[buvan]

Hi All

Has Any one has done Upper bavani,western catchment point,Red hills, Avalanche in Ooty. I know there is a route where in we can cover all these places. I have done western catchment point(from parsons valley), Avalanche etc separately.But i am trying to cover these places. Being from coimbatore its hard for me to ask you these questions bcos am confused .

Has anyone gone to mukuruthi dam ??? (not the boating, this place is restricted area. Me along with frnds during our college days had gone there .Believe me its an amazing place.you have to go atleast 20 kms from pykara dam spot.

Also there's a place called Tiger top which is exactly below the Thoddabetta.We have camped there during 2003 new year celebrations. One of my classmate from ooty took me there. I was told tht its the only private owned land inside that area.No roads, we rode on the big big routes of the tall trees out there.

Though there are many spots in coonor than ooty , no one really knows it and so no one goes there. I am trying to collate all info about these spots and will be posting soon.

You inputs are welcome and awaited.

[shankar.balan]

these are all very beautiful places, relatively un-spoilt as of now by the filthy hand of man!

the trouble is that too many tourists tend to land up in and around Ooty and make a complete mess of the place. no respect for the environment, wildlife and of course anything else.

I do know that for some of the places listed here, one needs to get a special permit from the Forest Dept in Ooty. One cannot go there without the permit. (Personally, I m glad, because only people who are really interested will take the trouble and get a permit!)

Originally Posted by buvan

Hi All

Has Any one has done Upper bavani,western catchment point,Red hills, Avalanche in Ooty. I know there is a route where in we can cover all these places. I have done western catchment point(from parsons valley), Avalanche etc separately.But i am trying to cover these places. Being from coimbatore its hard for me to ask you these questions bcos am confused .

Has anyone gone to mukuruthi dam ??? (not the boating, this place is restricted area. Me along with frnds during our college days had gone there .Believe me its an amazing place.you have to go atleast 20 kms from pykara dam spot.

Also there's a place called Tiger top which is exactly below the Thoddabetta.We have camped there during 2003 new year celebrations. One of my classmate from ooty took me there. I was told tht its the only private owned land inside that area.No roads, we rode on the big big routes of the tall trees out there.

Though there are many spots in coonor than ooty , no one really knows it and so no one goes there. I am trying to collate all info about these spots and will be posting soon.

You inputs are welcome and awaited.

[buvan]

You are True, I rellay dont like the usual places like sixth mile ,seventh mile,pykara dam,sims park, botanical garden, thoddabetta. These places have become more of like snack shops.

Most of the places like Western catchment point, avalanche(till avalanche govt guest house u can go without permission),upper bavani needs permission and these are the kind of places where we can find Thrill and Only these places will justify the effort we spent.

Do you know about the route which covers Upper bavani->Avalanche->western catchment point (Am not sure about the order in which i have mentioned the places

[YaeJay]

Dear Buvan, I hope you dont list all those quite places. I think those hills have already taken a beating. The last thing we need is more insensitive tourists to ruin whats left. Spent my childhood around those hills, enjoyed the joy of 'discovering' those quite places. I am sure you would have done the same. Those who are truly interested would find those places without a list like a few of us. I agree with Shankar Balan.

Originally Posted by shankar.balan

these are all very beautiful places, relatively un-spoilt as of now by the filthy hand of man!

the trouble is that too many tourists tend to land up in and around Ooty and make a complete mess of the place. no respect for the environment, wildlife and of course anything else.

I do know that for some of the places listed here, one needs to get a special permit from the Forest Dept in Ooty. One cannot go there without the permit. (Personally, I m glad, because only people who are really interested will take the trouble and get a permit!)

[hvkumar]

Ooty-Edakkadu 20 kms-Turn right 3 (left goes to Kundah 11)-Avalanchi 7-Turn back-Turn right 1-Turn right 21 (left goes to Conoor)-Upper Bhavani TNEB Guest House-Turn back-KOrakunda 10-Thiasola 11- Manjoor 10-Kunda 3-Conoor 31

That is the circuit. Lovely route. You cannot go beyond Upper Bhavani (you have to cross the Dam) without permission of Forest Dept, which has 2 bungalows inside, available for trekkers with prior permissions (from Forest Office at Ooty). You can cover this circuit easily in a day. You can camp at Avalanchi on the banks of the reservoir.

Mukurthi - there are 2 places, the Mukurthi Dam and the Mukurthi Peak.
Take the Ooty-Gudalur road and after crossing Pykara Dam (24 kms from Ooty), you turn left to Mukurti Dam after 3 kms. This is a dirt track with wildlife. The Mukurthi Dam is 10 kms down this road. There is an Inspection Bungalow overlooking the Dam and you are supposed to see lots of wildlife from here - prior permission required to stay here.

