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One of my summer camps with 'Foliage Outdoors'....
Covered Mudhumalai Wild Life Sanctuary in South India, Ranganthittu Bird Santuary near Mysore, Mysore, Ooty, tented camping amidst the tea estates of kottagiri, the highest peak in South India - Dodabetta and back to Pune , my home town. 9 days of travel, fun, new places, pictures and sightings...
Mudumalai :
The Mudumalai sanctuary lies on the northern and north-western side of the Nilgiri (Blue Mountains), about 80 km north-west of Coimbatore in the extreme north-western corner of Tamil Nadu, on the interstate boundaries with Karnataka and Kerala states in southern India.
This 321-sq-kms wide sanctuary includes a National Park measuring an area of 103-sq-kms. The sanctuary has various mixtures of flat land, open grassland, swamp and valleys. Apart from the wide range of animal and bird life, the rich fauna of this sanctuary has made Mudumalai very popular with wildlife enthusiast.
There are tigers at Mudumalai, though it takes a lot of luck and determination to spot one of these big cats that are such masters of secrecy. But there are several other creatures of the jungle that can be sighted more easily.
Two days at
mudhumalai were full of morning-evening forst rides for game viewing, and the rest of the day in football, camp-fires and team games..
Ooty:
Situated amidst the blue mountains of the Nilgiris in Tamil Nadu, Ooty is situated around 64 km from Mudumalai Wildlife Sanctuary. It is an erstwhile British township that draws thousands of tourists every year by its sheer beauty. Winters and Rains are awesome in Ooty and one musnt miss the foggy mountans and misty mornings. Ooty is also well known for HAND MADE CHOCOLATES. Many tourists who go past ooty miss on this. (I bought abour 5 KGs of them im this trip).
Kottagiri :
Kottagiri is situated at a height of 6511' above the mean sea level and it possesses an agreeable climate among the hill stations of the district. It is protected by the Doddabetta range from the violent southwest monsoon and is not affected by mists which are so common at Coonoor. The lower elevation of the place makes it warmer than Udhagamandalam. These advantages in the climate make the station a fine health resort. Kotagiri stands at the head of a fine ravine running down towards Mettupalayam.
The
place was known in the past as “Kota-Keri” or (Kota-gherry) the street (or line of homes) of Kotas”. In fact, there was a Kota settlement there and it was only in 1911 when the lands occupied were acquired by government for sanitary improvement purposes and the Kota settlement had to be shifted, to 'Aggal' hamlet, 2 km. away from Kotagiri. The temple of the Kotas dedicated to the deity 'Kamataraya' still remains there and has been renovated. The Kotas worship at this temple every month and the annual festival which takes place on the “Arudra Dharshan” day at this temple is of great importance to all the Kotas of the distrct.
I remember our group leader, Gaurav taking the group for their morning trek, from amidst tea estates , searching for trails amidst the thick/dense fog (check pics). The gardeners/tea-estate workers had warned us about wild-gaurs (indian version of the bison, but much larger and fierce) from the forests breaking fences and tresspassing into tea estates...and thats exacty what we experience the 2nd morning. One of the campers yelled, saying the black rock moved from behind her. It was foggy and none of us could see clearly....until we heard
a looouud snort from behind her...an ugly-massive huge-shining black-bull gaur. We were told NOT to run in such a situation or to frighten the animal. We sneaked away quietly and were lucky to be alive.
Ranganthittu:
Another place that one should visit in this loop, is the Ranganathittu Bird Sanctuary. Ranganathittu is about 18km form Mysore and is home to some of the most exotic birds. It is a group of small islands in the Cauvery River.
Ranganthittu was formed as a result of a small dam across the river Cauvery in the 1600s. The Bird Sanctuary at Ranganathittu owes its existence to the world famous ornithologist Dr. Salim Ali who convinced the Maharaja of Mysore in 1940 to declare Ranganthittu as a protected area. The sanctuary is not very large it covers an area of 0.67sq.km. But is home to a great variety of birds and a few reptiles. It is said that the sanctuary is a sight to behold during the nesting season of the birds from June to November. The sanctuary is home to a wide species of birds including cormorants, darters, white ibis, spoon billed storks, open billed storks, painted storks, white
necked storks, egrets, herons, terns, swallows, kingfishers, sandpiper etc. There are a few mammals in the sanctuary like fruit bats, bonnet macaques, palm civets, common mongoose and common otters. Marsh crocodiles make up the reptile population of the sanctuary.
The sight of fruit bats, crocodiles and birds flying around is a beautiful sight to watch. You can take a boat ride around the sanctuary and get a closer look at the birds and the crocodiles. The entrance of the park has huge bamboo surrounding the winding path. On both sides of the path are boards with pictures and information about the different birds that are found in the sanctuary. There is a small canteen situated near the lake made in a clearing between the bamboos. The best season to visit the sanctuary is May-September and October. If you are a nature enthusiast it is best to visit the sanctuary in the early hours of the morning before the sanctuary gets crowded with visitors.
The last two pics pointing towards a bird, was the funniest moment of the trip...we took 20/25 min to pose and arrange everyone....and stop them from giggling....heeee !!
Doddabetta :
This is the
highest mountain in the Nilgiri Hills, at 2637 meters (8652 feet). There is a reserved forest area around the peak. It is 4 km southeast of Ooty.It is a popular tourist attraction with road access to the summit. The Chamundi Hills can be viewed from the peak.
The name "Doddabetta" traces its roots from the Badaga language translating into 'Big Mountain'. Hecuba (2375 m.), Kattadadu (2418 m.) and Kulkudi (2439 m.) are the three closely linked heights in the west of the Doddabetta range and nearby Udagamandalam. In the Nilgiris plateau Doddabetta is highest peak of the Nilgiris district remarkable for the flattened curve of its summit. Sholas cover the hollows of its slopes. Slightly stunted, rhododendron trees, in the midst of thick coarse grass, flowering sub-elphine shrubs and herbs are common, even very near the peak.
Njoy the pics !
😉
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Arindam
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Hogotypur Hills
Another amazing trecking place near Mysore (Around 100 KM) near a small village Kabbinakadu. Awesome scenareis.