When tragedy struck Wayanad last year in the form of a series of devastating landslides that swept away four villages and claimed and injured some 500 people, tourism took a serious hit in a state which is quite easily one of the most picturesque in the country. Kerala has always been a traveller’s paradise, with its lush greenery, tranquil backwaters, pristine beaches, and mist-covered hills. However, after the calamity last year, travellers have been hesitant to visit, and Wayanad’s tourism as well as its local businesses have suffered. The livelihoods of countless individuals — from homestay owners and tour guides to artisans and small-scale farmers — have been affected, which has created a ripple effect that has extended beyond just the tourism sector.
All is not lost in Wayanad, though, as our recent trip to this beautiful district, nestled in the north-east of Kerala, has proven. Although the Wayanad landslides have left many a scar, the resilience of the land and its people has ensured that the region’s beauty and position in the circle of life remain unchanged. Wayanad, despite it all, is still a land that can offer plenty to the traveller. Its landscapes remain as beautiful as ever, its waterfalls continue to flow, and its forests are still teeming with life. Local communities have worked tirelessly to rebuild their homes and livelihoods, ensuring that the district can once again welcome visitors with the same warmth and hospitality that it has always been known for.
Now, more than ever, might be the time to add Wayanad to your bucket lists, if you haven’t been already. To help, we’ve compiled a list of fun places you can visit while you are there. From great food to soaking in the sights and sounds of nature, we’ve got you covered — now all you’ve got to do is pack your bags and take the next flight to Calicut!
NATURAL BEAUTY
When it comes to soaking in nature’s splendour, there’re very few places that can give Wayanad a run for its money. On our first day, we stopped by the Edakkal Caves, located at the northern end of Wayanad. If pneumonia/ asthma/ shortness of breath are things you suffer from, I wouldn’t recommend this bit of the trip to you, although I must admit that the view atop some 400 steps is definitely worth burning every calorie for. The Edakkal Caves are a bit of a wonder in Wayanad, not so much as actual caves as a naturally-formed rock shelter. Discovered by the British superintendent of police of erstwhile Malabar, Fred Fawcett, in 1896, the word ‘Edakkal’ means ‘in between rocks’, which makes sense when you, once you actually reach the centre of the caves atop the mountains, look upwards and see a massive boulder stuck between two giant rock walls. The formation is essentially that of a shelter created by an earthquake some 30,000 years ago, with the boulder in the middle supported by the walls on the side.
What’s special about the Edakkal Caves — besides the insane cardio that you’ve got to do to actually reach them — is the fact that on the walls are inscriptions and carvings dating back to the Stone Age and Neolithic periods. One side of the wall to your left as you enter is filled with intricate drawings and etchings that if you look closely will reveal themselves to be depictions of humans and animals. These carvings are from the Stone Age, and are some 6,500 years old. The human figures are especially interesting. One of these has a distinct crown, head, torso, and pairs of hands and legs — the crown indicates that the figure is supposed to represent the chief of the people of the time. There is also the etching of a female figure with a small child next to it.
Probably by far the most interesting and historically groundbreaking part of the caves is an etching at the other end of the same wall, where you will be able to see two distinct lines of inscriptions from the Neolithic age. These two lines caused a bit of a furore when they were found, and today are commonly believed to be written in the Tamil Brahmi script around 2,500-3,000 years ago. What’s more, scholars and anthropologists have deciphered the lines, too — one says “A man killed many tigers. His name was Nandu”, and the other says “Sri Vishnu Verma was the king of one of the tribes. He once lived in this cave”. One reason why the Edakkal Caves remain such a unique tourist destination in Wayanad is the fact that people from different eras in time once lived in these caves, and today we have solid evidence of that.
The perfect place to unwind after a long, eventful day is the Karlad Lake, located in Thariode district. This picturesque little lake is bang in the middle of nature, and from the centre you can see the hills of Wayanad on one side and sprawling blue skies and verdure on the other. I stepped out of my comfort zone and paddled a boat here for the first time in my life, while a friend and our tour guide decided to go kayaking instead. Sitting in a boat in the middle of the Karlad Lake, with lilies swaying and birds chirping everywhere around you, surrounded as you are by all that natural beauty, it’s easy to see why Kerala is called God’s Own Country. It really gives you a quiet minute or two to sit and reflect; at least that’s what it did for me, and I hope it does the same for everyone else who visits.
