Civved : Wayanad

laluks · 17th July 2013, 21:23

Day 02
23rd December 2012
Sultan Battery - Nilambur - Kakkadumpoyil - Adivaram - Kalpetta - Sultan Battery

It was already 12:30PM and this board caught my attention

Reversed a bit, and it turned out to be a KTDC Hotel

We decided to stop by for lunch

Quite a decent place

We ordered lunch

Some of the mandatory Kerala dishes and Fish Curry

Pomfret fry too

The smile says it all

After a nice lunch, it was time to move on

Location of the hotel, very much recommended for lunch. You can stay here too, they have some rooms.

We reached a church

The board confirmed that we have lost direction and was moving further away

We spoke to some locals and immediately retraced a few kilometers to get our deviation to Kakkadumpoyil.

continued...

laluks · 17th July 2013, 21:40

Day 02
23rd December 2012
Sultan Battery - Nilambur - Kakkadumpoyil - Adivaram - Kalpetta - Sultan Battery

The road to Kakkadumpoyil was quite interesting

We stopped by to enjoy the beauty

Beautiful views

Nice

Civvy enjoying the break

Fenced!

It was just us on the road, it did not seem to be a frequented route

Jr. PPG ready for a small trek to the falls

The narrow path to the falls

continued...

laluks · 17th July 2013, 22:01

Day 02
23rd December 2012
Sultan Battery - Nilambur - Kakkadumpoyil - Adivaram - Kalpetta - Sultan Battery

After a small trek we reached Kozhippara falls

Civved : Wayanad-googlemap20130717_200709.jpg

The place was empty

We enjoyed the cool waters for a while

There was no much flow

A mom daughter moment

Civved : Wayanad-dsc_8402editeditedit.jpg

Sr. PPG was exploring the place

There was less water for the falls

A bunch of school kids landed up there

They trekked at least 5Km one way as part of their scouts training

We left the place for the kids

We walked back to the car

A meeting called for to discuss Wild Life invasion

We drove back via Thiruvambady town

It was already 17:00 hours, and we were late.

continued...

laluks · 17th July 2013, 22:13

Day 02
23rd December 2012
Sultan Battery - Nilambur - Kakkadumpoyil - Adivaram - Kalpetta - Sultan Battery

We reached Lakkidi just in time for the sunset views.

We parked Civvy

We waited for the sunset

Slowly it started

Painting the sky

It was beautiful

We watched the sun go down

It was time for us to move on

continued...

laluks · 17th July 2013, 22:32

Day 02
23rd December 2012
Sultan Battery - Nilambur - Kakkadumpoyil - Adivaram - Kalpetta - Sultan Battery

Soon we reached the Gateway to Wayanad

The side walls were filled with information to the visitors

A painting of Hrudaya Saras to inspire you for a trek

A painting of Thirunelly Temple

Kuruva island painting to inspire a visit

How can any trip to Kerala be complete without seeing a call for strike!

The other side of the gateway thanks you for the visit!

There is an temple at the gateway

We left the gateway by 18:00 hours and reached our hotel by 20:00 hours. The traffic was maddening, more so because of the Christmas Season rush in Wayanad.

On reaching the hotel, while collecting the key the receptionist young chap drew my attention to their film theaters located in the same campus. They had two theaters Aiswarya and Athulya, both running Christmas release of both superstars. One was running Karmayodha of Mohanlal and the other Bavuttiyude Namathil by Mammootty. Immediately the PPGs wanted to see one of the films, since they have never been to a mallu movie in a theater at all. Wifey was also interested. Immediately the receptionist chap called up the theater manager and secured us some vantage seats in the balcony.

