Kodaikanal

Well, we first took the Vaigai Train from Chennai to Trichy and after spending about 3 days at Sanctified Trichy and visiting most popular temples at Srirangam & Thiruvaanaikaaval, the 4th day we started our travel to Kodaikannal by road.

For those who wonder about where Trichy is, here is a brief intro. From the temple city Trichy it is around 2 hours of travel by road to ‘Madurai’ and in between Trichy and Madurai there is the ‘Kodai Road’ which takes you forward to Kodaikannal.   Trichy and Madurai are much more hotter than other parts of South India & imagine being at these places during summer…Hush !!!!! Its rather surprising to known that most coolest Kodaikannal is situated very near these hottest places !

Kodaikannal is commonly called ‘Kodai’, which in Tamil means ‘Summer’. ‘Kannal’ means ‘Seeing’ or ‘To See’. Hence, after my recent visit to Kodai, I have inferred that the name Kodaikannal means that this is a “must-see place for everyone during summer”.

During your onward journey by road to uphill, you could find lot of fresh fruit & vegetable shops on either side of the road. Specifically, almost jus’ a few minutes before reaching Kodai, you could find a place called ‘Oothu’ and the fruits and vegetables sold at this place are spanking fresh and sold at a very very reasonable price. So, do remember to do your purchasing at this place. We were informed by our driver that if the sales people at other areas come to know that you are a Non-Tamilian, then you are sure to be cheated with old & shamey fruits.

It is an undeniable fact that for anyone visiting this gorgeous hill-station, at least for two months the wonderful wooded slopes and the mighty rocks would be dancing in front of their eyes. The water falls and the beautiful lake are really really magnificent which are sure to mesmerize the travelers.

Kodaikannal is a lovely hill resort on the Palani hills and falls under Dindigul District of Tamil Nadu. I give below a few Sight-Seeing places at Kodai which are a must-see for all those who visit this place:

This is one of the most enjoyable places & a great centre of attraction at Kodai. The area of the Lake is about 25 hectare. There are two boat clubs, one is a Government Club and the other is private.

You have options of 2 Seater, 4 Seater boats (both manual & motor) which could be driven by the travelers themselves and the 6 Seater boats could accommodate about 7 persons which are generally ridden by the boat-men. The charges for engaging the aforesaid boats range from Rs.40/- to Rs.800/- depending on your requirement.   We engaged a 4-Seater manual boat for half-an-hour for which we paid Rs.80/- (Rs.40/- was refundable deposit).

Around the lake area, there are horse & pony rides available. For a half-round, they charge Rs.50/- per person and for a full-round Rs.80/-. You can sit on the horse and the horse-wala will accompany you in a bi-cycle.   There are also hundreds of bicycle which you could rent to go round the city.

This is situated in about a kilometer from the lake. Most of the sight-seeing places at Kodai are almost around the lake area itself, so that having parked your car in a common place, you could go to most of these place by walk which would certainly refresh you a lot due to the chill climate.

This Coaker’s Walk is basically a steep sloped pathway – we were informed by a traveler that this pedestrian walk runs around the Mount Nebo. They collect a very genuine entry fee of Rs.5/- per head and you are required to pay an additional amount of Rs.10/- if you plan to take a camera with you.

You could have breathtaking views of the plains and the moving mists here while walking. The beautiful moving clouds and at times you get little scary that these clouds might suddenly hit any of the mountains & result in their breaking. Hush… jus’ my imagination boss – What’s life without a bit of mind’s eye !!!

This is just a Park situated near the Lake. They collect an entry fee of Rs.2/- for children and Rs.5/- for adults & again Rs.15/- for your camera. You could find beautiful colourful flowers, hybrids and grasses on lovely slopes where you can even lie down and enjoy the heavenly cool climate. Sometimes when it drizzles, it is really really wonderful to be in the midst of this paradise !! Don’t miss it !!

Our cottage was very nearer to this temple. This is basically a small temple of Lord Muruga. One speciality here is, there is the Kurinji Flower Tree at this temple. This Kurinji is one of the ancient flowers which bloom only once in 12 years and the last time it had blossomed in the year 1994 and it is expected to bloom next year again.

•Shenbaganur museum (museum housing nearly 350 rare exotic orchids)

•Solar Physical Observatory (to observe stars & planets)

•Green Valley View (gives u a beautiful view of the Vaigai Dam)

•The Pillar Rocks (a mini garden – u could find 3 boulders about 125 mts)

•Moer Point (to have a view of the Valley)

•Silver Cascade (180 feet waterfall & bathing is a heavenly experience)

•Guna Cave (you could find the Caves which have been shooted for the Kamal Haasan’s Tamil Film Guna)

For its temperature and the blissful climate, Kodaikannal is a must-see hill resort for everyone. Do visit this Paradise at least once in your lifetime, but my sincere and most humble request to all the visitors is that, please please please don’t ever even imagine spoiling this most natural nature’s gifted situate. During my long walk to the Guna Cave, I was rather traumatized when I found lot of travelers urinating on either sides of the pathway and throwing away rubbishes almost everywhere. This behaviour is not only to be tipped off but also to be strictly punished !!!   Before ruining the nature, please see in your mind’s eye if you would ever to be able to create the environment you are spoiling !!

Thanks for your most valuable time ……….. Do enjoy a visit soon to Kodai and provide me with your opinion about this heavenly place !!!!