Wayanad - The Trekkers Heaven …

Kerala is beautiful and versatile, it provides the wanderer with many opportunities to travel, trek, discover and stand in awe of all its beauty and nature. There are many places in Kerala that is worth more than one visit and Wayanad sure is one of the most sought after. For people living Bangalore this is easy to reach and the place is full of things to do and places to see and treks to climb. 

Wayanad can be called as a trekkers paradise, because there are so many different climbs one can do there. Some of the easy ones are Soochipara falls and a climb upto Edakkal caves. Eddakkal caves is a must for not only the avid traveler but a history enthusiast, the engravings in the caves are believed to date back to atleast 5000 BC. And the view from Edakkal caves is beautiful. Edakkal is approximately 25 Kilometers from Kalpetta in Wayanad District.

Engravings at Edakkal caves

The next place to visit is the Soochipara waterfalls also called as Sentinel Rock waterfalls. Soochi means needle and para means rock. It is located in Vellarimala very close to Kalpetta. The route to Soochipara is very scenic while crossing through some of the best tea estates in Wayanad. 

Meenmutty waterfalls is one more must visit to any trekker or nature lover. A few years back one could actually trek down the route of the waterfalls and see it from a very close range, doing a medium difficulty trek. But now that route is closed due to Govnt orders as it is known to be tricky and risky. So one can do the trek to the view point from where it can be seen in all its glory and also a brilliant view of the valley is in front of you. It is better to take a guide along as it is easy to get lost , as there many trails one can take and the one to the awesome view point is not obvious. 

Meenmutty Waterfalls

The next and the most important trek in Wayanad is to Chembra peak. It is a green and treacherous climb up to the peak gives you an awesome experience with nature, while you traverse the route you come across a heart shaped lake, one can stop there for the view and also to catch a breath and proceed on to the peak. It is advisable to carry some snacks and loads of water. Permission from the Forest Office in Meppady is required to climb Chembra.

It is better to plan a trip to Wayanad on a long weekend so the first two days are spent doing all these climbs, and the third day can be devoted to lounging and shopping for spices. While heading back one can go to Banasura dam, which is beautiful, and makes for a lovely walk. 

Things to Keep in mind :

1. Choose two climbs to do on one day, one difficult and one easy , like you can pair Eddakal with Meenmutty.

2. When doing the tough climbs wear proper clothing and footwear, as it is slippery ground and the earth is moist in almost all weather conditions.

3. When Permission from forest officials is required make sure you take it, and give valid and proper details at the office.

Best Time To Go : 

Though one can go there in all seasons, it is in its splendor during the monsoon, and as monsoon treks can be more treacherous than when dry, you can opt to go post monsoons, when its lush green and is without too much of a downpour.

How to Reach :

You can take a bus upto Wayanad and arrange for transportation to the various locations, or better to book a vehicle from Bangalore and head out, as most of the trekking spots do not have local transportation.

Parinitha Konanur

Tips for trekking with Safety what to carry

Continuing on my previous blog on what to do and what not to do in a trek, this blog is on what all to carry and what to wear on a trek. 

I remember very clearly one of the treks in my very early days of trekking, it was a rain trek and the pre trek mail said “do not carry or wear jeans”, I was still in the college mind set, doing everything you are told not to do was perceived to be cool. So instead of paying heed to the mail, I decided on wearing jeans, thinking it’s the best all weather wear. 

I couldn’t have been more wrong. I am no trek fanatic, I always prefer travel over trekking, but rain is something I love and green places are something I would walk a lot for. I was already the slowest in the gang, and to add to this was my jean which had soaked all the rain water that was dripping onto us incessantly. It was like carrying a loaded bag on each leg, I was sore and worn out because of a stupid wardrobe choice.

So the first thing to keep in mind is , a trek is nothing like travel, while traveling you can always chose to stop catch a cab and get back to your hotel room and change into whatever the weather is, even if you are a hard core backpacker, you are still very less in the mercy of nature when compared to when on a trek. Most people , though it is obvious, tend to forget this. So if you get a mail telling you to stick to a particular kind of clothing, adhere to it and wear that.

Second thing while choosing clothing is , if you are headed to an area with a possibility of animal sighting, wear green, greys, browns, and muted colours,  avoid bright and jarring colours that don’t merge with the background. Faded T shirts, soft cotton clothing, thick cotton pants are preferable. Some places have a high infestation of leeches, if that is the case wear pants with a tying thread or elastic near the ankles, so that you can tighten it and stuff it into your shoe.

 Carry “snuff” which is a superb leech repellent, along with odomos – or any mosquito repellent, a sprain spray or ointment, lacto calamine or any equivalent which soothes  allergies or irritations.

Always carry your medicines, protein bars, some biscuits and water. Even if the estimated time is well before lunch, for you to reach a place, there is not guarantee you will.

One more incident I remember while writing this, three girls, we were in Bhutan/Paro and we were headed to the Taktsang monastery. We guessed we would get some food on top near the Monastery and carried water bottles and a few chocolates, but the steep climb was taxing and the only restaurant on top was heavily over priced and one had to book lunch in advance. Though we used our sweet talking and loads of smiling to procure some biscuits and uncooked Maggi noodles from the Monks,  it is advisable to carry some substantial amount of food. 

Do not carry extra luggage on a trek, always stick to bare minimal, the chances of you wearing accessories, hand bags, playing video games and such extravaganzas are almost nil and you can save a lot of energy which will go in carrying the unwanted luggage.

Always put everything in polythene covers and put them inside your backpack. So that you will not have soaked clothes and gadgets inside your backpack in case of a downpour, or you have to cross a water body and you slip and fall, you will have all your luggage intact.

If you are camping in the open, or in a tent along with your sleeping bag carry a mat. It is cheap and not heavy to carry. It will keep you warm and you can avoid the hard and stone filled ground from poking you through the night, it will also keep you from insects that dwell in the grass. Always carry a rope, a lighter or a match box, a knife and a torch. There are chances you will be needing one or all of these.  

Parinitha Konanur