VAGAMON- HILLSTATION IN GOD'S OWN COUNTRY

VAGAMON

I am sure everyone reading this post would have heard about the beautiful hill station, Munnar. Well, it is quite rightly popular considering the famous tourist spots and most important of all, it’s cool weather. 

But if you want to experience the same things in a smaller but less crowded location, I would really recommend Vagamon in Kerala. It is around 1000 meters above sea level. 

Since I am from Chennai, the best option for me was a long drive with my family to Vagamon. The climb is pretty scenic. It is a joyful ride up. There are multiple tea stalls along the way where I stopped for a hot cup of Chai in this wonderful weather. Most pieces of land here are tea plantations. This green landscape is like cucumber for the eyes. In fact, I stayed in a plantation cum hotel. 

There is a lake in this city where one can spend time leisurely walking or boating. Given the cool weather, this is really a wonderful place to visit. 

A truly remarkable location is the Vagamon pine forest. A walk in this forest is definitely rejuvenating. It is also a picture-perfect location where you can expect some oohs and aahs from your friends and family. Since it is surrounded by trees, this place is even cooler than the rest of the city. The Vagamon pine forest having lofty pine trees is a place any traveler visiting Vagamon shouldn’t miss. These trees towering over us, standing on slopes is a sight for sore eyes.   

The Vagamon green meadows is also another scenic and picture-perfect location. Trust me on this one as I had a picture of me taken here, as my dp, for months. It provides a panoramic view of the city and is really pleasant. On noticing keenly, I observed that most of the crowd was visiting one side of the meadows while the other side is almost empty. This made me wonder if there was something better on the other side. But having read Robert Frost’s ‘Road not taken’, I decided to visit the other side. It was just as good, if anything, more peaceful. The other side had a specific picture spot, but on meadows like these, every place provides similar opportunities for pictures. So, I am happy that I decided to climb the other side of the meadows.   

For trek lovers, Murugan Mala which is situated near the Kurisumala, is a temple of Lord Murugan. The temple is situated on the top of this hill where the view is wonderful.  

  

There is also a part of the city, which is really beautiful, where cars can’t travel because of the conditions of the roads. There are multiple jeep services which can be taken. 

I visited the Anchuruli tunnel, a river and a few view points on one of these jeeps. 

Anchuruli is a place that is enigmatic. It is a tunnel that goes on for as long as the eye can see. One can venture in the water a little while before having to return due to lack of proper lighting. But those few paces in the tunnel are quite exciting and gives a thrill to the first timer. 

The whole ride is worth a take and a wonderful experience. It feels like an adventure in itself, travelling by those roads. 

 The best time to visit this hill station, according to me, is the summer. The warmth of the summer combined with the occasional summer showers is perfect. The view from the cottages on the tea plantation that I stayed in was magical during the rains.  

Overall, Vagamon was a wonderful vacation for me and is a wonderful spot if you want to relax and enjoy the weather with some Chai and Pakoras.