Areekkal Waterfalls and Kochareekkal Caves: Through the clandestine cloughs of Piravam
PART 1 Another of those boring sundays came by and I was in no mood for rest...Kerala is in no way short of tourist paradises. In fact, my hometown Kottayam is just a stone's throw away from many popular tourist spots of Kerala including Kumarakom, Alappuzha and Vagamon...But I was in a spirit for exploration and wanted to visit somewhere relatively unknown.. So I set out towards the sleepy little town of Piravom..Nestled within the banks of the Muvattupuzha river, the town easily resembled any other borough of Kerala... Further north of Piravom, I came across the village junction of Pampakuda where a dilapidated yet maintained signboard told me to take a right towards Areekkal waterfalls. A few more kilometres inwards and I was already at the small junction which served as the nurture point for Areekkal waterfalls. There is a parking space and a ticket counter from where I purchased tickets for the falls. A neatly stone-laid stairway accompanied by handles took me towards t...