Nights in Nagarahole - Part 1: Route

I've realized now why my fingers were struggling over the keyboard. In my obsession with Bandipur I forgot that there is a world outside it. I would probably have been blind to this Bandipur-less world if it had not been for my sister & bro-in-law.

Friday 25th April, 2012 saw my car heading off in a direction that promised a lot. Wayanad & Nagarahole are a an extremely exciting combination provided we have the time to let it soak into our senses. I realized halfway through the trip that that I needed another couple of days if I had to really explore this lovely piece of wilderness.

Words are now jostling over each other in my head and I'm not sure where to start. I have therefore decided that I'll record my trip in chronological sequence.

First things first. Before any trip I like to "get prepared" and so I went trundling around the net with search strings that read like this "nagarahole national park", "nagarahole map", "nagarahole forest rest house" and the like. Imagine my surprise when I found out that except for the Google map showing a road passing through Nagarahole from Kutta to Hunsur there was nothing to tell me what lay in between!

The first thing I've done is to mark the locations on Google Earth so people interested in a wild vacation in Nagarahole will know exactly where they have to stop. We were booked into the Kallahalla FRH, right in the middle of the forest. If you exclude the road that passes in front of the rest house it will be "deep-in-the-jungle"!

The Route from Palakkad

The road to Nagarahole from Palakkad goes through some really winding terrain. I've recorded myself driving through the shortest route.  Point Zero is my house. (All distances in brackets are from Point Zero).

The first major town is Mannarkad (40kms). Just after Mannarkad, NH 213 takes a left turn at Kumaranputhur junction (43kms). Keep going straight on the Nilambur road. After Alanallur, Melattur, Pandikad (72kms) you will reach Manjeri (85kms). It can be a little confusing here so don't hesitate to ask for help.

Manjeri town has a bypass that appears on your right immediately after the Korambayil Hospital. This bypass curves gently and reaches a junction. You have to turn right here onto the Nilambur-Areekode road. A little further, the road turns right to Nilambur. Keep going straight for Areekode.

Areekode in exactly 100 km from Palakkad. Keep going straight through the town and you will hit Mukkom (115kms), followed by Omaserry (120kms) and Thamaraserry (130kms). At Thamaraserry this road joins the Kozhikode - Mysore highway where you have to turn right for Kalpetta.

After climbing the ghat road which is picturesque by itself you will reach Vythiri ((160kms). You can take an alternate route from here which is a trifle winding so what you make up on distance you lose in time. (I returned through that route so I'll give the details later). Kalpetta (172kms) has a bypass but is best avoided. The road is in pathetic condition and it rejoins the highway in the heart of town! Just out side the town is the Kainatty junction (174kms) where you have to take a left for Manathavady.

The road passes through Kaniyambetta (182 kms) and Panamaram (188kms) to reach Mananthavady (204 kms). In Manathavady get onto the Kattikulam- Tholpetty road. At Kattikulam (215kms) take a left turn immediately after an IndianOil Petrol station onto the Thirunelliy - Tholpetty road. This is the last petrol station before Nagarahole. (You will see the Pancahyat office on your right at the Junction).

Thirunelly - Tholpetty fork

The road divides about 10 kms later the left fork going to Thirunelly and the right to Tholpetty. It is well marked there so you cant lose your way. The Tholpetty WLS entrance (229kms) is only three kilometers from Kutta (232 kms). If you are driving by road better fuel up at Kattikulam because the petrol station at Kutta is defunct and they were drying arecanuts in the yard!!



 

Kutta Junction

As you enter Kutta, just past the Forest Check post the bus stand appears on your right. You have to make a sharp U-turn to get onto the Nagarahole road. (Between the two posts in the photo. The road on the right is the one that comes from Tholpetty to Kutta)







From here on it is a straight road. After signing in at the National park boundary (236 kms) you drive through dense forests before you reach the Reception center (242kms) where all the activities are coordinated.

Two forest department guest houses are available here, the Kaveri & Gangothri.

Kaveri FRH

Gangothri FRH

Kallahalla (250kms) forest rest house is another eight kilometers away. Located on top of a rise the rest house overlooks a waterhole.

Kallahalla FRH

 This 1924 vintage, British built, forest rest house is an ideal location for a quiet communion with nature. The building has been renovated recently and the first floor has two rooms with attached bathrooms. It has running water but since electricity is unpredictable, you should be prepared for cold baths, warm fridge & dead batteries in laptops and cameras. You can leave your cell phones behind since this place in eminently out of range, even from BSNL's network though the caretaker said there was a corner where you would get a connection.

Keep watching this page.......