This next bit was the highlight of the entire trip — we went to the Kuruva islands. Three densely wooded, uninhabited islands comprising a total of 950 acres and home to multiple species of woodland birds, plants and butterflies, there’s nothing not to love about these islands, secluded and quiet in the middle of the Kabini River. We took a raft to the main islands from the shore, walked inwards for 40 minutes before reaching the centre, and here we all took off our shoes and socks and rolled up our trousers for a bout of river-crossing. The water is filled with enormous rocks and an occasional snake or two, but despite the multiple cuts I came away with on the bottom of my feet, the experience is something I will never be able to forget. The water came up to above my thighs and there we were, walking in a human chain, nearly waist-deep in icy water and stumbling over jagged slippery rocks for minutes on end. But it truly was a tremendous experience, and I wish we could have stayed for longer.
Any trip to Wayanad is incomplete without a visit to the Muthanga Wildlife Park and Sanctuary. The estate is spread over 345sq km and is built on the foundations of where Kerala meets Tamil Nadu on the south-east and Karnataka on the north-east. Ambling along in our bus through all that quiet, serene wilderness at half-past six in the morning really helped put things in perspective, but my philosophical musings were quickly interrupted by the sight of three majestic elephants enjoying their breakfast. A few more kilometres away, on a huge barren tree sat more vultures than I have ever seen in my life, while deer hopped, skipped and jumped all around the place. We also saw what we thought was an exotic species of eagle, as well as many of the family of the Wayanad squirrel, also known as the Malabar giant squirrel, which can easily take our tiny city squirrel in a fight. If you ever drop by Sultan Bathery (which is where we were staying) and find yourself awake in the wee hours of the morning, a visit to the wildlife park would do you good. And it isn’t too far from the main city; probably a half-hour drive if there’s no traffic.
HISTORY AND HERITAGE
Kerala is home to nine Jain temples some many centuries old, one of which is situated in Sultan Bathery in Wayanad. The Bathery Jain Temple was constructed in the 13th century and is one of the oldest and most significant Jain temples in the area. Kerala doesn’t have a huge Jain population, and the few Jains who do live there trace their ancestry back to Tamil Nadu and Karnataka. The Jain temples that remain in Kerala are relics of the many communal wars the region has seen through the ages, and most of them are in ruins today. Legend has it that Tipu Sultan attacked the Bathery temple and used it to store his weapons in his time (the name Sultan Bathery comes from a colloquialism of the term ‘Sultan’s Battery’, which the British nicknamed the place). Now commonly regarded as a heritage site, the temple remains closed all year round, except a single day in April when devotees get together to pray. That is the only puja held in the Bathery temple grounds. The rest of the year its interiors are locked, and it has turned into a popular tourist attraction.
We managed to get a peek into the antarghar of the temple, which, though it looks unassuming, would be any collector’s dream. Sculptures and statuettes collected from across the region have now found home in the temple’s hallowed grounds, from Mahavir to the odd Ganesha idol. The architecture itself is also something to marvel at. Rectangular in shape, the temple’s stone slab roof is supported by a number of columns, which, along with the doorways on each side, bear carvings of floral designs, snakes and swans, significant to the Jain religion. The columns also bear etchings of Mahavir and the Jain Tirthankaras.
We also visited Thirunelli Temple, an ancient place of worship dedicated to Lord Vishnu at the top of the Brahmagiri hills, which separate Kerala from Karnataka. The temple lies at an altitude of 3,000ft above sea level and is known as the Kashi of the South. We took a round about the temple grounds and were given some sweet prasad, which we later washed down with delicious bamboo rice payasam. Unfortunately, I don’t have a photo of the temple since mobile phones are a strict no-no inside the grounds, but judging by the number of devotees who were there to offer prayers or perform rituals of some kind or the other, it would be safe to say that it is very much alive and flourishing.
