The Beautiful Wilderness Of Wayanad

Often, when you are reaching the tipping point at work, all that you want to do is to go somewhere you can relax and do nothing. Our recent stay at Wayanad was one such ‘do nothing’ type trips.

After a few months of stressful long hours of work, we decided to take off and wanted to be amidst dense greenery. Wayanad was decided upon and we selected Grass Roots for the stay. They have extremely comfortable camps near huge tea gardens, and it all was too inviting to search further.

We drove to Wayanad from Bangalore and took a route driving past the Kabini Reservoir and through the Bandipur forest road. The drive itself is gorgeous, with enough stopovers for great food (the Kamat’s Lokaruchi on Mysore Highway is great for breakfast). If you avoid a weekend, you can avoid the heavy traffic on this road. The journey next to the Kabini Reservoir and through the forest is beautiful with enough sightings possible in the forest road. We spotted a Crested Serpent Eagle (Spilornis cheela), Common Hawk Cuckoo (Hierococcyx varius), Bonnet Macaques (Macaca radiata), Malabar giant squirrels, (Ratufa indica) amongst many other birds and small mammals. People have spotted tigers, leopards and elephants here.

We reached Grass Roots by about 5 pm. The tents were luxurious and kept ready for us. A nice mop of Lemon Grass Oil ensured there weren’t any mosquitoes in our tents. After a quick tea and snack (both delicious), we went for a short walk to the adjoining tea gardens. A cool breeze and the faint glow of the setting sun, immediately put us in a relax mode. Back at the tents, delicious dinner awaited us.

The next couple of days were spent sleeping off, re-energizing, going for leisurely walks in the tea estates. The Grass Roots tent site has plenty of greenery and is very good for bird watching. Should you want, you can stay put at the resort and not step out. Thankfully the resort doesn’t have touristy things like a swimming pool, so is a great place to unwind.

crested_eagle
A Crested Serpent Eagle (Spilornis cheela), enroute Wayanad gave us enough photo opportunities.
Common Hawk Cuckoo
A Common Hawk Cuckoo (Hierococcyx varius) in the same forest stretch.
Forest Wayanad
Beautiful trees in the forest.
Weaver ant nest
What looks like a nest of the Weaver ant (Oecophylla smaragdina). This, right inside our resort.
White Cheeked Barbet
What looks like a White Cheeked Barbet (Megalaima viridis). This pair was looking after its nest in one of the tree holes.
Bird in leaves
A superbly camouflaged bird in the trees.
dark-fronted babble
The dark-fronted babbler (Rhopocichla atriceps). They forage in flocks in the undergrowth of forests constantly making calls and uttering alarm calls when disturbed. Unfortunately I saw a single bird only…
tadpole
We went for a walk down the river and saw hundreds of tiny heads bobbing up for air. On closer inspection we realised these were tadpoles, and are very efficient in removing mosquitoes by eating their eggs and larvae.
frog
A frog in the wayanad river
tadpoles
A school (?) of tadpoles.
wild flower
Wild fowers like these have long fed pollinators like honey bees.
Loten's Sunbird
The Loten’s Sunbird (Cinnyris lotenius) is endemic to peninsular India. The female builds the nest and the young ones are fed by both the parents.
snake
In the Grass Roots Camp we discovered this shy snake. Looking for an ID.
White Cheeked Barbet
The White Cheeked Barbet (Psilopogon viridis). They can be easily spotted due to their calls “Kot-roo … Kotroo… “
Indian Black-Lored Tit
I spotted this Indian Black-Lored Tit (Machlolophus aplonotus) feeding on what looks like a Pink Hibiscus.
Bonnet Macaques
On the way back to Bangalore we met some Bonnet Macaques (Macaca radiata)
White bellied Woodpecker
A White bellied Woodpecker (Dryocopus javensis) was fervently chipping away a hole in a tree. Perhaps for nesting or perhaps looking for termites.
Nagarhole Tiger Reserve
We passed through the Nagarhole Tiger Reserve on the way back. The sign warns of Gaur.
Malabar giant squirrel
We also saw the Malabar giant squirrels, (Ratufa indica), endemic to the Western Ghats and are rare.
wayanad_road
Filter Coffee and snacks break on the way.
tea estate
One of the best things about Wayanad is the long walks through the tea estates.
Green Tea estate
This estate produces green tea.
Wayanad
The idyllic country side of Wayanad.
hanging bridge
A hanging bridge over the river completes the idyliic-ness.
shade tree
Shade trees grown for the tea, with a beautiful sky behind.
tea garden walk
Our evening walks in the tea gardens were real energy boosters.
tea estate
At one point the sky got darker with rain clouds and we reluctantly decided to turn back.

[box type=”success” width=”100%” ]How to reach : Wayanad can be reached by road from Bangalore or Kochi or Mysuru.

Where to stay : Although there are plenty of stay options, if you want a quiet, calm place amidst greenery try the Grass Roots Camps.

When to visit : Pre-monsoons, just after monsoons and winters are good times. If you can live with heavy rains, monsoons can be beautiful here. Summers are good too, as Wayanad is slightly cooler than the coastal Kerala.[/box]

24 thoughts on “The Beautiful Wilderness Of Wayanad”

  1. Never been to this place before, being a Keralite; but your impeccable captures are taken well into notice and so I would like to shall be consider on planning a trip to this place soon. Thanks a lot 🙂

    Reply
  2. Nice blog.. Good job.. Thank you so much for the information. It’s a great post…I love travelling and want to travel all over the world. Explore new places, adventurous things and many more. And photographs are just amazing. Keep writing !!!

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  3. Great post! You have described so well about Wayanad with stunning photographs. Wayanad is one of the prime tourist destinations in Kerala, offers multitude of options for tourists such as beautiful hill stations carpeted with large expanse of tea and coffee plantations, diverse wildlife, natural beauty, trekking, waterfalls, ancient temples and much more.

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  4. There is something exciting about this place and while reading your blog, I just want to be there, capturing every bit of it.You really have described everything so well.Thanks for sharing the blog,going to plan a trip soon and you have got exceptional photography skills. Keep capturing and keep writing.

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  5. The southern part of India has a lot to travel and these hidden gems always leave me in awe. Within all this chaos of urbanisation, mind always craves for serenity in nature. You have some got really exceptional clicks, totally looking forward to visit Wayand.

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  6. Yeah the “nothing to do” tours are just perfect for rejuvenating your inner self and after reading your blog, Wayand is my next stop for one such tour. you surely have captured every wondrous moment of this tour. Thanks for sharing it with us. loved every bit of it.

    Reply
  7. Fabulous post indeed! Wayanad is a must visit tourist place that shouldn’t miss during a tour to Kerala “Gods’ Own Country”. Thanks!

    Reply
  8. Yeah the “nothing to do” tours are just perfect for rejuvenating your inner self and after reading your blog, Wayand is my next stop for one such tour. you surely have captured every wondrous moment of this tour.

    Reply

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