The Amazing Karnataka - Kerala Border

The first thing that strikes you when you step out of your room at night is the number of stars in the sky and the clarity with which you can see them. We city dwellers rarely look up and when we do the haze ensures that you feel as if you need an eye checkup. So it was with wonder that we watched the sky and the stars at Kutta, late on a December night in the year 2005.

The earlier year we had been to Karwar and the West Coast of Karnataka. This year we decided to explore some other part of the same coast. The plan was to go to Kutta on the Karnataka Kerala border, stay there for a few days, proceed to Calicut and from there to Kasargod before getting back to Bangalore. Due to the winter holidays for the kids getting truncated, we had to forego the trip to Calicut but went straight to Nileswaram. But I am jumping ahead.

The trip as usual started with a breakfast at Kamat at Ramnagara. From there we took the deviation off Mysore road onto Srirangapatna and from there to Hunsur. At Hunsur bus stop you need to take a left to go to Nagarhole. After driving for some time you come to the forest gate. Here the forest guard told us to shut out all music and not to stop till we got to the other end and obviously not to get down anywhere in the middle. We were passing through the Nagarhole National Park and it was a great experience being in the forest. The roads were bad and so we had to drive slowly, which was fine with me. I wanted to enjoy the atmosphere and I was in no tearing hurry. There was absolutely no traffic there. The forest silently watches you and the call of some bird accentuates the silence and enhances the loneliness. It is wonderful feeling being there all alone. As we went along we kept looking around to see if we can spot some animals. As is usual around these parts, we only saw a few deers, which were looking at us with total disinterest.

We reached the other end of the park and the place where we were going to stay, Chilligere Estates, was around 6 kms from here. We had to take a small deviation from the main road and continue for another km or two before we got to this homestay. The homestay is a set of rooms adjacent to the main building, where the owners stay. The rooms were comfortable. The linen wasn't too white but I wasn't expecting a 5 Star hotel !!! We freshened up and had our lunch, which was delicious.

The Kerala border is around 6 to 8 kms from this place. Though there is a board announcing your arrival into Kerala, we felt there was no need for that. The moment you find that you are no longer shaking inside your car, you know you have arrived in Kerala !! The roads on Karnataka side were pathetic and those on the Kerala side were wonderful. That evening we crossed the border into Kerala to visit the Tholpetty sanctuary. Actually you can say that it is one more gate for the Nagarhole sanctuary !!! Both these sanctuaries are contiguous. We had to hire a jeep. They allow only jeeps or jeep type vehicles, like Qualis and Sumo. It was late in the evening when we went in and the light was just about starting to fade. We had a guide with us who was trying to spot some wild animals so that we felt that we have got the Rs.300 worth of experience. (That's what we paid for the jeep). He need not have worried. I was so taken up by the forest that seeing or not seeing a wild animal didn't matter. The fading light which filtered through the dense forest, the gurgling streams, the chatter of the birds was enough for me. Our guide was asking other jeep drivers if they had sighted any wild animals. The first wild animal we saw were the wild buffaloes. After this Gayathri suddenly sighted a wild boar. That is not a common sight. We then saw the usual inhabitants who are the most generally viewed, the derr and the langur. Our guide was not satisfied with these sightings and was thrilled when we could see a peacock in the wild. He was almost feeling that he has earned his salary !!! Then at a distance we saw around four elephants enjoying themselves in a small pool. Our guide attained nirvana. The sight was a fabulous one with two HUGE elephants and two smaller elephants bathing in that pool. It was far away and the light was dim so we couldn't get great photos.

We got back to our room and the host asked us what we saw. When we told them what we saw, they mentioned that this was what people generally saw. I later read a book about the animals in Nagarhole and Bandipur and it turns of that the majority of the denizens are nocturnal guys and appear only after we have gone to sleep !! So when you go there go for the experience of being in the forest and not for sighting any exotic wild animal.

After dinner we stepped out of our room and we saw the crystal clear sky and the million stars. Gayathri was first one out and she was stunned. She called me and showed the stars. After seeing the sky in the city when you see the sky in the countryside you feel as if you are wearing a pair of glasses which has corrected your vision and everything now is crystal clear !!! Luckily for us it was cloudless night. There is no haze nor any artificial lights around. The only light was from the main house and from our room. You can just relax fully taking in the grandness of the universe and the great silence all around. Makes you realize how little is needed to be at peace.

The next morning we started for the Iruppu falls. We drove down to the falls and could see lot of people who have come there to trek and get to the top of the Brahmagiri peak. At Iruppu you need to park your car and trek up to the waterfalls. The way up is beautiful and makes for a lovely small trek. Thankfully there was no plastic around but we saw another familiar not-so-great sight at the waterfall, men bathing in their undies !!! Somehow the sight of a waterfall tempts the Indian male to strip and at almost at every waterfall in South India you will find this rather unappetizing sight. It is made worse by the fact that most of these guys are totally out of shape but seem to have no inhibitions in displaying their oversize torsos. It is not that people should take a bath in a waterfall but can come equipped with some decent costume. Afterall you know that you are going to visit the waterfall. If people are sensible everyone can enjoy these places better. Iruppu falls is a lovely place and you can appreciate its beauty. Even guys with undies cannot take that away !!!

From Iruppu we drove down to see the tea plantations. I don't know the name of the place but it was great sight there. You would normally not expect a tea plantation in midst of the coffee country but there it was, reminding us of the tea estates that we saw in Waynad. From there we came back to our room. We were too tired that day so we decided not to go out in the evening and ended up playing some badminton there itself.

The next day saw us starting for the Tirunelli temple. We again entered Kerala, passed the Tholpetty Sanctuary and after some time took a sharp right turn (almost a U Turn). The area of Tholpetty is superb with very little traffic and trees on both sides blocking the sunlight or just letting only a few rays to pass through. We got to the foothills of a small hill on which the quaint temple stands. We climbed up to see us surrounded on all sides by the Brahmagiri ranges. It is an excellent sight from up there. The names of the mountains on all sides is mentioned on a board at he temple but unfortunately it is in Malayalam. You can trek a bit further up and you will get to a small waterfall and a stream that flows. We went up here and put our feet in water, which was ice cold. We also saw the Malabar Squirrel here. This a gigantic fellow, as far as squirrels go. He has a reddish coat and keep jumping from tree to tree. Unfortunately he was too far away and was constantly moving that it just was not possible to capture him on my camera.

From Tirunelli temple we got back to the Tholpetty - Manathavady road. You travel on this road for some distance and you get a T-junction. Taking right here leads to Mananthavady. Taking left and then taking a right leads to the Kuruva islands, which was our destination. Once you take the right turn the road narrows and after some time you start travelling on a village and towards the end of your journey on a mud road. Reminds you of the approach to Dubare.

The Kuruva islands can be reached by walking across the river, which is not very deep here. Or you can go by boat. We decided not to go to island but instead took a boat ride on the river. It was great experience. I was pestering the boat to look out for some snakes on the trees since I had seen a snake in the Lakkidi lake earlier. Gayathri was not impressed and was asking me as to why I wanted snakes. Suddenly the boatman spotted a small thin snake on a branch of a tree and took us near to that tree. Again the snake was too far away for a good picture but my day was made. We got back to our room and again decided to just relax in the evening. Other guests had come in that day and we made friends with them over bonfire that night.

The next day saw us starting off for the North Kerala coast about which I will write a separate post. We were saying good bye to an excellent place where there is lot to see and do and lot more if you don't want to see anything or do anything !!!