May 22, 2014

Redhills Ooty - Wakeup to the chirping of variety of birds


Yes, sparrows, bullbull, humming birds, king fisher and many other variety of birds wake you up in morning. Watch them feeding on insects from your own room. Get up early and see the sun rise.
Do a walk around and see amazingly beautiful flowers in all colours. See the Emerald lake in front of you. Do a trek on the mountain behind.  Let me start with two photos of the place .....

Note: Click the pics to see the original full size. 


Redhills Ooty
This is just right within the Red Hills resort, you can trek to the top

Redhills Ooty - Emerald Lake
Beautiful view of the Emerald Lake from top of the mountain you see in first photo. Do you see that temple (see the small circle)

Redhills is about 27 kms from Ooty. You will go via Avalache Emerald lake bridge. This is a very peaceful place away from the Ooty town and so beautiful. I am sure you will love this place.  Use google maps to reach here. 

You have two stay options, one is the Red hills nature resort and the other one is "Destiny farmstay". We chose the redhills and heard some better reviews for destiny farmstay as well. The "Destiny Farmstay" is from LittleEarth group and you may expect good facilities as well. Visit tripadvisor.in for more review details. But both the above places are in the best location and I am sure you will love it.
Here is My review of Red Hills Resort in Tripadvisor.in


Perfect place for summer holidays. Book in advance as summer (April and May) is the peak season here. If you can get time during end march it will be awesome and less crowded. Apart from rainy season, any month is fine to come here. 

You need to spend atleast two nights to enjoy this lovely place.

Note: I have covered mostly about the Red Hills and very few main attractions and stay options in Ooty town. There are plenty of things you can do in Ooty and Coonoor. Ride in Toy train from Mettupalayam to Ooty...etc which I will do once after I do the trip again. :-)

Day 1

It was very cold during end March when we went. We have got the topmost room which has excellent lake view and secluded from the main place. Outside the room there is a veranda with chairs where you can sit and relax. This is overlooking the lake downhill. If you get up early you can enjoy the sun rise, and lots of birds chirping around, eating the insects around. You can see mainly bull-bull, colourful sparrows and humming birds.
Behind the room, you see a mountain where you can trek and reach the top. (see the pics above)

The room had a fireplace with chimney, coffee table with two chairs, Extra Bed for kids and woolen blanket provided, Very spacious with wooden flooring, Bath tub, English style Dressing table with mirror, Small cupboard for keeping your luggage, A stool and extra chair for dressing, The room has good ventilation and lighting, towels provided but not replaced on daily basis, Big glass windows on both sides gives you good view of the lake in front, trees on the other side, Many plug points are available for charging mobiles etc.

The resort has varieties of flower plants. If you have a good camera, you may shoot multiple pics of 100s of different flowers here. So beautiful and well maintained. 

You have two special persons to have fun with, Moby - a German shepard and Meeka the Golden retriever. Both are very friendly with all the guests and play with kids. If you have kids they will love to play. Vijay and his wife who own this place are very friendly. His staff are also very helpful.

We reached very late though planned to reach for lunch here due to car tyre puncture. Once we reached here, we were given the choice of tea/coffee and ooty special biscuits. We checked into the room. A very good room with good view of the lake.

We just got refreshed and waited for dinner. The dining cum meeting area is really good and has the chimney/fireplace. Once we went there, the staff started the fire. Dinner was ready at around 7:45. Dinner was really good with varieties. Not just the dinner, all the time the food was really excellent. All our diet plans gone for a toss !!! Kids enjoyed the food which is really important.


Day 2

Early morning

We got up early to see the sunrise and for bird watching. It is amazing to see the sun rise from the mountains. See the photos below. You can either watch from inside your room or come out and sit in veranda and watch. 

Also see sparrows feeding on the insects in your veranda. Many more birds to see if you really curious. Carry a binocular and a good camera. 

After breakfast

We planned to trek after breakfast on the mountain behind the room. It was not a very difficult one, even both my kids joined. Somehow I inspired my kids about trekking and it helped a lot. :-). Staff from the resort guide you. We started and reached the top in less than an hour or so. Had a beautiful view of the lake and the series of mountains on the backside as well. See photos....

After a break in top, we started to climb down. Took a nap after heavy lunch. :-) Food is again too good.

Picnic and Fishing on the Emerald lake side

We carried some snacks, juice, water and headed towards the Emerald lake. The resort staff came along with his fishing rod and other stuff. Though we were not so keen on fishing, we just tried. But could not catch any. Just left that fishing plan and started to sit and relax on the banks. Spent some time munching the snacks. It was very cold. After 45 minutes of relaxation, we started back.

It is very cold in nights in room, so we asked for the fire in fireplace inside the room. All of us spent long hours in front of the fireplace within the room and slept.

