Yercaud - The Hill Station

22nd Aug - Waking up at 5 A.M to the call from Rambabu, i walked down the stairs to the corner of the street. He was there standing at the next cross waiting for me to pick him up. Coming from Chennai for the weekend, he immediately slipped into sleep and so did I. Waking up at 9 A.M we went for breakfast to 'Krishna Cafe'. That's the only restaurant i know in Koramangala area that offers breakfast to my taste.

At 12, it was Subba, Rambabu, Venky, Govind and me sitting in my room and chatting about the college days. Ever since Rambabu booked tickers to Bangalore, i was insisting on going out for the weekend while Subba was little hesitant. With Govind and Venky ready to get out for weekend when no tickets were available for Magadheera, Subba agreed to join. With the relentless talk over the college days, the time flew by and adding to it the cook arrived late delaying our trip by few hours.

Starting at 3:30 P.M, it was almost 5:30 by the time we got out of Bangalore fighting out the traffic at the flyover under construction near the electronic city. Past that, the road was pretty good. With a single stopover at 'Anand Bhavan' for refueling, we were in Salem by eight and the ghat road to Yerkaud began almost from it's outskirts. With twenty hair pin bends to reach the top and a splendid view of the Salem city by lights as we ascended the hill, we reached the Grange resort in the middle of coffee plantations. The resort was good, the rooms tasteful but there was no restaurant attached to it and they weren't even willing to lend plates and spoons. Returning back from there, we checked into the Shevaroy Hotel. For the prices they charged the rooms could have been better. However, the food was great and that was all we needed to go along with the drinks for the night. Again, it was all about the college days. With Subba, Rambabu and Govind there's always so much to share.

Waking up at 7:30 A.M on Sunday morning, we were out of the hotel in an hour to get the feel of the morning weather before it gets washed out by the sun. Coming down from the hotel to the lake at the center of Yerkaud, we couldn't resist following the directions to the Kiliyur water falls. Driving through the hills we stopped for a while as we reached the side of the hill. With the clouds that capped the surrounding hills, it was a breathtaking view, the one that was totally unexpected for this place. So beautiful that we were guilty for leaving Rambabu locked up back in the hotel room.(He was just unwilling to wake up). After dropping others near waterfalls, i was back to hotel to pick him up and reached back to waterfalls as the sun started to show up. The half kilometer path to the waterfalls was a steep muddy one down the hill. Most of the times, it was just difficult to walk down without the support of rocks and the roots that lay across. With scarce water and a little dangerous path there were none at the falls. We five were the only one there. For just that half kilometer, we were totally exhausted by the time we reached the top.

After a relaxed breakfast back at the hotel, we drove up to Lady's seat and the Gent's Seat. These are the view points. Totally covered by clouds it was just difficult to see through more than few meters from where we stood. However with the moving clouds, there were times when they cleared up to offer a panoramic view of the distant hills and the the rows of houses built upon them. Skipping the rose garden, we went to Pagoda point that again offered a view of the clouds moving beneath us and a few brushing past us. Even past mid day, the weather was almost the same as the one on early morning.

There were botanical gardens and few temples that were of interest to the tourists. We were however not very excited about them. So, we checked out of the hotel and started back home by 1:30 P.M. The drive from Salem to Krishnagiri is uninterrupted and awesome with the hills lined up along the horizon and the weather resembling that of an approaching rain when seen from behind the shades. Back in the city, we stopped at the samosa point for a while. When they weren't yet ready, we moved on to Sweet Chariot next to it. After a shower and a game of cards we rode to Meghana's for dinner. From there on, we went to Indiranagar's Corner House from where Subba parted his way home. After Rambabu took the auto to the station, we were back to our room tired and exhausted after a long day.

For reasons unknown, Yercaud isn't heard of like the Ooty or the Coorg. Only because Kslp talked high of the place after his recent trip, we opted for this one. At a distance of 220 kms, this is a perfect place for a weekend getaway from Bangalore with it's pleasant weather through out the year.