Trip to God's Own Country - 1

This weekend, I traveled out of Bangalore, after an unbelievably long time. Had been to Waynad (in Kerala, approximately 280 Kms from Bangalore) with a few colleagues. Must say, the Mysore-Bangalore highway has really shaped up well. We had hired a Tata Sumo Victa and the drive to Waynad was very smooth. Being a friday night, I slept most of the way. Got up for a moment when we passed through the Bandipur Sanctuary in the middle of the night. It was pitch dark and the vehicle's headlights gave an eerie effect. It was spooky. There was some contemplation about giving it an RDB effect. But don’t think they really switched off the headlights. Must ask the rest about it. :-)

When I woke up early next morn, we were already in Waynad in front of Woodlands Hotel. The problem was we didn’t have any reservations and since it was a long weekend, all the hotels were booked. But the people at the hotel were very helpful and after 1 hr of frantic calls all over the place, we got a reservation at an Ayurvedic Hospital!! Expecting the worst, we drove towards it, but were taken by surprise. It was a very neat and clean place and we readily agreed to stay there(like we had a choice!!). Learnt not to venture out without first booking a place to stay.

After refreshment, we landed in Woodlands again, this time for breakfast and info about the places to visit. It was Election day there and most of the places were closed. So we settled on Soochipura Waterfalls. The road to the place was lined with beautiful Tea plantations. The descent to the waterfall was peaceful. Spent some time there and then came the task of climbing uphill. The mercury was rising like there was no tomorrow and for someone like me who doesn’t fancy such strenuous(to me it was!!) activity, it indeed was tiring. Took all my efforts to reach the top. Phew!!

We then decided to go to the Waynad Wildlife Sanctuary situated in Talpetty. By the time we reached, it was late afternoon and we were just in time for the last safari ride of the day. The entrance to the place had a pic of an Elephant herds crossing the street. This looked inviting. We even got to know that someone had spotted a tiger the day before. With full spirit, we ventured into the forest. The heat had caught up with the animals too i guess. All we could spot was a bunch of langurs way up in the trees!!! The safari was nearing its end when we could finally spot a herd of deers. Thankfully!

The day ended on a cheerful mood with due credit to the waiter at the restaurant where we had dinner. He politely answered all my colleague's queries with just a smile. :-) Even the complaints were received with the same. A wide smile.

Few of the photos of the first day in Waynad.


Lush Tea Plantations


Soochipura Falls


Deers in Waynad Wildlife Sanctuary


Standing Tall


Golden Lining