The sun was shining brightly and so were our energy levels with the thought of what was coming our way today. This was day two of our three-day anniversary trip, and we were supposed to hit the road to Pykara. I've written about our experience in Coonoor in part one of this series.
We had light breakfast in the hotel restaurant itself and were on the road by 10 am. Being aware of the fact now that the plastic was banned in the area, we got ourselves a water can of 5 ltr - the only one we could get. And we had a small plastic bottle from yesterday which we could refill from time to time using the big one.
Only a kilometer away is the Kamaraj Sagar Dam, much more frequented by locals because of the ease of accessibility from Ooty making it a favourite picnic spot for them.
One of the most popular attractions of the place and our much-awaited spot on the list, the 9th Mile was the next one. Why the name though? Because it is situated at a distance of 14.4 km from Ooty (9 x 1.6 km = 9 miles). The vast rolling grasslands that you see from the roadside are only a part of what makes it. To really embrace the view it offers, you have to trek up the trail to the top. The slope is steep and will take around 15 minutes to cover it.
No photo or words can do justice to the picturesque landscape the place has to offer. Spend some time purely soaking in the views, roaming around relaxing and rejuvenating. Trust me when I say that the scenery will have a lasting impact on your mind.
Finally, we hit the last spot for the day - Pykara waterfalls. The water here, instead of falling from a height, cascades down the rocks. It is a small hike of about 20 minutes from the main entrance to the falls. However, a paid battery car service is available too in case you are too tired by now.
First up was the Ooty Golf course, which is a peaceful 21-hole golf course with serene, rolling greens & some tree-shaded areas. However, we were not allowed entry inside it, since there was a match going on. I'm not very sure if they would have allowed the entry otherwise :-P But the road surrounding it wasn't any less elegant, covered with lush greenery. There were some vendors offering horse rides for a price of INR 300 per for 15 minutes.
Having had a thrilling horse ride at the Golf course, in no time, we were in the Pine Forest with its long trees scattering most of the sunlight giving rise to an enthralling Tyndall effect. Again, a lot of fearless monkeys in the area, so keep your belongings safe. One of them got our water bottle, and when I tried to get it back from him, he came back with a hint of a fightback. And you don't want to pick up a fight with them in their zone. So, letting him go away with the bottle was our only option.
You will also find a lot of pinecones on the ground there. We got one as a souvenir of the place.
It was lunchtime already, and we could not find any restaurant to have a decent full meal. That's because the whole place has only small stalls with vendors selling fast food like noodles, chips, sweet corn, tea/coffee, and other similar stuff at all the major spots. So, one must be prepared to run on these.
And thus comes an end to day two of our anniversary trip. Stay tuned for the final day of the trip where we explore all of Ooty.
Having seen the best of Ooty, we found it really hard to move on to our next destination on the list for the day, which was Pykara Lake, marking our entry into Pykara finally. Apart from the lake itself, the motor/speed boat ride exploring the lake is a major tourist attraction here. You can either take the boat ride or sit back and relax near the bank of the river.
I'll let you see what's up the trail for yourself.