Wayanad - Day 3

You can read about

1. How we reached Wayanad
2. Day 1 - KuruwaDweep and Banasura Sagar Dam
3. Day 2 - Wayanad Wildlife Sanctuary, Soochipara Waterfalls and Karapuzha Dam

Our vacation was coming to an end today and we still had few places to visit. So we started early from our home-stay around 9 am after having a volley of aapams with peas stew. We checked out from the home-stay, thanked our hosts for a lovely stay and proceeded towards Edakkal Caves.

Edakkal Caves is around 15 km from Meenangadi on the way to Ambalawayal. This pre-historic cave is at the top of a hill and requires a good amount of steep climbing (around 45 minutes). There are many souvenir shops on the way  selling crafts, home made chocolates, spices and what not. The caves are open from 9 am to 5 pm, but the last entry is restricted at 3:30 pm.

Entry to the main cave

We collected our tickets and proceeded towards an even steeper climb. We were greeted by a very small entrance which opened up into a larger cave like structure. On top of this structure steps have been built which take us to the actual cave. The view of the surrounding hills is very beautiful and pleasant to our eyes. Trekking in the hills is prohibited. The caves have carvings of early pre-historic men depicting elephants, a tribal chief, a human face, peacock, circles, few other symbols and two Tamil Brahmi inscriptions on the rocks. 

Drawings in the cave

After a peek into the history, we decided to walk back and saw a group of monkeys eating coconuts, snatching ice creams from passers-by and even drinking miranda straight out of the can. It was getting late and we left Edakkal Caves.

Next, the driver took us to one of the shops which sell spices and other curios. We bought cloves, cardamom, pepper, green tea, cinnamon, jaadhipathri (mace), oil etc... and proceeded to Pookode Lake, near Vythri. Its an ideal picnic spot with a large lake with boating facilities, children park, cafeteria, aquarium suitable for families. Self pedalling boats were available for a nominal fee for INR 50 per 20 minutes. But they were closed for lunch (1 pm – 2 pm) by the time we reached there. A boat ride during the evening would be romantic and pleasant. Beware of monkeys here which snatch anything we buy. We hardly spent 30 minutes here. 

Pookode Lake, Vythri

Our final stop was at the Lakkidi view point, from where we can see the famous “W” shaped hairpin bend of Wayanad (Wayanad has a total of 9 hairpin bends). After customary photo shots, we descended towards Calicut. We boarded the bus at Calicut and after a long and tiresome 17 hour journey reached Chennai.

"W" shaped hairpin bend, Lakkidi Viewpoint

We were cheated by our driver about the number of kilometres the car was driven (for we had not noted the initial meter reading, our fault) which is the reason I am not sharing the driver/travel agent details in this blog. It was a lesson learnt and we decided to be careful in our upcoming trips. Apart from this hiccup, the entire trip was wonderful and we thoroughly enjoyed every moment. Please feel free to share your comments.