A Trip To The Queen of Eastern Ghats — Yercaud
Our bus journey started on Friday, June 17, at around 10p.m from the LiftOff, Bangalore office and lasted until Sunday, June 19. Arrived at the tranquil beauty of Yercaud at 5 a.m. The 32-km loop road has many hairpins turns along the scenic Eastern Ghats, with coffee plantations, spice farms on one side, and hill forests on the other. This was a mesmerizing experience. We got our stay arranged in one of the alluring resorts in Yercaud, Carlton House.
Located in Tamil Nadu, Yercaud is surrounded by some of the most popular tourist destinations in southern India. These include Pondicherry, Kodaikanal, and Coonoor. It is enveloped by the scintillating Shevaroy Hills. The rolling hills are covered in orange and coffee plantations, as well as fruit and spice plantations. The township got its name from the words “Yeri” which means lake and “Kaddu” which means forest. This is perfect, as the township is built around an opulent lake surrounded by forests.
We started our day by deciding on our rooms, and roommates. Sipping our coffee and we explored the property and greenery at Carlton House with a hearty breakfast. We started the activities with a small warm-up meditation/yoga session followed by a few ice breakers. Then we were given different games to build the core strengths of people and teams. Our games involved teamwork activities such as Tug of War, Queen of Sheba, and Passing the Ball. The session was enjoyable and lively, with plenty of group work and good cheer. Everyone participated enthusiastically and had a great time.
After lunch, we toured the only natural lake in South Indian hill station “Emerald Lake ‘’. It’s lovely! The woods around it complemented the view. Later, we went to Kiliyur Falls, which is a beautiful waterfall hidden deep in the forest. After more than 200 narrow and steep flights of stairs, we arrived at this beautiful place and we ended our day with a stunning sunset at “Lady’s Seat”. As folklore goes, a revered British lady once watched the sunset.
For the night we had planned a bonfire and BBQ evening but due to heavy rain and weather conditions we had to cancel the bonfire but we still had an exciting BBQ with lots of chitchat and board games and had hearty conversations with everyone to warm the cold misty night in the woods.
The trip was a rejuvenating experience for the team with the mountain breeze soothing and revitalizing each one. Bringing together the team, creating new bonds and memories to keep intact, until next time.
