Saturday, February 5, 2022
KURISUMALA, KAALIMALA TRIANGULAR CROSSBORDER FOREST
Kaalimala — Kurishumala — Kurishu mala is located about 40 km away from Thiruvananthapuram city in Pathukani near Amboori village at an altitude of 3000 ft from sea level. Kaalimala and Kurishumala share the same mountain. The former is positioned more towards the eastern part of it Kurishumala shares its borders with both Tamil Nadu and Kerala. It’s a beautiful and calm place, ideal for nature and trekking lovers. Both kurishumala and kaalimala are religious places; Christian devotees from Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh visit the place during the lent time. There is a temple situated at the top of the mountain dedicated to Durga Ma. Hindu devotees often come here during Durgashtami from September to October to offer prayers and “Ponkaala”. A narrow path about 6 km connects the temple with the foot of the mountain, in which two kilometres are off-road. Kaalimala has Kaali Theertham situated near where Sage Agasthya is said to have done his holy Thapas. The Kaali Theertham, which never gets dried up, is considered sacred, on par with the Ganges. The place is suitable for people looking for a moderate one day trek. We highly recommended visiting during off-seasons to enjoy the mist and fog. On the top of the mountain hill, the beautiful view of the Chittar Lake and the dam can also be seen, which can be reached by less than 10 km travel through road.
TREK ITINERARY
TREK COST INR 1200/-
What is Included in the Tour?
HOW TO PACK A BACKPACK FOR TREKKING?
Trekking offers some incredible adventures from quiet moments of self-reflection, invigorating sights, and challenging yourself in nature. You’ll head out into the sprawling wilderness, ready to explore ancient paths with secret passages; you’ll hop over small streams and gushing rivers, clamber up rocky trails, hike through lush tropical forests, and stand atop hills with spectacular views all around.
We Grow Forest Trekking Packing list will make sure that you have everything needed for a trekking
THE TREKKING PLAN
# After the Induction section, we will begin our journey at 6:45 AM.
# We will be reaching Thekkan Kurisumala church at around 8:00–8: 15.
# We will have breakfast in the base camp. After breakfast, we will start our trekking trail at 8:45 AM
# It will be 3 hours heavy trek from the base to the top of the hill (Thekkan Kurishumala View Point). The trekking trail is very narrow and rocky, and the patch is covered with greenery and fog. As we move towards the top, our visibility towards the path may decrease due to the heavy cover of mist and fog. For beginners, the trek trail will be challenging; It’s advisable to prepare your body physically fit before committing the trek.
# Our team members will look after everyone to perform the trek. The forest path is dangerous, and the chance of getting lost is very high, so the group members are advised to stick with the group leaders.
# After covering 5km, we will move towards a small diverging point leading to the Kaalimala temple. According to our plan, we will first cover the Thekkan Kurishumala View Point and move back to Kaalimala temple and the viewpoint.
# At 12: 00 PM, We will be reaching Thekkan Kurishumala View Point. There we will be able to see a giant holy cross and a resting shed. We will have our lunch with a breathtaking view in a heavenly atmosphere.
# After spending quality time at the top, at 01:30 PM, we will be starting our next mission to the historic Kaalimala temple and viewpoint. From the diverging area, it will take only 20 mints journey to reach the Kaalimala temple. The temple is a deserted one, and only during Durgashtami, it gets crowded. Otherwise, only limited devotees go there to offer prayer. Kaalimala temple has Kaali theertham situated near where Saga Agasthya is said to have done his holy Thapas. The Kaali theertham, which never gets dried up, is considered sacred, on par with the Ganges. The temple will be closed at this time. The temple is situated at the edge part of the hill, and from the backside of the temple, we can see a magnificent view of the Chittar dam reservoir.
# After completing our sightseeing in the Kaalimala temple and spending some quality time, we will start our return journey to our base camp at 4:30 PM
# We will be reaching the base of Thekkan Kurisumala church around 6:00 PM, and from there, we will be starting our return journey back to Vellayambalam
# We will be reaching Vellayambalam around 7:30 PM and will have a small windup section
We GROW FOREST TREKKING
Our Trekking is entirely different from other usual treks; we will not be simply sightseeing and coming back. We will be conducting various activities during the trekking.
To know more about We Grow Forest Foundation please visit our website https://wegrowforest.org/ or contact us at on 9778411911 or email at us plant@wegrowforest.org