Day 3

After breakfast we decided to checkout and reach Ooty to see few main attractions. But decided to checkin first in some good place for overnight stay. We chose "King's Cliff" by Little Earth group. This is a very good choice though. We really enjoyed the stay here. If you want to stay in Ooty, look at this option as well and compare. Refer my review in tripadvisor.in http://www.tripadvisor.in/ShowUserReviews-g297679-d734975-r199006654-King_s_Cliff-Ooty_Tamil_Nadu.html

King's Cliff is one of the best places for food in Ooty.

After checkin, we visited Botanical Garden which is well maintained. The beautiful huge trees and the lawn please you to sit and relax. It is really amazing to see those very old trees and huge lawn. Also when we sat down under a tree, we could see too many humming birds and other birds. If you carry a camera and binocular, you could take photos.

After the Botanical Garden, we visited the Thread Garden which is unique. All the plants and flowers you see there are made with wool and some special thread. It is unique. They also sell these, but the range starts from Rs.1500/= plus.

We also went to Lake. Kids were attracted towards different rides, so they had fun. If you choose to go on boat, please wear Safety Jackets. I insist you wear this for your own safety when you go on boat.

Shopping in Ooty

Though there are multiple places to buy the famous Ooty Chocolates, we decided to try Mohans Department Store opposite to Collector's office. The main problem is with car parking here. Everywhere you see "No parking" and "Tow away zone" etc. So we had to find a close by street and park. Being opposite to collector office, you see many Govt official vehicles parked.

In Mohan's shop you get Brass, Bronze, rare antique pieces, Ooty Chocolates. Apart from that they have variety of dresses for Kids and are relatively cheaper especially the cartoon character based dresses for kids.

There is another Mohan's furniture shop as well which seem to have furniture of all diff.wood. Due to lack of time, we could not visit this place.


Redhills Ooty
View of the resort from the close by secluded rooms

Redhills Ooty
View of the lake from within the room

Redhills Ooty
Beautiful view of the mountain behind and the lawn. Sit here and see the tea estate below and the lake. I am talking to Mr. Vijay who owns the place

Redhills Ooty
Dining and meeting area with common fireplace

Redhills Ooty
Fireplace outside the dining area. See the decorated entrance on left side for the small temple and few rooms.

Redhills Ooty
Dining area with fireplace

Redhills Ooty
Staff starting the fire in fireplace

Redhills Ooty
This is the room we stayed having a fireplace and wooden flooring, very spacious

Redhills Ooty
Birtish style mirror




Redhills Ooty
You can walk down in this tea estate.



Redhills Ooty
As we started trekking, we see the other mountains backside

Redhills Ooty
Trekking, almost near the top.


Redhills Ooty
Trekking.....

Redhills Ooty
View from the top of the mountain

Redhills Ooty
The very friendly Moby.... we really miss you. !!
Redhills Ooty
Sunrise .....


Redhills Ooty


Redhills Ooty
Here comes the sun.....

Redhills Ooty
View of the resort main place (dining area and the lawn behind) in early morning sunlight.... 

Redhills Ooty
View of the secluded rooms from the lawn close to the dining area

Redhills Ooty
This is just one flower that I captured with Samsung Galaxy Note 2. There are around 100s of varieties of flowers to see here. Amazing.... Very well maintained. 

Redhills Ooty
From the veranda.... do you see the lake ? yes !!!

Thoda Village Ooty
Thoda village and the huts

Thoda Village Ooty
Close view of one of the house


Thoda Village Ooty
Thoda's temple. No one is allowed inside. 

Avalache tourist centre Ooty
Avalanche main place, If you get time, you shall take the safari here. They take you inside and show you places.

Avalache tourist centre Ooty
You need to buy the Safari tickets here. But mostly it takes time as they wait for enough people to start the trip.

Emerald Lake Ooty
Beautiful view of Avalanche lake

Emerald Lake Ooty
You can park the car and walkdown......relax...see around

Avalanche lake Ooty
Emerald lake on other side ...

Avalanche lake Ooty
Another view

Emerald lake Ooty
Fishing in Emerald Lake

Emerald lake Ooty
Picnic ......

Redhills Ooty
Fireplace inside your room in Red hills resort

Ooty Lake Ooty
Lake side has many rides for kids to enjoy .... 

Ooty Lake Ooty
View of the lake and rides for kids

Thread garden Ooty
Thread garden.... all that you see is made of some woolen thread

Thread garden Ooty
Thread garden....

Thread garden Ooty
Flowers in thread garden

Thread garden Ooty
Lily .... in thread garden

Thread garden Ooty
Few more plants.......in thread garden

King's Cliff Ooty
View of the Glass house in King's Cliff

King's Cliff Ooty
View of the Hamlet room in King's Cliff



King's Cliff Ooty
"King's Cliff"

King's Cliff Ooty
Lawn with chairs just opposite to room... do you see the town below?

