If you are in South India and want to spend a calm, peaceful and relaxing weekend with no major distractions, bingo – go to Yercaud.
Yercaud – called locally as the poor mans Ooty is a small hill town about 35 kms from Salem city, in Tamil Nadu. It is at a distance of around 350 kms from Chennai and around 200 Kms from Bangalore. This makes it an ideal get away for a weekend.
The hill station can only be reached by road from Salem (the nearest railway station). It takes about 1 hour by car to take the winding road uphill to Yercaud from Salem. There are also plenty of buses plying between Salem and Yercaud.
In peak summer, Yercaud may not be as cold as other popular hill stations. But this place has pleasant temperatures right thru the year. Summer temperature is less than 25 deg C and winter temperatures are around 10 deg C. We visited this place in the last week of march 2002 and the climate was very pleasant.
Accommodation:
Comfortable accommodation is available in Yercaud, but it does not boast the same variety / price range offered by Ooty or Kodaikanal (the more popular hill stations in Tamil Nadu).
Value for money option is Shervaroy Hotel, situated close to the lake. We stayed in this hotel. Rooms start at around 400 Rs / night and comfortable accommodation can be found at around 700 Rs / night. They have a restaurant with good South Indian menu and their Indian menu is not so great, but for sure it will not spoil your stomach / holiday.
The other option is Hotel Tamilnadu (owned by TTDC) situated right next to the lake. I did not like the ambience of this hotel which looked like typical government / tourism department run place.
The best option is however Sterling resorts situated away from the town near a nice view point. They offer the best rooms with great views in Yercaud. Hence tariff is the highest in town. Their food is really good (and expensive). Even if you do not stay here, recommend to eat here at least once to taste their food and have a look at this resort.
What to see :
Yercaud does not have many tourist spots to see. This is the best thing I like about this place – no big tourist rush. We stayed in Yercaud for 3 days and were very relaxed and laid back on all the days. Each day, we took a 2/3 hour drive around the hills to a few vantage points and came back to our hotel in the afternoon for lunch. Everyday in the evening, we ended up spending a few hours by the Lake.
Lake :
Yercaud has a very picturesque natural lake with very good views around it. This is the place that needs the most attention in Yercaud. You could get row boats and pedal boats at down to earth prices (<50 Rs / 30 min).
The Retreat :
Students of religious order stay and study in this institution, located close to the town. They have the best view point in town, with panoramic views of the plains below. Do not miss the Sun dial from which you can exactly calculate the time. Open to public only on Sundays.
Lady’s seat and Gent’s seat :
These two view points situated close to one another, offer you a decent view of the plains below (if you are lucky you could also see the Mettur dam). A night view from Lady’s seat is supposed to be good. (we did not try). There is a telescope available at Lady’s seat using which you could clearly view the bauxite mine in the plains close to the hills.
Shervarayan temple :
This small and ancient temple situated on a hill top has a lot of legends. The deity is inside a small cave. You will have to bend and get inside to have a look. As per one of legends, the cave extends up to Talakaveri (source of Kaveri river). The hill top offers a very good view and it is cooler than the town with a good breeze.
Pagoda point :
Another view point. Offers a good view of the nearby cliffs and that of a small village down below.
60 foot bridge :
This point is on the main road from Salem. While driving uphill, this point is worth a stop to enjoy the fresh air from the mountains. It does offer a good view of the winding uphill road, Salem city and the plains.
Verdict - An ideal weekend get away with no major tourist disturbance.