Week 2 of Mataozm is over and as the trip takes its own shape, along with the luggage and our senses, here's the weekly log.
Select photos from week 2 on flickr
Day 8 – 1 may 2009Kookal - Mannavur - Kodaikanal - Kookal
85 kms
Chilling, chilling, chilling
ATM trip to Kodai and back - sunset
Films – 48 Hours, Maharathi, Apocalypto
Day 9 – 2 may 2009Kookal – kodaikanal – palani – pollachi - palakkad
White roads, NH209, SH156?
220km
chill morning, packed and left kookal. crowded! sathya sai baba had visited kodai on the first - so major crowds. decided against munnar route and stuck to quicker pollachi route. to the plains after 4 days. very warm. plains are nice to ride after the 'stressful' non stop hairpin ghats with all that luggage. checked into fancy hotel.
Day 10 – 3 may 2009
Palakkad – Trissur - Palakad
NH47
138km
reached trissur for trissur pooram around 10 –saw 15 temple elephants for some ceremony – got into the exhibition trap - saw foetuses and cirhossised? livers - walked around all sides of the circular temple - met an architect working in the conservation of the temple – got to go to the upper part of a gopuram. packed with tv and newspaper guys sprawled on the floor on top of each other trying to get the shots. left and went to
Vinod's office - met Venus - night ride to palakad
Poorum photos on mataozm flickr
Day 11 – 4 may 2009
Palakad – Mannarkad – 10 km towards mukkali and back to mannarkad
68 km
Lazy morning at hotel – search for palakad breakfast – eat dosa! – internet café – slow photo upload – skip palakad fort – back to hotel- chill and leave for silent valley – unable to get thru to any hotels. – starts raining while climbing mukkali ghats – return to mannarkad – find lodge – cheapest room so far – 300 – door doesn’t latch properly. Film, smoke and pass out. Doesn't look like Silent valley is going to happen.
Day 12 - 5 may 2009
Mannarkad – mukkali – Silent valley national park (sairandhri) – mukkali- agali
91 km
Head to mukkali – call – no response/all full no point going to mukkali – alternate plan made, but by stroke of luck? turn left for mukkali information center (named after highest peak anegundi or something) – get permission and guide/jeep to go inside. Go on kacha road for 23 km to sairandhri – no road road – road been left as is to preserve natural aspects – ppl not allowed normally – vehicles enter only till 1 pm. Must come with previous booking. They have website. Silentvalley.gov.in. Guide – yesu 30 years exp – driver – subash – scared of elephants – elephants have had baby elephant and have been rampaging last few days. Cautious driving..
Reach sairandhi (name of panchali – britishers gave silent valley name coz no cicadas then.) in 1985 plant to build dam across kunti river, but rajiv Gandhi came and made it national park – 89 sq. kms core area,. Also has buffer area. Kunti river 20 kms no man touch. So 2nd purest water on earth – medicinal also. Yesu made us pour out the bisleri and fill this water. went up watch tower and smoked a j.
Saw nilgiri langoor, giant malabari red squirrel, butterflies, medicinal plants, itch causing leaf plant and bark tree, markings of angry elephant tusks, hoof print of sambhar. Went to suspension bridge. Miss getting chased by elephants on return trip. Everyone at park para abt the elephants. Saw shatavari, aloe vera, chirali (strongest tree- king of forest trees), Eatai (thinner than bamboo – elephants fave food) – didn’t spot lion tailed macaq (only place on earth) but lots of whythey are here – fave food - karani trees – eaten when small and non thorny. Tumeric, kodom?
5 types of weather zones, 12 types of diff forest. 104 orchids including one that’s only found here on earth – orchid plants growing like moss everywhere – flower in oct- nov - .kunti did tapasya here. Pandava angles..
got route options from warden. Kottakara, muli, manju, ooty. 44 hair pin bends! Have to bribe.
returned to mukkali and then bike parked in parking lot with all luggage intact. Tea at mukkali and then decision on route – already 5 so stay at agali – ride along sunset. Govt guest house turned away coz of no vacancy. Stay at mkr lodge in goolikadavu 1 km away from agali.
200 bucks cheapest so far. No tv though. Dinner at thalaserry rest – veg while traveling is very limited. Got to go yogic in a week. Happy birthday to all the May people.
Happy areas – churches, mosques, fields. Different dreses across religions – muslims maxis, nighties – hindus - ? christians – typical like in comic books. overall kickass day and lots seen considering so little time spent and so much seen and learnt.
Silent Valley National Park photos on Flickr
Day 13 May 6, 2009 Wednesday
144 km
goolikadavu – kottathara – mully – manjoor – ooty
43 hairpins, 4 km of bad road before mully, 20 rs. Bribe/toll!
More hairpins towards upper bhavani – total around 63 hairpins done today.
Felt like private road. total of 20 vehicles in a 60 km stretch. Scaled ooty from 3 sides now – north, west and south. Mudumalai side most diff with really steep hairpins. Must stop in middle to allow engine to cool.
Ooty – small city with big crowds –
went to Botanical garden – houseful crowd, but good place.
Botanical garden photos on flickr
Photos. Snacks. Chocolates, aloe vera juice. Dasaprakash has disappeared.
Did maps at the lodge. Nice blue lines on a green country. More trees and green. More birds. Heat wave in Andhra-100 dead in orrisa! Cold in ooty. Skip dinner.
Day 14 May 7, 2009 Thursday
Ooty – Doddabetta Peak – Kotagiri - Coimbatore
SH15, NH67
102km
Woke up and stood in two lines to get on the toy train to coonoor. Built 100 years ago with the steepest gradient in Indian Railways - rising over 6000 ft (mettupalayam - coonoor stretch) Nice ‘never been on before’ road (Ooty-Kotagiri-Mettupalayam) through tea gardens. Elephant (big and baby) spotting, birds spotting, monkey watching. Now approached or descended the queen of hills - ooty from 5 sides :). As we head down, away from the nilgiri biosphere, the heat increases. from COLD to Warm in 80 kms. Speedometer conks off. have to visit mechanic, get bike insurance renewed in Coim. Stay at now usual lodge in Coim.
Next week
Around coimbatore and then maybe west or east - who knows. Om :)
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