Page 660 - (DK Eyewitness) Travel Guide - India

658  SOUTH INDIA

m/6,890 ft) is 14 km (9 miles)
southwest of Kalpetta, and is
excellent for trekking
and bird-watching.
Sulthan Bathery (Sultan’s
Battery), 10 km (6 miles) east of
Kalpetta, derives its name from
Tipu Sultan of Mysore (see p521),
who built a fort here in the 18th
century. The Edakkal Caves
are 12 km (7 miles) away. Their
inscriptions and carvings of
human and animal figures are
said to date to prehistoric times;
some believe that these caves
were the refuge of Jain monks.
The caves’ environs abound
in megaliths. The Wayanad
(Muthanga) Wildlife Sanctuary,
16 km (10 miles) east of Sultan
Bathery, was established in
1973 and is part of the Nilgiri
Biosphere Reserve (see p524).
Mananthavady, 35 km
(22 miles) north of Kalpetta, was
the scene of a long guerrilla war
Tree House in Wayanad, blending into the sylvan landscape between the local king, Pazhassi
Raja, and British troops, led by
a Wayanad District apparently haunted the Lord Arthur Wellesley, the
highway until it was exorcised. future Duke of Wellington,
280 km (174 miles) NE from Kochi to
Kalpetta. @ n Tourist Information Kalpetta, the district who defeated Napoleon
centre, Kalpetta, (04936) 204 441. headquarters, is 15 km (9 miles) at Waterloo. About 32 km
to the north. Once a major Jain (20 miles) to the north is the
A remote region of virgin centre (see p400), Vishnu Temple
rainforests and mist-clad it has two Jain at Thirunelli,
mountain ranges, Wayanad temples situated built beside
provides the ideal climatic nearby. The the Papanasini
conditions for Kerala’s extensive Anantanatha- river. This is a
plantations of cardamom, swami Temple is major pilgrimage
pepper, coffee and rubber. at Puliyarmala, site, where
Relatively untouched 6 km (4 miles) Coffee blossoms in a Hindus perform
by modernization, this is the away, while the Wayanad plantation funeral rites.
homeland of large groups of Glass Temple of
indigenous tribal communities, Kottamunda, dedicated to T Edakkal Caves
such as the cave-dwelling the third Jain tirthankara, Open Tue–Sun. 8 &
Cholanaikens, and the down- Parsvanatha, is on the slope of O Wayanad Sanctuary
trodden Paniyas. It is also the Vellarimala Hill, 20 km (12 miles) & 8 Extra charges for photography.
favoured habitat of animals to the south. The area’s tallest Permits from Wildlife Warden, Sulthan
such as the, Nilgiri langur, peak, Chembara Peak (2,100 Bathery, (04936) 220 454.
wild elephants and the giant
Malabar squirrel.
The gateway to Wayanad is
Lakkidi, at its southern end.
An ancient tree on the main
highway, ominously draped
with a heavy iron chain,
presents a curious sight. Local
legend claims that it binds the
angry spirit of a Paniya tribal
member who showed a group
of British surveyors the path
through the dense forest.
Instead of being rewarded, he
was killed here, and his spirit Remains of Tipu’s fort, Sulthan Bathery
For hotels and restaurants in this region see p703 and pp718–19

658-659_EW_India.indd 658 26/04/17 11:50 am
Eyewitness Travel LAYERS PRINTED:
Catalogue template “UK” LAYER
(Source v2.6)
Date 12th July 2013
Size 125mm x 217mm