Hi Guys,
At the
starting of this month, I went to Nagercoil for a friend's marriage (actually this blog's inspirer and motivator Vijay Dinesh was getting married - wish him a very Happy married life). So I went to Kanyakumari and nearby places with my parents the previous day. Initially I thought of blogging, but later left the idea as I was quite
busy after that. My mother was asking why I didn't write about that trip and so
I decided to write about a part of the trip that was Thirparapu Waterfalls.
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| Whole view of the falls |
We started
from Nagercoil from around 8 am and though the distance was less, the path
was not as good. The journey through the bumpy road took around 2 hours. The monsoon
season had just started there and it started to rain on the way. Thank God, it
stopped raining when we got there. The journey was quite interesting as it was
scenic around. There were lot of rubber estates, jack ftuit trees and many
other mountainous trees. The lifestyle of the people was different. It was much
like a blended style between Tamil Nadu and Kerela. After two hours we got
there and the entrance ticket was around Rs. 5 (I guess – don’t remember
exactly).
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| Water falling |
The water fall
is about 300 ft in length and has Rocky River beds. It falls from a height of
50 ft and looks to be artificially constructed one. The falls is located
downstream and you have to climb down some steps to get to the falls. The facilities
were quite good. A good looking park was set up and apart from that there were
Children’s play area and a swimming pool dedicated for Children.
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| Children's Swimming pool and play area |
There were quite
a good number of people that day. Some were interested in bathing, some were
interested in just enjoying the scenery and some like me were involved in
taking photographs. So, I explored the area.
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| Decoration in the park! |
The river bed or
the place where people stand and bath was quite slippery in nature, but it was
not very risky (there were some interesting falls, but no one was injured). The
water after flowing from the falls flows continues its journey and the place
was quite risky. On the outside it appears as if there are steps leading you
down (as it is cut at 90 degrees), but it is just a plain cut and leads you to
a 10 feet trap that is so rocky.
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| Downstream |
Adjacent to the
waterfalls, or actually adjacent to the river upstream there is a temple known
as Mahadevar Temple, which is said to be one of the twelve shivalayas in the
area. The temple is built completely in Kerela style, which was quite amazing
to me. A circular shape structure with a conical doom. Lord Shiva was looking
so good in the temple, very intricately designed. I would say it was one of the
best idols I have seen. No one was there at the temple, except two or three
devotees, so it was very peaceful and I like peaceful temples.
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| The Mahadevar Temple from the outside |
Outside the
temple, the scene was beautiful. The stream was flowing smoothly and some
people took bath there. The temperature was so good as it was cloudy and it was
not raining.
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| Outside the temple |
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| Outside the temple - the other side |
On the way back,
we had to catch a bus to Kulasekaram, a nearby town. The bus was interesting. A
large space was allotted to keep luggage (as seen below) and the number of
seats for people were less. I think it is designed so as to transport goods
from the estates around. I sat in the luggage rack for the 15-20 minute journey
and it was not comfortable, but enjoyable. From there we took a bus to
Nagercoil and this time the journey was more tedious as more roundabout route
was followed. All together the trip was unforgettable!
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| The luggage raft in the Bus - on the way back |
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| Scenic Beauty on the way back! |
The
Waterfalls is located in Kanyakumari district very near to the borders of
Kerela. It is approximately 45 kms from Nagercoil, 55 kms from Thiruvananthapuram
and 65 kms from Kanyakumari. The water fall is located in a river named
Kothaiyar and is located at about 13 kms from Pechiparai Dam. The waterfall is active for seven months in a year (I'm not exactly sure - but guess it would be June - January). Boat facility is available at the other side of the temple.
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| Route from Nagercoil and Thiruvanthapuram - B is the location of Thirparappu Falls |
There are lots
of tourist spots around. Interested people can check for information in the
web. The tourism website of Kanyakumari gives all the information. If you go
there in your own vehicle or if you book a cab, you can enjoy nature to the
core!
Happy Reading!
