Gavi via Konni - Tata Safari goes on an expedition

[Darklord]

Everybody who saw the Malayalam movie "Ordinary" had the scenes shot in Gavi etched in their minds. Ours were no different. Even though the portrayal was only partially accurate, the movie has tremendous influence in scaling up tourism in Gavi. After a long time postponing the drive, we made up our minds to go explore Gavi.

One Sunday noon, me, wife, and kid set out from Attingal. The plan was to visit Konni Elephant Rehabilitation Centre first, then stay the night at Pathanamthitta and drive the next morning from Pathanamthitta to Vandiperiyar via Angamoozhy-Gavi and return home. The permit had already been obtained online.

The route we took for day one:

We started our drive from Attingal at 1 p.m.

At Nilamel junction, MC road:

We turned from Valakom towards Kunnikode:

The roads were good and we soon approached Pathanapuram via Kunnikode:

We entered SH-8 at Pathanapuram. At the town itself, road construction was going on, but it got better as we drove towards Konni:

The fully constructed SH-8 stretches were a dream to drive on, but there were also under-construction stretches like this:

By 3, we were at the gates of Konni Elephant Rehab Centre:

We parked the car and walked to the ticket counter:

The tariff card:

They also have an ecoshop selling forest and handicraft products:

The first thing that greets you as you enter the premises is the Kraal that was built in 1942:

A sculpture in front of the Kraal:

A couple of plaques describing the history:

A couple of more pics of the Kraal. By moving the bars, the size of the Kraal can be adjusted:

There is a garden of Asoka trees:

An Elephant Art Gallery displaying various elephant themed exhibits:

We walked next towards the elephants themselves.

 

[Darklord]

The pavilions:

The inmates of the centre.

Eva, 20, rescued from Malayattoor division in 2003:

Priyadarshini, 38, rescued from Konni division in 1982:

Meena, 31, rescued from Konni division in 1991:

Krishna, 9, rescued from Thiruvananthapuram division in 2014:

The youngest, no board, but I think his name is Kochayyappan, after Konniyil Kochayyappan, the legendary elephant mentioned in Aithihyamala book:

Eva, Priyadarshini, Meena:

Neelakanthan, 25, rescued from Malayattoor division in 1996:

One more of Krishna:

We spent some time with the elephants, clicking pictures and viewing the antics of the youngest one. Post this, we walked to the elephant museum and the children's park.

A dome shaped structure:

Even the tank for rainwater harvesting had an "elephant touch:"

Pradhanmantri Van Dhan Vikas Kendra. I think the produce from this centre is being sold through the eco shop up front:

Children's park:

Elephant museum:

An elephant made of scrap metal in front of the museum:

A mural on the walls:

The exhibits in the museum. The most prominent being the life-size elephant statue:

Evolution of elephants:

Skeleton of an elephant:

Elephant control tools. I suppose a good number of these are illegal in the modern era:

Skull:

How the elephant trapping worked in the past:

They also had A/V and interactive exhibits. After finishing with those, we walked out, let the kid loose in the park and let him have a go at the rides.

I clicked a few pictures in the meanwhile:

Once the kid had his fun, we walked back to the parking lot:

We drove towards Kumbazha where we had booked our hotel room for the night. The road was excellent:

We arrived at Hotel Hills Park, Kumbazha:

We took a walk and made a few purchases, mainly snacks, for the next day, returned to the hotel, had a sumptuous dinner and went off to sleep early:

 

[Darklord]

Day 2 route:

We woke up early after a good night's sleep. The entry timings from Kochandy Forest Check Post is limited for tourist vehicles from 8.30 a.m. to 11 a.m.

Hotel Hills Park was a good host to us, also had secure parking both in front and at the back of the hotel. Nitpicking, the staff could have a bit more finesse and the breakfast spread was not that great. That being said, we would return without hesitation in the future to this property.

We set out after breakfast at 9:15 a.m. The first destination for the day was Goodrical Forest Range Office at Angamoozhy. Location: Goodrical Forest Range Office (Gavi - Kakki Eco Tourism) · Angamoozhy - Vandiperiyar Road, Angamoozhy, Kerala 689662, India

Here, at the Gavi ticket counter, we have to submit our booking receipt (soft copy will do) and obtain the pass for the journey.

