Trip to Valparai:
My wife Prachi and I started by a private bus on Saturday afternoon 1.30 PM from Bangalore. As usual the traffic on the Electronics city road was moving at snails pace. This did not make any difference to us, as I was engrossed by “The Motorcycle Diaries” by Che Guevara and my wife was fast asleep. Reaching Hosur, when the bus started to run at more than its regular pace, the back tyre got punctured. It engulfed another one hour. I realized that few of the co-passengers were thanking God for this accident, as they got a break for nature’s call, after sitting 2 hours in the bitter chillness of the air conditioned bus. The driver had a good presence of mind to take diversion from the highway, NH47 and reached Dharmapuri through the village roads, with just half an hour delay. After a short bio/tea break at Salem, we proceeded further towards Coimbatore. Coimbatore, with its typical drizzle welcomed us at 10.30 PM. Getting down at Nanjappa road; we took an auto rickshaw to go to Ukkadam bus station. There are 3 bus stations in Coimbatore. The buses fleeing westward are available in Ukkadam, the buses towards Trichy, Karur flee from Singanallur, while the rest are available at Gandhipuram. A bus to Pollachi was waiting for us with a huge crowd. We started at 11.30 PM. Prachi was crushed like a luggage pack against the front windshield. I metamorphosed into a head rest for the drunken co-passenger. Even Pollachi welcomed us with drizzles at 12.30 mid night. These drizzles were nothing new to me, as I had relished such weather during my 4 years of Graduation.

We had already booked a room at Hotel Sakthi, which is ‘claimed’ to be the best hotel in Pollachi. At the reception, a shock was waiting for us. They said they can provide room only for one day. We took it lightly thinking of moving to some other hotel the next day. The room was not so bad, with so many exciting things. There was and antique metal bucket, no supply of hot water, malfunctioning heating rod, a TV with an impaired remote control tied to the wall in a measure to avoid theft. Tired out of 11 hour travel we lied on the bed and found that blanket is missing. Not wanting to disturb the house keeping guys, we slept without a blanket.

We had to attend a function and few social meetings on Sunday. To our surprise, we didn’t get accommodation in any hotel. Is Pollachi so busy with outsiders!!! I had a sprain in my neck that day. So, we made it an excuse to stay one more day at Hotel Sakthi. They were kind enough to consider my illness and extend our stay. But today we found another excitement, which disturbed ‘my’ sleep all through the night. Bed Bugs!

We woke up early on Monday morning and packed for Valparai. We boarded the cab at 8.00 AM, finishing our breakfast in Hotel Sakthi.

The weather was so excellent all through the route. I like to visit hill stations during rain. Rain is nothing new to the place. Valparai is called Cherrapunji of South. The road was so pleasant with coconut farms on both sides, running through villages with tamarind trees lining the sides of the road for first 20 Km till Aliyar. The sun was just peeping out. Beautiful sight of silvery falls on the mountain ranges reflecting the sun light. We filled fuel at a petrol pump 4 Km before Aliyar, near Kottur. This is the last fuel station on the plains. The next fuel station is at Valparai, only.

We were invited through the first forest check post at Aliyar. A fee of Rs.80 is being collected here, to visit tourist places like Balaji temple and Monkey falls. No fee is being collected for the vehicles going to Valparai.

Our next stop was at Monkey falls. We reached here at 8.30 AM. This is a small little waterfall. There were hardly 10 people in the falls as it was early for travelers. There was a heavy gush of water due to rain. It was a pleasant experience to bath both in rain and the falls, together.

We continued our trip further to Valparai, a distance of 45 Km. Valparai is a gorgeous hill station not known to many tourists, maintaining its originality intact. It is around 3500 feet above mean sea level. The route to Valparai with 40 hairpin bends consists of numerous eye-catching waterfalls all along the way. We gave a short break at Attakatti to have tea in a small Malayali Tea stall. Our driver had his break fast in a small hotel near the tea stall. Moving a kilometer further we saw an arch of the Kadamparai Power Station. We heard that this is a marvel in power generation. The entire power generation unit and the water tunnel feeding the power generation are underground. This is open only for visitors having permission from Inspector General of Police / Vigilance, Chennai. We could not enter this even though we wished to.

From here on, we got the feel of the forest. Covering the entire mountain range is the Indira Gandhi Wildlife Sanctuary. These sholas are beautiful food for eyes. This continues till the tea estates of Valparai begin to attract us more. 20 Km before Valparai the first tea estate “Waterfall estate” begins. From there on there are only the tea estates everywhere. Tea estates are another attraction of Valparai.

As we were ascending up the hill, fog started covering slowly. We were unable to see objects as close as 10 feet. It was becoming difficult to drive. We felt the necessity of fog lights. As we were enjoying this beauty, we suddenly noticed a statue which appeared to be an Englishman, standing un-cared on the side of the road. We stopped the cab to know about the statue. The statue was of “Carver Marsh”, an English man who founded this district.

After enjoying a while in the chill weather, without jacket and bare-footed we continued our journey. From this point, we started to descend the hill to reach Balaji temple, at 11.00 AM. We took a diversion 9 Km ahead of Valparai to reach Balaji temple. The vehicles are stopped well ahead of the temple near a private check post. Balaji temple is in Akkamalai, inside Periya Karumalai tea estate. This is a private property maintained by PK tea estates. We climbed the hill through the tea estate to reach the temple. We had a chance to quench our curiosity here. We tasted the tender tea leaves to recognize whether it tastes like tea. But no! It tasted like any other green leaf. Apart from our curiosity, the temple was clean, calm and peaceful. The main deity was Balaji, beautifully decorated. They maintain a garden and a small children’s park around the temple. This garden has wonderful collection of plants and flowers. There is a shop outside the temple where various kinds of tea are available. We purchased leaf tea. Believe me! They are so cheap. But we are not sure how good they. We are yet to taste!

We heard that this sanctuary is rich in its wildlife. Often there are chances to see animals like elephants, cheetah, porcupine and wild boar. We were very disappointed as we had not seen any till now. We assumed that they can only be seen during night. While returning from the Balaji temple, on the way to Valparai, we saw a lengthy, black snake crossing the road. It should be not less than 6 feet. We took break every now and then, whenever we came across a waterfall. Further down the hill, along side the road, we saw a deer. We were fascinated; as this was the first time we saw deer in the real forest. We stopped the car to get down. But the deer ran off so quick to notice. Then the driver told us that this is a special kind of goat called “Kaelai Aadu”. With this sight we were content about our trip. There were lots of Monkeys all through the route.

Again we gave a break at the 9th hairpin bend to take a look at the Aliyar catchment area. It is really amazing for people like me who had spent few years in Chennai. Surplus water!

Down the hill, we took a diversion opposite to Monkey falls, to reach Aadaliamman Koil. It is a small, un-noticed temple of a Goddess on the banks of Aliyar catchment. This can’t be reached by car. We stopped the car half way and started walking down the barren slope. We were little frightened about the wild animals, as we were all alone.

After visiting this temple, we started further to descend the hill entirely. As soon as the plain is reached, there is a beautiful ashram, “Arivu Thirukoil” or “Temple of Consciousness”. This is established by Yogiraj Vethathiri Maharishi, who is no more. We spent few time in going around thee ashram and buying few books, which were cheap but of huge value.

We finished our lunch in a small dhaba kind of hotel, which served a decent south Indian meal for Rs.15.

On the way to Pollachi, we stopped at Aliyar dam. There is a big park and a pathway above the dam to stroll around. Boating is also available. From here, we had a great, magnificent glimpse of the coconut farms stretching kilometers wide.

We reached our Hotel around 6 PM, only to pack our things for a struggled return journey to Bangalore.

It would not be ethical if I don’t mention a word about our cab driver Arumugam, who was so patient in explaining things wherever necessary and halting wherever we wanted. This was a beautiful one day’s trip to heart’s content.

Places to Stay:
Hotel Sakthi, Hotel Manis, Sitaram Lodge in Pollachi.
All costs nominal around Rs 300 to 500 for a Non A/C double room.

Travel Expenses:
Cab expense from Pollachi to Valparai (including return) – Rs.1500
Ticket for entering the Sanctuary area – Rs.80

Tips:
Fill fuel near Kottur which is the last fuel station on plains.

Get accessories like medical kit, film roll from Pollachi. I forgot to get Kodak AS400. I struggled to get it. I gave a try wherever I found a little big and decent shop all over the route. Finally, my cab driver called one of his friends who was coming up and asked to get one for me.

Plan properly and get the required permission to visit Kadamparai Power Station near Attakatti.

Plan to stay a night / travel in the night to see wildlife.

Travel lovers should plan for an adventurous trip to Athirampalli falls in Kerala, through Valparai, Sholaiyar through Chalakudi route. The route after sholaiyar is really rugged and covered by dense forests.