A trip to Avalanche Lake

The charm of an off beat tourist destination is just different. Stunning vistas, charming people, road less traveled and if you are lucky, an interesting wildlife encounter, but the Best of all is the less tourist crowd!

A view of Avalanche Lake

Avalanche Lake is one such place, the lake being named after a huge land slide "Avalanche".   28 kms away from Ooty, in route to Upper Bhavani passing through one of the most beautiful landscape in the Nilgiris, the final destination the lake itself is a sight to behold!

Starting from Ooty, passing through lush green Horticulture fields, one reaches the Forest Check post at Avalanche, nearby which there is a one of the few Trout Fish breeding centers in India.

The rolling green hills and blue sky are just picture perfect

From the check post the road to Avalanche Lake passes through Mountane type forest full of mosses, ferns, flowering plants, orchids and beautiful waterfalls all of which makes up a part of  the Nilgiris Biosphere Reserve.

Merrily cascading water falls and blooming flowers are a sight to behold

Being a protected area, tourist vehicles beyond the check post are not permitted, but a local community initiative by the charming people of the Toda tribes is available, through which one can hire a jeep and a guide for the entire trip up to the lake and back to check post.

Beautiful grasslands and Sholas

All along the way the guide provides wonderful facts about the plants and ecology of the region and insights on Toda tradition and customs. 

Also one comes across flowering variants of the famous Kurinji Flower or Neela Kurinji ( Strobilanthes kunthiana ) which is  know for flowering once in every 12 years, causing a mass blooming of flowers during the monsoons creating a look of velvet carpet across the higher hills of the Western Ghats.

                                                  The annually flowering family members of the famous Kurinji Flowers

The flowering bushes, water gently cascading down the stream makes the place picture perfect.

Another beautiful vista

The Bhavani Temple located half way through the route is one of the most beautiful places i have ever been. The humble little temple along the stream surrounded by the rolling green hills gives the ultimate touch of spirituality to serene and tranquil location.

Tranquility at its best

The lake with its emerald blue waters and the lush green hills is a wonderful sight. If lucky one can spot wildlife along the lake and also in route. 

A curious Jackal looks on

The avalanche lake tourism is modeled in a effective sustainable method by employing the local communities and also restricting the number of tourist flow per day to around 10 trips approximately some 100 to 150 persons a day. Its one of the best example for conservation based Eco tourism and can act as an example for tourism in other ecologically sensitive area. As long as such an initiative works, conservation and tourism can go side by side ensuring preservation of the fascinating life among us.