My Clay Elephant

As I mentioned in my last post this is another post that is NOT about Woodcrawling. The fact is I haven't been able to find time to woodcrawl recently and I've been forced to look at other options.

So what's the next best thing to jungle? An elephant sanctuary.

In Guruvayur, the famous temple town in Kerala you can see more tuskers in one place that you would see on the banks of the Kabini reservoir even in peak summer. Some 50 odd tuskers that belong to the temple are kept in Punathoor kota.

It's might look odd to a true nature lover but despite the not so wonderful conditions the elephants of Guruvayur are the best cared for among the ones that belong to private owners.


Their tale is told here.

One of them was a fascinating fellow. Both the times I encountered him he was not the natural colour of the elephant. He had sort of painted himself with all the mud lying around. I therefore called him The Clay Elephant.

You will find a description of my encounter here.

 

 Please click the links above to go the the respective Blog pages.


Meanwhile, I've got one more opportunity coming up this month end to go Woodcrawling. I'll be back with some more tales soon, but till then go meet my friend, The Clay Elephant.

The Gods must be Crazy or Angry

Strictly speaking this is not about woodcrawling.

However, since it is about nature I'm placing a link here so you, my reader & inspiration, will not miss such a fascinating encounter I had on Friday, 20th April.

This here is a story that we all should read to feel the Power of Nature.


Click this link to go and see how furious GODs can be!

Wet & Wild in Bandipur

July is not exactly the right time to take off to the jungles. It is usually the worst part of the monsoon with endless rain the discomforts of wet weather. The pull of the jungle is too much to resist so I never hesitate to lug my gear and take off for a short trip.

The rain was not going to dampen my enthusiasm. The wilderness looks more beautiful, draped in green and interspersed with patches of slushy brown tracks. The herbivores were having a bounty. Lush grass,plenty of water and the romance in the air for some creatures.

Rutting season means some stags are in an amorous mood and having a head with large antlers is an advantage. Unfortunately, for some, a bare head is distinct set back. A doe in oestrus might not even give a passing glance at him, and they are relegated to the periphery of the herd. Perhaps, as first choice for a passing predator! Well endowed stags, of course, find the pride of place amongst a bevy of beauties, who clamour for his attention with nuzzles & licks.

                                                            The rain is incessant. After all it's the monsoon. If you are squeamish about wet weather, the jungle is not the place to be in. Vehicles can get stuck, sometimes uncomfortably close to an elephant herd with little calves. In times like that, stay in the vehicle and don't panic. Help is always around.                                                                       Elephants with calves always feel threatened by the presence of other creatures, especially humans. They may demonstrate their displeasure by charging at you. These charges are displays of mock aggression, and very rarely end in casualities. However, it is wise not to take chances.

There are always situations where the adrenaline is pumping. You find your vehicle stuck fast and face to face with a predator. It is unusual for predator to use the tactics of the elephant. They usually avoid eye contact and move away quickly. Too quickly, as a matter of fact, to get a good picture.

The sight of a tiger makes us tremble, either in fear or excitement; but to the tiger we are only an annoyance. Not worth a moment of their attention. They move away quickly & quietly, getting swallowed by the lantana, never to be seen in that area till we move away.

It is only after the tiger passes we take stock of our precarious situation. The jeep is stuck in nearly six inches of mud and not moving in any other direction except downward & deeper into the slush. We have to jump off and push if we were to move. This is no time to take a good picture of our situation; the tiger might just be smacking its lips in the bush, looking at a few juicy humans! A few pairs of hands on the back of the jeep and it slowly inches forward, the mud reluctantly letting go with squelches.

Every creature in the jungle benefits from the monsoon. Even a pair of dhole, Indian wild dogs, seem well fed. The advantage of a small pack is obvious. You only need to share your kill with  your mate!

When you finally drive out of the jungle, don't let your attention flag. It has many surprises. You only need to keep your eyes open. If you are already smelling dinner at the resort you might miss a cleverly camouflaged monitor lizard or even a leopard lying on a branch over a game track!

On the sides of the highway there maybe interesting creatures, searching for some juicy bird's nest with eggs that might just add a bit spice to their supper! Stripe necked mongooses are always busy bodies and nothing escapes their tiny beady eyes.

Just because it's monsoon, the jungle is not to be avoided. As a matter of fact, it looks even more beautiful when it is green. The tracks maybe rough & slushy but all it's denizens are at their healthy best.....

......and since it is not vacation time there are few people around to disturb the creatures. Next time, when you are watching the rain from your window, think of the lovely things God hid in the jungles.

