11th March 2010, 20:30
| #76 |
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12th March 2010, 22:11
| #77 |
| BHPian  | @darklord - No problem, boss! The more, the merrier  |
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15th March 2010, 23:50
| #78 |
| BHPian  Join Date: Jan 2010 Location: Bangalore
Posts: 40
Thanked: Once
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16th March 2010, 11:19
| #79 |
| Senior - BHPian  | |
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16th March 2010, 12:35
| #80 |
| BHPian  Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: Bengaluru
Posts: 557
Thanked: 106 Times
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16th March 2010, 13:20
| #81 |
| BHPian | @gadhadhar - Thank you for the appreciation. @electricheart - How about Vagamon? @redrage - your wish is my command, sir! Let me fish out some snaps from my files. One day trip to Vagamon With the 26th of February being a holiday, we friends were planning for a 3 day trip to Vagamon, Munnar & nearby places. But sadly due to personal problems for some, it had to be curtailed to a 1 day trip. The next doubt was whether Vagamon could be done in a 1 day trip from Trivandrum. As usual, I was responsible for co ordinating the trip but this time my friend Bijoy also helped me in fixing the itinerary. Lots of discussion between me & Bijoy ensued & finally we fixed a rough itinerary for the 1 day trip to Vagamon. The route: Trivandrum - Kottarakkara - Adoor - Pathanamthitta - Ranny - Kanjirapally - Erattupetta - Vagamon The return route: Vagamon - Kuttikaanam - Elappara - Parunthumpara - Erumely - Ranni - Pathanamthitta - Adoor - Kottarakkara - Trivandrum Distance travelled: Trivandrum - Vagamon: 211 kms Vagamon - Parunthumpara: 38 kms Parunthumpara - Trivandrum - 216 kms Total distance covered - 465 kms Vehicle: Mahindra Xylo E8 ABS Camera: Sony DSC H5 The Tourers: Ranjith, Bijoy, Narayan, Aravind, Binil & Kiran. The plan was to start early in the morning at 5.30 AM to avoid the morning rush. The rendezvous point was fixed to be my house at Ayurveda College & strict instructions were given to all to arrive 10 mts before 5.30 itself. 26th February morning 5.30 every one arrived sharply on time & we were on the road as per schedule. First stop was Pazhavangadi temple at East Fort. After the customary "narial" to Lord Vighneshwara, we were on our way. Early morning traffic being sparse & the MC Road in a superb condition ensured that we were in Kottarakkara in good time. We decided to have breakfast at Kottarakara. 25 mts later & with our stomachs full we were on our way. MC Road is a pretty picturesque route but after Ranny the scenery is too good. On the way we saw some awesome scenery forcing us to stop the vehicle for taking photos. We reached Vagamon at 11 AM. We had two places in our itinerary at Vagamon, the Vagamon Meadows & the Vagamon Pine Forest. First we went to the Meadows. By this time the sun was beating down on us with some force so we tried to stick to the shade as far as possible. The meadows was a sort of anti climax as it was pretty dry all around with patches of greenery. But I can imagine this place in the rainy season or just after the rainy season. It would be like some one has put yards & yards of green velvet across the meadows. Made a mental note to visit the place during the rains. I think the pictures will give you a better idea of how the place will be in the rains. Country Roads..   L-R: Aravind, Kiran, Binil, Bijoy, Narayan  Xylo at one of the photo shoots  Ghat roads    Rocky wall on one side, sheer drop on the other side   Smooth roads   Vagamon meadows    After spending some time in the meadows, we moved to our next destination the Pine Forest. There is an open space where we can park our vehicles & after that it is a 5 minute walk to the pine forest. But before that we decided to have lunch as all of us were beginning to feel the pangs of hunger. First we went to the restaurant in the resort there but we felt the food was over priced so we came out & went to a small hotel attached to a house. It turned out to be a good decision as the meals & the karimeen were superb. The icing on the cake was the bill which came to just Rs.247/ for the six of us. Fully satiated & grinning from ear to ear we proceeded to the pine forest. I have never been to a Pine forest in my life before, so the pine forest in Vagamon was an awesome experience for me. Pine trees planted in perfect rows as far as the eye can see, it was truly a sight which alone made our trip worth the money.        We were reluctant to leave the place but we had one more destination, Parunthumpara to cover so we headed to our vehicle & started towards Parunthumpara. The route to Parunthumara is through Kuttikkanam & Elappara. This route is a very scenic route through tea estates.       Soon we reached Parunthumpara. Parunthumpara is said to have strong winds, but that day the winds were not that strong. We asked one of the locals there & he said usually there are strong winds in the place. Parunthumpara is a sort of view point. The place has a sheer drop on one side which is fenced off by railings at some places.    Contd in next post.. Last edited by Nutty Nair : 16th March 2010 at 13:26. |
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16th March 2010, 15:04
| #82 |
| BHPian | Parunthumpara photos contd..   Our Xylo at the parking lot at Parunthumpara       Started our return journey from Parunthumpara at 4 PM & reached Trivandrum at 10 PM with a 30 mt break at Kottarakara. |
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24th April 2010, 17:42
| #83 |
| BHPian | Trivandrum's own Hill Station, Ponmudi Ponmudi Location - Around 60 kms from Trivandrum Route - Trivandrum - Peroorkada - Nedumangadu - Vithura - Kallaar - Ponmudi Ride: Pulsar 150 Camera: Sony DSC650 One of the favourite haunts of people from Trivandrum, Ponmudi is a hill station situated around 60 kms from Trivandrum. Ponmudi literally means "the Golden Peak". The winding road from Kallaar to Ponmudi has 22 hairpin bends, perfect for peg scraping. The road has been relaid & it is a treat to travel on these smooth roads. The scenery enroute is also superb with rich vegetation, tea gardens & mountains as the backdrop. There are also state run bus services periodically from Thampanoor & Nedumangadu bus stands. One can also relax at Kallaar which is on the way to Ponmudi. Now for some photos of Ponmudi.                           |
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24th April 2010, 20:59
| #84 |
| Senior - BHPian  Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Mumbai
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24th April 2010, 22:02
| #85 |
| BHPian Join Date: Dec 2008 Location: Bangalore / Toronto, Canada
Posts: 155
Thanked: 9 Times
| @Nutty_Nair: Every picture is good and the one that of the flower is the best of the lot (well, at least to me!). Thanks for sharing!  |
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24th April 2010, 23:41
| #86 |
| BHPian Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: trivandrum
Posts: 478
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| Wonderful Thread Nutty, If you dont mind I would like to share a few pics of ponmudi that I had taken during my last visit a few months back.        |
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24th April 2010, 23:50
| #87 |
| BHPian Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: trivandrum
Posts: 478
Thanked: 290 Times
| Some More Pics              |
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25th April 2010, 05:57
| #88 | |
| BHPian Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: Hyderabad
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27th April 2010, 17:14
| #89 |
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27th April 2010, 18:54
| #90 |
| Senior - BHPian  Join Date: Oct 2009 Location: City of seven islands.
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