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KOCHI: Two stunning waterfalls, a 14-km jeep safari by means of the tea gardens, and in case you are a biking fanatic, a 5-10km experience (which might prolong as much as even 20km) awaits you alongside the bumpy roads with some brief climbs. For the tea lover in you, there’s a tour of a tea manufacturing facility that can make you respect the historical past and making of the tea. 

Welcome to ‘Misty Mountain Plantation Resort’ at Kuttikanam, a three-hour drive from Kochi. The 600-acres personal property in probably the most stunning hill stations in Kerala affords many points of interest for the journey bug in you. The as soon as summer season palace to the Regent Queen of Travancore now homes a seven-room plantation resort on the banks of the stream from a test dam. Micheal A Kalliyalil, a planter, had bought the property within the Nineteen Sixties and now his household runs the resort. 

The safari experience, which takes you to the ‘Misty Mountain View Level’, affords spectacular views of the rugged mountain, huge plains, subtropical forests and rolling clouds. “On a transparent day, we might see so far as the backwaters of Alappuzha from the mountain prime,” says Amal V Nair, our younger information, who drove the Mahindra Jeep Commander MUV. 

Although tea dominates the 600-acre space plot, different spices corresponding to pepper, cardamom, cloves are additionally grown on the property. Then,  fruits corresponding to mangosteen, java apple are there so that you can be plucked and revel in as you are taking a stroll by means of the property.

Operations supervisor Sanjith P Nair tells us that the resort is slowly selecting up enterprise after the lull of the previous 12-18 months following the pandemic outbreak. “Individuals en path to Munnar from Kottayam additionally stops by on the resort for a break right here,” he says.

For the adventure-minded, the ‘Misty Mountain Expertise’ cycle experience takes you on a tour of the tea and spices that make the Kuttikanam-Peermade space well-known.  On the ‘Misty Mountain Peermade Tea’ manufacturing facility, its CEO Joseph A Kalliavayalil welcomes us. “Right here, we make orthodox tea. In orthodox tea, each seven to 10 days contemporary, younger, moist leaves are plucked and rolled. We get contemporary aromas because the cells rupture.

That is largely taken with out milk,” he explains. The tea manufacturing facility, which is simply three years outdated, can produce round 12,000-15,000 kg/day. “If it rains, there gained’t be enough amount and there gained’t be work for 3 days. If the solar comes out, there might be work repeatedly for 20 hours. It’s actually unpredictable,” Joseph provides.  Within the tea tasting, one can relish numerous grades of tea produced within the manufacturing facility. As we mentioned goodbye to the hill station and our great hosts, we now have promised to return quickly, simply to savour the expertise as soon as once more.

(The  correspondent was the visitor of the Misty Mountain Plantation Resort )