Wayanad's Destinations Guide

Banasura Sagar Dam Banasura sagar dam is the second largest earthen dam of Asia and certainly one of the star attractions of Wayanad district. Bordered by scenic Banasura hills, it’s an enormous water reservoir situated on a high plateau. Hills are beautifully and intricately placed encircling the dam giving it a design of a bowl. It seems like without these hills water will spill out in the paddy fields of nearby villages. Boating facility is another activity to lure more and more tourists but certainly worth a try.

                                   Banasura Sagar dam wayanad
Banasura Sagar Dam is some 3 km from Padinjarathara town which is well connected with Kalpetta and Mananthavady. An auto till the dam from Padinjarathara should cost 30 INR.

Visiting hours: 8:30 AM to 5:45 PM               Boating hours: 8:30 AM to 5:30 PM
Entrance fee: 10 INR (Adult), 5 INR (Children)

                                                Banasura Hills
Banasura Hill: Hills surrounding Banasura Sagar Dam and in nearby area are Banasura hills.  These are one of the adventurous trekking trails and also site of some of the finest eco-resorts of the country.

Chembra Peak: Standing at an elevation of 2100 meter, Chembra is the highest peak of Wayanad and a delight to thrill seekers. If starting early in the morning Chembra trek can be done in a single day. Beware of leeches en route.

Trekking hours: 7:00 AM to 2:00 PM
 

Chain Tree: Chain tree is another eccentric attraction near vythiri in wayanad. It’s a huge Ficus tree tangled with large chain. There is also a strong advasi legend derived from this tree which is sufficiently manipulated to support the argument hence chain tree is also touted as a haunting site.

                                        A view from Eddkal Caves

Edakkal Cave: Edakkal Rock engravings are invaluable treasures of the world heritage. This site was first reported in the journal Indian Antiquary1 in 1901 in an illustrated article written by F. Fawcett, the Superintendent of Police of the erstwhile Malabar District.
 

Rock art in the form of paintings are there in plenty. But engravings in the Edakkal cave are unique. The Edakkal engravings represent various objects and cultural signs of the past societies. The drawings include figures of humans and animals, trees, wheels, carts, and also symbols, letters, and numeric signs. Human figures depicted in different styles are the most important items among the drawings. Wheels, carts etc. are also represented in different styles. Some of the newly found figures are comparable with signs and symbols reported from various Chalcolithic and Bronze Age sites of the subcontinent.

                                            Eddakal Caves Wayanad

There are two caves one above the other. The engravings are all in the upper cave. The upper cave is evidently supported by the lover one. Carrying capacity of these caves is naturally limited. Therefore, the number of visitors to the monument at a time has to be restricted according to the capacity of the rock formation.

Impairment of any kind to this monument cannot be repaired. It is our earnest responsibility to preserve this most valuable world heritage without any damage.
 

Trekking till ambukuthy hill is strictly prohibited. All the busses going towards Ambala Vayal from Sulthan Bathery stop near Eddkal caves and from there you need to hike some 3-4 km uphill to reach to the cave.
 

Visiting hours: 9 AM to 4 PM (All Monday and holidays are off)
Entrance fee: 15 INR (Adult), 25 INR (Camera), 20 INR (Plastic bottle token money)

Ganapathi Temple:

                                         Jain Temple Sulthan Bathery Wayanad

Jain Temple: One of the ASI protected site which lies in the heart of Sulthan Bathery town. It is situated on the main road to Kalpetta and on the walking distance from the town.

Visiting Time: 8 AM to 12 PM & 2:00 PM to 6:00 PM

Kadamanchira
 

Kalliyanath Mosque

Karalad Lake: Another beautiful lake of near Vythiri however not much known to the tourists, it lies in the placid surroundings. Stroll along to the lake side.
 

Karapuzha Dam: However outshined by Banasura Sagar, Karapuzha is another beautiful dam.

                                     Inside Muthanga Wild life Sanctury

Muthanga Wild life:  Muthanga is the southern forest range of Wayanad wild life sanctuary which is also part of Nilgiri Biosphere reserve.  Wayanad is perceived as a dense and mysterious forest among vacationers, Muthunga is certainly the most sought after destination with largest number of admirers and visitors. Many travelers even believe that Muthanga is Wayanad. Regardless to those misconceptions, muthanga is blessed with rich flora and fauna and your chances to sight wild life are doubled if going for the early morning safari. Muthanga is very near (16km) from Sulthan Bathery and the first bus to Muthanga starts at 6:30 from Sulthan Bathery so that one can catch early morning jeep safari.

