In Search of a Hidden Waterfall

Hello there!

I hope you guys are doing well. We just got back from a big fat South Indian wedding and our hearts are so full for one of our closest friends who tied the knot with a beautiful ceremony! That obviously didn’t leave me a lot of time to tell you guys about our last day in Kodaikanal where we explored a hidden waterfall!

On our last day in the village- Poombarai, Kodaikanal, we were all set and packed up to catch our bus from the town. It was a late evening bus, so we checked out of our room and headed to the café for a late breakfast. Our agenda for the day was to simply hang out with the new friends and to take things easy, enjoy the cool breeze and the breathtaking view.

However, that plan was short lived when the gang suggested that we go exploring the mountainside. It had rained quite heavily the previous night and that had formed these streams of water pouring down the rocky terrain. We spoke to the manager at Zostel who confirmed that there would be multiple smaller waterfalls but if we wanted to fully immerse ourselves in the waterfall experience, there is one close by on a private property. There is no location for it, and it definitely would not show up on Google maps, but he managed to give us vague directions, and we decided that we would figure it out as we went.

The waterfall was supposedly “hidden” as it existed within a private compound and there were no straight roads or even a path leading to it. The Zostel manager informed us that the intern there had discovered it while trying to introduce a new trek, and hence the name ‘Hidden Waterfalls’.

The hike was around 4KM (2.4 Miles) and we had no idea what to expect since there wasn’t a proper path leading to it. We went through some beautiful landscapes and as we chit chatted and moved forward, we found ourselves deviating from the road and entering a field or a private compound.

We kept moving and at one point saw a steep boulder and as per the directions we received, we were meant to climb down and keep going lower till we saw a waterfall. It felt like we were lost till we reached a checkpoint where the landowner’s wife and her son were seated on a big boulder. A person from the group who spoke the local language had a word with them and they said for 200 bucks per person, we could visit the falls. Of course, it was not a registered business- but it was their land, and we were technically trespassing- so we paid them. They were kind to all of us, guided us with further directions and told us we could spend as much time there as we liked (because we paid, of course).

As we got closer, the path got narrower and rough but at the end we could hear the loud gushing sounds of water falling and we rushed towards the sound and voilà!

A small yet beautiful waterfall in the middle of nowhere and nothing but lush greenery all around us.
Many members from the group decided to get some of the ice-cold water on themselves but I refused to get in since I had no intentions to get wet but that backfired sometime later! More on that to follow!

The Zostel staff has adopted 2 stray dogs who they feed regularly and these dogs would guard the area for them. These dogs have grown a liking towards all the guests that come and go. Most of the guests who visit this place tend to make a stop at this waterfall and the dogs have made a tradition to follow them to the falls, relax and then come back when everyone does.
Since they joined our group this time, I got some nice shots of them playing around the falls which I found really cute.

After spending a good 30-45 minutes, we decided to head back and as we began walking back to the Zostel, not too far away from the falls began the mighty rain.
We were drenched in a matter of minutes!! (So much for me not getting into the falls!)
With no other options available, we continued to walk back to the hotel in the heavy downpour and by the time we reached the hostel, the rain actually stopped! It felt like Mother Nature either tested us or mocked us (or maybe both).

Most of us had already checked out of our rooms, but the hostel was kind enough to let us dry up and change into dry clothes. We then grabbed some steaming hot khichdi for lunch and the not-so-hungry-ones grabbed a piping hot chocolate. Once we were all set to leave, we captured this image which will always remain a core memory!

Although the weather did not have our back with the constant rains, it was a pleasant break from the brutal summer awaiting us back home. We reached our bus stop and had some time to kill, so we wandered the markets and grabbed a piece of Kodaikanal to take back home with us.

Captured glimpses of the village on our way back to the town.

Some fresh produce and a bit of their home-made chocolates

All in all, a 10/10 trip with some fun, energetic people was just what we needed to break free from the monotony of everyday life. A year later, we still look back very fondly to this trip and can’t wait to go back there again!