Mountain Mist

Mist, mountains, valley, tea garden and 22 hairpins; Ponmudi is quite a plot for a pulp fiction. Two souls lost in love, staring at each other to kiss, smothered in the thin water threads from the heavens, warming each other to keep the chill away, they floated in the mist. The world was locked out of their world. They did not know all these are going to end abruptly as they soon walk into a group of drunken rogues. They both can jump down into the steep valley and disappear in the eternity or she may get raped and so on and so forth. Anyway those things I want to leave to your imagination. What I don’t want to leave is Ponmudi.

In cyber albums, patches of Ponmudi always looked good. I wanted to go there ever since I landed in Trivandrum two years ago. But whoever I asked about this place, gave me an impassive look and that dowsed my enthusiasm. I never knew that Malayali’s quintessential contempt towards everything was behind that opinion. I even made a half hearted attempt to go there before and crossed the 19th hairpin but found that I do not have enough fuel in store to come back. This time I was determined.

The place is just 55 kilometers away from Kowdiar. If you are the one who loves curves (pun not intended), you can gorge the road. On the ascent from Kallar through the woods you may feel lonely on the road and may think that this will not reach anywhere. Sparingly inhabited topography with clove and tea estates on both sides of the road may kindle an eerie and affable feeling at the same time. As you take tight turns on every hairpin curve the mega emerald canvas unfurls in front of you through the windshield.

The beginning of monsoon brings the most unusual collage of natural elements in Ponmudi. The sight of sun peeping through the clouds and the mist passing through this tunnel of light with the mountain peaks in the dim background is a treat to your senses. The flora and fauna around give a perfect bass note to this symphony of nature.

Weekends can be a disappointing experience though. The sex starved men, smelling of cheap brandy, can be quite a rickety herd. If you are with the family, stay away. If you are alone watch them from a distance and ponder over a topic; ‘social conditioning and its effect on personality’.

Ponmudi does not have many accommodation options. The KTDC resort looks very good from afar but does not look good from near. I am sure it will deteriorate further if you go inside. Nevertheless Ponmudi has many other compelling reasons for one to go there.

Do not hurry around in Ponmudi. Park your vehicle and take a stroll. Talk to locals. Stop by the places that offer panoramic views. There are enough of them. Fill your lungs with the air that smells of clove and tea. The place is bedecked with a rich variety of plants and flowers. When you come back to your mundane life, you will feel how high you have been when you were in Ponmudi.