Return of the Woodcrawler

Jottings had a taken a back seat for a few months due to various reasons. If I were to list them here it could be interpreted as excuses of a lazy man, so I'm not going to list them.

Monsoon is not exactly the best time for Woodcrawling. The jungles are dense and green and wildlife will disappear, even a large pachyderm, within a couple of meters from your camera. Besides, getting all my gear wet in a torrential downpour is not exactly a good idea even though I sometimes gloat about the weather sealing in my Olympus.

There were trips too, but not very productive in terms of pics. I'll be updating over the next few days........

Watch the pages

Among Slimy & the Slithery

It's been a while since I woodcrawled and this blog seems stuck in a time warp. I've been running around a bit but nothing worth biting into has turned up. This weekend should change things a bit. Bandipur beckons and I'm finished packing though I'm still a good four days away from driving off down that familiar road!

The boredom was killing the blogger in me and I had to do something. Monsoon is not exactly the ideal time to be out woodcrawling but heck, it's better than sitting in my house and going through old pictures.

On the 26th of June, 2011 I told my car to go in any direction it chose, and go off where it thought best. Trust my car to find a place to potter around, and it did! I guess it's woodcrawling instinct seems unaffected by the wet weather. Meenvallam was drowning in the rains so it went further. On the outskirts of Mannarkad the road turns right to Silent Valley National Park and my car, it seemed, had it's plan worked out. It swung right and pointed it's nose to Silent Valley. Odd time, 11.30 AM, because you need to get into the National Park before afternoon but I did not realize that my car had other ideas.

Just before the ghats begins the guard at the forest check post waved me through without even bothering to get out of his chair. That was funny; I remember entering my details the last time I was there, or was that some place else. As the road climbed gently the little cascades started to appear. In Silent Valley water has the right of way. Almost all cascades flow over the road, not under it!

Silent Valley has the most pristine rain forests  in this part of the world and I knew then I did not have to be on time! It struck me that I was alone and had the whole day to myself. I did not have to worry if my co-passenger was hungry and squeamish about leeches! Here I was, all alone with my gear in the most beautiful forest at the right time of the year. One creature that I wanted to see and photograph was the Giant wood spider. I was hoping I'd see it this time around. If it had not been for my car, I'd have been staring at my laptop screen all day.

Further up the canopy closed over the road making me feel like I was driving through a green tunnel. Every turn had something interesting and I was out of my car as much as I was in it. Thank God for the weather sealing that only Olympus has!

A lovely little cascade on my left, recessed into the forest that I almost missed it. My car, apparently knew it was there! It stopped. It almost seemed like a scene out of Jurassic Park.

As I walked about I started noticing little things. Small flowers, ferns, creepers, and tiny creatures that I'd never have noticed sitting in a car.
It was like re-learning how beautiful God's creations can be from close up.

About 28 kms from Mukkali (the entrance to Silent Valley National Park is this beautiful waterfall. It is on the right of a hairpin bend and falls almost 50 meters in series of steps. It is impossible to capture its beauty on a single frame unless you are in a helicopter!

The lower half is more violent and falls in more sharper drops than the upper part.

I kept driving, stopping, driving, stopping all the way to the top. By the time I reached Mukkali is was a little after 1.00PM. No scope of a trip into the National Park. I wasn't too keen either. I hadn't packed a lunch when I left home and it was the wrong season for birds here. So after a little discussion with my car we made  the U-turn.

On the way down I had the other side of the road to survey so the routine of stop-drive, stop-drive started again. There was this little cascade again with the water running over the road but this time it ran for a considerable distance along the side of the road before spilling onto it. I started walking along the little busy water way. It was only when I sat on my haunches and stared into water I realized how really 'busy' the water was!

Crab; so well camouflaged that I would have missed them if not for their scurrying under the rotting leaf litter.

Others popped up on the rocks waiting for prey but scooted off to their crevices as soon as I stepped in their direction.

Then something caught my eye. A damsel fly laying eggs on the litter in the water. It would fly a bit, alight on a twig or leaf and curl its tail into a circle a pat the tip on whatever it was sitting on.

As I watched fascinated I detected a little wiggly movement in the water. Tiny red worms (?Blood worms). Popping up from the  mud and disappearing the minute I touched the water or picked out a floating leaf to get a good view. There were thousands of them and I was wondering how I resisted the temptation to sip a little of that cold water. Providence intervened, perhaps!

Under a rock, protected from the rain and the dripping water was a nest of a paper wasp. They were busy as only wasps and bees could be. I didn't spend too much time in conversation with them. It was not the right time to upset them so I clicked a few pics and walked on.



