Malampuzha Dam Travel Guide

Some of  the things in life are really very memorable and leave a lasting impression in your mind. Kerala, God’s own country is one such place which boasts of a beauty only very few would resist. While here in the land of Kerala, Palakkad is a place which is frequented by all tourists just for the fact that it gives you the chance to go around the place and feel blessed to be in the most pristine surroundings.

In Palakkad, you get to see the best combination of scenic beauty and traditional south Indian culture. With facilities for perfect amusement and recreation and the ideal surrounding for an enjoyable vacation, Palakkad gives you a chance to experience the best in Kerala. Malampuzha is one such place which would expose you to ultimate travel luxuries. Malampuzha a small town here is in the base of the majestic Western Ghats and is named from the River Malampuzha and is a verdant town that is today a major attraction for all tourists. The trekking paths here are very popular and people normally come here just to bask in the scenic ambience so typical of this place. Malampuzha is around 10 km from the Palakkad town so provides ideal getaway experiences for all those who live here and for all those who come to this part of the world. River Malampuzha is a tributary of the River Bharatapuzha which is the longest river of the state of Kerala.

Loaded with such background, it was but obvious that I would head towards Malampuzha Dam when I went to Palakkad in Kerala. Palakkad being my place of visit during the vacations in my childhood, I was quite excited to take my children around when I had been to this place some time back. We drove down to Malampuzha and saw the best scenic sights on the way. The palm trees that dot the entire state of Kerala lend beauty to the tired eye of the traveler and he suddenly jumps to life and looks forward to more such sights.

Soon we were at the dam site. With beautiful gardens and interesting amusement parks dominating the reservoir I was quite amused to see the glee and intrigue on my children’s faces. They seemed to seep in the new ambience with more verve and had a lot of questions raised in their minds. The dam looked majestic and simply mesmerizing. The sights around the garden like the rock garden and the aquarium were very awe inspiring.

Next we visited the ropeway. This ropeway took us on an aerial tour of the entire park .The specialty of this ropeway is that only 50 people can walk on this. . We saw the sculpture of the Yakshi which was sculptured by the famous Kerala sculptor Kanai Kunhiraman. Malampuzha also has motor boat and rowboat cruises.

The rock garden here in Malampuzha is also a place which normally tourists visit. Made by Padmashree Nek chand of Chandigarh, the rock garden has a telescopic tower which gives great aerial views and then has a Japanese garden which is built in Japanese style. This garden has a great collection of models of flowers and plants using embroidery thread. There is a road train which takes you round the garden.

A great scenic paradise, this offered a lot of travel pleasure as we suddenly were thrown into a surrounding of verdant enclosures. The saddest thing here was that the park looked untidy because of all the rubbish that the tourists threw here. So one could see broken bangles, waste materials and plastic substances all littered around and making the park look very ill maintained. Efforts are now being taken apparently to keep the park clean and to ensure that no one litters the place around. Hence due respect is given to the sculptor Padamasree Neck Chand Saini who built this rock garden and who already has another rock garden in Chandigarh to his credit.

With the nearest railhead as Palakkad and the nearest airport at Coimbatore, Malampuzha is not a place that is not easily accessible by road too. A very popular picnic spot it vies for attention as compared to the Azhiyar Dam which has more scenic sights. Yet the Malampuzha Dam is on the itinerary of people who visit Palakkad  who want to have the best of this part of the world.

We then went to the aquarium here which is another interesting place. It is constructed in the form of a fish and has the best collections of fish across the country. The snake park here is also very popular. Lying next to the Malampuzha Dam and garden, the Snake Park has a lot of snake species stored.

The Malampuzha Dam has a height of around 6066 feet and is believed to be the largest such irrigation reservoir in the state of Kerala. With an 1849 meter long masonry dam and a 220 meter long earthen dam, this is a reservoir that can hold around 8000 sq m of water. There are two canal systems which serve the purpose of providing water in the region of Palakkad. These canal systems also help in the irrigation process. With the background of the Western Ghats, the Malampuzha garden provides great tourist pleasures.