Coorg, Madikeri and Tadiandamol Trek

Our trip to visit Coorg was again unplanned and we had in mind to cover both tourist spots as well as finish a good trek in Coorg.

Our trip was initially planned for 3 days, however we reduced it to 2 days as we were able to cover most destinations with in those 2 days.

Our trip was on May - first week, so it was peak summer and it was as hot as Bangalore through out the day at Madikeri though it cooled down considerably during the evening. We took a KSRTC bus from Bangalore via Mysore to Madikeri and reached at 5.30 am in the morning. We managed to get a room at a decent lodge near the bus stand itself and booked a car ride 900 rs for 5 people to most destinations that we can cover on one day.

Abbey falls:

This was a big disappointment, the biggest being the fact that people are restricted to enter the water in the falls. We spent a mere 30 minutes at this spot.

Dabare forest:

This is a place where they train and nurture elephants and is a river side place where they offer rafting (in still water) as well. Not very interesting again.

Nisargadhama:

This place was similar to a park with lots of scenic places to pose for photo shoots.

Kushalnagar – Tibetan temple:

This is an interesting place, a Tibetan temple with Buddhist monks and presents a place that looks like a Chinese temple out of the blue from an all Indian surroundings.

Raja Seat: This is a beautiful spot with a great view down the peak, and is present about 1.5 Km, an evening stroll from Madikeri busstand.

Madikeri Fort: This was also present close to the bus stand and is nothing much but a small fort worthy of mentioning.

What we missed: Thalakkaveri and Harangi Dam and Irupu falls

Second day Trek to Tadiandamol: http://trekwiki.wetpaint.com/page/Tadiyandamol

Having heard that this is The highest peak in Coorg, we were all set for conquering the peak, in fact a very far fetched aspiration to complete the trek within a day.

The place to start from is near Virajpet, precisely Kakkabe which we can reach from Mysore directly or from Madikeri and takes the same time (2.5 hrs). We started at 7 am in a bus from Madikeri and got down at Napoklu and visited the Malknad palace which is on the starting point to the peak. To trek Tadiandamol with in a day turned out to be agonizing especially since we had to catch the last bus back to Madikeri at 5.30 pm.

The trek was a memorable experience with great views all through the path. We almost gave up as the path turned very steep and but realized that the peak was just around the corner. The peak was every bit worth the trek and we really missed to see the sunrise or sunset here. We were desperately short of water and food as we came back but luckily there was a tribal house down who provided food and water for the hungry coming down the peak.

We trekked back and caught the bus back to Madikeri at 5.30 pm and and started towards Bangalore the same night with a heavy heart.

The Malknad Palace enroute to the start of the trek.