Rolling hills, Eerie fog & Spicy bajji's

After visiting Yelagiri, exactly a year ago, we spent the Independence day weekend this year at its bigger brother Yercaud. We landed shortly after 5 in the morning at Salem Junction. Caught a bus to the New Bus Stand @ Re.2/- per head and then a DVD coach (!!!) to the Yercaud hilltop @ 11/-. We had our fill of the sights of early dawn and the Salem town lights from the twisting hairpin roads. The bus was quite new and the driver seemed to have a penchant for F1 / Monster Truck Madness from the way he threw the vehicle around the curves with gusto. Anyway the trip was worth it and beat paying 450 bucks for a ride by car.

  It was close to 7 when we alighted at the Yercaud bus stand. As we soon realized, it was better to get off at the earlier stop near the lake. Most of the prominent resorts / quality dwellings including TTDC's Hotel Tamilnadu, Star Cottages, Silver Holidays etc. are located within walking distance from there. More exclusive places like Yercaud int'l, Shevaroys, Hillview & Sterling are located further interior / uphill. Nearby the busstand you get standard lodging places like Uma, Select and Subha. If you have the time and convenience, its worthwhile to cruise the hinterland and you're sure to land up at some quieter places. During ordinary weekends there's ample choice, but holidays / the tourist season (Oct-Jun) see prominent places booked fully.

  After being turned back from most of the good ones, we panicked and settled down at one Raj Palace near the Petrol Pump. Rent came to 350 per day for a double room. Though the buliding was modern, the maintenance was below par and forget about the view, not even proper ventilation. Anyway we did not plan on spending much time indoors. After taking a quick shower we set out on foot to the lake.

  There are a lot of teastalls and provision shops near the lake as well as a wine shop. We had our fill of south indian breakfast from a relatively better place near the lake, Dhana Restaurant. There was not much sun and the weather was cool enough. Soon after stepping out, we were accosted by Taxi / Autowallahs. We settled for a 6-seater Omni for 300/-. The driver promised us 10 sites in 4 hours. It was a convenient way of taking in most of the sights before lunch time.

Shevaroys temple & hilltop: definitely the highlight. A cave temple and the highest point of the hills with DD's dish farm nearby. Even during daytime in the month of August, Fog was present everywhere. Not a soul, except for the tourists.

Pagoda point : Another hilltop, another temple. STRONG WINDS. Good spot for resting your legs. You can get roast corn and fruits here.

Ladies seat. The most promoted and visited spot. Crowded; provisions for icecream, telescope, snacks etc.

Gents seat. Nothing remarkable.

Childrens seat. Definitely the best of the 3 points. You have to climb a bit through the Rose Garden. In addition to a great view, the bajjis with chutney at the top are heavenly... Its adviseable to have picnic lunch at the garden followed by a siesta.

Botanical Garden : Closed on weekends and looked run of the mill from the outside.

Numerous perfumeries & herbal plantations dot the hills. We saw one of ex-PM Chandrasekhar's too on the way to Shevaroy hilltop. Bargaining seems to be the order here.

Afternoon was spent in the shade at the lakeside park and soon an impromptu game of Gully cricket with an empty plastic bottle ensued leaving us exhausted at the end.

Had lunch at the restaurant of Shevaroys, damn expensive but good food & service with great ambience. We walked around the less trodden paths and discovered the beauty of nature at close quarters. We visited Shevaroy hilltop late on in the evening (5 people in an Auto!!!, 1 hour stay 150/-). We managed to set up a bonfire in the wooded area nearby the bauxite mines. Soon after the heavenly sunset over Mettur Dam, we were fully enveloped in Fog. Brought to the mind eerie scenes from movies where people get lost.

The fog followed us downhill and the whole town was covered by 10.30. It turned really COLD in the night and we had to really battle the chills with lots of clothing. We retired for the night after having our fill of spicy bajjis and some hot drinks.

Sunday morning saw us walking uphill beyond the bus stand and onto Montfort Residential School (open to visitors on Sundays from 10.) Awesome place, very efficient and well maintained. Sunday mornings you can see the boys undergoing drills & sports training. Photography is allowed and there are a couple of gigantic stone buildings from the times of the British. Nagesh Kukunnoor's Rockford (featuring SEL's "Aasman ke paar") was shot here and Tamil leading man Vikram is said to be an Alumni.

