Reserva de Periyar Tiger EN Thekkady

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Situated in Kerala, close to the Kerala – Tamil Nadu border town – Kumily, it is located about 257 quilòmetres (160 miles) from Trivandrum, 114 km from Madurai Airport, 185 km from Cochin International Airport and 114 km from Kottayam railway station. The sanctuary is famous for its dense evergreen, semi-evergreen, moist deciduous forests and savanna grass lands. It is home to herds of elephants, sambar, tigres, gaur, lion-tailed Macaques and Nilgiri Langurs.

La Periyar Wildlife Sanctuary is spread across 777 km² (300 sq. miles), of which 360 km² (139 sq. miles) is thick evergreen forest. The Wild Life Sanctuary, declared a Tiger Reserve in 1978 and the splendid artificial lake formed by the Mullaiperiyar Dam across the Periyar River adds to the charm of the park. The greatest attraction of Periyar are the herds of wild elephants that come down to play in the lake.

Thekkady, India’s largest wildlife sanctuary is a dream destination for any tourist visiting India. Aquest santuari s'estén sobre una àrea de 777 Sq.Kms, surrounded by an artificial lake over an area of 25 Sq.Kms.

Elephants in Tiger Reserve

The Country’s sole Tiger reserve, Thekkady, with its bountiful treasures of tropical flora and fauna is the ultimate reservoir of many an endangered species and a rich tribal culture. Thekkady is a pleasant heaven on earth for those who love nature in its wild manifestations.

Periyar National Park

Periyar is a protected area, and a nature reserve in the South Indian State of Kerala, set high in the mountains of the Western Ghats at the border to Tamil Nadu. It lies in the districts of Idukki and Pathanamthitta. The protected area covers an area of 925 km², out of which a 350 km² part of the core zone was made into the Periyar National Park and Tiger Reserve, sometimes dubbed the Periyar Wildlife Sanctuary. The park is often called by the name thekkady also. Thekkady is located four km from Kumily, aproximadament 100 km east of Kottayam, 110 km west of Madurai and 120 km southeast from Kochi.

Periyar National Park

The Periyar National Park is spread over an area of about 777 km² and comprises a thick evergreen forest with exotic wild life. The sanctuary was declared a tiger reserve sometime in 1978. It has an artificial lake formed by the Mullaperiyar Dam, built in 1895 across the Periyar river.

Aproximadament 75% of the entire protected area are covered of unaffected evergreen or semi-evergreen rain forest. They reach heights of 40 a 50 Metres. Scarcely 13% consists of damp leaves forest, 7% of Eucalyptus plantation and 1.5% of grassland. The remainder (around 3.5%) of the protected area is covered by the Periyar artificial lake as well as the Periyar River and Pamba rivers.

Periyar National Park

The invertebrate fauna of Periyar is not well documented, though the predominant invertebrate orders are Protozoa, Annelida, Arthropoda and Mollusca. 160 butterfly species have been listed.

Among the 62 species of mammals, many are rare, endemic and endangered. Periyar is prime elephant country and large herds are often sighted at the lake fringes. There is an estimated population of 900-1000 animals which is likely to overlap with the population in the adjoining forest areas.

A much disproportionate sex ratio of the elephant is found in Periyar and adult tuskers are far too few. Gaur, among the largest of bovines, occurs in all types of habitats. Gaur have staged a remarkable comeback after their near demise due to a rinderpest outbreak in the 70s.

Sambar, the largest deer in India, are extensively distributed and constitute the principal prey base of tiger and wild dog. Wild pig has wide distribution throughout the park. Sometimes, these animals invade agricultural lands often leading to man-wildlife conflicts. Small relict populations of the highly endangered Nilgiri Tahr are found in the high altitude grasslands of Mangaladevi. Four of the five primate species found in the Western Ghats are well represented in Periyar.

While the Nilgiri Langur enjoys a wide distribution in the moist forests, the highly endangered Lion Tailed Macaque are confined to the dense evergreen canopies. Malabar Giant Squirrel is common in the area. Though the presence of the endangered species, Small Travancore Flying Squirrel, is recorded from Periyar, the Large Flying Squirrel is more frequently seen.

Thekkady Wild Life Reserve

Mammals : Altogether 62 different kinds of mammal have been recorded in Periyar, including many threatened ones. There are an estimated 53 tigres(2010) in the reserve. Tourists also come here to view the Indian elephants in the act of ablution and playfulness by the Periyar lake. Other mammals found here include gaur, sambar (horse deer), barking deer, mouse deer, Dholes (Indian wild dogs), mongoose, foxes and leopards. Also inhabiting the park, though rarely seen, are the elusive Nilgiri tahr.

Four species of primates are found at Periyar – the rare lion-tailed macaque, the Nilgiri Langur, the common langur, and the Bonnet Macaque.

Aus : So far 320 different kinds have been counted in Periyar. The bird life includes darters, cormorants, el blauet, the great Malabar hornbill and racket-tailed Drongos.

Reptiles : Hi ha 45 different kinds of reptile in the protected area out of which there are 30 snake, two turtle, i 13 lizard species. Among those are Monitor lizards that can be spotted basking in the sun on the rocks along the lake shore. Visitors who trek into the Periyar national park often see a Python and sometimes even a King Cobra.

