Ooty - Tamilnadu
| Other Tourist Places of Tamilnadu |
|| | | | |
| | |
|
|
Udhagamandalam (Ooty), the capital of Nilgiri district, is popularly known as the "Queen of hill stations' among the tourist circuits. It is situated at a distance of 105 km away from Coimbatore. It is believed that the name Nila, has been in use for over 800 years since, the King of the Hoysalas Vishnu Vardhana, who ruled from 1104 to 1141 AD seized the Nilgiris Plateau. His general Ponisia recorded this fact in 1117 AD with mention of Todas. The name Nilgiri was due to the blue haze, which envelops the range with most distant hills of considerable size.
This Nilgiri territory came into possession of the East India Company as part of the ceded lands, held by Tipu Sultan, by the treaty of Srirangapatnam in 1799. The establishment of numerous tea estates made Ooty famous. Lofty mountains, dense forest, sprawling grasslands and miles and miles of tea gardens greet the passengers on most routes.
|
Tourism
Botanical Gardens: Botanical gardens are a major tourist attraction for those who visit Ooty, one of the most popular hill stations of the state. It covered total area of 50-acre and located on the lower slopes of Doddabetta peak, which is the highest point in Ooty.In the year 1848, Marquis of Tweeddale established these gardens.
The gardens are formally filled with lily ponds and there are clipped bushes in the form of elephants, with raised trunks. Here one can find a thousand different species of plants including some thirty types of eucalyptus in these gardens. There is also 20 million old fossilized tree trunk. Towards the eastern part of the garden there is a wooden house made of logs known as "Toda Mund", which provides an excellent view.
Ooty Lake: At the distance of 1-km there is an artificial lake with a charming look, which was formed by Mr. John Sullivan, the then Collector of Coimbatore in 1824.
Doddabetta: Doddabetta is the highest peak with total height of 2623 meters in the Nilgiris, which is located about 10-km from Ooty. It is a beautiful place lying between the junction of the Western and Eastern Ghats and offers a beautiful view of the Nilgiri hill ranges. It is enclosed by dense Sholas.
Deer Park: It is located at a distance of 1-km from the Lake which is worth visiting.
How to reach OOty
By Air: It is the nearest airport located in Coimbatore which is 105 km from Ooty.
By Rail: Ooty is on the narrow gauge railway station in Mettupalayam (47 km), which is directly connected to Coimbatore and Chennai. The toy train also very famous, itconnects Ooty with Mettupalayam and Coonore.
By Road: A good network of roads and national highways are available here which connect Ooty with all major towns and cities. There are regular bus services also available to and from Coimbatore, Trichy, Bangalore, Madurai, Kanyakumari, Mysore, Palghat, Calicut, Tirupati and other important destinations in South India.
|
|
|
|