South Indian state of Kerala, named as one of the ten paradises of the world by National Geographic Traveler, is famous especially for its ecotourism initiatives and breathtaking backwaters. Its unique culture, traditions and nature have made Kerala one of the most popular tourist destinations in the world. The mighty Western Ghats in Kerala intimately called by the people as Sahyadri, has been there even before the first buds of civilization sprouted sheltering its life and guarding its riches. It could be rightly called as one of the oldest ecosystems in the world. Being one of the eight hottest hotspots of biological diversity in the world, the Western Ghats is home a wide variety of flora and fauna. This oldest ecosystem in the world holds many hidden gems including some hidden waterfalls which are less know and explored.
What's Ahead
Importance of Western Ghats in Kerala
About 40% of Western Ghats ranges are in Kerala and among 44 rivers of Kerala 41 originates from the Western Ghats. The district of Idukki which lies in the Western Ghats of Kerala is the second largest in the state but has the lowest population density as a vast area is covered by forests. There are 12 rivers originating from the mighty mountains of the Idukki district which forms a series of water falls on its way down to the valley. There are many popular waterfalls in these regions which are frequented by the visitors and are well documented in the tourism map of Kerala. But many of the enchanting cascading showers are hidden by the wooded forest of Western Ghats.
Me along with two of my friends who are frequent explorers of such hidden gems were on a mission to document some of the less explored and mesmerizing hidden waterfalls in Idukki district which are not popular among the tourist other than the local population. One thing we noticed along the way is that these places are even marked wrongly on online maps which can lead the travelers to get lost easily. So may this article be a lodestar for the travel exploration enthusiast to these beauties.
The Location
The actual journey will start once we reach the village of Yendayar, which share the border of Kottayam and Idukki district. The road through the rubber plantations and forest which leads to Urumbikkara top station from where originates the Manimala river which flows almost 90kms west and empties into the Vembanad lake. Our mission was to climb, locate and document the beautiful waterfalls on its route so that it will be unveiled to the world for the travelers to enjoy these mesmerizing natural beauties.
Hidden history
A piece of hidden history about the place before proceeding to the hidden waterfalls. The history of this place is all about an anecdote about an Irishman named JJ Murphy you’ve probably never heard of. Unfortunately, many in the country don’t know this legend.
John Joseph Murphy, a planter who arrived in India at a very early age in the early 20th century, set up India’s first commercially successful rubber plantation in Kerala. Thus, he is named as Kerala’s rubber man. In 1897 Murphy migrated to south India to join a company for recruiting planters from Ceylon (present day Sri Lanka) for the development of tea on the hills. After serving for few years, he strikes out on his own with a cardamom estate and later he expanded his estate as the first of its size in the region. But he wanted more and turned his attention to rubber.
Murphy along with three other planters successfully attempted a rubber plantation in Kerala on the banks of Periyar river in Alwaye. Two years later he went solo and acquired land in Mundakayam area in the uninhabited dense forest which he later named as Yendeyar in memory of his mother passed away around the time when Murphy bought the land. Unlike the British he wanted to give his estate a local name which was ‘En Thayar’ in Tamil language means ‘my mother’. It is here that rubber was first planted commercially in India by Murphy. When the demand of rubber grew during the second world war, murphy took advantage of it and bought more estates.
He employed a huge number of workforces in the plantation industry from the local community and he was a pioneer in the labor welfare. he took care of the in a way that was unheard of in those times. Murphy even sent his workmen’s children far away cities for higher education at his own expense. He was fondly called ‘Murphy Sayippu’ by the entire town. Murphy went back to his hometown in Ireland and UK for the last time in 1938 and even after retirement he chose to remain in India among the people, he loved to call his own. He died on 9th May 1957 and was laid to rest in St. Joseph’s church cemetery at Yendayar, a town named and raised by him.
