An entertaining and fun-filled trip to Kumbaratty falls, Achankovil, Kerala

Despite my unstable economic conditions, I manage to make single trip each month to rejuvenate myself from the monotonous lifestyle. This time, my trip was intertwined with my home visit, as I live far away from my home. My cousins and I decided to visit Kumbaratty falls, also known as Achankovil, is located in Kerala.

Lying between the borders of Tamil Nadu and Kerala, Achankovil is 30km away from Tenkasi. Riding on the bike through the zigzag mountains, we were engulfed by the cacophony of deafening outcry of the wild insects. Throughout the way, we feasted our eyes to the lush green gigantic trees and beautiful mountains. As we rode on, cold air filled our body and relieved us from the sultry weather.  After passing through eleven hair bin bends, we reached the main spot and availed our tickets to enter into the falls.

Main spot to avail the tickets

It’s half a mile walk from the counter, and on our way we witnessed a small snake lying on a rock and red squirrels on the trees. The falls was nowhere to be seen and after a few minutes, we spotted a portion of water getting accumulated in a ditch. As we stepped further, there she appeared gleaming against the bright sunlight. It was a breathtaking view and we stood still there for a moment and admired its beauty.

Magnificent View of Kumbaratty Falls

The water from the river fell into a cave like rock and there on it cascaded down the rock to the bottom. We stripped off our clothes and threw ourselves into the cold water. As there was lot of space on the top, we relaxed ourselves lying on the water, which was only a knee deep.  We had great fun sliding down the rock and there was no one else in the falls except us.

As the season is slim, the water is very less now. But, we had great fun sliding down on this rock.

After a few hours, we departed from the place with a heavy heart, as we would miss this fun for a long time. We returned to our home in Agarakattu to a sweltering heat. The following day the sun was partly cloudy and it was beginning to rain in the evening. We spotted white stones falling everywhere from the sky. To our surprise, it was raining hailstone and some of us hastily picked up the hailstones unmindful of the rain.

Hailstone

I enjoyed every moment of my time in this holiday. But, it is time to return to Chennai to earn my daily bread. 
Do not miss this below video, featuring our memorable moments at the falls. I am sure many would want to visit this place after seeing this video. 

Adventure in the valley of Western Ghats (Kundaru Dam Tenkasi)

A Precarious and Adventurous Journey at Kannupulimettu - Shencottai

Kundaru Dam

My cousin and I were on a trip to a waterfall in Kannupulimettu, a place near my home town. The place is surrounded with lush green mountains, numerous waterfalls across the rivers and a dam (Kundaru Dam) that collects the water from the hills. We have been visiting this place for the past four years, and to make this trip extraordinary we set out to look for a new waterfall in the region.

Journey Through the Valley

We began to climb up the streaming valley. The journey was treacherous as the path was filled with huge rocks and skewed waterways.  After passing through a kilometre, we were stopped by the barbed wire, erected across the valley. It seemed to have built to keep the perpetrators away. We stood there for a moment and starred at each other whether to cross over or return to the falls which is easily accessible down below.

 

We spotted a passage beside the barbed wire which encouraged us to go forward. With renewed strength, we crossed the hurdles and continued walking. All of a sudden, my cousin cried in panic on seeing a skull in the bushes. I examined the skull closely, and it was an animal skull. We crossed several gigantic rocks and waded through stream of water, yet the sight of the falls was not appearing.

Waterfall owned by a Local Politician

After climbing on a huge rock, my heart soared high on seeing a beautiful waterfall in front of me. It was a calm and tranquil place where nature bestows its gift to mankind. We took off our shirts and threw ourselves into the cool and clean water.

After a few minutes, out of nowhere, a stranger came running towards us with a sickle. He was well built with a piercing eyes filled with anger.  We started trembling at the sight of the sudden stranger. He screamed at us in abusive words. He claimed that it is a private waterfall and strangers are not allowed to come here.  As he was in possession of a weapon, we could not argue and set out to leave the place.

After a while, another man came, who seemed to be the caretaker of the place. He inquired about us and how we entered here. I narrated the whole journey and apologized to him for breaching the border.  He seemed to be kind and allowed us to enjoy the shower for a while. We were overwhelmed by his kind gesture and spent some more time in the waterfall and left the place.

As we came down, I inquired to a local man about the waterfall. He said that it belongs to a local politician. I was wondering, how come rivers and mountains can be owned by someone, especially the ones we choose to serve us.