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Archive for the ‘Kodaikanal’ Category

Kodaikanal located amidst the folds of the verdant Pali hills is one of the most popular serene hill stations in India, which mesmerises any visitor. With her wooded slopes, mighty rocks, enhancing waterfalls and a beautiful lake, Kodaikanal India is a charming hill station.

Kodai is situated at an altitude of about 2,133-m high and covers an area of 21.45-sq-km. The hill town is renowned for its educational institutions of international repute. Other than the fascinating places to visit in Kodaikanal, the pride of Kodaikanal is the ‘Kurinji-flower’, which blossoms once in 12 years. The hill-plantain fruits and plums are known for their freshness and taste.

How To Get There

By Road
Kodaikanal is connected by road with Chennai (520-km), Ooty (264-km), Trichy (197-km), Coimbatore (175-km), Kumili (160-km), and Madurai(120-km). Regular bus services are available from Madurai, Palani, Kodaikanal Road, Theni, Dindigul, Tiruchirapalli, Kumuli (Thekkady) and Coimbatore. Additional buses ply during the season. Taxis and vans are available for local transportation. There are no auto-rickshaws in Kodaikanal.

By Air
The nearest airport is at Madurai (120 km from Kodaikanal).

By Rail
The nearest railway stations are the Kodai Road Railway Station (80-km) and the Palani Railway Station (64-km).

Fairs & Festivals

There are several beautiful hill stations in Tamil Nadu. With the Summer Festivals, the hills are even hospitable to welcome the visitors. The summer festival is held in the ‘Queen of Hill Stations’, the evergreen Ooty; the exquisite Kodaikanal or the salubrious heights of Yercaud. Cultural programs, adventure sports, boat races, flower and fruit shows add to the splendour of the festival.

Places To Visit

Kodaikanal Lake

Half kilo meter from the bus stand, is an artificial, roughly star-shaped (60 acres) lake built in 1863. It is recognized as Kodaikanal’s most popular geographic landmark and tourist attraction. Rowboats and pedalos can be hired at the Kodaikanal Boat Club with its main entrance near the only five-star hotel in Kodaikanal, The Carlton. Horses and bicycles can be hired beside the lake for short periods. The 5 kilometers path that skirts the periphery of this lovely lake is a favorite walk for the locals and tourists alike.

Coaker’s Walk

Half km from the bus-stand, constructed by Lt.Coaker in 1872, is a 1 kilometers paved pedestrian path running along the edge of steep slopes on the southern side of Kodai. The walk, winding around Mount Nebo, starts in front of the Van Allen hospital, running parallel to the Van Allen Hospital Road and joins the main road beside St.Peter’s Church, providing a stunning panoramic view of the plains. On a clear day one can view as far as Dolphin’s Nose in south, the valley of the Pambar River in the southeast, Periyakulam town and even the city of Madurai. A fascinating rare phenomenon called Brocken spectra can be witnessed, when a person can see his shadow on the clouds with a rainbow halo. This occurs when the sun is behind the viewer and clouds and mist are to the front. There is an observatory with a telescope halfway along the walk. Entrance fee to the walkway is nominal and it is open all year.

Pillar Rock

Three Boulders stand shoulder to shoulder vertically measuring to a height of about 122 meters (400 feet), providing a beautiful view. It is 8 Kms from the lake. It has a mini garden with lovely flowers. In the shadows of the pillars are shady woods that invite picnickers. The chamber between the two pillars is called Devil’s kitchen.

Dolphin’s Nose

8 kilometers from the bus stand, is flat rock projecting over a breathtaking chasm 2,000 m deep. It is an undisturbed area 1 kilometer down a very steep rocky trail beginning soon after Pambar Bridge. Orange juice vendors along the trail offer a welcome rest stop. Beautiful views of steep rocky escarpments rising from the plains can be seen. The old village of Vellagavi can be reached through a rugged bridle path here. A short paved walkway leads from the road here to Pambar falls (which is also locally addressed as ‘Liril Falls’ after the famous Liril Soap Advertisement filming in 1985).

Kodaikanal’s emergence on India’s map as a major tourist destination is mainly due to the ancient ruins and the lovely scenery. These remains, dating back to 5000 BC, make it a significant source of curiosity and interest for historians and tourists alike. Offering several tourist attractions in Kodaikanal, the place is positioned on the southern region of the greater Palani Hills. One of the finest hill stations in India, it occupies a sprawling area of 21.45 sq km at an elevation of 2133 meters above sea level.