Safari ready for the day. Note the first cousin giving company:

Before leaving the town, we filled diesel and then hit SH-8 again for some more distance:

Turned off from SH-8 and through Vadasserikkara, approached Maniyar:

Approaching Chittar:

The roads were good, considering these were roads around Sabarimala. We drove through Seethathode and reached Angamoozhy and then the Gavi ticket counter by around 10:30. Showed the booking pdf, got a form to fill out and the pass was issued. Took hardly 5 minutes as there was no rush. The ticket counter also doubles up as a souvenir shop, even had camo pattern T-shirts.

We retraced our path till Angamoozy and then drove on towards Gavi. In a few minutes, we reached Kochandy Forest Check Post:

The officer here verified our pass, noted down the number of plastic bottles and carry bags and other info, reminded not to litter and let us through after reminding us to report at the exit check post at Vallakadavu before 6 p.m. Now the restricted forest had truly begun:

The road was narrow, but good:

The road had visible signs of elephant activity with trees and plants uprooted and dung littered throughout. Luckily or unluckily, we had no encounters with the residents. We turned off the a/c, opened the windows and enjoyed the fresh nature, even though it was hot outside.

We soon approached Moozhiyar Dam. Photography of the dam is prohibited (as is the case of almost every dam/installation along the route). The cop on duty approached, verified the pass, noted down the details and let us through. Drove on top of the dam and stopped at a distance to click a few pictures of the reservoir:

It was just us and our steed and mother nature:

We moved on and this board greeted us:

The dead trees inside the reservoir:

Switch yard of KSEB:

We drove on:

Road leading to another facility of KSEB (off bounds for tourists, of course):

The road continued to be narrow, but good:

Elephant dung is a common sight all along the road:

We soon reached the KSEB Colony. They had a few offices, residential quarters, a canteen, toilets, and a provision store. We did not stop, just drove through:

Stopped at a vantage point to click the road we had covered:

Pretty soon, we reached a bridge under which the penstock pipes to the power station were passing. Stopped to click a few photos:

After spending a few minutes admiring the view, we drove ahead:

We had gained a lot of altitude by now:

Yet, the road was still going up:

Took a brief pause to click a couple more photos:

 

[Darklord]

We continued our drive and reached a flat and open area with good views and a shoulder wide enough to park on:

HT power lines:

Look, a rare sight; another car:

Clicked a few more photos before moving on:

An uprooted tree, "trunkiwork" of an elephant, perhaps:

Spotted a Nilgiri langur:

One of the many detours from the main road, all prohibited of course. Note the elephant dung:

We soon came up on a stretch of grassland:

The road surface began to appear deteriorated in patches:

We next saw a viewpoint offering views of the Kakki dam reservoir:

Some type of wild berries:

A couple more from the viewpoint:

Next up was Kakki Dam. We drove on top and crossed the dam and at the other side was the police post. Again, noted down all the details and verified the pass and ID and let us pass. No photos.

Driving a little further brought us to a point marked on GMaps as Kakki Echo Point:

It seemed like an old quarry, perhaps from the time when the dams were constructed:

The view from the other side of the road:

We continued with our drive. One of the hairpins:

The grasslands were visible and usually has animal sightings, but since it was noon, we had no such luck:

We next came upon the Anathodu Forest Check Post, which was left open and seemed unmanned:

A little further away was the Gavi Forest Station:

Here, we have to get down and get the officers to verify our pass, ID and also pay Rs. 85 as entry fee for the car. One needs to keep the receipt safe as it will be rechecked at the exit check post at Vallakadavu.

The road forks a little ahead, but the directions are well marked:

We then passed beside the Kochu Pamba Dam, the only dam over which we were not driving:

It was a little past 2 and we were hungry. We contemplated having our bread and snacks at this location, but decided to wait till we got to Gavi proper. What information we had was that lunch had to be pre-booked at Gavi, but we thought there would be facilities for tourists that we could use before having our snacks. With that thought in mind, we headed to Gavi.

 

[Darklord]

We soon reached this place:

The board outside mentioned refreshments and there were a few KSRTC tour buses parked by the roadside, so I went inside to check:

The counter displayed a tariff card:

Upon inquiry, yes, they have veg meals and omelette available. Only non-veg meals require prior booking. I am not sure if it is the case every day though.

I got entry for two (free for child less than 5), veg meals for two and a double omelette. The food was a buffet system and quoting the wife, "tastes just like home:"

They had clean rest rooms as well. We just rested for a few minutes after the meal, happy that we got hot meals instead of munching on snacks.