King's Cliff Ooty
Bull bull is singing .... taken from the lawn in King's Cliff

Devarayanadurga Narasimha temples and Namadha Chilume

Trip details
Distance From Bangalore
72 Kms from Bangalore and 18 kms from Tumkur
Type
Trekking - on a rocky hill
Height
Approx 1.2 km high
Difficulty level
Small trek if you could reach the top with your car, yes there is a well laid road, Medium trek if you walk up on the well-built steps
Kids?
Yes, Kids 5+ years can climb
Hours needed
1.5 hours. 15 mins to climb, another 30 mins if you want to goto the top further.
Best time to visit
Anytime
Local guides
Not available, not needed. Temple priest can help you explain history
Stay options
Bangalore or Tumkur
Food
Not available here, only Kamat or other motels in Bangalore-Tumkur highway
Nearby places
Siddarabetta, Madhigiri Fort
Other tips
·        Temple opens up only by 10AM or 10:30 AM only. And by 11AM abhisheka( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abhisheka ) starts
·        If you want to climb up further from the main temple, you need to return back to main temple before 5PM evening. See the photo of the notice board.

This is very close to Bangalore and Tumkur. This is again a rocky hill. One best thing about this place is that you can drive up the hill, yes there is a well-laid road which takes you to the top. Once you reach the top, on right side a small road goes to PWD guest house and the temple is on the left side. Car parking is available and some small shops are there as well.

Though the sign board says the temple timings is from 10AM, the priest open up only 10:30AM. And immediately after that the Abhishekam starts (within 10 mins I guess).

From the main temple, you can trek little up to the top. This is just a small trek and you can reach the Mantap on top within 15 to 20 minutes. From there the view is fantastic. This is close to 1.2 kms high.

Carry water and snacks with you, but eat near the local shops as there are many monkeys around.

Wiki Reference: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Devarayanadurga

There is a place by name Namadha Chilume. Only a natural spring is there apart from deers. Nothing much.
Anyway captured few photos and shared below.

Wiki reference  for Namadha Chilume http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Namada_Chilume

Photos.....

Devarayanadurga
View of the temple from the car parking area, from here you need to go few steps up by walk.

Devarayanadurga
You can park the car near the shops on left side. 

Devarayanadurga
Yes, do you see the steps? You need to walk a little

Devarayanadurga
Temple timings, expect some 30 mins of delay in opening

Devarayanadurga
Anjaneya (Monkey God) 

Devarayanadurga
You get a good view from here

Devarayanadurga
Very common to see the full grown trees on the rock

Devarayanadurga
Mantap

Devarayanadurga
Do you see the notice? It says you need to come down before 5:30 as they will close this gate. This is the only way to climb further to top and also the entrance to the main temple.

Devarayanadurga
PWD Guest house is seen and the road

Devarayanadurga
Very colorful.....

Tree growing on rocks Devarayanadurga
Full grown tree on rock

Devarayanadurga
Temple Tower or Gopura or Vimana

Devarayanadurga
You may better bring your own water bottle. 

Devarayanadurga
Temple pond. Monkeys enjoy playing here...

Devarayanadurga
Notice board saying you cannot go up the hill after 5PM

Devarayanadurga
One more tree on the rock

Devarayanadurga
Somehow that small rock is stuck between two big rocks, you need to go through this way to top

Devarayanadurga
Well balanced and will not fall .... !! Dont worry !!!

Devarayanadurga
Little more you need to climb to reach that Mantap on top

Devarayanadurga
Those early days, it looks like these were used as some wooden steps or something.... but it is very clear this was wood long back and now become rock like

Devarayanadurga
Wood became rock ? 

Devarayanadurga
View of the main temple from the middle point above the main temple.....

Devarayanadurga
View from the middle point, do you see the shade of clouds down? Also see the lizard on that stone...!

Devarayanadurga
PWD guest house and the road

Devarayanadurga
Yes, it is balanced and will not fall........... I guess so !!!

Devarayanadurga
This is how you go up ..... muddy path....


Devarayanadurga
View of the main temple from the Mantap which is on top

Devarayanadurga
Yes, you need to come through this to top

Devarayanadurga
View of the main temple from the pond

Devarayanadurga
Monkeys play in the pond

Devarayanadurga
Came to the PWD Guest house area, this is where we saw many butterflies

Devarayanadurga
View of the main temple from Guest house road

Devarayanadurga
This is the temple below

Namadha Chilume Devarayanadurga
In the entrance of Namadha Chilume, the board shows the map with places around
Namadha Chilume Devarayanadurga
Namadha Chilume Entrance

Namadha Chilume Devarayanadurga

You can Deers apart from the natural spring.... nothing else

Namadha Chilume Devarayanadurga
Natural spring which is so clear....

Namadha Chilume Devarayanadurga
Add caption

Namadha Chilume Devarayanadurga
Information Board in Kannada