LOCAL BUSINESSES
Wayanad has an extremely vibrant rural local industry ecosystem. Many of these have managed to somewhat recover their spots on the tourist retreat maps but definitely could do with more help.
One of these places we visited was Bhavm (the word directly translating to “to birth”), a non-profit organisation part of Kerala’s Responsible Tourism Mission. This little hub in the district of Kalpetta is a traditional artisan collective dedicated to preserving the age-old heritage of mural painting or chuvarchitram that Kerala is famous for. Run by couple Sujith and Surya, the initiative empowers 19 rural local women (and one man) by providing them with employment opportunities. When we dropped by, everyone was busy at work with their brushes, dabbing paint onto masks, canvas and cloth. The studio itself is an art gallery of sorts. Take a walk inside and you’ll find yourself itching to take home a handicraft or two. From hand-painted and printed magnets to pendants, tea coasters, wall hangings, hairpins, you name it, depicting landscapes, people and religious figures — all of it organically made from bamboo, ply or wood and then painted with natural dye or acrylic, the place is nothing short of a museum, and probably every art lover’s dream. I especially loved a particular painting of the Nataraj, the largest piece Bhavm has ever come up with. I bought a couple magnets from here, too, because I simply could not come away empty-handed.
Our next stop, in Thrikaipetta, was Uravu Indigenous Science & Technology Study Centre, a non-profit developmental organisation that primarily works with bamboo to create bamboo-based home decor and lifestyle pieces. Also aiming to uplift local communities by providing training in bamboo craftsmanship as an opportunity for employment, Uravu has been doing marvellous things since their inception in 1996. Their bamboo nursery, for instance, is the largest in South India in terms of species variety and hosts more than 50 different species of bamboo. This bamboo is then crafted into a variety of objects — blinds, bangles, miniatures, lampshades and office, home and kitchen accessories. I especially liked this particular bamboo megaphone, which has a phone stand attached to its base. You keep your phone on the stand and voila! Your favourite song is amplified many times over!
Also on our itinerary was Beecraft, a quaint little honey museum in Vythiri. If you thought all honey in the world tasted the same, then you’re in for a jolly pleasant surprise. Did you know that there are over 300 different varieties of honey produced all over the world, each with a unique flavour and colour depending on the floral source? I tasted at least seven kinds of honey at Beecraft and came away reeling from the sugar rush. In all seriousness, though, this honey museum was a learning experience for us all. The staff were very enthusiastic in showing us around and explaining how power dynamics work in the honeycomb, how honey is made, and how they process the honey from the combs to make it fit for human consumption. The museum also has a store where you can buy more than just different kinds of honey. Apart from jars of Mustard, Sidr, Wayanadan, Black Forest, Stingless, Tulsi and Cream honey, there is also beeswax, bee pollen, attar, chocolate, banana chips, and a variety of other edibles for you to purchase. Apart from all the honey-based knowledge gained at Beecraft, we came away laden with honey goodies and other items.
REALITY CHECK
On our drive back to Calicut, we stopped at Meppadi, where the landslides took place last year. The devastation is still pretty evident, because the landscape bears scars, with areas of bare, barren earth, enormous boulders and rocks strewn about everywhere, and remnants of destroyed architecture. Originally, Mepaddi used to be a small district, and the main economic activity of its people was tea, coffee, cardamom and vegetable cultivation. Today, barely anything of those plantations remain, and the area at the foothills of the mountains is completely uninhabited. After the landslides caused widespread damage to the villages of Punjirimattom, Mundakkai, Chooralmala, and Vellarimala, rescue teams dug up what little they could from the households that were affected, and Meppadi is now marked by greenery that has run wild, the remnants of houses in a shambles, and broken bridges across a barely-running stream which once used to be a mighty river. Stopping by here was a particularly sobering experience, especially when we stepped into one of the houses that was still standing — though barely so — and took a look inside. Everything from clothes to toothbrushes to toy cars was scattered on the floor, but the intense damage encompassing it all hits you more than anything else. In the middle of all that ruin around you, it is easy to lose yourself in contemplation, and we all came away from Mepaddi very quiet and introspective. It was only much later, when I sat down to write this piece, that I realised that no amount of the written word will ever be able to convey the actual heaviness that haunts the place, still.
