Tag: Bluemountains

Discovering the Nilgiris: Hidden Treasures Unveiled

by Leela Gopinath, posted in India, The Nilgiris

Starting my series on the Nilgiris with a round up….

When you read the title, what was the picture that flashed in your mind?

For most of you, it must have been of misty mountains full of greenery . Well that’s what describes the Nilgiris in a nutshell. But let me tell you, the Nilgiris is much more than that. Let us delve into the surprises that lie hidden in those green valleys.

The word Nilgiris literally means blue mountains and those of you who have observed these mountains particularly at dawn and dusk would agree with this name. The Nilgiri mountains get covered periodically by the violet blossoms of the Neelakurinji (strobilanthus) which has led the locals to give this name. But even during other times, there is a bluish hue related to plenty of eucalyptus trees here similar to the Blue Mountains near Sydney.

The bluish hue…

These mountains are part of the Western Ghats, the long mountain chain that runs parallel to the west coast of the Indian peninsula. They range in height from 900 to 2650 mts approximately and this altitude leads to the cool climate that this place is blessed with. The Nilgiris form a part of the Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve , which is home to multiple sanctuaries and National Parks about which we shall delve in detail later.

Today, there is a separate district called Nilgiris in TamilNadu which encompasses these mountains and is bordered by Karnataka and Kerala. Ooty, Coonoor, Kotagiri, Kundah, Gudalur and Pandalur are the main areas comprising the Nilgiris district. It also includes Wellington and Aravankadu which are largely cantonment areas under defence control. Ooty, the famous hill station in south India is the headquarters of this district.

A little bit of history….

Peculiarly, unlike most parts of India, The Nilgiris was never part of any empire or kingdom. It was always tribal land. Pockets of tribal hamlets separated by vast areas of verdant forests untouched by humans was what the Nilgiris was , once upon a time. Even today, in most of the Nilgiris you will find clusters of houses forming a hamlet separated from other hamlets by forests and tea gardens. The only difference is that today ; most of these hamlets are self contained and have modern amenities including internet connectivity.

Typical Nilgiri landscape with clusters of houses separated by tea gardens

The Todas, Kurumbas, Irulas and Kotas formed the tribal population here. The Todas are traditionally cattle grazers, Kurumbas are honey hunters, Irulas are hunters and agriculturists and the Kotas are the artisans .

Toda women are also known to do beautiful embroidery using black, white and red coloured threads.

Beautiful Toda embroidery

A traditional Toda hut

The Badagas were also the indigenous people here but are not considered a tribal community. In fact, today, the Badagas form the majority of the local population of the Nilgiris.

The Badagas are an ethno linguistic community whose ancestors migrated here from Mysore. They live in settlements called hattis and speak the Badaga language which is essentially a mix of Kannada and Malayalam. Much of the tradition and culture is retained even today and you can find it all over the Nilgiris.

Badagas dance in traditional attire

In the early 1800s, the British developed these areas for tea and coffee plantations and summer retreats. It was John Sullivan, the collector of adjoining Coimbatore who undertook detailed surveys of the place and in a way ” discovered” the place. Several colonial style bunglows and churches were built and they form an indelible part of the local ambience. By the late 1800s, the hills were completely accessible with ghat roads and the railway line. So, in a way the British have contributed a lot to the infrastructure development in the Nilgiris.

Tea Gardens

Tea is grown in elevations between 1000 and 2500 mts above sea level and Nilgiris with its location and its rainfall attributes is ideal tea cultivation area. The British introduced tea to the Nilgiris from China marking the beginning of tea cultivation here.

Nilgiris is tea garden zone and these green neatly cut gardens dominate the Nilgiri landscape. In fact, at no point of time when you are in the Nilgiris are you not surrounded by them. Acres and acres of tea gardens as far as the eyes can see….that’s what describes Nilgiri landscape in a nutshell. And saying that it looks beautiful is an understatement!!!!

A tea garden is a treat to the eyes….(click on video)

Naturally, it follows that the predominant occupation of the locals is connected to tea. Starting from tending to the tea gardens to plucking the tea, transporting it to the factories, working in the tea factories and handling the logistics is the main source of revenue for the locals. Ranging from the small farmers to big corporate estates and even the government , everyone here has a stake in TEA !!

The larger estates have their factories processing their own tea , the middle level acquires tea from the small local farmers and processes them.

The elevation of the place, the soil conditions , the climatic conditions and such others change the flavour and colour of the ultimate cup of tea on your table. A lot of science goes into all this and the value of the tea from a particular place in a particular season is determined by the Tea Board. Tea auctions also regularly take place at Coonoor and Coimbatore.

There is a Tea Museum and Tea Factory visit organised from Ooty where visitors are introduced to the various stages of tea processing. The Nilgiris predominantly produces CTC tea which refers to cutting, twisting and curling. The leaves are subjected to drying, withering and rolling using machines before it is neatly packed and marketed. Black tea, Green tea, Herbal tea, and White tea are common varieties of tea produced here. Each of these use leaves of different maturity and the process used also varies.