By 20:30 we were munching some snacks and watching Karmayodha

Civved : Wayanad-karmayodhateasertrailer.jpg

It was quite an advantage that the theater was in the same campus, we could just walk across to our hotel and our rooms! By 23:00 hours we reached our rooms and retired for the day.

srikrishna717 · 18th July 2013, 14:10

Laluks,
Yet an other great Travelogue

Beautiful pictures and great narration .
I have been to Wayanad in the past, did'nt know there was so much to cover

laluks · 18th July 2013, 15:10

Quote:

Originally Posted by srikrishna717

Laluks,
Yet an other great Travelogue

Beautiful pictures and great narration .
I have been to Wayanad in the past, did'nt know there was so much to cover

Thanks srikrishna.
I had to be there in Wayanad for 28th evening meet of HVK fan club. 29th I had to be in Goa, such was the plan that it seemed prudent to be some where in and around Wayanad from Christmas time. That left me with many days at hand and hence the exploratory drives around Wayanad.

The Wild Life Sanctuaries and a few trek are still pending

Vihari · 18th July 2013, 16:02

laluks,
been reading you travelogues for so many years and always my hands itched to 1) say thanks and 2) write something. Since this was not possible as a browser, I always felt unhappy. Now since I have got the membership, it is time for me to do both the things above. Already I have thanked you.

Your travelogues, apart from being a visual treat, are also a wonderful source of information for any one who is planning a trip to the same place. Giving us the Hotel names, photos of - the Hotel Boards with phone no.s, geographical maps on walls, rate and fare lists of taxis, etc. etc. is so unique to laluks.

Looking forward for the rest of the travelogue,

Sai

laluks · 18th July 2013, 17:33

Quote:

Originally Posted by Vihari

laluks,
been reading you travelogues for so many years and always my hands itched to 1) say thanks and 2) write something. Since this was not possible as a browser, I always felt unhappy. Now since I have got the membership, it is time for me to do both the things above. Already I have thanked you.

Your travelogues, apart from being a visual treat, are also a wonderful source of information for any one who is planning a trip to the same place. Giving us the Hotel names, photos of - the Hotel Boards with phone no.s, geographical maps on walls, rate and fare lists of taxis, etc. etc. is so unique to laluks.

Looking forward for the rest of the travelogue,

Sai

Let me welcome you to TBHP, and congrats on your membership.
Thanks a lot for your kind words, infact I am only giving back my bit for whatever I have taken from this forum in my ways

laluks · 18th July 2013, 21:48

Day 03
24th December 2012
Sultan Battery - Pulpally - Kuruva Island - Thrissilery temple - Mananthavady - Boys Town - Nedumpoil - Periya - Mananthavady - Panamaram - Nadavayal - Sultan Battery

Our basic aim for the day was to visit Kuruva Island and chill out. Any other points of interest would be a bonus. But the plan was expanded beyond limits on ground! We also visited Thrissilery Temple. We visited Boys Town to check out their Medicinal Plants Conservation Park and Botanical Museum. We finally ended up doing loop drives again, this time via Kottiyoor forest range from Boys Town to Nedumpoil and back, and the second loop being the route back to Sultan Battery via Panamaram and Nadavayal. The whole drive was around 200KMs for the day

The drive plan

Civved : Wayanad-googlemap20130718_214526.jpg

Sultan Battery - Pulpally around 28KMs
Pulpally - Kuruva Island around 12KMs
Kuruva Island - Mananthavady around 19KMs
Mananthavady - Thrissilery Temple around 7KMs
Mananthavady - Boys Town around 14KMs
Boys Town - Nedumpoil around 33KMs
Nedumpoil - Periya - Boys Town around 30KMs
Boys Town - Mananthavady around 14KMs
Manathavady - Panamaram around 13KMs
Panamaram - Nadavayal - Sultan Battery around 25KMs

Again the drive was an interesting one through some beautiful areas of Wayanad.

continued...

laluks · 18th July 2013, 22:16

Day 03
24th December 2012
Sultan Battery - Pulpally - Kuruva Island - Thrissilery temple - Mananthavady - Boys Town - Nedumpoil - Periya - Mananthavady - Panamaram - Nadavayal - Sultan Battery

We woke up early and decided to visit the Jain temple near our hotel. It was walkable and we reached the place around 08:00AM.