The Cardamom Hills

Cardamom Hills are part of the southern Western Ghats located in southeast Kerala and Southwest Tamil Nadu in South India. Their name comes from the cardamom spice grown in much of the hill’s cool elevation, which also grow pepper and coffee. Les Ghats Occidentals, Periyar Sub-Cluster including the Cardamom Hills, està sent examinada pel Comitè del Patrimoni Mundial de la UNESCO per a la selecció com a Patrimoni de la Humanitat.

The Cardamom Hills – Thekkady

Murikkady

This place consists of spice and coffee plantations. Es tracta 5 km from Thekkady. Situat a una distància de 5 km from Thekkady, Murikkady is growing in importance as a place for picnic in Kerala due to the clean and pure spice scented air that one can breathe in Murikkady.

Chellar Kovil

Just 15 km from Kumily, the small village of Chellarkovil is famous for its beautiful views of the cascading waterfalls and lush green plains that slope down into the Cumbum coconut groves. The natural picturesque scenic views amidst unspoiled nature are a treat to city dwellers.

Anakkara

Located at about 13km from Kumily on the Kumily-Munnar road, Anakkara is an upcoming spice tourism destination in the state. There is also a new airport proposed at Anakkara and is under review by the Airports Authority of India.

There are two factors that make Anakkara a tourist destination. One is its spice plantations and the other the many picnic spots in and around Anakkara, suitable for tourists visiting the many prominent tourist destinations in the district such as Thekkady and Munnar.

Periyar Lake at Thekkady

Mangala Devi Temple

It is situated about 15 km from Thekkady and sits at an altitude of 1337 m sobre el nivell del mar. It is surrounded by lush greenery and is closed throughout the year except during the Chitra Pournami festival. At other times tourists can still view it by getting a special letter from the forest ranger. The view from the temple premises is spectacular and one can see part of eastern ghats and some villages from adjacent state of Tamil Nadu.

Aruvikuzhi Falls(Pandikuzhi)

A stream falls from Chellarkovil into the planes of Tamil Nadu from a height of about 1200 ft, giving the place a picture perfect view. No obstant això, this is a highly dangerous place with no safety warnings or fences. Utmost care should be taken while visiting this place, especially when you are trying to take that perfect picture of the water fall.

Ottakathalamedu

Literally meaning “Camel’s Head shaped Hillock”, this is a peak about 1400m above sea-level. Des d'aquí, tourists can get a panoramic view of the landscape of Anakkara and surrounding villages and also sunset.

What you can Do

Nature Walk : The guided day trek. Different nature trails traversing diverse habitats form the trekking routes, generally 4 a 5 km in length. This is an interpretive programme offering excellent opportunity to watch birds, butterflies and other wildlife. The trails often pass through evergreen and moist deciduous forests interspersed with marshy grasslands. The programme is offered between 7AM and 10:30AM and between 2PM and 3PM and lasts for about 3 hours. A maximum of 5 persons can go for trekking at a time along each nature trail, accompanied by a trained tribal guide. The Nature walk is the right programme to feel nature, hear her whispers and smell her flowers.

The Periyar Tiger Trail : The programme is unique in being conducted by a team of poachers who turned protectors of the forests. The team members are hardy and dependable with an intimate knowledge of the forest terrain. The programmes are 1 night/2 days and 2 nights/3 days. The first day’s trek starts at 12 noon and ends by noon in the second or third day. Here, one may chance to encounter much indigenous wildlife like Nilgiri langur, giant squirrel, elephant and who knows, even the tiger! The trek route passes through hills and valleys with a variety of tropical plants and wide-open spaces.

Enroute vegetarian meals will be prepared and served and country tents will be pitched for holing up in the night. Trekking groups are accompanied by armed forest guards with good communication equipments, and geared to face any emergency situation. Remember to listen to unusual and strange adventure stories of the former poachers, now your guides and protectors of the forests. Preconditions for joining the tiger trail: Visitors who are medically fit and aged between 15 – 65 are advised to take the tiger trail. Visitors should be serious nature lovers willing to sacrifice some of the luxuries and comforts of a hotel.

Bamboo Rafting : This is a dawn to dusk range hiking and rafting programme through some of the richest forest tracts of Periyar Tiger Reserve. Starting at 8AM from the boat landing, a mosaic of habitats will be traversed before the party gets into rafts made of bamboos. The forests are rich in bird life and arboreal animals like giant squirrel and Nilgiri langur. The rafting is for about three hours and one gets a panoramic view of forest-clad hills reflected on the lake. Animals like elephant, gaur and sambar are sighted keeping close to the edges of the lake.

Bamboo Rafting At Thekkady

Boating : Boat cruises on the Periyar Lake. Typical boat ride will be for 2 hour & cost INR 50 per person.

The best way to explore Periyar is by taking a boat ride around the lake. You can go on elephant rides and cruises on the lake or go on long treks. The best time to go for a walk through the jungle is early morning or dusk. Hike down to the ruined Mangaladevi temple – a beautiful old stone temple situated in the heart of the Thekkady forest. A visit to Thekkady is a delightful experience.