The second half of the year and this is the second in line after Allepey, Kerala trip in January . This time it was a quick trip to the famous hill station of the South India- Ooty - Cunnoor.
The journey started post midnight and we reached Ooty at 6 AM in the morning but not before we passed by the forests of Bandipur. Since the weather was cloudy and drizzling we were lucky enough to spot quite a few of forest inhabitants- Elephants, Bison, beautiful spotted deers, peacocks en route to Ooty. The trees were washed up by the rain water and displayed a vibrant hue of lush green abundance.
As we were nearing towards Ooty, the temperature started dropping and by the time we reached Ooty it was 13 degrees celsius and we were all shivering. It reminded me of the hill stations in the North, but nevertheless it was a welcoming respite from the tropical Southern climate. No one can imagine that Ooty is located in Tamil Nadu , one of the hottest and humid place in India.
We took the heritage train from Ooty and made our progress towards Cunnoor, a small but even more beautiful hill station approximately 1 hr journey from Ooty. Surrounded by tall green mountains, the roads started curving around the hills. Cunnoor is famous for tea plantation and you can find many tea estates on the way. Terrace farming is common here as it would be in any other mountainous region.
Our goal was to cover the maximum number of places here. So we started covering one place after another. I would start from the best place.
1)
Shooting point - You get the panaromic view of the entire hill station at this point. Clouds are really low here but unfortunately they were quite far from us, but they covered the top of the distant hills, something like the snow capped mountains of the Himalayas. We managed to get a few clicks done here.
2)
Dolphin's Nose- I do not know why this is called as Dolphin's nose and I really did not find anything resembling the Dolphin, contrary to what the locale people would see. This place gives you a bigger picture of the valley below. Standing at the top of the hill, as you look down , you realize the depth of the valley. At a distance you will find
Catherine waterfalls. I initially thought we can get closer to the falls , but there was no way we could reach there. It is like the virgin falls amidst the hills. All you can hear is the sound of the falls even though it was miles away from where we stood, which itself explains how majestic and powerful this waterfall would be from close.
3)
Lamb's Rock - Well to put it in short, there is nothing in particular to see. They have given different names to different viewing points. They are all hill tops with a similar view of the surrounding landscape.
4)
All saint's church - One of the oldest Churches in Cunnoor , since I am a believer, I had to visit this place and offer my reverence.
All said, more than the places, what was more beautiful was the drive from ooty to Cunnoor and vice versa. The sceneries were really breathtaking. All those who thought that there are no hill stations in South India, must visit this place once. If not better, atleast it is at par with the hills in Northern India.
So we returned from Cunnoor to Ooty and visited botanical garden and Boat house in Ooty . Ooty does not have much to offer in comparison to Cunnoor, so possibly it can be just a stopping point .
Ooty is famous for home made chocolates and you can grab them at really reasonable price. 100gms for Rs 50. But the best part of the entire trip was shopping at Kashmir emporium, well in just half an hour I could grab 1 jacket and 1 netted top, wanted to spend more time trying out stuff but was running short of time since friends were waiting outside.
My overall rating - 3.5 / 5
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| Catherine falls |
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| Botanical garder |