Situated on the southern tip of the greater Palani Hills, the offshoot of the Western Ghats, Kodaikanal is one of the finest hills stations in India. The hill station, scattered across an area of 21.45 sq km, is situated at an altitude of 2133 meters above the sea level.

Kodaikanal has seen a major uphill trend in tourism division of late with tourists largely favoring hill stations for their vacations. There are numerous interesting tourist sites in and around the region. Some of them have been discussed below:

Bryant Park – One of the excellent tourist attractions of Kodaikanal, the Bryant Park, occupying an area of 20.5 acres, is particularly famous for growing rare assortment of flowers.

Waterfalls – The waterfalls, some of the major Kodaikanal tourist attractions found around the town include the Bear Shola Falls, Glen Falls, Silver Cascade, and the Fairy Falls. The most eminent of them, 975-feet high Thalaiyar Falls is located close by.

Green Value View – Placed on the grand River Vaigai, 5 km away from the Kodaikanal Lake, Green Value View offers an enchanting view of the Vaigai Dam.

Pillar Rocks – This area stands at almost seven kilometers from the center of Kodaikanal. There are three rocks, each pointing to the sky presenting a captivating view, and rising to an altitude of about 400 meters.

Shenbaganur Museum – The museum is sited just 5 kilometers away from the Kodaikanal Lake.

Kodai Lake
Located at a distance of 3 Kilometers from the main bus stand of the city, the Kodai Lake falls at the geographical location of 10º14′ North Latitude and 77º28 East Longitude. Much of its present glamor owes to Vera Levinge. He transformed the marshy lakeside into a spectacular lake by strengthening its banks and bringing beautiful boats from Tuticorin. Situated at an altitude of 2285 Meters, the Kodai Lake of Kodaikanal has a star like shape if seen from a height. The Kodai Lake covers an area of almost 60 acres. One can trek or drive along the beautiful lake, which is bordered by a well maintained road. Several wonderful hotels surround the lake.

Bryant Park
Bryant Park, seen on the lake’s eastern side, is another important botanical park that must not be missed by tourists visiting Kodaikanal as it houses plenty of different varieties of flowers, rafts as well as hybrids.

A British forest officer by the name Bryant was the one who landscaped this park in the year 1980 and hence it is named after him. This is the place where the annual vegetable and flower show is held during the month of May and is the most visited place by many during the summer months. A glasshouse in the park contains wide varieties of flowers, ferns and other ornamental plants.

Pillar Rocks
Situated at a distance of about 8 km from the Kodai Lake, Pillar Rocks are three large boulders which vertically measure upto a height of about 122 m.  It is 8 km from the lake. The rocks offer breathtaking views of the surrounding forests and plains. There is a small garden with lovely, colourful flowers.

At the bottom of the pillars are shady woods that make for a wonderful picnic spot. The scooped out chamber between the two pillar rocks is called Devil’s kitchen.

Arriving in Kodai town, one is enticed by orchards of pear trees with their graceful branches silhouetted in artistic curves against the evening sky like stark Zen etchings. Extensively visited by tourists and yet very serene, the beauty of virgin nature could be best witnessed in the breathtakingly beautiful hill station of Kodaikanal. Situated 2133 m above the sea level in Tamil Nadu, the magnificent hill station was developed by American missionaries in 1845. Buildings with gabled roof dot the skyline. Broken fragments of light from the setting sun are caught and kindled in the wind-rippled water appearing like a myriad lamp floating on the lake. Soon, as though on cue, lights start twinkling all over the hillside, and even the stars pick up the message, and heaven and earth are a riot of light, as though beaming messages of goodwill to each other.

The name Kodaikanal means the “gift of the forest”. Situated in the state of Tamil Nadu, among the Palani Hills, Kodaikanal is one of the unexplored destinations of southern India. With its intoxicating air, breathtaking scenery and serenity that you can hardly find in any other hill station, Kodaikanal is an ideal summer resort for the travel buffs of the southern plains.

The airport nearest to Kodaikanal is Madurai at a distance of 120 kms.There are frequent flights to most other Indian towns and cities. The nearest railhead is Kodai Road Railway Station at a distance of 80 kms from the place. Kodaikanal is connected by road with most of Tamil Nadu and nearby states. Being a popular hill station, bus services to Kodaikanal from other parts of the state are timely and very convenient.