[jamesdraj]

Hello Petrol Heads.

This is my first travelogue on team bhp, please be patient with me. Sorry for the late posting of the travelogue. Me and my wife are both dentist so much of our daily routine goes on looking into fellow humans mouth. So when we decided to take a break we thought of going to a place, which was less inhabited by humans and more by animals. Both being nature lovers and love to be behind wheels, we thought of a trip starting from Chennai - Coimbatore (Cousin's place) - Coonoor - Ooty - Masinagudi - Salem - Chennai.

This is more like a picture travelogue.

Our ride - Swift VDI



On our way from coimbatore to coonoor / ooty








Our Stay - Secret Ivory Resort - Mr.Ombalan(Owner and Excellent trekker himself) runs it and Mr.Alex (Manager) is extremely helpful and makes everybody cheerful.


This resort is exactly at the edge of the forest, with just the elephant fencing separating it.







We went for safari which was an exhilarating experience. Our guide



On one of the safari trips to a small hill nearby



We stayed there for 3 nights, our swift got frosted each night. A view from our room.


From the tree house, can see the look on her face
Elephant room provides the best feel of the forest at night, can hear the occasional growl, elephants noise , birds and insects giving a natural orchestra with a light dose of adrenaline.





Safari time : Our ride



Various animals spotted:

















Felt sorry for this Lizard, Please drive slow in the road through the forest area.



This young bull charged at us



At one of the elephant crossings, Mom and Calf



Couldn't see a leopard but saw pug marks of a leopard with cub and also of a tiger. Just outside the elephant fence.





On our way back







Thanks for viewing. Comments welcome.

[vickzkool]

Nice travelogue James , crisp and lovely pics , we were there last November in bandipur and covered mudumulai forest range extensively , the tree house looks good , tempted to visit again on my next visit to India.

[ampere]

A beautiful log with colorful snaps! Nice way to begin your innings on the forum. Waiting to read more!

[Dieseldunk]

Welcome and nice way to start off. Really good pictographic coverage. Makes me feel like doing this trip again sometime. Btw your regn is tn 10 and I stay in kk nagar. Please pm me your contact so we can catch up if your schedule permits.

[shashanka]

Great thread James! And the photos too were crisp and detailed - those fresh carrots were most appetite-inducing! Your black and white VDI looked good with the morning dew.

Like you, my condolences to the unfortunate lizard too. Our daughter was inconsolable - for about half a day! - when we ran over one during one of our early trips to Madikeri. We have been more careful since.

[S2!!!]

Congrats on your first travelogue. Too bad you didn't spot the leopard or the tiger. Another time perhaps...

Looking forward to more write-ups from you.

[Gannu_1]

Nice travelogue. Thanks for sharing!

Won't the black tint that's extending below from the front windshield top affect your visibility while driving? Or is that something else?

[mpksuhas]

Thanks for letting know about the resort. Could you please share the room rates, inclusions and safari rate ?

[VindyWheels]

Hi James,

Nice account of you short visit. When you say safari, is it the one from Mudumalai? If it is Masinagudi safari by the local jeep, was it done on the roads or did you go off road?

I had stayed at secret ivory, the setting is nice but if you go to Bokapuram side of Masinagudi you will find much better resorts which are truly away from other buildings and any activity.

Cheers

Vindy

[jamesdraj]

Originally Posted by Dieseldunk

Welcome and nice way to start off. Really good pictographic coverage. Makes me feel like doing this trip again sometime. Btw your regn is tn 10 and I stay in kk nagar. Please pm me your contact so we can catch up if your schedule permits.

Sure diesel dunk, I stay in porur. So surely will meet up

Originally Posted by Gannu_1

Nice travelogue. Thanks for sharing!

Won't the black tint that's extending below from the front windshield top affect your visibility while driving? Or is that something else?

Its just the darker tint available in 3M, its not opaque as it might look.It covers a big chunk of the front windshield hence provides some respite from sun. Might be slightly difficult to see the traffic lights at night if parked pretty close to it.

Originally Posted by mpksuhas

Thanks for letting know about the resort. Could you please share the room rates, inclusions and safari rate ?

http://www.secretivory.com

Please call up Mr.Ombalan 9443204102 for further details.

Originally Posted by VindyWheels

Hi James,

Nice account of you short visit. When you say safari, is it the one from Mudumalai? If it is Masinagudi safari by the local jeep, was it done on the roads or did you go off road?

I had stayed at secret ivory, the setting is nice but if you go to Bokapuram side of Masinagudi you will find much better resorts which are truly away from other buildings and any activity.

Cheers

Vindy

For the first 2 days we took the jeep arranged by the resort for safari. These were limited to tarmac only. Few incidents of death of tourists( elephant attacks) due to human negligence has made most of the resorts quite strict with their safari plans. But third day arranged through an external source with a local guide, He took us off road , the hill top and dangerously close to animals. Most exciting but also dangerous.

will try those resorts next time vindy.

Mod Note: Please learn to use multi-quote feature.