Jr. PPG reaches the Jain temple

The entry gate was open already

Jain temple this way!

Note the visiting times

It is taken care by ASI

The path to the Jain Temple

The Jain Temple

Jr. PPG decided to check it out

Quote:

Jain Temple: This Temple, believed to have been built in the 13th century. This served as a Jain shrine, an important centre for commercial activity and eventually as a battery (ammunition store) for Tipu Sulthan's marching armies and hence the town got its name "Sulthan's Battery".

continued...

laluks · 18th July 2013, 22:23

Day 03
24th December 2012
Sultan Battery - Pulpally - Kuruva Island - Thrissilery temple - Mananthavady - Boys Town - Nedumpoil - Periya - Mananthavady - Panamaram - Nadavayal - Sultan Battery

By 08:30 we reached back our hotel and had a simple breakfast. After finishing break fast we took Civvy and started our day's drive towards kuruva island.

Before we moved out of the campus i took some clicks of the film's posters for our memories for later years!

They had two theaters in their campus Athulya and Aishwarya

We already saw this last night

This one is in our list

We then quickly moved out for our drive.

We checked if we could visit Chethalayam falls

They were not giving permission to visit Chethalayam falls for some peculiar reasons. I was told it has been like that for many years. If I were to visit on my own, it would amount to trespassing the forest property. I did not want to take that risk, so Chethalayam falls got knocked off from the list.

The roads to Pulpally were amazing

Beautiful

Wifey decided to get clicked!

continued...

laluks · 18th July 2013, 22:37

Day 03
24th December 2012
Sultan Battery - Pulpally - Kuruva Island - Thrissilery temple - Mananthavady - Boys Town - Nedumpoil - Periya - Mananthavady - Panamaram - Nadavayal - Sultan Battery

We reached Seetha Lava Kusha Temple by 10:00AM

Seetha Lava Kusha Temple

Quote:

This is the only known temple dedicated to Lava and Kusha, the sons of Lord Rama. Local legends connect this region with many important episodes from the Ramayana. As the favoured shrine of the Pazhassi Raja, this temple has traditionally permitted entry to devotees from all faiths. It was constructed by Kerala Varma Pazhassi Raja and so was his favorite.

Official Website of the temple link

continued...

laluks · 18th July 2013, 22:57

Day 03
24th December 2012
Sultan Battery - Pulpally - Kuruva Island - Thrissilery temple - Mananthavady - Boys Town - Nedumpoil - Periya - Mananthavady - Panamaram - Nadavayal - Sultan Battery

We took the deviation towards Kuruva island from the Pulpally route

It was a patchy dusty road that lead us to Kuruva island

We reached the parking lot by 10:30AM, and to my utter disgust I saw almost a 1000 vehicles there including 100s of huge tourist buses. My heart skipped a beat. Wifey too looked perplexed.

Wifey : Should we?
Me : Let us take a look, max 1 hour let us time it out
Wifey : OK, in one hour we will leave
Me : Yes, let me check if the ticket counter is jammed
Wifey : All the best!

Every one was equally perplexed, in the melee I joined a lean queue

Information for you

I collected the tickets and I was told to walk 500 meters further from where you would be taken across Kabini river to the island.

We walked on.

Some handicrafts for sale

Some shops

Jr. PPG enjoys a swing at one place

Some more information

continued...

laluks · 18th July 2013, 23:15

Day 03
24th December 2012
Sultan Battery - Pulpally - Kuruva Island - Thrissilery temple - Mananthavady - Boys Town - Nedumpoil - Periya - Mananthavady - Panamaram - Nadavayal - Sultan Battery

We were in for a rude shock at the ferry point! Huge crowd waiting to be ferried across

They ferry around 80 persons in two ferries and the turn around time was 10 minutes.

The ferry was interesting

It was already 10:45AM. I looked at the crowd and thought to myself not earlier than 11:30AM on the island

PPGs were getting impatient

Ferry coming back to get the next set

And there they go!

