Holiday In Coorg

“Coorg is carpeted with plantations. In season, the whole place smells just like a coffee shop.”

Indian coffee today is acknowledged as one of the finest mild coffees in the world. With the tropical climate, high altitude, sunny slopes, good rainfall and rich soils, India has consistently produced and exported high quality coffees for over 150 years. Indian coffees are noted for their blue colour, cleanness of beans and fine liquoring qualities. These qualities also add richness, strength and flavours to the coffee. Coorg, situated at a height of 3500 feet above sea level is ideally suited for coffee growing. The Coorg coffee estates produce some of the world’s best coffees with a variety of plants like Arabica & Robusta. Coffee is a cash crop. Coffee growing is classified as an industry. It is a big industry of Coorg.

In March and April it is coffee blossom time in Coorg. Stretches of these snow-white flowers waft a heady fragrance and their magnificence is an unforgettable sight. When the blossoms turn into berries, the bushes are cropped. The cherry-red fruit is then pulped, the separate coffee seeds dried and sent to the curing works. Stay on a coffee plantation can provide for a heady first-hand experience.

Besides coffee, cardamom, pepper, paddy, orange, timber and honey form the major products of this district. A variety of trees like rosewood, teakwood, silver oak, firewood etc, are grown. Tea, rubber, Arecanut, coconut, citrus fruits, pineapple, papaya, plantain, piggery and poultry are also available.

If you happen to be a keen golfer, Virajpet is where you should head. Situated in the heartland of the country’s Coffee Gardens, Coorg Golf Links takes you a few decades back and brings you the nostalgia of a bygone era (with the luxury of time at your disposal). Currently a 9 hole, 3000 yards, par 35 course it is being extended to a full 18 hole layout complete with challenging fairways reaching the top of the hills. Golf in Coorg country is sheer bliss what with the beautiful climate and lush green lawns. For people accompanying golfers but not too keen on the golf, a restaurant is present where they could chat up the local Coorgs and catch the latest gossip.

Coorg is also famous for its spectacular wildlife sanctuary, Nagarahole being one of the best habitats of the Asian elephant plus a myriad of other animals. You could spot a wild elephant or two lumbering through the forest, and maybe the elusive Giant Malabar Squirrel. Nagarhole has the country's finest deciduous forests and is home to tigers, leopards, elephants, panthers, sloth bears, bisons, barking deer, sambar, Gaur, Chital, and Langur. Crocodiles and over a hundred species of birds too can be found.

The Coorg hills are a trekker's paradise offering enchanting views of green-topped hills, downs and lush green valleys. Hiking, cross-country, or simply motoring down mountain trails in Coorg, the visitor encounters panoramic views of the morning mist rolling down thickly wooded hill slopes and the undulating paddy fields and neat rows of coffee bushes resplendent under the blue skies.
Besides the abundance of lush green expanse one can find rosewood, silver oak and cascading waterfalls. The favourite places for trekking are the Nagarhole National Park and the Irpu and Abbi Falls. Another area for trekking is near one of the most beautiful temples at Bhagamandala, the place where the Cauvery, after descending the Brahmagiri mountain, meets with the Sujoythi and the Kanike rivers. Built in the multi-roof Kerala style it is a charming place of worship.

Visitors can trek to the top of Tadeyendamol, the highest peak in the region and view the Arabian Sea in the distance. Alternatively, one may simply follow the mountain trails dotted with little shrines—some beside waterfalls and others on the banks of rivers.

One of the few places in the world, where one can actually hook Ladyfish and Mahaseer- some 80 years old and weighing in at 46 kg! But just remember- you have to release the Mahaseer back in to the river. You can eat the ladyfish, though.

The River Kaveri is the prime Angling or Sportfishing River. The banks of the river are a good place to fish for Mahseer. The Coorg Wildlife Association, Madikeri provides information on fishing license and guides for Mahseer fishing. Fishing licenses are mandatory for all eager anglers, so do visit the designated official before you throw your line into the water, or you just might find yourself being hauled off and penalised. In most cases, fishing licenses are not issued during the monsoon (when most fish species breed); in addition, most licenses are issued for only a specified stretch of water. Furthermore, there are stipulations that all fish caught must be released into the water, and anglers are restricted to a specified number of fish per day. This is important since the Mahaseer caught too needs to be released back into the water. Ladyfish fishing is also another option that can be considered.