Features: Magazine | Literary Review | Life | Metro Plus | Open Page | Education Plus | Book Review | Business | SciTech | Friday Review | Cinema Plus | Young World | Property Plus | Quest | Folio |

TRANQUIL ABODE A herd of deer graze in peace

Starting off in the evening from Kochi we reached Pollachi, our base camp, where we stayed for the night. Early next morning we headed towards Parambikulam, which is about 39 kilometres from Pollachi. We crossed Top Slip, a picnic spot in Tamil Nadu, and reached Anappady the gateway to Parambikulam where we had to complete the registration formalities.

Tucked away in the valley between the Anamalai ranges of Tamil Nadu in the east, and the Nelliampathy ranges of Kerala on the other side, is the Parambikulam Wildlife Sanctuary. This virgin valley is the pride of Palakkad district. It has a total area of 285 sq. km with an altitude of 300-1438 m above MSL.

There are seven major valleys and three major river systems in this area. The sanctuary also has three man-made reservoirs, namely Parambikulam, Thunakadavu and Peruvaripallam with a total water spread of 20.60 sq. km.

At the Ecocare Centre Office, we met Sanjayan Kumar, the DFO. He is the moving force behind the present development of the sanctuary. Sanjayan has a great passion for nature and made a conscious decision to pursue the Indian Forest Service as a career. He explained to us about the several steps taken to conserve nature. Plastic is banned inside the sanctuary. Paper bags, made by the tribals, are being used instead. The sanctuary also has its own mineral water plant and the product is sold under the brand name of ‘Parambikulam Dhara.’ The sanctuary has good accommodation facilities ranging from fully furnished tents to treetop ‘machans.’ Entry to the reserve is permitted only with a forest official as escort. The locals are fully involved in all the activities of the reserve, providing them with a decent livelihood. After a quick vegetarian lunch, a tribal boy, Shanmugan, guided us to a nearby rock where, he said, elephants were usually spotted. After a long trek and wait all that we could find was some fresh elephant dung. A class ten dropout, Shanmugan now works as a guide in the sanctuary.

Another interesting character we met here was Sashi. A nature lover, with a passion for tigers, he is a firebrand activist who firmly believes in conservation and that the jungle belongs to its rightful owners, the animals and tribals. A bachelor, Sashi spends a part of his meagre income for conservation activities.

The forest around the tent allotted to us was peaceful, except for the occasional chirping of birds and the shrill call of the peacock. In fact, we even saw a peacock right behind our tent. At a distance we saw a herd of spotted deer grazing in peace. After a late evening tea we left on our next exploration trip. This time we saw the dams.

Parambikulam also has the oldest living teak tree called ‘Kannimara.’ At a height of 48.5 metres and girth of 6.57 metres the tree is believed to be 450 years old.

Dusk is the ideal time to spot animals and we were able to see herds of ‘Gaur’ or the wild Indian bison. This animal is also the official mascot of the sanctuary. We came back to our tent by late evening, had dinner and simply plunged into deep sleep. Early next morning we set off on a trek into the deep insides of the jungle with Sashi as our guide. We also found time for a few minutes of eco-meditation, which is sitting quietly on a vast expanse of rock and breathing in nature.

Rafting on one of the reservoirs was the last on our agenda. Made of bamboo it had local people to help us row.

We took a look at the pathway that leads to the Parambikulam-Chalakudy Tramway trekking path. We were informed that there are ruins of bridges, tramway tracks inside the forest. The Ecocare Centre organises two-day trekking trips along the tramway path.

Back at our tent we packed up for our journey back. We were certainly sad but had with us some good photographs and fond memories which will remain fresh for years to come.

Printer friendly page  
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail