[darklord]

Ever since the proposed Athirappally Power Project began to make news, I wanted to visit the waterfall before it got destroyed by human greed. The urge intensified when I saw a photo a few months back showing the waterfall in all its glory during the peak monsoon. However, I got busy with one thing and the other, and the trip kept getting postponed until last week when I made up my mind to visit it before the month ended.

The initial plan was to take a train to Thrissur and stay overnight at my friend's house and start early in the morning in his car to the waterfall so that we will have enough time to drive till Sholayar Dam or Malakkapara and return (the Vazhachaal forest checkpost closes at 6 pm). However, my friend had a few modifications to the plan and the day unfolded a bit differently.

On the day prior, I took the Kerala Express from Varkala to Thrissur.

A goods train at Varkala station. The poor thing arrived first, but had to wait for Kerala Express to pass:


Kerala Express (TVC-NDLS):


Edava-Nadayara Lake:


Munroe Island:


Kallada River:


Cochin airport's solar farm:


The train arrived just 30 minutes late at Thrissur, which is an achievement considering the ongoing track maintenance throughout Kerala.

My friend was waiting for me at the station and took me to a restaurant to have tea and "snacks." He took me to Sulaimani 168.

Irachi pottas (meat filling):


Aanachavitti (rice balls in chicken gravy):


Idukki gold (mint tea):


While laying out my plan, my friend insisted that we visit Asurankundu Dam (GPS: 10.684984, 76.294875), which is near his house and assured me it was worth the time spent. Hence visiting that dam became the first thing to do in the morning.

I had not heard of such a dam before and it turned out to be a relatively small dam inside Vazhani Wildlife Sanctuary with almost no security, no tourist facilities, and needing no tickets to enter. On the downside though, it appears to be a favorite drinking spot. We arrived at 8:30, and it was devoid of any humans. The security cabin was empty; no tourists; just peace and quiet.

The road leading to the dam:


I spotted a Grey Jungle Fowl couple, but could not photograph them. Also spotted a large male spotted deer, but he spotted us first and made good his escape before I could "shoot" it.

The first intruders of the day:




There were a lot of birds, but my equipment was inadequate to shoot most of them.

Little cormorants and a couple of Red-wattled lapwings:


Little cormorants in flight:


Red-wattled lapwing in flight:


A White-browed wagtail:


Green bee-eaters, common kingfisher, and little cormorants:








A Spotted dove:


Common Kingfisher:






The reservoir:







Our steed:


We spent an hour there and returned to my friend's house by 9:30.

Paddy fields en route:


The plan was to have a quick breakfast and start our drive to Athirappally by 10.

[darklord]

"No plan survives first contact."

After a supposed 10-minute chore stretched to 2 hours, we were able to leave only by 12 noon. Thrissur-Athirappally distance is about 60 km. We did not encounter any traffic bottlenecks and after a leisurely drive, reached Athirappally by about 2 p.m. Since it was noon time and to get to the top of Athirappally involves a bit of walking, we decided to have a dekko from the roadside viewpoint and visit properly during the return drive.





The flow has decreased considerably compared to what was in the photo that prompted this trip.



Disappointed, we drove onward to Vazhachaal waterfalls.



The depleted Charpa waterfalls between Athirappally and Vazhachaal:




We reached Vazhachaal by 2:30. Tickets cost 30 for adults, 20 for car, and 20 for camera. Ticket counters are present at both Athirappally and Vazhachaal, and the issued tickets are valid for both places, so you need to buy ticket from one place only. The counters are open from 8 am to 5 pm.















A small video:

https://youtu.be/2BjFreZRRIg

There is also a herbal medicine garden, but we skipped it due to time constraints.

Right in front of the gate is the Vaazhachal checkpost that regulates the onward journey through the Chalakkudi-Valparai-Pollachi road. On talking with the guards, they said that Sholayar Dam is 60 km away and that the checkpost closes at 6. So we dropped the idea to drive till Sholayar and settled with Peringalkuthu dam, which is 8 km away from the checkpost. We entered our details and was given an hour to return. We started to drive towards Peringalkuthu dam.

[darklord]

Just across the checkpost is a huge parking ground and a few stalls selling forest products etc. From there on, traffic is sparse, but some places the roads are narrow, so low slung cars need to be careful while giving way.

A bridge across the river:


Drive carefully:


Sambar deer:


Beautiful road:




Attention:


A few km after the bridge, a road forks into the powerhouse. We mistook it for the dam road and had to turn around after asking at a forest product stall.

The intruding animal:


Don't get into the river, don't litter:


Another km later, Poringalkuthu junction comes up. A road forks into the dam site and an arch announces it. There is a KSEB ticket counter from where one has to obtain tickets for both man and machine. Although there are boards announcing boating, it is not operational anymore.

A view en route the dam:


Large cameras are not allowed inside the dam; however, mobile photography is okay. You are not allowed to enter the top of the dam either.

The rains were less in the region and the dam was almost empty; however, the guards said the Sholayar Dam upstream had more water.













I reckon it would have been a great place for boating and wildlife spotting, would have been a source of income for KSEB as well. Hope they restart the boating soon.

Nilgiri Langur:




Parked? Abandoned?


After spending about 10 minutes, we returned. We have to report back at Vazhachaal checkpost by 4.

[darklord]

The loss of time earlier in the day is now catching up with us. To get to the top of Athirappally falls involves a bit of walking from the entrance on the main road (finding a parking spot itself might take time). To get to the bottom of the falls involves a further somewhat difficult trekking.

With the time limitation nagging us, we started our drive back from Poringalkuthu dam.



We had a 2-second stop to click some pictures of the bridge and the river as seen from it.







We reported back to Vazhachal checkpost with 5 minutes to spare, returned the pass and signed the register and moved on towards Athirappally falls.



Even though most of the parking spots were occupied, we managed to find a spot fairly close the entrance itself. We showed the ticket that we had purchased earlier at Vazhachal and started to walk towards the top of the fall.

After sweating a bit in the humidity, we reached the top of the falls.













Upstream, there are a few roped off parts of the river, away from the flow, for tourists to bathe.

Upstream:





There was a guard in the guard hut and she informed that the trek to the base of the falls will take about 10 mins. Hence we decided to abandon the plan as it was already 4:40. We returned after a last click from the top.



Just outside the entrance, there is a restaurant, Cinnamon Food Court, which had excellent views of the falls. The cost of the view is realized in the food bill though.

From the ground floor:




Top floor had a better view:


Thus ended the trip. Some of my original objectives have not been met and a "correctional" trip needs to be made during another monsoon season.

[aah78]

Note from Support: Thread moved to the Travelogues section. Thanks for sharing!

[dre@ms]

Wonderful pics which replenishes my memory of the recent visit to Athirapally. Time taken to go down to the waterfall is more than 10 minutes and coming back is altogether a different story. Weak hearted and not fit persons will struggle a lot. View from bottom is astounding and you have really missed it.

Not seen/heard of the dam next to the checkpost at Pollachi side.

[DrANTO]

Nice travelogue dark lord and excellent pictures too. I have never heard of Asurakundu dam before reading your post. BTW Athirapally- Valparai road is the best driving route in Kerala (probably in South India too) in my opinion. I have driven through this route multiple times over the last decade and every time it mesmerizes me with its sheer natural beauty. 4 months ago I have done a sole drive to Valparai and enjoyed it thoroughly.

Sorry to hijack your thread but posting a few pictures taken with my phone camera.Please excuse the poor resolution of photos.