[potlaravi]

Hi gandhiji,

Beautiful snaps. You done the trip in right time. The way the bikers gang parked the bikes is impressive .

-Ravi

[Gandhi]

Originally Posted by vrprabhu

These pictures are a sight for the sore eyes....

BTW, what was the condition of the ghat?

And, how was the kerala food...?

Do you mean the Lakkidi ghat? It was very good. The road surface is butter smooth with proper markers all the way.

Wifey doesn't eat non-veg, so couldn't try the Kerala food :(.

Originally Posted by potlaravi

Hi gandhiji,

Beautiful snaps. You done the trip in right time. The way the bikers gang parked the bikes is impressive .

-Ravi

Thanks Ravi. The way they were driving was even more impressive.

[vrprabhu]

Originally Posted by Gandhi

Do you mean the Lakkidi ghat? It was very good. The road surface is butter smooth with proper markers all the way.

Wifey doesn't eat non-veg, so couldn't try the Kerala food :(.

Thanks! I will be in Calicut for a couple of days next fortnight - let me see if I get the time for a quick visit.


There are plenty of veggie options for your wife - in fact, Onam Sadya is a veritable feast of veg items.

The veg breakfast is best -
a. pazhampori ('nendram pazham' - a special variety of banana - fried)
b. the same banana roasted / steamed
c. puttu (rice flour and scraped coconut mixed and steamed in a special small narrow barrel!)
d. appam (rice batter with a hint of toddy - to make it soft and fluffy!, lifted from a tawa a la dosa)
e. Idiyappam (rice strings - like noodles)

the 'pattiri' and 'parotta' are again in a class of its own!!

accompanied by veg stew (a mish mash of vegetables in coconut gravy), kadala curry (brown chana - soaked overnight), kappa curry (a dish made of tapioca - cassava)...

I am literally salivating at my desk here

Keep in mind for your next trip

[Gandhi]

Originally Posted by vrprabhu

There are plenty of veggie options for your wife - in fact, Onam Sadya is a veritable feast of veg items.

Whoa. Thanks a lot dude. Where were you before I went for the trip .

[Epic]

Hey Gandhi,

Those are brilliant pictures and it only brings back memories to me. I was in Wayanad for 3 yrs doing my hotel management so I know exactly what you are talking about. I don;t know if you noticed my college (pretty hard to miss) but it is a huge white building/campus which you can see on the left hand side just before you start the ghat section downhill. It is called the 'Oriental School of Hotel Management'.

Don't know if you are aware but there is also tree just around 100 meters before our college called the 'Chain Tree'. It actually has a huge chain tied around it and the story goes - During the British time, a British engineer hired a local guide to help him reach Bangalore/Mysore from Calicut city. Since that area is a hilly region, the local guide was required and was promised to be paid a handsome sum. However, on crossing the difficult terrain and reaching Wayanad, the engineer had the guide killed and hung him on that tree. Apparently after that there used to be alot of road accidents that used to occur near that tree. A pujari was called to do a puja and a huge chain was tied around it which apparently also tied the spirit to the tree. The accidents stopped after that.

Hope you enjoyed the trip and thank you for the memories

[menonrajesh]

Great snaps there Gandhi!

A bit OT :

In this picture shot by you, the buildings you see are of a resort named " Banasura Island Retreat". This resort is located in one of the Island in the Banasura Sagar reservoir. I am yet to visit this place, but their website looks stunning and so inviting! You may check it here : Banasura Island | Resort in Wayanad | Wayanad Tourism | Jungle Resort Wayand Kerala

Cheers!

[Gandhi]

Originally Posted by Epic

Hey Gandhi,

Those are brilliant pictures and it only brings back memories to me. I was in Wayanad for 3 yrs doing my hotel management so I know exactly what you are talking about.

Wow. You are a very lucky dude.

Don't know if you are aware but there is also tree just around 100 meters before our college called the 'Chain Tree'.

I had seen photos of that tree on internet before the trip and didn't find it interesting so skipped it. The story is surely very interesting.

Hope you enjoyed the trip and thank you for the memories

We enjoyed the trip to fullest. This was our best trip so far in last year. I'm glad our trip brought some good memories to you.

Originally Posted by menonrajesh

Great snaps there Gandhi!

A bit OT :

In this picture shot by you, the buildings you see are of a resort named " Banasura Island Retreat". This resort is located in one of the Island in the Banasura Sagar reservoir. I am yet to visit this place, but their website looks stunning and so inviting! You may check it here : Banasura Island | Resort in Wayanad | Wayanad Tourism | Jungle Resort Wayand Kerala

Cheers!

I had inquired about this resort to the speed boat driver. I googled about it after coming back and surely would love to go there sometime.

