Pulicat Lake - @AP - near Chennai

druva · 5th January 2008, 06:52

Last weekend I did a trip to Pulicat lake.. sorry no pics (battery playing spoilsport).. If you want to watch birds - (Pelicans, Storks, Spoonbills..) then this is the place to go. My wife says this is better than Vedanthangal.

Its about 80 km from Chennai just inside AP border.
Route to take is Chennai - NH5 (Kolkatta highway) - Gummidipoondi - Tada - Sulurpet - Pulicat lake.

Chennai to Tada is about 65 km. Sulurpet is about 10 km from there and then you see a circle for Sriharikota. All of this is in NH5 and the road conditions are good. Pulicat is about 5 km from there. Decent roads.

The lake is huge - about 500 acres. Is a good season to visit now with lot of migratory birds. Best time to see - before 9 AM or after 3 PM.. You can kill the in between time by boating.

Also there is a 10 km muddy road to Vepamedu village (island).. I drove about 2 km and returned - as we wanted to take boat ride.

Necessary accessories:
1. Good Binocular - I Had 8x one. Sufficient at prime times. However during the barren times when the birds move deeper into the lake - its not sufficient.

2. Breakfast/ Lunch/ Snacks - nothing looked worthwhile for eating at Sulurpet. Pulicat doesnt have any eatery.

Tips:
0. Best period to visit - December to March. I think peak would be Jan/ Feb.

1. Boat ride - official boat riding is near Tada.. However not worth it. (Atleast it doesnt take anywhere close to birds)

2. On our way from Sulurpet to Pulicat there were some fisherman hauing boats. We took a trip on that - you talk to them nicely.. They take you near to island mounds where there are thousands of birds
Cost: 100- 150 rs (he just asked whatever i can.. seemed to be happy)

3. AP tourism office and Environmental education offices are there. However they spoke only Telegu. You can get tips about where to go for bird watching.

4. Pulicat - SHAR road also has lot of birds. (Didnt explore this fully)

Now that I have been here, if there is a rocket launch @ SHAR - I am definitely going to drive there and watch from Pulicat. Anyone done that?

TrueDreamer · 5th January 2008, 11:44

Nice one druva. If you have one good camcorder with LCD with Battery Charger in your car, i think you can give a miss to binoculars

madan80 · 5th January 2008, 12:00

cool.. thanks for the direction. the better place in pullicat to go is to the north shore. thats about 100 + kms on the GQ and then beyond SHAR as well.

thanks for the dircetions also.

druva · 5th January 2008, 16:35

Quote:

Originally Posted by TrueDreamer

Nice one druva. If you have one good camcorder with LCD with Battery Charger in your car, i think you can give a miss to binoculars

Silly me... guess what? I have a Sony 120x camcorder

..
me being SLR fanatic took my Canon EOS!!

Quote:

Originally Posted by madan80

cool.. thanks for the direction. the better place in pullicat to go is to the north shore. thats about 100 + kms on the GQ and then beyond SHAR as well.

.

can you elaborate GQ? Also do you remember places or landmarks near the 100 km spot? I think I will be doing one more trip before March.

hvkumar · 7th January 2008, 11:41

Quote:

Originally Posted by madan80

cool.. thanks for the direction. the better place in pullicat to go is to the north shore. thats about 100 + kms on the GQ and then beyond SHAR as well.

thanks for the dircetions also.

How does one go to the North bank of Pulicat lake? Does one have to go further on NH5 beyond Sulurpet?

And has anyone gone to the South bank at teh town of Pulicat in TN off Gummidipundi?

balan · 16th January 2010, 18:48

What is the driving directions from Bangalore to Pulicat lake? Is there a way to avoid chennai traffic?
Best regards
Bala

mail4loys · 16th January 2010, 20:20

Quote:

Originally Posted by hvkumar

And has anyone gone to the South bank at teh town of Pulicat in TN off Gummidipundi?

Do you mean Pazhaverkaadu village on the TN side?

xingamazon · 16th January 2010, 22:37

Well as I live in south side of Chennai, would prefer going to Vedanthangal first.