Visiting hours: 7AM to 10AM & 3PM to 5PM
Fees: 60 (Adults), 30 (Childrens/Students), 150 (Foreigners), 25 (Camera), 150 (Video Camera)

* A group of minimum 7 is allowed with a jeep else you need to hire the entire jeep which would be costly. If traveling alone, try to club in with another group

Neelimala View Point: One of the most popular vantage point in wayanad which offers spectacular view of lush green valleys and meenmutty falls. It’s very close to Vuduvanchal that can be reached from Kalpetta (Via Chundale, Meppadi) or Sulthan Bathery (Via Ambala Vayal). Better club it with your trip to Meenmutty waterfalls, Sunrise valley. It’s also starting point of many trekking trails of Wayanad.

Paingattiri Agraharam

                                              Temple on the trek

Pakshi Pathalam: One of the secluded and inaccessible sites of Wayanad which is a paradise for Bird watchers.  The trekking trail passes through absolute wilderness and will boost your inquisition but the site in itself will outreach your speculations. Pakshi Pathalam trek starts from Tirunelly Temple. There is a narrow pathway besides the temple that enters into a dense forest and goes towards Pappnasini River (famous for religious rituals).Geographically Pakshi Pathalam lies just at the border of Kerala and Karnataka.

To trek Pakshi Pathalam, You will require permissions from DFO office and will be accompanied with a forest guard.

Palchuram: A Ghat road connecting Kannur (Kottiyuru temple) to Wayanad.

Pallikunnu Church: An old church built in 1908

                                             Tree house in Wayanad

Pazhassi Tomb: Historical monument and a memorial of the Pazhassi Raja who was cremated here in 1805. The Tomb is surrounded by beautiful park and lies within Mananthavady town. Just stroll along the pathway and you will reach there.
 

Phantom Rock: Natural rock formation near Ambala vayal is an eye-catching landscape and Phantom rock outshines its counterparts with its unique skull head shape. Phantom rock also provides rock climbing, trekking and camping opportunities in the backdrop of lush green valleys. Club it with your trip to Edakkal Cave.

                                           Boats at Pookot lake wayanad

Pookot Lake: Another natural lake surrounded by lush green hills which also offer boating facilities. It can be reached easily from Vythiri.

Entrance fee:  15(Adult), 5(Children), 20(Camera), 150 (Video Camera)
 

Pulpally: Village famous for Sita Devi temple.

Soochipara Waterfalls: Waterfall near Meppadi those you can visit from 8:30 AM to 5:30 PM.

Sunrise Valley: In the proximity of Neelimala View Point.

                                    Maha Vishnu Thirunelli temple Wayanad

Tirunelly Temple: Tirunelly Temple is also believed as the oldest temple of subcontinent but concrete and reliable supportive arguments are missing. However Tirunelly temple lies in the lap of Mother Nature surrounded by dense and deciduous forest. Perhaps natural surrounding adds the special charm to its visit and fascinates its visitors.  Another intriguing aspect of the temple is river Papanashini which flows just beside the temple originating from the dense forest.

                                      Papanasini river near thirunelli temple

There is a narrow trail that goes inside the forest till the source of the river where pilgrims take a dip in the water stream and engages in various religious rituals. It is believed that a holy dip in this water stream wash out your sins. The same forest trails goes further till Pakshi Pathalam. There are many other off-beat and dangerous trails in this forest through utter wilderness those requires special permissions from Forest department (Generally for field researchers).
Reiterating is again, this forest is densely populated with many mammals’ species, member of cat family, amphibians, reptiles and an encounter can be fascinating, break-taking or perhaps life taking….that’s the region solo-trekking is not allowed in this part of Western Ghats.
 

You can club in this trip with Tholpetti.

