating, it was beautiful to watch the scenery, birds and animals but i was more interested in taking pictures. The photo courtesy to the life guards who taught me various features of my camera and allowed me to stand outside to take photos
 |
| another boat in thekkady lake |
 |
| Palace of Sree Chithira Thirunal raja : now run by KTDC |
 |
| Classic view of Thekkady boating |
 |
| let me finish it first !!!!!! |
 |
| Elephants......... |
 |
| wild pigs |
11.10 am :
We finished our boating ( 90 minutes) and was planning to move to our next destinations. Those who want to stay in thekkady for one day there are myriads of activities in and around like
- Treckking ( various packages available in official websites )
- Jungle jeep safari
- Elephant safari ( bathing , feeding and photo sessions )
- Stay at various hotels / resorts with lake or forest views
- Evening programmes like kathakali, magic shows , martial arts like kalari etc
- Ayurvedic kerala massage and treatment ( make sure you select original centres )
11.45 am :
Our next destination was to visit a grape garden which none of us have seen. So we head towards kambam a town in Tamilnadu . there are lot of grape gardens on both sides of the road but on enquiring local people we were totally disappointed as they told us that they just had harvest season and you can't see ripe grapes. But we moved further for few more kms and decided to come back but one person asked us to go 2 km further and here we go ( Romba thanks Annai.....)
It's a different feeling to walk through the garden with ripe grapes above you will love it !!!!!
We bought fresh grapes (needless to say yummy ...), crushers and juice from there. This place was around 7 kms from kumily.
1.45 pm:
None of us were hungry due to load of eatables in our car and snacks from road sides. so we decided to go to Ramakkalmedu a major destination of this trip. actually we could have gone to kambam and then to Ramakkalmedu via kambammettu but we returned back to kumily and headed towards Ramakkalmedu
3 pm: Ramakkalmedu windmill field
It is worth watching hundreds of windmills rotating just close to us in the background of scenic hills and valleys
3.30pm:
we reached Ramakkalmedu view point. five years back when i visited this place there was only one shop at the base but now there are several tea and snack shop and a hotel being under construction. the place has two hills one with the stone sculpture of kuruvan and kuruvathi which is called kerala view point and the other hill which is more picturesque called tamilnadu view point.
 |
| at the base of Ramakkalmedu |
We had a cup of tea and snacks and decided to climb first view point. i heard this story while climbing up from a co traveller that Lord Rama kept his feet at the tip of Ramakkalmedu to search Ravana the King of Lanka who abducted his wife Sita hence this name.
"How narrow is the gate and how constricted is the road that leads to life, and there aren't many people who find it!" i was thinking about this word of god from bible which is so true to this place the heaven in this world !!!!!!!! which is there on the top of this hill.
It gives a panoramic view of Tamilnadu places like Cumbum, Theni, Kombe, Thevaram, Uthamapalayam, Bodinaykannor and Vaiga. constant wind blowing at 35-40 km per hour makes us wander in wind and cool our body and mind. the area is fully covered with beautiful rocks and greenery. we could see the kuruvan and kurathi statue on the top of other hill.
make sure you reach there before 6 pm to climb the hill.
7pm :
We headed back to pala and on the way we had dinner from a thattukada near mundakkayam and reached home by 9 pm.
some thing extra : www.periyarfoundation.org , www.keralatourism.org,
"How narrow is the gate and how constricted is the road that leads to life, and there aren't many people who find it!" i was thinking about this word of god from bible which is so true to this place the heaven in this world !!!!!!!! which is there on the top of this hill.
It gives a panoramic view of Tamilnadu places like Cumbum, Theni, Kombe, Thevaram, Uthamapalayam, Bodinaykannor and Vaiga. constant wind blowing at 35-40 km per hour makes us wander in wind and cool our body and mind. the area is fully covered with beautiful rocks and greenery. we could see the kuruvan and kurathi statue on the top of other hill.
 |
| Rock Sculpture of Kuruvan and Kurathi @ Ramakkalmedu |
 |
| classic view of Ramakkalmedu |
 |
| a hill top at ramakkalmedu : you reach the top of that |
 |
| another view |
 |
| View of Tamilnadu from top of Ramakkalmedu |
 |
| View from top of Tamilnadu view point Ramakkalmedu |
make sure you reach there before 6 pm to climb the hill.
7pm :
We headed back to pala and on the way we had dinner from a thattukada near mundakkayam and reached home by 9 pm.
some thing extra : www.periyarfoundation.org , www.keralatourism.org,