We had to forego a visit to the Killiyur falls because it was dry. We went pedal boating in the lake (only 4 adults allowed on pedal boats, one of us had to sit out) in the afternoon.

Caught forty winks in our rooms and left for Salem by 6.30 late evening. But this time the bus was crowded, we had to stand the whole way swaying at every twist and turn. The darkness delayed us so much that we managed to land at the railway station out of breath and barely enough time to spare. Its well adviseable to leave for Salem early in the evening to enjoy some shopping (Coffee, Handlooms & Clothing). Salem has also some good restaurants where you can enjoy traditional Chettinad food as also modern stuff like Pizza huts and burger points. Surely, the next time...

Yelagiri, Ideal Weekend Getaway

Thinking of spending a weekend out of town ? Need some peace and quiet ? Tranquility ? Head to Yelagiri hills in Tamilnadu. 180 km from Bangalore and 240 from Chennai, the destination is ideal for the Techie crowd, which we were not. Me and a quartet of friends, from Thrishur, Kerala made the 500 km plus trip to Yelagiri for the Indipendance day weekend on Saturday reaching Jolarpet (the nearest rail head) at 5 in the evening. We were off on an invitation from a business acquaintance who was lucky to own a large rose farm in the hills. From Jolarpet we made the 18 km uphill journey to Athnavur, the main hub which took 1.5 hours on a packed bus. The scenery at each hairpin bend was breathtaking to say the least. 

The places to visit are Swamimalai, the Yelagiri Lake, Jagalamparai waterfalls and the Velavan Temple at Nilavur. The 1000 ft climb to Swamimalai will tax the city dweller some, providing a good workout to your body and lungs. The lake is artificial and still undergoing expansion. You get the facility for boating and a small park to stroll around in. The temple is nothing remarkable, with zero architectural embellishments, but pleasantly cossetted in the open moorland. Mention must be made of the two large statues standing guard at the mouth of the entrance.

Rather than places of interest, it is the open widespread land and the ever winding roads that suit the idle traveller, which Yelagiri has aplenty. You can stroll down the quiet streets for hours without witnessing any automobile, occassionally coming across villagers going about their errands. And of course the dogs. There are a large no. of dogs who leave you to your own but at times may follow you in hope of peanuts (literally). We didnt have any problem out in the open even during moonlit strolls.

The Climate which turns chilly in winter and in the monsoons is pleasant for the rest of the year. No blazing sunshine even at mid-day. It gets pleasantly cold at night, with strong breezes if you're out in the open. Having frequented a 2 km distant teashop during our stay at Nilavur, we got friendly with the locals to the point of being offerred free treats. 

Though you may have to walk for hours to find one, the local tea shops will provide you with strong sweet brew made from goats milk and steaming hot local snacks like ''vadai'' and ''bonda'' which come cheap at 50 ps. More discerning gourmets will have to visit hotels in Athanavur or Ponnery for elaborate meals and tasty fish & meat cuisine. Otherwise branded snacks and beverages are aplenty. Fruits including guava's, jackfruit, pomegranate and banana's are aplenty in cornerstores. Wild honey is available cheaply at Rs.25 for 200 ml.

Tipplers are well advised to stock up from the foot hills at Jolarpet or the lone wine shop at Ponnery (5 km from Athanavur). Also be warned that the shops stock only quarter or pint sized bottles, so that if you're planning a binge you'll have to tote a lot of small bottles around. 

To get to Yelagiri, there are frequent trains from Erode and Chennai. For those without own transport, the most viable option are the local buses which ply at hourly intervals. There are Autorikshaws that will take you shorter distances, but are unable to climb for long uphill. Taxis are available at Jolarpet to take you to the hills but will charge anything upto Rs.350 for a ride. Accomodation is aplenty and should be freely available in a normal weekend. Try the YMCA if all else fails.

Yelagiri is ideal as a weekend getaway, but be sure to spend a night. A climb to Swamimalai in the early morning and a visit to the Jagalamparai Waterfalls in the rainy season is recommended.