Wayanad District, Kerela
District Headquarter: Kalpetta
Distance: Around 282 km from Bangalore, 142 from Mysore, 80 km from Coorg, 115 km from Ooty, 497 km from Trivandrum, 282 km from Cochin
Journey time: Around 6 hrs by bus or private vehicle.
How to reach there: By KSRTC bus, KSTC bus, private bus or private vehicle.
Route:
1. Bangalore – Mysore – Gundlupet – kalpetta
2. Bangalore – Kanakpura – Malavalli – Kollegal – Chamrajanagar – Gundlupet – kalpetta
Where to stay: For staying options in various places in Wayanad, click here.
Where to eat:
1. Green Gates
– more coming soon
Language spoken: Malayalam, Tamil, Hindi and English is understood to an extent
Wayanad district was formed on 1st, November, 1980. Wayanad is a beautiful hill station with huge green cover. It is mainly a agriculture based economy. The main crops are coffee, ginger, spices etc. Historically Wayanad was under the control of Kannur kings and some local chieftains. It was briefly held by Tipu Sultan, followed by British.
What to See:
1. Chembra Peak: It is the highest hill in Wayanad located near Meppady town. It is popular for trekking.
Pic courtesy – Paintedstork
2. Kuruva Island: Kuruva island is forest landmass on Kabini river. It is nice picnic spot. Various species of flora and fauna can be watched here. It located located around 40 km from Sulthan Bathery and 17 km from Mananthavady.
3. Edakkal Cave: Edakkal cave has pre – historic significance as painting from earlier era was found. It may not be a cave exactly but the surrounding beauty is astounding. It is located 25 km from Kalpetta on Ambukuthy hill (around 3 km from Ambalavayal village).
4. Banasura Sagar Dam: This the largest earthen dam in India. When the reservoir is full, it beautiful sight to see many small islands at the backdrop of Banasura hills.
5. Muthanga Wild Life Sanctuary: It is a 345 square km forest reserve located at the border of Karnataka around 16 km from Sulthan Bathery. Various wild animals like elephants, spotted dear, bison, tiger etc are found here.
6. Lakkidi: Lakkidi is one of the most high altitude locations in Wayanad in Thamarassery. It is popular for the panoramic view it offers. Rides on roads nearby will be exhilarating. It is located 5 km from Vythiri and 58 km from Kozikode.
7. Pakshipathalam: Pakshipathalam is popular for watching various birds including rare ones. It is located near Thirunelli in Brahmagiri hill range at the karnataka border. To reach there one has to take a long trek of 17 km inside wild forest. For more details contact KTDC.
8. Pazhassi Tourist Resort: It is a nice picnic spot located in Mananthavady with many facilities like boating on offer. The local king Pazhassi Raja was buried here.
9. Waterfalls – You can check various waterfalls like Soochipara, Kanthapara, and Meenmutty waterfalls in the Meppadi-Ambalavayal region. Also, Sentinel rock waterfalls is located in Vellarimala village near Chooralmala under Meppadi panchayat.
10. Pookot Lake: Located around 3 kms from Vythiri this large natural lake is beautiful picnic spot in the backdrop of hills. Also, very good for photography.