Finally we got our turn, and looked the crowd we left behind on the banks

The river was beautiful

We docked

Finally we were in the island by 11:30AM

While waiting for the ferry I did a calculation. From 09:00AM they were ferrying people across. No one came back yet. There was another ferrying point on the other side of the island too. Given the statistics that per trip they ferried 80 guys across and they did this once every 10 minutes, that makes 160 people to the island every 10 minutes from both locations. It was 11:30 by the time we reached, which meant 15 trips each from both locations, well that is a whopping 2400 persons on the island - if the figures were to be believed.

Me : there seems to be some 2000 guys already here
Wifey : I read your mind from your frustrated face
Me : Lets see the island, if it's chock a block let us just return
Wifey : Completely agree
Me : Since nobody is returning, we might get the ferry without waiting in a big queue
Wifey : makes sense
Me :OK, let us watch the fun

continued...

17th July 2013, 21:23	#61
laluks Senior - BHPian Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: Bangalore Posts: 6,552 Thanked: 16,397 Times	Re: Civved : Wayanad Day 02 23rd December 2012 Sultan Battery - Nilambur - Kakkadumpoyil - Adivaram - Kalpetta - Sultan Battery It was already 12:30PM and this board caught my attention Reversed a bit, and it turned out to be a KTDC Hotel We decided to stop by for lunch Quite a decent place We ordered lunch Some of the mandatory Kerala dishes and Fish Curry Pomfret fry too The smile says it all After a nice lunch, it was time to move on Location of the hotel, very much recommended for lunch. You can stay here too, they have some rooms. We reached a church The board confirmed that we have lost direction and was moving further away We spoke to some locals and immediately retraced a few kilometers to get our deviation to Kakkadumpoyil. continued...
	(1) Thanks

17th July 2013, 21:40	#62
laluks Senior - BHPian Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: Bangalore Posts: 6,552 Thanked: 16,397 Times	Re: Civved : Wayanad Day 02 23rd December 2012 Sultan Battery - Nilambur - Kakkadumpoyil - Adivaram - Kalpetta - Sultan Battery The road to Kakkadumpoyil was quite interesting We stopped by to enjoy the beauty Beautiful views Nice Civvy enjoying the break Fenced! It was just us on the road, it did not seem to be a frequented route Jr. PPG ready for a small trek to the falls The narrow path to the falls continued...
	() Thanks

17th July 2013, 22:01	#63
laluks Senior - BHPian Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: Bangalore Posts: 6,552 Thanked: 16,397 Times	Re: Civved : Wayanad Day 02 23rd December 2012 Sultan Battery - Nilambur - Kakkadumpoyil - Adivaram - Kalpetta - Sultan Battery After a small trek we reached Kozhippara falls The place was empty We enjoyed the cool waters for a while There was no much flow A mom daughter moment Sr. PPG was exploring the place There was less water for the falls A bunch of school kids landed up there They trekked at least 5Km one way as part of their scouts training We left the place for the kids We walked back to the car A meeting called for to discuss Wild Life invasion We drove back via Thiruvambady town It was already 17:00 hours, and we were late. continued...
	(1) Thanks

17th July 2013, 22:13	#64
laluks Senior - BHPian Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: Bangalore Posts: 6,552 Thanked: 16,397 Times	Re: Civved : Wayanad Day 02 23rd December 2012 Sultan Battery - Nilambur - Kakkadumpoyil - Adivaram - Kalpetta - Sultan Battery We reached Lakkidi just in time for the sunset views. We parked Civvy We waited for the sunset Slowly it started Painting the sky It was beautiful We watched the sun go down It was time for us to move on continued...
	() Thanks