Can anyone who has been to both locations other than the thread orginator let me know which is a better place, it would help me in planning for coming weekend.

raju2512 · 17th January 2010, 13:12

Quote:

Originally Posted by xingamazon

Well as I live in south side of Chennai, would prefer going to Vedanthangal first.

Can anyone who has been to both locations other than the thread orginator let me know which is a better place, it would help me in planning for coming weekend.

If your interest is in bird watching, Vedanthangal is better, Go to Pulicat if you want a relaxed boat ride. I had visited Pulicat 2 weeks back and the details can be found here

http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/travel...chennai-2.html

ASHISHPALLOD · 17th January 2010, 14:54

Pulikat lake is on my radar.
I will be there during my next Tirupati visit.

jeevmenon · 18th January 2010, 22:07

The only thing, myself and my wife remember of Pulicat is that it was quite dirty (lots of sh*t around the lighthouse. It all looked good on the maps and a couple of photos in a newspaper report (a blue sail was very impressive). We had done it 25th Dec 2003 on our Splendor. Had carried breakfast expecting a nice place close to the lighthouse but it was a disappointment. Lot of filth. Sorry for the discouragement but hopefully things have improved now. Any snaps, anyone? Blue sails? Ferry across the lake onto the lighthouse island? Maybe the north part is cleaner. Let me know. Would like to do it with our Sparky if things have improved.

MillionSwords · 22nd March 2010, 17:12

@jeevmenon and others who expect a fairy tale island, it certainly wont improve and don't expect that. It's too remove and people make a living from fishing and backwaters. So you know how it is with them, and the vast land is barren half the year, brackish, salty and soggy soil. The place around villages tend to be filthy and dirty, they don't have toilets and wont have for the next 20 years or so, if life still is going to be out of fishing for them all. Well,,, drift away from those places, and look for the better things up in the sky from the tar road! you shall be happy.

More over, it is not a "easy go thing" spotting birds, so you need to be in the Open air and the Sun to get a nice view of the birds and a lot of luck and knowledge where what bird will do and eat!

Happy hunting fellows!

highwaylover · 22nd March 2010, 17:38

Quote:

Originally Posted by druva

can you elaborate GQ?

by GQ he means golden quadrilateral.

DrRom · 8th April 2012, 07:31

My friend, who has spent several years in Andaman Islands, swears by Pulicat for the excellent sea food.

5th January 2008, 06:52	#1
druva BHPian Join Date: Sep 2007 Location: Chennai Posts: 313 Thanked: 37 Times	Pulicat Lake - @AP - near Chennai Last weekend I did a trip to Pulicat lake.. sorry no pics (battery playing spoilsport).. If you want to watch birds - (Pelicans, Storks, Spoonbills..) then this is the place to go. My wife says this is better than Vedanthangal. Its about 80 km from Chennai just inside AP border. Route to take is Chennai - NH5 (Kolkatta highway) - Gummidipoondi - Tada - Sulurpet - Pulicat lake. Chennai to Tada is about 65 km. Sulurpet is about 10 km from there and then you see a circle for Sriharikota. All of this is in NH5 and the road conditions are good. Pulicat is about 5 km from there. Decent roads. The lake is huge - about 500 acres. Is a good season to visit now with lot of migratory birds. Best time to see - before 9 AM or after 3 PM.. You can kill the in between time by boating. Also there is a 10 km muddy road to Vepamedu village (island).. I drove about 2 km and returned - as we wanted to take boat ride. Necessary accessories: 1. Good Binocular - I Had 8x one. Sufficient at prime times. However during the barren times when the birds move deeper into the lake - its not sufficient. 2. Breakfast/ Lunch/ Snacks - nothing looked worthwhile for eating at Sulurpet. Pulicat doesnt have any eatery. Tips: 0. Best period to visit - December to March. I think peak would be Jan/ Feb. 1. Boat ride - official boat riding is near Tada.. However not worth it. (Atleast it doesnt take anywhere close to birds) 2. On our way from Sulurpet to Pulicat there were some fisherman hauing boats. We took a trip on that - you talk to them nicely.. They take you near to island mounds where there are thousands of birds Cost: 100- 150 rs (he just asked whatever i can.. seemed to be happy) 3. AP tourism office and Environmental education offices are there. However they spoke only Telegu. You can get tips about where to go for bird watching. 4. Pulicat - SHAR road also has lot of birds. (Didnt explore this fully) Now that I have been here, if there is a rocket launch @ SHAR - I am definitely going to drive there and watch from Pulicat. Anyone done that?
	() Thanks

5th January 2008, 11:44	#2
TrueDreamer BHPian Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: Hyderabad Posts: 276 Thanked: 16 Times	Nice one druva. If you have one good camcorder with LCD with Battery Charger in your car, i think you can give a miss to binoculars
	() Thanks

5th January 2008, 12:00	#3
madan80 Senior - BHPian Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Santa Clara, CA Posts: 1,360 Thanked: 80 Times View My Garage	cool.. thanks for the direction. the better place in pullicat to go is to the north shore. thats about 100 + kms on the GQ and then beyond SHAR as well. thanks for the dircetions also.
	() Thanks

16th January 2010, 18:48	#6
balan BHPian Join Date: Aug 2008 Location: bangalore, guda Posts: 211 Thanked: 61 Times	What is the driving directions from Bangalore to Pulicat lake? Is there a way to avoid chennai traffic? Best regards Bala
	() Thanks

16th January 2010, 22:37	#8
xingamazon Senior - BHPian Join Date: Sep 2009 Location: Chennai Posts: 1,400 Thanked: 121 Times	Well as I live in south side of Chennai, would prefer going to Vedanthangal first. Can anyone who has been to both locations other than the thread orginator let me know which is a better place, it would help me in planning for coming weekend.
	() Thanks

17th January 2010, 14:54	#10
ASHISHPALLOD Senior - BHPian Join Date: Oct 2006 Location: MH42 Posts: 2,006 Thanked: 334 Times	Pulikat lake is on my radar. I will be there during my next Tirupati visit.
	() Thanks

18th January 2010, 22:07	#11
jeevmenon BHPian Join Date: Oct 2009 Location: TN07 Posts: 472 Thanked: 23 Times	The only thing, myself and my wife remember of Pulicat is that it was quite dirty (lots of sh*t around the lighthouse. It all looked good on the maps and a couple of photos in a newspaper report (a blue sail was very impressive). We had done it 25th Dec 2003 on our Splendor. Had carried breakfast expecting a nice place close to the lighthouse but it was a disappointment. Lot of filth. Sorry for the discouragement but hopefully things have improved now. Any snaps, anyone? Blue sails? Ferry across the lake onto the lighthouse island? Maybe the north part is cleaner. Let me know. Would like to do it with our Sparky if things have improved.
	() Thanks

22nd March 2010, 17:12	#12
MillionSwords BHPian Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: Chennai Pattanam [ellam kattanam] Posts: 172 Thanked: 2 Times View My Garage	@jeevmenon and others who expect a fairy tale island, it certainly wont improve and don't expect that. It's too remove and people make a living from fishing and backwaters. So you know how it is with them, and the vast land is barren half the year, brackish, salty and soggy soil. The place around villages tend to be filthy and dirty, they don't have toilets and wont have for the next 20 years or so, if life still is going to be out of fishing for them all. Well,,, drift away from those places, and look for the better things up in the sky from the tar road! you shall be happy. More over, it is not a "easy go thing" spotting birds, so you need to be in the Open air and the Sun to get a nice view of the birds and a lot of luck and knowledge where what bird will do and eat! Happy hunting fellows!
	() Thanks

8th April 2012, 07:31	#14
DrRom Newbie Join Date: Jan 2011 Location: Bengaluru Posts: 2 Thanked: 3 Times	Re: Pulicat Lake - @AP - near Chennai My friend, who has spent several years in Andaman Islands, swears by Pulicat for the excellent sea food.
	() Thanks