Many memorials were built for Murphy such as the JJ Murphy memorial Higher secondary school at Yendayar, The JJ Murphy Research Centre at India’s rubber park among which the latest being the memorial built for JJ Murphy in 2013 in the same cemetery he was laid to rest by the Rubber board of India. Today Kerala accounts for 90 percent of India’s rubber production. Leaving the Yendayar on its background, waterfalls are situated in between a small village Wembly, which is named by an adventurous planter from England Mr. A.D. Vincent after his birth place of Wembely in London, and the Urumbikkara hills. We kicked off the journey remembering these legends following the footsteps they laid ahead.
1. Hidden waterfalls: Wembly/Lower Urumbikkara waterfalls
Lower Urumbikkara waterfalls in Idukki aka Webmly waterfalls is the first one on the way. Even though very close to the road it is hidden from the plain sight by a wall of rubber trees. As the water fall is inside a private plantation property the only way down there is to climb through the earthwork on the road side to the plantation.
Location Coordinates: 9.60661, 76.90393
Location Map
2. Hidden waterfalls in Idukki: Vellappara Waterfalls
Vellappara Waterfall
Vellappara waterfalls is one of the best hidden gems in this area which is just less than 10 mins away from the Lower Urumbikkara falls. Situated inside a private plantation property it is one of the hardest to spot also. There is a non-paved trail leading inside the plantation to the waterfall. Only 4×4 trucks will go through this rocky uneven trail but the best option is to walk it down to enjoy the nature around. Vellappara falls is also one of the tallest falling from a height of 300 to 400 feet.
Vellappara waterfalls in Idukki is marked wrong in Online maps so following the map just with the name will never take you to the destination. Instead load the coordinates given here to your map and navigate.
Location Coordinates: 9.60656,76.90394
Location Map
3. Hidden waterfalls in Idukki: Vadakkemala Waterfalls
Among the four Vadakkemala waterfalls is the easier to spot even without getting out of the vehicle. Further following the road up hill from the Vellappara falls for a few more kilometers there is a mud paved road deviation towards the left from the concreate path. Following this path will bring us to a bridge from which we can see the beautiful Vadakkemala waterfalls on the right side.
Vadakkemala waterfalls has two drops here. There is a steel walking bridge constructed across the second drop to have an even closer experience of the first one. But there is no any proper way to the bridge apart from the rocky stairs in the beginning which starts behind the small temple, the Vadakkemala Mahadeva temple, on the road side. It flows further underneath the bridge downhill to join the Lower Urumbikkara falls.
Vadakkemala falls is wrongly marked as Vellappara waterfalls in the maps, so the best option is to search for Vadakkemala Mahadeva temple in the maps for the actual location or just type in the below coordinates.
Location Coordinates: 9.60867,76.90873
Location Map
4. Hidden waterfalls in Idukki: Mukkulam Waterfalls
Mukkulam waterfalls in Idukki is comparatively the smallest one in the list but the views along the way are breathtaking. The road will get narrower and are crazy steep. Along the way there are few hairpin curves and on the third hairpin curve there is an off-road path going to the left. Only trucks with higher ground clearance can go though this road as there are many rocks on the way. It’s just less than a kilometer from there to the waterfalls and will never regret a decision to walk there.
The green carpeted mountains and the wilderness around will take your breath away. Further down the path there is a small bridge from which the mesmerizing view of Mukkulam waterfalls can be enjoyed. There are a few steps for this fall with are further up hill and unfortunately, we need to go through some private property to reach there which is not recommended if you are not with someone who are familiar with the area.
Online maps marked Mukkulam waterfalls in Idukki also wrongly. Searching the name will take you to an entirely different location. Follow the coordinates and enjoy.
Location Coordinates: 9.60992,76.91304
Location Map
Best time to visit
Monsoon is the best time to visit to enjoy the mesmerizing beauty of these waterfalls. During this time the waterfalls in Idukki will be falling with its full capacity and the milky white water are enthralling. But bathing or taking a dip in the water pools are not recommended during the monsoon season as there are many hidden dangers including deep water holes and slippery rocks.
Two good friends of me made this journey and documentation possible with their vast knowledge about this location. Both of them are avid travelers and explorers of such hidden gems. Visit the blog post Wembly- the land of waterfalls by my fellow traveler and blogger for more images and information about similar places.
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