SocialMaharaj Technology, Travel, Food et al
Related Articles
So as mentioned in my previous post, there are a lot of lakes in and around Ooty. The nearest one being the Ooty Lake that gets the maximum footfall. Located in the town, the Ooty lake is mostly crowded. Hence giving this place a miss didn’t hurt me much. I did visit the Ooty Lake but didn’t spend much time there. Apart from the Ooty Lake, there are others lakes namely Pykara, Avalanche, Emerald and Upper Bhavani. And trust me all of these lakes provide breathtaking views. There were a couple of reasons why I didn’t visit all the lakes in Ooty:
- All these lakes are in opposite directions and since I wasn’t having my own vehicle, traveling to all these places would have burned a hole in my wallet.
- Since I had only two days on hand, I couldn’t afford to spend 4 half-days in visiting all lakes. Hence I decided to visit Pykara Lake in Ooty.
Why you should Visit Pykara Lake in Ooty
Apart from the two reasons I mentioned above, there was another reason why I opted to vist Pykara Lake in Ooty and not the others. The reason to travel to Pykara lake was that, I could cover other places too that were on the way. Places of Interest like the Shooting Point (9th / 6th mile spots), Pine Forest, M&N Chocolate Museum are all on the way to Pykara. So visiting Pykara allowed me to visit these places too.
Road Trip to Pykara Lake in Ooty
Pykara Lake is about 25Kms from the city center. Since we had hired a cab, we took roughly 45mins to reach the spot. The roads are very good for a major part of the journey. Only the roads near the lake are in poor condition, but that I guess was because of the rain. Off roading is a good idea in Ooty though 😛 We traversed our way through thick forests.
On the way, there was this strange patch were we saw all the trees in orangish-red color. Being from science background, all of us were like, “Bhai yahan Iron Oxide kuch toh bhi hoga...” (Brother, there must be Iron or Stuff around) BTW I loved clicking photos and I’m sure my Nikon D5200 loved the outing too.
Boating at Pykara Lake in Ooty
Pykara Lake in Ooty is a crowded place especially on Weekends. The lake is beautiful and huge. Surrounded by tall trees and greenery, the Pykara Lake is a lively place. Like any other tourist spot, there is a lot of parking trouble there. However, if you have hired a cab then it ain’t your problem 😛 Pykara lake offers boating services which is utilized by many. There is a huge queue at the counter and at the harbor.
The boating services include 2 main categories. A normal boat with a seating capacity of 8 people that costs Rs 750 for a 20 minute ride. If you are looking for a speed boat ride, that is available at a price of Rs 850 for 20 mins. This is fine if you are traveling in a large group. But if you are traveling solo or as a couple, you will have to tag along with someone else.
The boat ride is good. Because we went during the rainy season, it was drizzling and was freezing cold there. Even though the boats had sign boards that read everyone should we a life jacket, but that was more of a choice. The ride is great and if you have been bitten by the shutterbug, you will find some great photos to capture. So going to Pykara Lake and boating is a must. If you do have the luxury of time, I highly recommended to visit Avalanche. I’m sure that will be a treat to your eyes. So that was all about Pykara Lake in Ooty. Visited already ? How was your experience ? Think I missed out any thing here ? Please mention in the comments below or tweet to me @atulmaharaj
Pykara is really stunning, despite the unruly crowds.
True, Pykara is way too crowded.