This entry is part of the series, Photography with a Hint of Wildlife.»
This series captures my experiences when two good friends» of mine and I travelled extensively, especially across the wild side of South India. I hope you enjoy the ride through my photographs and the written word.
March 14 and it was the day to return to Bangalore. We checked out of Hotel Lakeview» in Ooty» in the morning and headed on the highway towards Masinagudi» after filling petrol. Oh wait, we went back to Ooty to get homemade chocolates for us to carry back home (and yes we bought them at Modern Stores» ). Once done with the chocolates (and marshmallows) we drove downhill along the 36 hairpin bends that dot the route. Rules stipulate that you have to drive in the second gear (to minimize accidents), and in fact we were stopped on the way by the authorities who stressed upon the rule and we had one guy actually peep into the car!
We stopped just before Masinagudi where we shot cattle and sheep. We also stopped at Masinagudi for tea. Once refreshed by the tea, we drove into the Mudumalai National Park» . At the entrance to the Park, we encountered a family of Gray Langurs» . The kids were mischievous (as is expected of monkeys) and were playing all over the place. A few photographs later, we moved into the Mudumalai National Park, driving slow to spot wild animals (much to the chagrin of passing vans carrying vegetables and supplies). We saw a lonely peacock perched on a tree.
We get charged!
We were driving through the Mudumalai National Park at a relaxed pace, and suddenly, lo and behold, there was a herd of elephants on our left! The herd comprised of three cows and three calves. The bull elephant was not to be seen — very unlikely. We slowed down, stopped (with the engine running), and started taking photographs. From the corner of her eyes, Cindy spotted the tusker right across the road on the other side. After being instructed by me to get into the car right when I tell her to, we started taking photographs of the tusker. The tusker was watching us intently, observing our every movement. He moved towards us, and at a particular moment (instinct always tells you when!) I asked Cindy to get into the car. The tusker suddenly charged at us (though it was a false charge) and we quickly sped away. Now breathing easy, with the tusker way behind us, we passed the Bandipur National Park» .
We drove ahead straight to Nanjangud» , where we stopped at the Prasanna Nanjundeshwara Temple (an ancient temple and thankfully, not a tourist attraction) along the highway. We took a few pictures and met the caretaker and his kids, made small talk with them, and drove to Mysore» where we had our lunch (at 5:00PM in the evening!). We then took the Bangalore-Mysore highway and returned home to Bangalore, where we had to again deal with Bangalore’s traffic!
Driving Experience: 6/10
- The climb from Ooty to Masinagudi is steep with 36 hairpin bends.
- The six kilometre stretch from the entrance of the Bandipur National Park to the Bandipur village is really bad with a virtually non-existent road.
- The highway from Gundlupet» to Mysore is relatively calm.
- The Bangalore-Mysore highway is smooth.
Watch Out For:
- Narrow and downhill road from Ooty to Masinagudi. Drive in the second gear.
- Motorists heading towards you from the other direction. Use the horn extensively.
- Cattle, sheep and humans trying to cross the highway at undesignated places
- Trucks laden with sugarcane near Mandya» and Maddur»
- Guides suddenly appearing in front of your vehicle at Srirangapatna»
- Weekend traffic between Mysore and Bangalore (especially kids zipping and trying to overtake)
Look Out For:
- Wonderful tea and homemade chocolates in Ooty (recommendation: Modern Stores» on Commercial Road)
- Wildlife in the Bandipur National Park and Mudumalai Tiger Reserve
- The rocky landscape of Ramanagaram»
- The innumerable handicraft shops selling the famed Channapatna» toys along the highway from Channapatna to Mandya (The shopkeepers are willing to bargain.)
Route Map
More From Vivek Dhage's Portfolio and Photoblog
- Leg 4: Masinagudi to Ooty and back to Bangalore | Vivek Dhage's Portfolio and Photoblog
- Leg 1: Bangalore to Mysore | Vivek Dhage's Portfolio and Photoblog
- Leg 2: Bandipur, Mudumalai, Masinagudi and Ooty
- Leg 6: Back to Bangalore | Vivek Dhage's Portfolio and Photoblog
- Leg 2: Mysore to Himavad Gopalaswamy Betta
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Address: West Lake Road, Ooty- 643004.
Tel.: (0423)-2443904,2443580-82 &2440978-83
E-mail: reservations@hotellakeview.com
Ooty, short for Ootacamund (officially, Udhagamandalam, sometimes abbreviated to Udhagai), is a town, a municipality and the district capital of the Nilgiris district in the South Indian state of Tamil Nadu.
It is a popular hill station located in the Nilgiri Hills and stands at an approximate height of 9,080 feet (2,767 m) above sea level.
Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ooty
The dark chocolates at Modern store. This shopkeeper knows how to treat customers and he
has a range of pure home made stuff which are worth the money and I would rate them at par with Thorntons and Godiva.
Review source: http://www.mouthshut.com/review/Ooty-59984-1.html
The Mudumalai National Park (currently, Mudumalai Tiger Reserve) lies on the northwestern side of the Nilgiri Hills (Blue Mountains), in Nilgiri District, about 80 km north-west of Coimbatore in the westernmost part of Tamil Nadu, on the interstate boundaries with Karnataka and Kerala states in South India.
Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mudumalai_National_Park
The gray langurs are a group of Old World monkeys and make up the entirety of the genus Semnopithecus.
Gray langurs are large and fairly terrestrial, inhabiting open wooded habitats and urban areas on the Indian subcontinent. Until recently they were considered one species, Semnopithecus entellus; now seven distinct species are recognized. When only one species was recognized, it was also called the Hanuman Langur (named after the Hindu vanara divinity Hanuman), the Common Langur and the Entellus Langur. In Sri Lanka, it is natively known as the Wandura.
They are largely gray, with a black face. In Indian mythology, this is because Hanuman, a monkey warrior, burnt his hands and face trying to rescue Lord Rama’s wife. Males are up to 75 cm long, and females 65 cm.
Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gray_langur
Bandipur National Park is one of India’s best known sanctuaries, and is an important Project Tiger reserve. It is located in the Chamarajanagar district of southern Karnataka in South India, and is contiguous with the Mudumalai National Park in the neighbouring state of Tamil Nadu, the Wynad Wildlife Sanctuary in Kerala, and the Nagarhole National Park to the northwest. It is home to around seventy tigers and over three thousand Asian elephants (as per the 1997 census), along with leopards, dholes, gaur and sloth bears. Bandipur is part of the Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve.
Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bandipur_National_Park
Nanjangud is a town in Mysore district in the Indian state of Karnataka. It is a temple town and is on the banks of the river Kapila (a.k.a Kabini). It is at a distance of 23 km from the city of Mysore.
Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nanjangud
Gundlupet is a town in Chamarajanagar district in the Indian state of Karnataka. This small town is about 56 km from the Mysore-Ooty / Mysore-Calicut(NH 212) road and about 200 km from Bangalore. It is the last town in Karnataka enroute to Ooty or Calicut.
Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gundlupet
The dark chocolates at Modern store. This shopkeeper knows how to treat customers and he
has a range of pure home made stuff which are worth the money and I would rate them at par with Thorntons and Godiva.
Review source: http://www.mouthshut.com/review/Ooty-59984-1.html
Yes, they're my own pictures.
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