Back to the Ooty-Gudalur road, go down further 6 kms to this place named T R Bazaar, and turn left - in 8 kms you will reach the village of Terrace where the road ended the last time I went there. From Terrace, you have to walk 9 kms to Mukurthi Peak with Forest Dept permission and guide to accompany you since there is lots of wildlife on this path.

[kaushik_s]

Although I would agree to Yaejay about keeping these unknown places unknown but I would also like to point that a normal average tourist won't even think of going there. As that would involve lot of trekking and no earthly luxuries(like cars/hotels etc). So that would keep them away anyway.

[addyhemmige]

hvk, Do we need permissions to visit Mukurthi dam and Kundah dam? Can you tell me how I can get there from Bandipur-Mudumalai? approx, what is the distance from Mudumalai?

I am going to Ooty for a short trip (just a day & a half). I have been to Ooty a few times, but never been to these lesser known places. So, this time I want to visit this place.

[hvkumar]

No, you do not need permits to visit Upper Bhavani, Avalanchi or Mukurti Dam.
But you will need permits to go beyond, and also to trek to Mukurti Peak.
KUndah Dam is on the Majoor-Conoor road, and no permission is required.

It is 40 kms from Ooty Market to Mudumalai/Theppekadu via Kalhatti, and a further 13 kms from there to Bandipur.

Don't miss visiiting Kodanadu View Point from Kotagiri (18 kms).

[buvan]

Thanks HV kumar. Any idea of the road which connects upper bavani and western catchment point????

I am doubt whether this route exists , heard from one of my friend

[laluks]

during our ooty trip, a small change in direction and the way told to us by a ooty localite, made us do this road in the night.

We finished with the red hills and the beautiful valley and instead of coming back right took the left as told by the localite. This was at 6PM in the evening.

Saw some tea plantations and further on when we reached the power house it was already 7PM. An elderly man really shouted at me for the misadventure and told roads with direction boards and turns exactly like HVK tells us. After the last scoldings given, he said it would be tough to find the way in the night since the roads are less used and no one to ask for directions.

Kids were sleeping, wife almost fainted with fear. But then that was the only thing to do. We came back to Ooty around 9.30PM shaken to the core. We saw two pumphouses. Did almost 20+ hairpins. We passesd parsons valley. I had to get down and remove some fallen branches, saw small deers standing on the road staring at my cars headlights as " what, why , how??"

Well I skipped dinner as I had lots of butterflies in my tummy due to fear. It also resulted in me buying a compass the next day, and a GPs in the subsequent month.

It was esteem and thee terrain was of no concern too. It really rallied on those roads to get us home safe and fast. With a Civic this feat could never have been dreamt of.

But keeping apart the scare we had due to the night, forest, and no inhabitation - the place had a charm on its own. Till we could see around with the sunlight, all we could notice was it was unspoilt nature at its best.

Permits - I did not have, but then no one was there at that time to check.

[hvkumar]

Originally Posted by buvan

Thanks HV kumar. Any idea of the road which connects upper bavani and western catchment point????

I am doubt whether this route exists , heard from one of my friend

AFAIK, you cannot cross the Upper Bhavani Dam and go beyond without forest department permits and guide to escort you. There are 2 forest bungalows inside, which also you will be allowed to stay in.

[beejay]

Originally Posted by YaeJay

Dear Buvan, I hope you dont list all those quite places. I think those hills have already taken a beating. The last thing we need is more insensitive tourists to ruin whats left. Spent my childhood around those hills, enjoyed the joy of 'discovering' those quite places. I am sure you would have done the same. Those who are truly interested would find those places without a list like a few of us. I agree with Shankar Balan.

. These places are very serene and we should keep it this way.
Buvan, I am from the Nilgiris and I have been to these places. However I limit myself and also never make it a point to persuade anyone to visit these locations.
Publicity is not going to do good, reason being if as of now there are very few people who visit these places and once pictures are published it going to make everyone want to be there.

[buvan]

Hi Beejay,shankar balan,YaeJay

I agree with your points. I too used to think in the same lines.But i would like to tell you there are posts and threads already exists in bits and pieces.I just wanted to collect some more information. i dont mind thid thread getting deleted too.

[addyhemmige]

AFAIK, the average Indian tourist wouldn't even want to visit these kind of places. Reason: Lack of facilities and the distance from commercial places (shops, restaurants etc).

But a certain kind of tourist, a nature lover, would definitely be happy to know about and visit such places where he can enjoy the beauty of nature in peace without being bothered by noisy idiots. I think I can safely assume that barring a few exceptions, a nature tourist or an eco tourist(whatever name you want to call) will be sensible enough to act responsibly.

So, I don't think talking about places such as these will necessarily promote unwanted tourism.

[itwasntme]

Check out bglsrini's travelogue to the Major Radcliffe Hut at Mukurthi at:
http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/travel...bangalore.html