A strange polka dotted grasshopper was climbing a rotting log. I couldn't get closer and my long lens was in the car but the perspective through the macro lens was more like what the grasshopper would see. An endlessly long climb...

As I had been walking I heard the croaking of frogs but I couldn't find one despite my good eye sight! I could find damsel flies and worms but no bloody frogs. Then out of the corner of my eye I saw a 'water droplet' going UP! How could a water droplet defy gravity? There had to be an explanation and I peered closer to inspect this curious phenomenon. The rock face was full of these little creatures, tadpoles with legs and froglets!

I had seen some amazing sights in Silent Valley but nothing to beat what I had seen in the last few hours. I got into my car and started downhill again. When I reached the hairpin bend at the 28th kilometer from Mukkali my car stopped. I had stopped on my way up but my car stopped again. This time I ignored the falls and walked into the wet forest on the opposite side. More ferns and beautiful ground fungi.

As I walked back to the car I looked up into a low hanging branch of a tree hoping to see some bird or some tree fungi. My eyes almost popped out of their sockets. There was an alien on the tree, looking at me with eyes at the tip of two stalks. A snail; that I'd never seen before. Half an hour and many photographs later  I got into my car, elated. This was a trip like no other.

I had spent a productive day, completely different from my usual jungle trip. No large mammals or birds, just 

God's little creations. The three bananas I had for lunch at Mukkali had by then been fully utilized and my stomach was grumbling again! I told my car to head home. 

As I rolled downhill again rewinding the sights in my mind I was thinking of getting home to a warm meal. My car stopped again! There; outside my left window was a web and in it's center the object of my desire. A Giant Wood Spider. Rumbling tummy was forgotten, rain was forgotten, the itchy leech bites were forgotten.

I only had eyes for this beauty, Never mind the fact it was missing a leg!

I did not know how I reached home. I only knew that God acts in strange ways. He showed me many fascinating things through the day but he reserved the best for the last.

Faith, they say, moves mountains. The entire Silent Valley moved for me.

Thank you God & thank you Car!!

Hijacked on New Year

Bandipur in winter is a wonderful place to be in. The weather is perfect; chilly mornings, warm days and cozy nights. The jungle itself is not too green but not too bare either, just the perfect blend of browns & greens.

New Year 2011 was around the corner and what better place to hang out in than in the wilderness. I hate noisy parties and would be a misfit in one. My idea of a good time is spending a quiet evening in the wilderness. Drunken revellry on the streets is totally abhorrent  to me. The best noises are not loud music & blaring horns but the soothing tones of the jungle sounds. A cricket here, a night jar there and a barking deer deep in the quite jungle.

My bags are always packed for a trip. All my jungles greens & browns go straight into my duffel once they come back from the laundry. I hate wasting time packing. With age catching up, last minute packing is hazardous because I realize I've forgotten that very important something when I'm half way into the journey!

Of course my photography gear is always ready. I just have to whip it out and start shooting. Back up batteries and storage cards always on standby, not to mention the back up camera too!

As D-day comes closer the mood is exhilarating. It's like being back in school. As the vacation draws closer we count the days & hours to be "out of the gates of....".

My friend the Colonel was also going to be there but we never expected that New Year would be hijacked!

Out of the blue an old school friend popped up. He's been hearing me rave about my trips to Bandipur and suddenly decided that he wanted to see what was so special about this place I haunted. Christmas & New Year is peak season and swinging accomodation at the eleventh hour was impossible. Besides my old friend wanted accomodation for a 'marriage' party!

I had to put my foot down. I offered to sacrifice my cottage so three could be accmommodated but he wanted to take a car load, if not two. I was stumped but I had an ace up my sleeve, my friend the Colonel. A good friend for a crisis like this. Hearing my sad tale he promptly offered me his cottage without batting an eye lid.

I wasn't feeling any more 'accommodative' so I told my hijacker that we'd solved the problem for one car load but everyone else could find their own accomodation. I wasn't just annoyed that my New Year was washed out but also that I had to deprive my good friend, the Colonel, off a holiday he too was looking forward to.

I was resigned to spending New Year at home but little did I realize that the sacrifice was not in vain. Gods are very prompt these day in rewarding or punishing. That is a story by itself and the second part of this tale; about Gowri, the enchantress.

Shackled...

It's been a long while. Six months, as a matter of fact. Somehow the fingers seem to have lost their suppleness and struggles to find the right keys.

I realize I'm getting rusty so I'm going to exercise my fingers again. It's not that I don't have tales to tell but life has been going through many ups & downs. I know the best way to scramble back to normalcy is to go back to WOODCRAWLING.

Watch this space for Gouri....she'll break the shackles for me.