Araku valley is a hill station in the eastern ghats located about 110 kms from Visakhapatnam. Araku valley is famous for its coffee plantations and is home to various tribes. Having heard a lot about this place, we decided to visit Araku valley from Vizag.
Araku Valley
A popular tourist destination in Andhra Pradesh, Araku ia at an elevation of about 3200 ft and is known for its greenery, coffee plantations, spices specially pepper, waterfalls and streams and a rich tribal culture.
Ananthagiri and Sunkrimetta reserve forests are a part of the Araku valley. Galikonda at an elevation of 5000 ft is the highest point and there is a viewpoint there from where you can see the plains below. Trekking is a popular adventure activity here and lot of camping sites are available.
Bee keeping is a popular occupation here among the tribals.
Our Trip
Driving down from Vizag we headed to Araku valley. The road to Araku valley was not particularly good and the drive was not very comfortable. Farmlands with paddy cultivation formed the landscape for a considerable time. After that we hit some winding roads with bamboo forests on either side.
Bamboo forests enroute Araku
Soon we were among some coffee plantations
Coffee plantations and pepper vines
Pepper and coffee pods
Soon we were at Galikonda view point from where we could see the plains below
View of the plains from Galikonda
At Galikonda, we happened to see some tribals in their traditional attire.
A shy tribal and others in traditional attire
Camping sites with tents were seen at many places as we drove along.
Camping sites
Many of the tribals engage in bee keeping and the honey is sold along the roadside.
Bee farming and local honey for sale
Another interesting place to visit is the tribal museum.
Tribal Museum
This museum houses various items used by the tribals and showcases their way of life.
Some pictures…
Tribal Museum
Tribal jewellery and art
Some exhibits
After visiting the museum, we savored some fresh Araku coffee before heading back.
Authentic Araku coffee
Returning back, we visited the famous Borra caves.
Borra Caves
Located in the Ananthagiri hills, these interesting stalactite and stalagmite formations are formed by the flow of the Gosthani river over limestoine deposits. It was discovered during a geological survey by William King and are believed to be over a million years old.
There are several legends attached to these caves. The most popular one is of a cowherd accidentally discovering it when he went looking out for his lost cow. He discovered a Shiva ling in these caves and soon a small temple for Lord Shiva was built here.
These caves are a major tourist attraction today . The constant flow of water has sculpted these rock formations into various shapes like Shiva Parvathi, Rishi’s beard, Brain, Mushroom etc.
Some pictures…
Entrance and the shrine
Inside Borra Caves
After visiting the caves we drove back to Vizag ending our day long trip to Araku Valley.
Honestly, it did not live up to my expectations. Probably I had been influenced by rave reviews on social media which led me to have high expectations !!!
So all in all, do go if you feel like it but you will not miss much if you don’t….
Next week, I start a new series on Kashmir. So meet you there….
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