Mountain Getaway : Meghamalai

Meghamalai  is located in the Western Ghats in Theni zone, the Indian state of Tamil Nadu and is situated at an altitude of 1,500 m above sea level.

At 5.30 am,  our party of 26 boarded the van from Kochi. When each one of us boarded from different locations, we exchanged quiet good-mornings and set off through the darkness. Our route was,  Kochi - Idukki - Kumily - Cumbum - Chinnamanur - Megamalai

After breakfast at Neriamangalam and frequent halts, we crossed Kumily check post by noon. Unplanned stops are always a pleasure especially when you are travelling through high ranges. From Cumbum onwards, we passed through paddy fields, Coconut and grape plantations. Meghamalai mountain range can be approached in two ways - via Chinnamanur and from Andipatti via Kandamanayakkanur.  Our route was via Chinnamannur which is more scenic. We took a right turn from Chinnamannur town and along the outskirts of Chinnamannur town, the road was surrounded by towering hillocks which is the reserve forest area.

Meghamalai is not a famous travel spot among the tourists. After crossing Chinnamannur check post, we were greeted by ghat road. We were negotiating with dozens of sharp hairpin bends.

 
You can see traces of Cinnamannur village on the other side. There were view points at some places and the views kept getting better as we went higher.

Just before reaching Meghamalai, the tea estates greeted us with a greenish grin. The ride ended near a temple surrounded by tea estates. Most of the 6000 acres of tea plantation in Meghamalai is owned by the private tea planters. It’s so hard to spot any restaurants or hotels in this place.

And we started walking towards our base camp. As I made  my way through the tea-carpeted hills of Meghamalai,  I found workers going back to their home after a busy day.

Since Meghamalai is part of Western Ghats, this place resembles Ooty or Munnar because of its cool and misty mountain ranges.  First few minutes of our walk was through tea estates. The neat tea-lined valleys and a walk through the plantations that shaped Meghamalai make for a tasteful break.

Then we made our way through the forest with steep hiking. Every trial offers a fresh adventure whether it is through forest or plantations.

After half an hour walk through tea estates and forest,  we reached the base camp at around 4 pm. Our base camp was set up on a ridge looking out at the valley but clouds had gathered,  obscuring views of the valley. Simple vegetarian lunch was waiting for us.

Our actual plan was a two hour nature walk but we skipped our plan as we were already late. After resting for some time, we were busy with tent setting  and food preparation. Chicken was highly featured in the dinner. The whether was cool and there was heavy storm and mist in the area.

DAY 2

When I stepped out of my tent at dawn,  I saw the surrounding stripped of cloud cover followed by heavy wind.

After a quick breakfast of Upma, we set off.  Our destination was 'Varayadu Motta' which is famous for the presence of Nilgiri Tahr.  'Motta' means barren hills. There are five 'Mottas' in this region. There are many routes to reach the 'Varayadu Motta'. But we took the longest route through a combination of plantations, thick forest and open meadows.

After crossing the forest area, we entered the beautiful tea estate. You will be mesmerized with views of the deep valley and the forest-covered hillsides.

When you go higher, you will get a good view of the surrounding valleys and views of small towns and villages surrounded by mountains.  It took us a little around three hours to reach the first hill top, through mostly flat terrain, making plenty of stops to admire the flora and fauna along the way.

There were plenty of ascents and descents that varied through tea estates, coffee plantations and thick forests.

Since the area is a reserved forest area, which always means that there is the possibility of sighting animals like elephants, Indian gaur, deer etc. We were in a constant lookout for animals, but had no luck. We found elephant dung on the way. Beware of leeches as  we ended up with few leech bites inside the forest.

And we climbed  the hill.  It was such a peaceful place with virgin mountains.  Then the trek towards the peak where clouds covered the mountains begins. And we walked down through narrow edges towards the hill. Heavy wind was blowing and we tried to balance our self while walking through the edges.

We were in the middle of no where.  From this point, you will get a panoramic view of the mountains around for its sloping terrain. The plan was to walk till the end of the hill. Wind was blowing heavily and all of us were  trying to balance and some of us even sat down. My legs were shivering. We sat at the edge of the valley. Without taking further risk, we decided to return.

Returned to the base camp at around 2 pm. After lunch and rest for some time, we started our return journey.  Enroute, just  before reaching the check post, we had a pit stop for tea and snacks. After descending the ghat road and another ascending ghat road till Kumily, we stopped at Kumily town for dinner. From Kumily to Kochi, we retraced the route that  me and my wife had visited two weeks back on our vacation to Thekkady.

Prior permission is an absolute must to visit Meghamalai. Since this is a reserved forest area,  you must reach the check-post at least before 6 PM.