Despite the sad note that the above paragraph ends on, I want to reiterate that Wayanad, regardless of what it has lost and the dangers that it is still susceptible to, is not a place of broken dreams. It still offers plenty to the traveller, and if you’re like me, will give you lots of opportunities that you won’t be able to help but grab. If you ever find yourself yearning for some moments of quiet comfort away from the constant cacophony of city life, consider Wayanad. Pristine, poetic, as though straight out of a postcard, its time has been rocky but by no means is it over.
When in Calicut…
There’s plenty to be done at Kozhikode, too, while you are there. We started off visiting Beypore, an ancient port town famed for its large wooden ships, locally called uroos. The uroo boatyard in Beypore is home to multiple such boats being built, traditionally a profession that has been trickling down for generations but is slowly withering away in the present day. These uroos are large teak or metal cargo boats, which, after being built, are shipped off to Dubai for interior work. After that, they are sent all over the world to collect and dispatch cargo.
Following our shipyard expedition, we headed off to the area’s candle-making units, also part of Kerala’s Responsible Tourism (RT) Mission. We went to a little hub close to the dock, where handmade candles and products made of coconut hemp, wood and jute were on display. The people of the area are provided employment by RT, in the sense that they are trained in their craft fully and frequently throughout the year to set their wares up for sale at local fairs. The candles and products themselves are very pretty too. What particularly caught my eye was a delightful sea-green, glittery candle, with tiny sea-shells and a starfish buried in the wax. Later, I found out that the colours used in the candle’s decoration were all natural and the mini aquatic life in it all sourced from the beach.
Close to the dock is another RT unit which makes miniature uroos of wood. These uroos come in all sizes and shapes, from tiny ones the size of your index finger to much bigger ones enclosed in bottles. We were able to witness one such miniature in the process of being carved in the workshop there. The men worked with extreme precision, and it really was an experience being able to see an unassuming piece of wood being shaped with such accuracy into a tiny ship.
The best part about our time in Calicut, at least for me, was visiting the house of renowned Malayali author Viakom Muhammad Basheer, in Beypore itself. Basheer was known by the sobriquet ‘Beypore Sultan’ for much of the latter half of his life, and had settled in Beypore with his wife and children before the publication of some of his most famous works. The house is a quaint little blue cottage right next to grounds on which his family is still trying to plant trees. Anees Basheer, who still lives in the house-turned-museum with his family, was more than happy to receive us and recount the story of his father’s life. We stood there in the garden under the Kozhikode sun, surrounded by jackfruit trees and the summer breeze, and looked at the mango tree under which Basheer, many years ago, wrote so many of his tales.
The house itself is a delight, too, with a room on the ground floor dedicated to the writer and the things he had used and loved during his life. His degree still stands on one of the shelves, as does his gramophone and countless written pieces and cartoons either done by him or contributed by fans and visitors over the years. Not many are aware that Basheer’s life before literary fame came his way was spent doing odd jobs around the country. He had spent many a day in Calcutta too, which is reflected in the many Bengali records that are kept in his music cabinet, along with Malayali, Hindi and Urdu vinyls. His bookshelves are stuffed with books, mostly Malayali, but I did spot a Guy de Maupassant collection in there. The room itself feels like a place where time has stood still for years now, and it is easy to lose oneself in the quaint charm of what this man’s life must once have been.
A day in Calicut is well spent only when you drop by the famed SM Street, which is Kozhikode’s answer to our very own New Market. There are shops galore here, mostly selling clothes, but you’ll find the occasional jewellery, fruit and shoe shop as well. Finally, drop by Calicut beach to enjoy the sunset and forget the woes of life. And, honestly, with the salt-sea wind in your hair and your favourite ice cream in hand, who could not be perfectly happy?