                                        Inside Tholpetty Range Wayanad

Tholpetti: I reckon this is your best chance to sight wild life in Wayanad. I will strongly recommend you not to miss this wild life range during your visit to Wayanad. I was enthralled when I witness an elephant family of 19 crossing the main road. This herd of elephant attacked a coffee estate in the nearby village and it’s a common event at Tholpetti. Tholpetti is among the very few national park of the country where you are allowed inside the core area and offers you a chance of breath-taking event. Wild Elephants sighting is very common in Tholpetti and you just need an extra bit of luck to sight a Tiger (Count=18). It’s also a favorable habitat of Forest dogs, Wild hogs, deer species, Forest cock, bison and some rare species of birds. Even there are 2 black panthers in this forest, what else you really want to include while imagining a forest.
 

The first bus from Mananthavady to Tholpetti starts at 6:00 AM so that you don’t miss the morning freshness of the jungle. You can catch this bus from Gandhi circle at Mananthavady.

                                         Wild Dogs at Tholpetty Range

                                             Bamboo Trees Wayanad 

 

Heritage Museum: An archeological museum (Popularly known as Heritage museum) of Ambala Vayal in Wayanad showcases many artifacts  dated back till 2^nd century AD. These include prehistorically stone weapons used by tribal for killing animal, stone sculptures, clay objects etc. A walk through the museum will take to the Stone Age or perhaps exhibits a miniature picture of that. Due to some rare and unique collection of objects, it lures every class of travelers from researchers to honeymooners.

Visiting hours: 10:00 AM to 5:00 PM (Every day except Monday)

You can include it while visiting Edakkal Cave & Phantom Rock.
 

Kuruva Island: It stands apart from rest of Wayanad because it’s one of its kind attractions in Wayanad. Kuruva Island is formed by the tributaries of river Kabini and later turned out into a popular picnic spot with little bit of adventure activities. Unspoiled deciduous forest surrounding the island deserves accolades for setting an example of responsible tourism.
 

Visiting hours: 8:30 AM to 3:30 PM

                                     While entering Wayanad from Calicut
Ghat road view point: This view point lies at the entrance of Wayanad just after the end of Ghat road while coming from Calicut.

Kadachikkunnu

Kanthanpara: A lesser known waterfall of Wayanad district which is much placid than its crowded yet popular counterparts. An easy hiking requires reaching to the fall from main road.

                                        Meenmutty water falls Wayanad

Meenmutty waterfalls: If you came to Wayanad and includes a Waterfall visit in your plan then Meenmutty is your pick. With its remote and desolated geographical location and chancy access trek Meenmutty waterfalls remains a mystery for many tourists still many groups of onlookers transform into hard core trekkers to challenge this daring trail.
 

Meenmutty waterfall lies 4km away from Vaduvanchal town on Ooty road [Chundale-Ooty Main road]. One can reach Vaduvanchal from Chundale or from Sulthan Bathery (Via Ambala Vayal) by private busses. An auto from Vaduvanchal should charge 30 Rs and that will drop you at the main road from where a trail going uphill through tea gardens will take you to the entrance of the waterfall. After 1-2 km walk through Tea gardens, you will reach to a forest post from where you need to get ticket and permission for walking further towards the fall and there are some rules and regulations.  

                                        Tea, coffee and black peper

                                  Tea plantation Meenmutty Waterfalls

 

The trekking trail to the fall is not a usual trek. It’s downhill, narrow, steep, slippery and afflicted with leeches. Thanks to the forest department which has outlined the trail and tied the ropes on both sides for support. After 30-45 minutes of exhausting trek through the dense forest, you may listen the roaring falls and the subsequent glimpse of the fall with take you in the river of its rapture and which is a reward of qualifying the It’s a roaring flow with massive water flow sprinkling droplets in the air and water spray will drench you in no time. You are not allowed to go till the bottom of the fall or enter into the water. The return trek uphill is more difficult and takes more time. Regular stops and relax is recommended for amateur travelers. Enchanting tea gardens are also another charm of Meenmutty waterfall.

Visiting hours: 7:00 AM to 4:00 PM

                                       Rubber Plantation in Wayanad

RARS:  RARS stands for Regional agriculture research station and situated in Ambala vayal town of wayanad.  It was established in year 1946 and later became part of Kerala Agricultural University in year 1972. Station is primarily involved in research on crops such as coffee, pepper, spices, tropical and sub-tropical fruit, seasonal vegetables etc. If you are interested to take a walk inside a spice garden, then RARS should be in your list. Staff is welcoming and explains about plants thoroughly. Other than a nursery growing varieties of red roses, there is also a sales counter where you can purchase seeds etc.