17th July 2013, 22:32	#65
laluks Senior - BHPian Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: Bangalore Posts: 6,552 Thanked: 16,397 Times	Re: Civved : Wayanad Day 02 23rd December 2012 Sultan Battery - Nilambur - Kakkadumpoyil - Adivaram - Kalpetta - Sultan Battery Soon we reached the Gateway to Wayanad The side walls were filled with information to the visitors A painting of Hrudaya Saras to inspire you for a trek A painting of Thirunelly Temple Kuruva island painting to inspire a visit How can any trip to Kerala be complete without seeing a call for strike! The other side of the gateway thanks you for the visit! There is an temple at the gateway We left the gateway by 18:00 hours and reached our hotel by 20:00 hours. The traffic was maddening, more so because of the Christmas Season rush in Wayanad. On reaching the hotel, while collecting the key the receptionist young chap drew my attention to their film theaters located in the same campus. They had two theaters Aiswarya and Athulya, both running Christmas release of both superstars. One was running Karmayodha of Mohanlal and the other Bavuttiyude Namathil by Mammootty. Immediately the PPGs wanted to see one of the films, since they have never been to a mallu movie in a theater at all. Wifey was also interested. Immediately the receptionist chap called up the theater manager and secured us some vantage seats in the balcony. By 20:30 we were munching some snacks and watching Karmayodha It was quite an advantage that the theater was in the same campus, we could just walk across to our hotel and our rooms! By 23:00 hours we reached our rooms and retired for the day.
	(3) Thanks

18th July 2013, 14:10	#66
srikrishna717 BHPian Join Date: Oct 2010 Location: Bangalore Posts: 149 Thanked: 108 Times	Re: Civved : Wayanad Laluks, Yet an other great Travelogue Beautiful pictures and great narration . I have been to Wayanad in the past, did'nt know there was so much to cover
	(1) Thanks

18th July 2013, 16:02	#68
Vihari BHPian Join Date: Jul 2013 Location: HYDERABAD Posts: 122 Thanked: 134 Times	Re: Civved : Wayanad laluks, been reading you travelogues for so many years and always my hands itched to 1) say thanks and 2) write something. Since this was not possible as a browser, I always felt unhappy. Now since I have got the membership, it is time for me to do both the things above. Already I have thanked you. Your travelogues, apart from being a visual treat, are also a wonderful source of information for any one who is planning a trip to the same place. Giving us the Hotel names, photos of - the Hotel Boards with phone no.s, geographical maps on walls, rate and fare lists of taxis, etc. etc. is so unique to laluks. Looking forward for the rest of the travelogue, Sai Last edited by Vihari : 18th July 2013 at 16:18.
	(1) Thanks

18th July 2013, 21:48	#70
laluks Senior - BHPian Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: Bangalore Posts: 6,552 Thanked: 16,397 Times	Re: Civved : Wayanad Day 03 24th December 2012 Sultan Battery - Pulpally - Kuruva Island - Thrissilery temple - Mananthavady - Boys Town - Nedumpoil - Periya - Mananthavady - Panamaram - Nadavayal - Sultan Battery Our basic aim for the day was to visit Kuruva Island and chill out. Any other points of interest would be a bonus. But the plan was expanded beyond limits on ground! We also visited Thrissilery Temple. We visited Boys Town to check out their Medicinal Plants Conservation Park and Botanical Museum. We finally ended up doing loop drives again, this time via Kottiyoor forest range from Boys Town to Nedumpoil and back, and the second loop being the route back to Sultan Battery via Panamaram and Nadavayal. The whole drive was around 200KMs for the day The drive plan Sultan Battery - Pulpally around 28KMs Pulpally - Kuruva Island around 12KMs Kuruva Island - Mananthavady around 19KMs Mananthavady - Thrissilery Temple around 7KMs Mananthavady - Boys Town around 14KMs Boys Town - Nedumpoil around 33KMs Nedumpoil - Periya - Boys Town around 30KMs Boys Town - Mananthavady around 14KMs Manathavady - Panamaram around 13KMs Panamaram - Nadavayal - Sultan Battery around 25KMs Again the drive was an interesting one through some beautiful areas of Wayanad. continued...
	() Thanks