Boating was going on:

An old coracle repurposed:

The restaurant and the rest rooms outside:

Flowers:

Saw a Malabar Giant Squirrel:

Cardamom farm in the premises:

The squirrel had found a mango:

The mango was deskinned in no time:

Walked down to the riverfront and clicked some pics:

By now, we had spent nearly an hour at this centre. It was now time for our onward drive to Vallakadavu Check Post:

The board that drew us in:

We started our drive:

We soon approached Gavi proper and began seeing settlements and establishments:

A small check dam:

Crossed Pampa River:

The roads were still narrow even though it traversed settlements now:

Govt LP School, Gavi:

The children of the school had an enviable view:

Another check dam/spillway with a temple adjacent to it:

We had approached Hotel Green Mansion, KFDC's stay option inside Gavi. I think it is undergoing renovation as their website seems to have disabled the stay program option:

Their recreation area, the board at the gate says entry is limited to those staying at the Green Mansion:

The vehicles of those who have taken their day program option, I assume. The road immediately leads to the Gavi Dam:

The pièce de résistance, KSRTC Ordinary approaching Gavi Dam, though this one was a tour bus:

I would have loved to click the bus while it was on top of the dam, but for the blue board on the left:

 

[Darklord]

We drove on top of the Gavi Dam to the other side. Soon, the road forked:

"Entry for tourist vehicles strictly prohibited"

We drove on and gained some altitude and stopped at another view point:

Can you see the Gavi Dam?

How about now:

Safari posing:

After driving on just a bit another view point appeared and we could not resist stopping:

A red whiskered bulbul:

We drove till the very end of the road seen above to click this:

It was approaching evening and we drove on:

Ruins of an old temple:

Crossed the bridge over a small stream:

The road continued to bisect thick forest:

We saw a few vehicles were stopped by the road side. They had spotted gaur and sambar deer. What I could capture:

We drove without stopping then onwards:

Reached the exit check post at Vallakadavu:

Here the officer entered the details and verified the entry fee receipt by Gavi Forest Station and waved us through.

We exited to the tea estates of Vandiperiyar:

We reached Vandiperiyar and turned towards Kuttikanam:

Tea estates gave us company:

Stopped at Pambanar Poabs Tea factory outlet to purchase some tea packets:

As the sun went down, thick fog blanketed the road:

At Kuttikanam:

Coming from hot and humid coast, this was a calming sight for the eyes, mind, and body.

Stopped after the town area to click these closing pics of the trip:

Going was slow till we reached Ranni through Mundakkayam-Erumeli as it was monthly opening date of Sabarimala Temple and there was a huge rush of pilgrim vehicles. Once we reached Ranni and SH-8, the going was smooth and we reached Attingal at about 10:30 via Pathanamthitta-Adoor-Kottarakkara.

 

[Darklord]

Thoughts/notes/observations:

1. Book in advance via Book Ticket Online - Official Gavi-Kakki Eco Tourism Online Ticket Booking Portal by Goodrical Forest Range, Kerala Forest & Wildlife Department
2. Entry from Kochandy Check Post from 8:30 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. only.
3. KSEB has so many installations and dams in the area, all of them out of bounds for the tourists. Why not initiate a paid visit program to some of these? It will be an outreach program as well as generate revenue for the board. People may begin appreciating the value of electricity more.
4. Watch out for sharp bamboo sticks jutting out onto the road after trampling by elephants. It will end up scratching your car.
5. Roads are generally okay, although there are rough patches. I did drive a high GC vehicle, but I feel an average hatchback/sedan should do just fine.
6. No cell phone network, except BSNL in patches.
7. Please do not litter. Even though Forest Department is extra vigilant, we did see plastic waste at a few places. Respect the nature.
8. Please don't bother wild animals. If they decide to turn on you, there may not be help available for hours on end. We are the intruders in their home.
9. Food and water availability is patchy to nonexistent. Better carry enough food and water, more so if you have kids with you.
10. Public rest rooms are available at a couple of places only once you enter the forest.
11. Needless to say, keep enough fuel in the tank.
12. KFDC website for Green Mansion: Kfdcecotourism | Gavi
13. We booked Hotel Hills Park through Makemytrip.
14. I forgot to bring along my DSLR with the 250 mm lens and I missed it a lot.
15. Somehow, I resized the photos into GIF format and it shows. Did not notice till it was too much of a task to go back and redo everything.
16. Safari once again did its job perfectly in its first major trip after the FC renewal.

Till the next reclaiming:

 

[BalajiN]

Nice travelogue but I have already read in team bhp.