Monsoon Series : Paithamala_a captivating hill station

Its monsoon time of the year. My favorite season as nature will be at its best – the slopes and mountains covered with lavish greenery, lakes flooding with muddy rain water, and the waterfalls turn glorious due to ample rains. 

Unfortunately, we are locked down at home and cannot venture out to enjoy the same as we all are braving through a tough pandemic. While working at home as I peep through the window of my home, I watch rains with strong chilly winds, nose buds get alerted with the mud smell and trees swaying in this beautiful phenomenon of nature. All this was indeed provoking me to write something on monsoon. 

My last monsoon diary was on Jog Falls which is indeed the best place to visit during monsoons in Karnataka. At this time of the year, I could think of yet another best monsoon trips I had with my family few years back– Paithalmala. But back then I hadn’t started my journey into travel blogging hence didn’t pen it down. Its time now J.

Paithalmala Hill Station is one of the best hill station in Kannur, Kerala. Off-late since last 1-2 years Paithalmala trek has become one of the famous trekking destinations among trek enthusiasts. But back then we were not aware. My brother-in-law researched this place and we all were told that it’s a surprise monsoon holiday. So kudos to him for finding out unique unexplored places for all our family outings and giving us the best experiences till date.

We had booked Paithal resort for a weekend stay, which had good ratings as per TripAdvisor. Journey time by car from Bangalore to Paithalmala is roughly around 6.5 hours with one stop over. We started in the morning at around 6 am and plan was to reach there by lunch time.

The adventurous part was the drive to the resort from the main road. Roads that lead to the resort is very bad and rains have spoilt it completely. Make sure you drive as slowly as possible as access to mechanic or service station is beyond reach from here. We reached in the afternoon and view from the resort was breathtaking which really subdued all the exhaustion of our journey.

Resort is surrounded by lush green hills and clouds pass by as if we are just above them in the sky. We had lunch at resort only because there are no restaurants nearby. Another option is to have it on your way. Food is not that great here but manageable. Amenities in rooms are good for a one night’s stay. We spent the rest of the evening in the resort only since it was raining heavily. Whenever rain stopped, we would venture out around the resort and click pictures of the mesmerizing views around.

Next day morning we set off on our trek to Paithalmala Hill. Road to the hill was very muddy due to rains hence we had to put our steps very slowly and carefully. It was drizzling continuously hence we had taken one umbrella each from the resort only.

But the climb is not that steep. In trekkers terminology it’s a slow to moderate trek. According to me it was a total 6 km trek(3 km uphill and same downhill). Easy climb for all age groups – my dad and my 6-year-old niece were the first ones to reach topJ. Trekking path is amidst thick forest so be careful about leeches. Also please ensure you carry enough water and snacks with you since nothing is available at the peak.

Finally we reached a plain grassland and that sight was simply breathtaking. There were few rocks so we all chose one for each one of us and sat there to absorb the nature around us. The view of the lush greenery from this spot is something words can’t explain. In addition to that, the mist and the fog covered areas around are going to leave you shivering, so make sure that you take some warm clothes with you.

From here you can see a path going straight towards the view point. 

This view point is guarded by metal railings for safety purposes. This point is amazing with lush greenery around and thick dense clouds passing by. It’s an awesome feeling to wait for the clouds to pass by and then get an enchanting view of the Western Ghats.

This is a quaint spot in fact since back then this was not explored by many people. So there were hardly one or two trekking groups there. We clicked few pictures and started descending since we had to head back to Bangalore post lunch.

As a family if you want to explore this place, then I would suggest make your bookings in Paithal Resort which is the closest spot for this trek. You can also enjoy your stay here with mesmerizing views and Paithalmala Trek as a bonus for a relaxing monsoon weekend J