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Wildlife Tour of Kerela
Duration : 5 nights and 6 days
Destinations: Thattekad Bird Sanctuary, Munnar, Chinnar Wildlife Sanctuary, Periyar, Kumarokam, Alleppey


Detailed day by day itinerary



Day 1: Cochin - Thattekad Bird Sanctuary
Arrive at Cochin airport / station. Pick up and drive towards Thattekad Bird Sanctuary Reach Thattekad and check in wildlife resort. Freshen and have your lunch. Later proceed for birding trek. This bird sanctuary is a peninsular land of 25 sq. km, formed between the branches of the river Periyar. The avifauna includes both resting indigenous birds and water birds. The most notable of the indigenous birds are Malabar grey hornbill, grey jungle fowl, heron, egret, jungle myna, wood pecker, rose winged and blue winged parakeet. Rare birds like Ceylon frog-mouth, rose billed roller can also be sighted. Get back to the resort. Evening enjoy dinner over campfire. Overnight at resort in Thattekad Bird Sanctuary.

Day 2: Thattekad Bird Sanctuary - Munnar
Early morning proceed for birding. After breakfast drive for Munnar. Reach Munnar and check in to hotel. Refresh and have lunch. Later in the afternoon proceed for birding tour towards Top Station. The shola-grassland eco- system so typical of Munnar is home to large numbers of birds, many of them endemic. sightings of endemics like the Nilgiri Wood Pigeon, Nilgiri Pipit, Greyheaded Bulbul, Black & Orange Flycatcher, Broadtailed Grassbird, Crimsonbacked Sunbird, Greybreasted Laughing Thrush, Nilgiri Flycatcher, Indian Rufous Babbler, Whitebellied Blue Flycatcher, Whitebellied Shortwing, Whitebellied Treepie & the Wyanad Laughing Thrush can be the highlights of a birding trip to Munnar & surroundings. Evening return to hotel. Dinner. Overnight at hotel in Munnar.

Day 3: Munnar - Chinnar Wildlife Sanctuary
Early morning after breakfast drive 60 km to reach Chinnar Wildlife Sanctuary. Start your birding trek. The altitude varies from 500 to 2400 metres and one can sense the drastic variation in the climate and vegetation, since the gradients are quite steep. One can easily sight Large Grey Babbler, White-bellied Woodpecker, White-naped Woodpecker, Lesser Whitethroat and Jerdon's Baza, Rain Quail, Blue-breasted Quail, Speckled Piculet, Blue-bearded Bee-eater, Sirkeer Malkoha, Oriental Scops Owl, Eurasian Eagle Owl, Black Baza, White-rumped Shama, Streak-throated Swallow and Grey-breasted Laughing Thrush. Get back to Munnar for lunch. Afternoon is free for boating at Munnar Lake and also relish one ayurvedic massage. The massage will ease your nerves and prepare you for the rest of the jungle trip. Evening return to hotel. Dinner. Overnight at hotel in Munnar.

Day 4: Munnar - Periyar
Early morning after breakfast proceed for Periyar. Reach Periyar and check in hotel. Proceed for birding inside the Periyar Tiger Reserve. The only accessible area of mud flats is immediately above the small check dam near the head works on the edge of Kumili. In deciduous forest around Thekkady the commonest species in mixed foraging flocks are, in descending order Racket-tailed Drongo, Scarlet Minivet, Velvetfronted Nuthatch, Bronzed Drongo, Grey Tit, Goldenback Woodpeckers, Whitebellied Tree Pie, Jungle Babbler, Indian Rufous Tree Pie, Yellowbrowed Bulbul, Large Wood Shrike, Ashy Drongo, Small Minivet, Goldfronted Chloropsis, Small Green Barbet, Flowerpeckers. Get back to the hotel for lunch. Later in the afternoon proceed for boating on Periyar Lake. Bird watching will produce a list of about 20 easily seen lake species and time spent on the grassy edges of the creeks near Thekkady may add half-a-dozen more. Evening return to hotel. Dinner. Overnight at hotel in Periyar.

Day 5: Periyar - Kumarokam
Early morning after breakfast, drive towards Kumarokam. Reach Kumarokam and board houseboat. The main birding areas at Kumarakom include the the KTDC complex (unofficially called the Kumarakom Bird Sanctuary), which was previously known as Baker estate, in honour of the Englishman who developed this into a sanctuary for birds early in the last century. It harbours large populations of breeding darters, Purple Herons, Little cormorants, Indian Shag and Pond Heron. Areas like Kaipuzha Muttu, Pathiramanal, the Paddy Fields around Kumarakom, Narakathara, Thollayiram Kayal, Poothapandi Kalyal, and Palluruthy Roost are also excellent locations for birding. The ten most abundant species recorded are the Lesser Whistling teal, Little Cormorants, Whiskered Terns, Pond Herons, Intermediate Egrets, Indian Shag, Cattle Egrets, Purple Heron, Little Egret, and the Cotton Teal. Lunch and dinner on board houseboat. Overnight on houseboat.

Day 6: Alleppey - Pathiramal - Cochin
In the morning you reach Alleppey and proceed towards the Pathiramal Island. Pathiramanal,a small island on the backwaters of Alappuzha,is a haven for hundreds of rare birds migrating from different parts of the world. Breakfast on board. You deboard from the houseboat and drive towards Cochin. Drop to Cochin airport / station for onward journey.