Tea plucking in progress

A tea factory in the midst of tea gardens

A tea factory

Leaf sheds are another common sight here. They are used to store the leaves after plucking till transport is arranged.

A leaf shed with collected leaves in bags

Inside the tea factory ( click on the video)

Another familiar sight are the factory outlets of tea where it is cheaper and freshly processed tea is available..

Tea factory outlets

The Nilgiris also grows spices, coffee, carrots, potatoes and cabbage. Roadside vendors selling freshly plucked carrots along with the leaves is another unique sight.

Freshly harvested carrots for sale!

Eucalyptus and SilverOak trees predominate the landscape. Oil extracted from the eucalyptus trees is also sold widely here.

Eucalyptus trees

Wildlife

As with forests, wildlife also varies depending on the elevation. Elephants are found at the lower elevations which are warmer while the colder elevations have bison, bear, leopards and tigers. A separate episode on Nilgiri wildlife will cover these.

Home to various National parks, the Nilgiris has an exclusive Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve zone which includes the Mudumalai and Mukurthi National parks besides other areas.

Lakes

The Nilgiris has some awesome lakes ; some natural and some artificial. Naming a few of the; Ooty lake, Emerald Lake, Avalanche Lake and Pykara Lake are the more popular ones.

Emerald Lake

20 kms from Ooty is this unfrequented and pristine lake with emerald waters. A bird watcher’s paradise, the surrounding areas are an escape to tranquility. Some pictures…

Emerald Lake

Landslides….

Being a hilly area with copious rainfall, Nilgiris has had it’s share of landslides. Usually after incessant rain, these landslides do cause destruction and dislocations to the lives of the common people here. The aftermath….

Telltale signs of a landslide…

Living in the Nilgiris

Most of the population in the Nilgiris are engaged in the tea plantations and connected industries. They are friendly people who live simple lives. When I spend my summers here, I have had interactions with locals and found them to be very welcoming of outsiders although they are not very happy with noisy tourists. Many of them smile and wish you and during my evening walks I was particularly drawn by the innocence and simplicity of a brother and sister. They would be waiting for me and as I pass their home they would run up to wish me! Their eagerness to race with each other to reach first and wish just speaks of the innocence of these lovely children…..Dhanalakshmi and Adhiswaran

Picture of Innocence…..

Posh colonies and elegant bungalows are usually seen close to Coonoor, Wellington, Ooty and such pockets. Coonoor and Wellington particularly has an upmarket crowd due mainly to the defence establishments around.

A typical Nilgiri village with houses of the common man

And a posh bungalow

Summer in the Nilgiris

Summer time is Jacaranda time in the Nilgiris. The beautiful purple flowers add beauty to the green hill slopes and many a time the roads are lined by these trees with a purple carpet of flowers on the road…

Jacarandas….

Bird songs…

Summer marks the mating season of various birds here. Notable one is the Magpie Robin which sings melodiously at dawn. Living in the Nilgiris, you often wake up to their songs…

The Magpie Robin

Summer time is also tourist time in the Nilgiris. Business is brisk for the innumerable homestays and hotels.

Hotels and Homestays

Tourism provides livelihood to many families in the Nilgiris but it has it’s own drawbacks due to irresponsible tourism. Speeding vehicles belching fumes from their exhausts to blaring music played late into the night from resorts to widespread littering causes heartburn among the locals. Some where, they feel their peaceful life is disturbed and justifiably so!!!

Well, I leave you on this note worth pondering about ……

We now delve deeper into various specialities of these mountains in forthcoming episodes.

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THE BLUE MOUNTAINS

by Leela Gopinath, posted in Australia

The name Blue Mountains always fascinated me. We have the Nilgiris in India which also means blue mountains. After having stayed in the Nilgiris, I wanted to know what is the similarity or the difference between the two. What better way to know it than to go there….

A brief note on the Blue Mountains:

The Blue mountains is a rugged mountainous region in New South Wales bordering the Sydney metropolitan area. Its foothills start approximately 50 km from Sydney. It is part of an extensive mountainous region associated with The Great Dividing Range.

Known for dramatic scenery, it encompasses steep cliffs, eucalyptus forests, waterfalls and villages dotted with guesthouses, galleries and gardens. Katoomba, a major town in the area, borders Blue Mountains National Park . Echo Point offers views of the famous Three Sisters sandstone rock formation. 

The Blue Mountains get their name from the natural blue haze created by vast eucalyptus forests in this World Heritage area. Tiny droplets of oil released from the eucalyptus trees mix with water vapour and sunlight to produce the distinctive colour. To be noted here is the fact that our Nilgiris also have large eucalyptus forests.

Enroute to Blue Mountains,we visited The Featherdale Wildlife Park.