18th July 2013, 22:23	#72
laluks Senior - BHPian Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: Bangalore Posts: 6,552 Thanked: 16,397 Times	Re: Civved : Wayanad Day 03 24th December 2012 Sultan Battery - Pulpally - Kuruva Island - Thrissilery temple - Mananthavady - Boys Town - Nedumpoil - Periya - Mananthavady - Panamaram - Nadavayal - Sultan Battery By 08:30 we reached back our hotel and had a simple breakfast. After finishing break fast we took Civvy and started our day's drive towards kuruva island. Before we moved out of the campus i took some clicks of the film's posters for our memories for later years! They had two theaters in their campus Athulya and Aishwarya We already saw this last night This one is in our list We then quickly moved out for our drive. We checked if we could visit Chethalayam falls They were not giving permission to visit Chethalayam falls for some peculiar reasons. I was told it has been like that for many years. If I were to visit on my own, it would amount to trespassing the forest property. I did not want to take that risk, so Chethalayam falls got knocked off from the list. The roads to Pulpally were amazing Beautiful Wifey decided to get clicked! continued... Last edited by laluks : 18th July 2013 at 22:29.
	() Thanks

18th July 2013, 22:57	#74
laluks Senior - BHPian Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: Bangalore Posts: 6,552 Thanked: 16,397 Times	Re: Civved : Wayanad Day 03 24th December 2012 Sultan Battery - Pulpally - Kuruva Island - Thrissilery temple - Mananthavady - Boys Town - Nedumpoil - Periya - Mananthavady - Panamaram - Nadavayal - Sultan Battery We took the deviation towards Kuruva island from the Pulpally route It was a patchy dusty road that lead us to Kuruva island We reached the parking lot by 10:30AM, and to my utter disgust I saw almost a 1000 vehicles there including 100s of huge tourist buses. My heart skipped a beat. Wifey too looked perplexed. Wifey : Should we? Me : Let us take a look, max 1 hour let us time it out Wifey : OK, in one hour we will leave Me : Yes, let me check if the ticket counter is jammed Wifey : All the best! Every one was equally perplexed, in the melee I joined a lean queue Information for you I collected the tickets and I was told to walk 500 meters further from where you would be taken across Kabini river to the island. We walked on. Some handicrafts for sale Some shops Jr. PPG enjoys a swing at one place Some more information continued...
	(1) Thanks

18th July 2013, 23:15	#75
laluks Senior - BHPian Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: Bangalore Posts: 6,552 Thanked: 16,397 Times	Re: Civved : Wayanad Day 03 24th December 2012 Sultan Battery - Pulpally - Kuruva Island - Thrissilery temple - Mananthavady - Boys Town - Nedumpoil - Periya - Mananthavady - Panamaram - Nadavayal - Sultan Battery We were in for a rude shock at the ferry point! Huge crowd waiting to be ferried across They ferry around 80 persons in two ferries and the turn around time was 10 minutes. The ferry was interesting It was already 10:45AM. I looked at the crowd and thought to myself not earlier than 11:30AM on the island PPGs were getting impatient Ferry coming back to get the next set And there they go! Finally we got our turn, and looked the crowd we left behind on the banks The river was beautiful We docked Finally we were in the island by 11:30AM While waiting for the ferry I did a calculation. From 09:00AM they were ferrying people across. No one came back yet. There was another ferrying point on the other side of the island too. Given the statistics that per trip they ferried 80 guys across and they did this once every 10 minutes, that makes 160 people to the island every 10 minutes from both locations. It was 11:30 by the time we reached, which meant 15 trips each from both locations, well that is a whopping 2400 persons on the island - if the figures were to be believed. Me : there seems to be some 2000 guys already here Wifey : I read your mind from your frustrated face Me : Lets see the island, if it's chock a block let us just return Wifey : Completely agree Me : Since nobody is returning, we might get the ferry without waiting in a big queue Wifey : makes sense Me :OK, let us watch the fun continued...
	() Thanks