By Arpit Mehrotra ( 16th April, 2008)
A young proud Malayali sat beside me avidly telling all good things about
Kerala. In our flight to Kozhikode he explained me every bit of Kerala as I
felt I had already seen the ‘God’s Own Country’ through his
eyes. I don’t go by cliches but Kerala is indeed a heaven, I had
realised it very well during a 15 days aimless drifting to different places
of Kerala. Except for snow, Kerala has it all – golden beaches, virgin
forests teeming wildlife, serene backwaters, lofty mountains and rich
cultural collage.
One of my Keralian friends told me about Wayanad, lesser known district and
unexploited destination. Though I didn’t have any specific plans but I
wanted to spend my time in some unknown place. I booked in advance a room in
Vythiri Resort. It took me about 3 hours to reach Vythiri Resort from
Kozhikode. It was the best base camp for exploring Wayanad, spread over 50
acres, the resort is perched on two slopes of a mountain, on either side of
a natural stream gurgling through a small valley, which gave me a feel of
staying within a rainforests. Overlooked the green dense valley and stream,
it seemed I were lodged in a tree house.
The best part of the place was no doubt the dramatic rope bridge that
connected the two sections of the resort to either side of the valley.
Walking tightrope on the bridge was little scary. I loved the perfect
ambiance and praised myself for my sole trip. Wayanad is an ideal place for
solitude venture.
Next day I set out on a morning trek through the resort acreage. Armed with
binoculars, camera and a stick, I passed by mud track through thickly
forested slopes. The subtle fragrances of the jungle wafted through my
nostrils. A constant shower of red petals from Erythrina Indica trees seemed
to offer me a royal welcome, and the forest floor was literally red. The
path soon meandered into a coffee plantation, where the trees were laden
with fragrant coffee flowers and berries of all hues. The coffee plantation
was embellished with gulmohar trees. There I collected few leaves for my
condiment collection.
My next venture was into the wild of Wayanad sanctuary. The sanctuary was a
haven for elephants, enroute I stopped at Pookat lake. The shimmering
expanse of tranquil water looked like a large emerald, set in ring of green
mountains. Over the nest few hours I explored full deciduous forest of the
sanctuary, wondering at the diveristy of life. I bumped off with hordes of
chital and the sambhar deer scampering into the bushes. As the chatter of
birds ebbed, the colonies of night herons invoked, I heard a loud scream of
chittal auguring that lord of the jungle was on the prowl.
Related Guide Links
Cochin
Periyar Wildlife Sanctuary
Trivandrum
Kerala Backwater
Kerala Ayurveda
