A grueling Rotary year as President and Secretary for me and Ranga had drawn to a close in blazing glory and after all the bells and whistles had quietened down, a break was something I wanted so badly I could practically taste it. Sharing your happiness doubles it as they say so our regular travel companions Noelene and Vance also joined us and after booking 2 rooms at the Club Mahindra Lake Forest Hotel..we were set.
Yercaud - Bangalore - Tuesday July 8th 2014
Left home at 7am after topping up the diesel and nitrogen in the tyres and headed out towards Hosur Road. Bangalore was already busy on its work day but we managed to get out with minimum fuss..amazing how the toll jumps every feww months ( 5 tolls and totally we spent Rs.560/- to and fro with Rs.20 at the entrance to the ghats. Why am I mentioning this? Because I feel it is high, the last one is worth every penny but the rest esp the ones up to Krishnagiri and back is literally highway robbery as roads are under construction and why are we expected to pay for lousy cut up roads?
Anyways - after this minor aggravation, the trip went off very smoothly - a nice leisurely drive with the foot gentle on the accelarator - this drive brought us to A2B where some hot Pongal and oh-so-crisp vadas restored our faith in God and humanity to a large extent (smile)..met Kittanna there and after exchanging pleasantries, we moved on to Salem and after having entered Salem drove toward the 5 lights circle, took a left on Sharada College Road and straight down to the ghats after a brief pit stop for hot coffee and home made chutney sandwiches.
The ghats are 21 kms long with 20 hair pins, 17 of which are in the last 13 kms or so as if they suddenly realized that they still had over half the distance to climb but were running out of land to reach there and hurriedly curved the road pronto! Beautiful gentle ghats, well maintained roads, verdant greenery, air getting cooler by the minute...all was well with the world despite the world trying to self destruct !! The journey is the best part of any trip after all.
Reached Lake Forest Hotel, which is just off the lake and which takes its name from the Anglicised meaning of Yercaud - 'Yeri' meaning Lake and 'Caud' meaning Forest.
The guest bungalows are set in the East Lynne Farm Coffee Estate in and around the Bungalow built during early 1800s by Henrietta Charlotte Rosario who was residing in the Shevroy hills during the British days. Newer rooms have been added to this INDeco hotel property in association with CM and today has 75 rooms, a marked change in the last 4 years that we were there. INDeco - The only hotel company to win the Global Eco Tourism award prides itself in preserving the legacy of the place and justifiably so.
The secret to enjoying Yercaud and the Lake Forest lies in a memory of this bygone era of the Raj and using a little imagination, this testament in stone can yield up a corridor into the past, a journey down which evokes images of ancient times, and which reveals the full glory of Yercaud. The history of colonial Yercaud is well documented in guide books however perhaps the most informative and interesting account is by Francesca Wilson
A quick check in and we went in to Room nos. 201 (ours) and 202 (theirs) right next to the dining room. Not too hungry but craving sleep which I am doing in large measure since June 29th, we hit the sack with just a bowl of soup for lunch.
Woke up at 5pm, strolled out to get some fruits and was stunned by the apple-sized figs and the local wood appleas, bought some, ordered piping hot coffee freshly brewed from coffee grown at the estate and sat down to play 'Rummy' !. Went in for an early lovely dinner at the restaurant cum museum what with artefacts from 1800s casually forming the backdrop, enjoyed this meal immensely, chatted for a while and again hit the snooze button.
Yercaud - Wednesday, July 9th 2014
Yercaud's 4330 feet elevation was originally European settlement, having an altitude of 1700 feet higher than that of Bangalore. It enjoys a cool and salubrious climate, and is surrounded by charming and picturesque scenery.
Yercaud is situated in Tamil Nadu about 31 kms away from Salem town amidst the greenery of Shevaroyan Hills. So if you want to stay away from the bustling noise of the town and the busy city life, you can take off to this beautiful hill station. Yercaud apart from its beautiful landscapes it is also spaced with some plantations like Coffee, cardamom and black pepper. These hills get the benefit of both the south-west and north-east monsoons, which causes the rainfall to be more evenly distributed throughout the year, and thus enhances the value of the place as a coffee growing district.
It was only after cultivation of coffee here in this area, slowly the place started to develop as a hill station. The cultivation of coffee here in Yercaud was promoted by a Scottish Collector of Salem named David Cockburn. The Grange, his old home which still stands, was fortified and equipped with ramparts and cannons, to act as a sanctuary for the European community here, in the event of another uprising after the Indian Mutiny.
After a morning cuppa in a mist enveloped front balcony and a hot breakfast, we settled down to watch Indiana Jones, Indy with his antics kept us enthralled till we left for Sarvarayana temple or the Shevaroy temple, nearly 2000 years old at the highest peak in Yercaud. After a darshan and prayer at the Ranganathaswamy temple at the cave which purportedly opens out at Talacauvery at Coorg, used by Tipu Sultan during his skirmishes with the British, we watched the breathtaking view in silence..the valleys shrouded in mist and greenery of all hues, with its silence broken only by bulbuls and mynahs soothed our city tormented souls.
We headed back and made a midway stop for some freshly brewed Yercaud coffee and then drove to the Shevaroy Hotel and their Red Dragon Chinese restaurant for some Chinese chow...then, hit back to the resort for some nap time. Awoke at 4.30pm, went out and bought some more of those stupendous figs and had coffee in the open quadrangle. Played rummy till they screened the movie 'Bobby Jasoos' for all, which was when the drinks and heart to heart talk sessions were shifted to the room verandah. Dinner at the restaurant was the only disappointing meal we had had at the resort - the chef can't cook continental dishes and should avoid them totally.
Again the mountain air had us yawning, we struggled to watch the movie 'Ghost Ship' and soon after fell asleep to the howls of jackals and the gusty whining winds which according to another lady at the resort had scared her a lot, well..all it did was connect me to nature seamlessly.
Day 3 - Yercaud - Bangalore Thursday, July 10th 2014
Another misty morning with the sun dreamily trying to break through woke us up at 6.30am. A hot cup of coffee later we got down to packing up, had breakfast and left at 9am. The beautiful weather lasted all the way through to Salem and even there the weather was cool due to it being cloudy. Traffic noise hits you in the face and rudely brings you down to the hrash reality from a romantic and nostalgic setting of the hills. An uneventful drive brought us to Saravana Bhavan near Krishnagiri where we had a thali meal which was delicious. Continuing on, dropped Noelene and Vance and reached home at 2pm.
Thoroughly enjoyed the laid back break from the day to day ridiculously hectic life that I had led for the last so many months, communing with nature and becoming one with it..was so important and seemed to agree with us so much so that Ranga has suggested we go for another similar do-nothing-just-relax break very very soon.
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