[abhinav.s]

Originally Posted by menonrajesh

You may check it here : Banasura Island | Resort in Wayanad | Wayanad Tourism | Jungle Resort Wayand Kerala

Cheers!

Thanks a lot for the link Rajesh.. Place really looks scenic and interesting. This makes me all the more wanting to plan a trip to Wayanad soon!!

[ampere]

Originally Posted by menonrajesh

Great snaps there Gandhi!

A bit OT :

In this picture shot by you, the buildings you see are of a resort named " Banasura Island Retreat". This resort is located in one of the Island in the Banasura Sagar reservoir. I am yet to visit this place, but their website looks stunning and so inviting! You may check it here : Banasura Island | Resort in Wayanad | Wayanad Tourism | Jungle Resort Wayand Kerala

Cheers!

Wow! This location seems to be awesome! Do you have any TL on this?
Please point us to it. If not, write one for us!

[menonrajesh]

Originally Posted by ampere

Wow! This location seems to be awesome! Do you have any TL on this?
Please point us to it. If not, write one for us!

I would have loved to do a TL on this had I been there!

I actually stumbled upon the Banasura Island Resort while googling for Banasura Hill Resort - Banasura Hill Resort - Wayanad, Kerala Resorts, Nature Resorts India. Both the places look awesome and now literally confused which one to explore first!

[Gandhi]

Originally Posted by menonrajesh

I actually stumbled upon the Banasura Island Resort while googling for Banasura Hill Resort. Both the places look awesome and now literally confused which one to explore first!

My colleague had been to this Banasura Hill Resort few weeks back. It is an amazing place. The entire resort has been built from natural earth material. He is not on Team-BHP but I can ask him to share some pics through picasaweb.

[Gandhi]

Day 3:

Sunday started on a bad note as wifey was not feeling well at all. Here stomach was really upset and she was in no mood to visit anymore places. Hence we decided to get straight back to home immediately after a light breakfast. Edakkal caves can wait till we decide ti visit Wayanad next time.

Started from the hotel at 10.30 AM and reached Bangalore at 5.00 PM. The return journey was uneventful except some heavy rains around Mandya which brought some smile to wifey's face.

A couple of pics in Muthanga Wildlife Sanctuary.





A small video on driving through Muthanga Wildlife Sanctuary.

YouTube - Drive through Muthanga Wildlife Sanctuary

Trip Statistics:

KMs Covered: 778
Petrol Consumed: 39.63 Liters
Type of Petrol: Shell Unleaded Normal
AC Used: Rare
Fuel Efficiency: 19.63 KMPL
Cost for Petrol: Rs 2325.09
Cost / KM: Rs 2.99

Hotel Review:

The Green Gates Hotel (Green Gates Hotel | Green Gates Hotel Wayanad, Green Gates Hotel at Wayanad, 3 Star Hotel, Hotels in Wayanad, Green Gates Hotel in Wayanad, Greengates Hotel in Wayanad, Greengates Hotel at Wayanad, Greengates Hotel Wayanad) never disappointed us in any way. Starting from booking the room till check-out from the hotel, entire process was very smooth. They have tie-up with a hospitality company Signature Holidays. When I booked the deluxe room with them, their executive from Signature Holidays came to my office to take the advance booking amount. He handed over me the brochures of the hotel which covered all the important details like, route from Bangalore to Hotel (with proper landmarks mentioned), a planning guide to places around Kalpetta with distance from Hotel and a recommended itinerary.

We were greeted with a nice welcome drink upon arrival. The guy at the travel desk was the most important and most helpful guy at the hotel (the entire staff was courteous).

The rooms were neat and clean. Bathroom and toilet were clean too. Bedsheets and other furniture was very decent, no complaints.

Food: They have good options for food. The buffet breakfast was really good with enough options like typical Kerala delicacies, bread butter jam, omlet, fruits, juices, tea coffee. Taste wise it was slightly less spicy for our kind of taste but was very hygienic.

Would I recommend this place to a friend? Yeah, sure.

Deluxe Room.


Restaurant (only 25% of it is visible in this shot)


Main hotel building.


Outside dining area away from main hotel building.


Swimming Pool and indoor facilities building.


Their Villa Cottage.


A hut where you can have an exclusive dinner.


Signing off. Over and out.

[PatienceWins]

Thanks for sharing your experience and the hotel review. This trip has been in my mind for a long time. Planning to do it sometime this year.

[maximus.]

Never heard of this place before.Great pictures, detailed explaination.Thanks for sharing.

[MohsinRoadster]

Soochipara falls and lakkidi view point are just awsome!! A very inviting place indeed.