The park is located approximately 40 km from Sydney and contains various species native to Australia, and provides displays, events and interactive experiences. The site covers more than 3 hectares and has animal enclosures and display areas, visitor facilities, picnic spaces, shops and basic amenities. It specialises in Australian native wildlife and birds, as well as reptiles and marsupials

Focusing solely on native animals, here you can see koalas ,kangaroos ,wallabies, dingos and Tasmanian devils.

Kangaroo feeding is an important activity here. The kangaroos are so adapted to humans that they literally force you to feed them and if you don’t, they express their resentment too!

Kangaroo enclosure and feeding a baby kangaroo

A Koala

A Blue and yellow Macau and a Cassovary

Penguins and a Cockatoo

I must add here that Cockatoos are a very common sight in Australia…almost like the crows we see here in India. In Sydney you find them on windows and balconies of apartments.They are very noisy and get aggressive at times!!!

After a wonderful time at the park, we continued our drive to the Blue Mountains.

We reached Leura village for our lunch break.This is a picturesque village in the Blue mountain area and has lovely shops and cafes . Since it was autumn time, the place looked beautiful with the coloured leaves.

Some pictures from Leura…

Our next halt was at Echo Point close to Katoomba from where we had a view of the famous Three Sisters rock formation.

The Three Sisters is the most spectacular landmark of the Blue Mountains varying in height between 900 and 925 metres. They are floodlit at night offering spectacular views.

These rock formations were formed by erosion 200 million years ago when the sandstone of the blue mountains was eroded by wind, rain and rivers causing the cliffs around the Jamison valley to be slowly broken up.

As per the legend of the indigenous people; these rocks represent three sisters who were turned to rock .These sisters Meehni, Wimlah and Gunnedoo lived here as part of the Katoomba tribe. These sisters fell in love with men from another tribe and in order that they do not marry away from their tribe, they were converted to stone with the implicit understanding that they would later be reconverted to women. But the witch doctor failed to reconvert them and so we have them as rocks today.

The Giant Stairway:

From Echo point, a bush walking trail leads to the three sisters and down to the valley floor via 800 steps called the Giant Stairway. Walking another 1.5 kms one can reach the base of the Katoomba falls. Needless to say, we did not attempt it!!!

The Three sisters and the clouds descending on the Jamison Valley

The Three Sisters with the tourists at Echo Point

The Boar’s head look out is another famous destination here with a rock formation in the shape of a boar’s head.

The Boar’s Head look out

Scenic World:

Scenic World is a private family owned tourist attraction at Katoomba in the Blue Mountains. Originally a coal mine; dating back to the early 1800s ; it now has four main attractions: Scenic Railway, Scenic Skyway, Scenic Cableway and Scenic Walkway.

Scenic Railway:

This was originally constructed for coal transportation after mining in the Jamison valley in 1800s . It is an inclined railway now used for tourism. It has a sharp incline of 52 degrees and covers almost 400 metres distance. It is claimed to be the steepest passenger railway.

We took a ride on this railway. I must confess that inspite of all the preparation, I could not shoot a picture from inside the train as it slid down the slope…partly due to the speed and partly due to fear….had to hold on to our seats tight!!! You are always feeling that you are slipping off your seat!!

Scenic Railway

Scenic Skyway:

A cable way that traverses the gorge 270 metres above the valley floor. It provides great views of the Three Sisters and the Jamison Valley floor. The Katoomba falls is another breathtaking sight .

The opening image of this blog is of the Katoomba falls.

Scenic Skyway

Scenic Walkway:

This walkway gives one the experience of walking under a rain forest canopy. …an easy 20 minute walk between the railway and the cable way stations on an elevated boardwalk. The flora and fauna seen here belong to the native species and some are claimed to date back to the Jurrassic ages. Also on display along the walkway are old mining equipment.

Along the walkway there are clear directions If you miss the directions, getting back to the correct location to meet your bus mates can be challenging!!!

On the Walkway under the canopy

After the wonderful experience of walking in the rain forest, we took the cable car up and reached the cultural center where the traditional performances by the indigenous people is organised.

The cultural center

You cannot talk about Australia and not mention the Boomerang. Widely used by the indigenous people,it forms an integral part of their cultural performances.

Essentially it is a throwing stick  made of wood, but boomerang-like devices have also been made from bones.  A popular memento in the gift shops; they are painted and decorated with traditional art work.

A Boomerang

After finishng the Blue mountains trip, our next programme was a cruise on the Paramatta river to Sydney. We were dropped off at the ferry terminal and we boarded the ferry. As we approached Sydney, we had great views of the harbour, the bridge and the iconic Opera House lit up in all glory….

Some pictures from the Paramatta Cruise:

The Cruise Boat

The Harbour Bridge lit up at night

After an exhausting but gratifying day at the Blue Mountains, we returned back to our hotel . Next morning we were to say goodbye to Sydney and head to another amazing destination….Melbourne.

See you folks next week at Melbourne..

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