For me unplanned trips have always given me new and exciting experiences. I have always loved n preferred to travel solo but a road accident of mine has changed my views of travelling with a partner. You get to know the real taste of seeing the beauty of the nature together, spending quality time and reviving the memories you have saved in your heart.
About Anju Veedu
A trek to the hidden waterfall in the Elephant’s Valley of Vilpatti range – Anju Veedu was totally unplanned and I was also not at all aware of this place. Anju Veedu in Tamil is known as 5 houses. It is said that there were only 5 houses few years back and only 2 families lived here in the forest of the Elephant’s Valley. Hence the place is named as Anju Veedu.
How to reach and from where
Location – Kodaikanal, Tamil Nadu, India
Nearest railway station – Kodai road 80 kms
Nearest airport – Madurai 120 kms
By road – well connected from Madurai, Kodaikanal and Dundigal
After checking out from the Kodaikanal hotel while having a cup of tea in a local tea shop, I came across with the name Anju Veedu. Anju Veedu which is also called as Elephant’s valley is located in the Dundigal district of the South Indian state of Tamil Nadu and is famous for its hidden waterfall. The place tickled me to such extent that I changed my plan from going to a temple visit in Madurai to this waterfall.
How we reached
It was long 30 kms drive from Kodaikanal. Roads were smooth and weather was pleasant. We left around 9.30 am and after 02 hours of drive at around 11.30 am we reached Anjuveedu. It was a very small village in the mid of the jungle, hardly few houses and very few people.
We parked our car in the village from where we had to walk around 2 kms to 2.5 kms to reach the head of the Waterfall. Car can go to a certain place and after that one will have to walk thru the dense forest to reach the waterfall. We had detailed word with the locals and we understood the way. We started following our driver cum guide Suresh and started trekking towards the hidden cascade.
Following the stream into the Elephant Corridor
After 20 mins of walk we came across a small stream named as Palar Stream. This stream originates from the Kodaikanal Lake. We crossed the stream, had few photographs and continued our trek to the heaven. This valley is acclaimed as a Heaven by the locals. The forest was getting dense the more we were getting in. We followed the stream to get to the head of the Waterfalls.
At the head of the Waterfall
After checking out from the Kodaikanal hotel while having a cup of tea in a local tea shop, I came across with the name Anju Veedu. Anju Veedu which is also called as Elephant’s valley is located in the Dundigal district of the South Indian state of Tamil Nadu and is famous for its hidden waterfall. The place tickled me to such extent that I changed my plan from going to a temple visit in Madurai to this waterfall.
How we reached
It was long 30 kms drive from Kodaikanal. Roads were smooth and weather was pleasant. We left around 9.30 am and after 02 hours of drive at around 11.30 am we reached Anjuveedu. It was a very small village in the mid of the jungle, hardly few houses and very few people.
After 1 hour of trek and after almost 2.5 kms or more we could see the head of the waterfall. We had to cross a dam to reach to the head of the waterfall. The serene beauty of the nature was spectacular. The view was absolutely stunning with all the flora and mountains complementing each other.
Crossing the super slippery stream
Our excitement was at peak. Suresh crossed the dam and asked us to follow him and asked us to be very careful with our every step as it was super slippery. A slip can guarantee you with a bone dislocation as the rocks were uneven. Somewhere its ankle deep and somewhere its knee deep. You will get to see small fishes up there and they are happily staying there for years. Suresh helped us to cross the stream.
Climbing Downhill - The scariest one
He continued to climb the mountain downhill. That was indeed a very dangerous climb I have ever had. The rock was too steep and dangerous. I was holding my breath on my each and every steps. A single mistake can lead to a dangerous result. Even a minor slip may lead to death. We got a bit afraid as there were no back up plans nor any safety measures we had taken.
Heaven on Earth
After 30 min of downhill climb we reached the base of the 80 meters waterfall. This spectacular waterfalls has dangerous currents. It was an amazing view and Yes it was "Heaven". More amazing was to find us to be the only human being in that entire place. We were 3 and we could hear our heartbeats along with the gushing sound of the stream and the waterfalls. It was entirely a different planet on Earth. The jaw drop beauty of the nature stole my heart. We spent sometime near the falls and clicked few photographs and cherished the moment.
Curiosity took us more into the forest
We started walking further following the cascading stream and went more inside the forest. We walked and passed thru rocks for another approx 1 km deep inside the forest. The whole surroundings was breathtaking, calm and breezy, only one can hear the gushing river flowing in and the chirping of the birds. We were there till 2.30 pm until our guide requested us to go back as it was getting cloudy and we need to walk back and then climb uphill. Also he was bit worried about the wild elephants.
Return uphill climb
Though we were not ready to leave the place but we started walking back. The most terrible was to climb up and even more above than from where we have climbed down. That was something more pathetic as I was hurting my knees to the max I could bear.
After safe climb once again when we reached the head of the waterfall we felt our heart got filled with calmness and peace. We spent sometime sitting near the stream, viewing the mountains from the head of the waterfalls, taking the full aerial views and clicking some photographs.
The serene beauty and the calmness of our mother nature soothed our heart and healed our pain. It was indeed magical. We left for Madurai by 4.30 pm capturing all the beauty and the experiences in our heart.
All pictures have been clicked by me and shouldn't be used without my permission.
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