India - Kalpetta

Next day we took a train, (though there are no nice photos as the double glazed windows were coated in condensation) and then our microbus to the guesthouse we stayed at in Kalpetta. The bus ride up the mountain included a stop for views and monkeys. At the top it was too cloudy and damp to see much, and that evening we had more lightning and heavy rain which the frogs seemed to be quite happy with!

We visited the Edakkal Caves the next day, with their 6000 (stone age) - 500 year old petroglyphs. It was a fairly steep climb up the hill to the cave, but the carvings there were plentiful, clear and interesting! Some of the carvings are geometric shapes, but many are men women and animals. There is even a wheeled cart and an array of weapons.

NB - petroglyphs are carved in stone, geoglyphs are made from ditches or mounds of stones (e.g. the Nazca Lines)

Monkey-huddle!

This was also a great day for birdspotting. Our local guide, Sabu really knew his stuff and had a keen eye.

Shikra

White Cheeked Barbet

Speckled Piculet

Black Eagle

Racket-tailed Drongo

Black-naped Monarch

After the caves we had lunch in a fantastic bakery. A huge variety of baked goods both sweet and savoury, and all incredibly cheap as it's not a tourist shop. While lunching we were visited by a friendly flying mantis which distracted me enough to forget to take any photos of the food.

The afternoon consisted of a walk around the fields near Sabu's home village where we saw a bunch more birds and plants, Sabu taught us how to climb a palm tree, which I managed with very little success, and we visited some local homesteads. All in all a lovely relaxed (if warm) afternoon walk.

Brown capped pygmy woodpecker

Turtleflower

pepper (like black pepper)

Ginormous lemon

Passionflower

Magpie Robin

Sabu blowing bubbles from leaf sap

Sleeping Hibiscus

Rice straw for feeding the cows

Red whiskered bulbul

It was so effortless!

Fern imprint. Technically fern sperm.

Local tribal lady

bees!

Long tailed shrike

As afternoon drew on, we headed on to a jeep safari through the Wayanad tiger sanctuary. We saw some monkeys, locals gathering wild honey, spotted deer and some wild elephants, but unfortunately no tigers.