A THREE SECOND RAINBOW

 
800ft above sea level nestled between the  willowy mountains of Anaimalai, Top Slip  presented us a beautiful promise of get-away  from the eternal hustle-bustle of the tough  Bangalore life.

We planned a 3 day trip starting a Friday night  to Pollachi. Vivek, a native of Pollachi and a  wildlife enthusiast, arranged all our  accommodation through his many contacts and  opened us, to a unique opportunity to  experience the forests of Top-Slip first hand.

Annaimalais , a chain in the western ghats  abruptly stops to open into the plains that surround Pollachi. They form the link in the  Nilgiri bio-sphere thus home to the endemic  species, the Vulnerable- Nilgiri Langur,  Endangered- Lion Tailed Macaque, Malabar Trogon,  Sri Lankan Frogmouth etc., that  are unique to this habitat.



Monsoons had already made itself home the time we visited. The 3 day trip left us soaking wet during all the treks despite the many precautions we took. But, the rain in the ghats have a  charm of their own, one does not fall sick or suffer with shivers, but with a thirst to have more of them! Well, they bring with them the  leeches too and poor visibility conditions that  make the wildlife all the more elusive. And sighting of birds falls almost to zero.

The vegetation here changes ever so much, during  the 6km trek we must have passed through Moist  deciduous to evergreen to dry deciduous to thorny forests! The teak plantation can sometimes be sour to your eyes but they have become a part of this unique place.

We were lucky enough to find this amazing guide,  by name Ketan. He can manage with almost 5  languages including English, though he can read and write only in Tamil! He visibly enraptured  us with his deep knowledge of the birds and animals in Top Slip. He could name all the creatures in both the local language and in English! Apparently his daughter reads them for him and translates them into Tamil.

We managed to sight Gaurs- solitary bulls that  gave a thrilling mock charge, Nilgiri langurs,  wild pigs that seemed to have domesticated , a  gaur- killed by some predator, that had no signs of puncture marks at  the neck and left uneaten for last 5 days,  Sambars, loads of Chital, some 40 odd varieties  of birds.. all in that downpour!

Most of the times we trekked into the heavy jungles which sometimes unexpectedly opened to give a breathtaking view of the valley. The shades of green copiously pouring out of every corner, the plain bare hills projecting into the heavens, a stream somewhere making its way out,  the shrill wind that rose and fell in strength,  a thick blanket of fog that shrouded the far-away hills and refused to leave them, the curtain of rain that poured and drizzled alternatively, a seductive smell- a combination  of the mysterious flowers in forest, the scent of mud, of rain, of green.. One ought to be in  the Rainforests during the monsoons to appreciate the full beauty of the wild and the untamed!

We Stayed at the Tree Top IB on Saturday. There was  nothing primitive about the place though, it was well furnished with marble flooring, complete with hot shower bath! It gave a great view of  the place with undulating hills and lush green trees swaying in the rain. Sunday night we pitched at Parambikulam WS at Thellikal IB, coz  all stays at TS was pre-booked for the day.

Parambikulam opened up for me, with a lot of  misgivings. It was too neat, too well organized,  too strict, too full of wildlife (At least for  the first few stretches!) and too full of  promises. Something definitely was amiss. After shopping for a few hats and jacket we set out to a 8km tiring trail, we had already trekked around 4-5 km in TS! Our stay at the Island IB had been canceled because they allowed only 4  people on the boat and we were 5. The undulating trail sprained my knee but I somehow pushed it until the IB. The forests of Parambikulam seemed majorly Teak plantation, and loads of reservoirs and  dams. The Highlight were the Emerald Doves and a broken rainbow that descended right onto the ground and lasted for merely 3 heartbeats of a  time!

Our short trek around the IB presented only a pair of Gaur, but the place had potential for good sightings, perhaps we were simply there at the wrong time? We played dumb-charades late into the night with some amazing acting skills by  Guru and deciphering the names using places name by zeroing down on them all the way from Asia to Bangalore by Vivek and Ananth. We played so much  that, next morning  saw all of us still happily snoring in our beds despite the planned birding session early that morning.

We returned to TopSlip for a final trekking, this time around the Ambuli Watch Tower. The trek around this beat was truly a treat. I am betting  the place is a paradise in the spring and  winter. The watch tower itself built prominently on a hillock faces another bare hill which Ketan  informed us is a frequent haunt of a Tiger.

 

image by Mark Andrews

The return journey from the watchtower to the Glass house where we had parked our vehicle surprised us with the close sightings of the Sambar male and doe, And best of all of malabar hornbill and more surprisingly, a real treat to eye - Malabar Trogon! the bloody red chest of this male Trogon is a sight to behold.

And there ends our 3 day trip in the heart of the jungle and we promise to be back soon!

For more info on Top Slip, check the following links:
  http://maps.google.co.in/maps?hl=en&q=top%20slip &um=1&ie=UTF-8&sa=N&tab=wl  - Google map 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Topslip - wiki