HILL STATION
AT
YERCAUD
Yercaud is a hill station in Salem District, in Tamil Nadu, India. It located in the Shevaroys
range of hills in the Eastern Ghats; the Yercaud hill area is called the Shevaroy
Hills.
It is situated at an altitude of 1515 metres
(4970 ft) above sea level, and the highest point in Yercaud is the Servarayan temple,
at 5,326 feet (1,623 m).
Yercaud
is fastly gaining popularity among the locals and foreign tourists. The name
Yercaud is derived from two Tamil words – ‘Yeri’ (lake) and ‘Kadu’ (forest).
Yercaud
is known for its plantations majorly of coffee, orange, jackfruit, guava,
cardamom and black pepper. Coffee is the main produce and was brought to
Yercaud by the Scottish Collector Mr. M. D. Cockburn in 1820 from Africa.
There
is also a reserve forest, which has the woods and wildlife in the original
unexploited state.
Even
though Yercaud is a hill station it never gets extreme temperatures, making it
easier to pack clothes for the tourists and avoid those heavy winter wear which
is difficult to carry.
Apart
from sightseeing tourists can opt for trekking around Yercaud, and if visiting
during the month of May, the Summer Festival is a must see which is a spectacle
consisting of fairs, boat races, flower and dog shows.
Some
of the most popular tourist attractions in Yercaud are Big Lake, Bear's Cave,
Lady's Seat, Gent's Seat and Children's Seat, Arthur's Seat, Anna Park, Botanical
Garden, Montfort School, Servarayan
Temple, Sri Raja
Rajeswari Temple and Tipperary View Point.
By Air
The nearest
airport is at Trichy (165 km). You can also arrive at the Coimbatore Airport and then plan a
further trip to Yercaud via Salem. From the
airport take a cab or a bus to get to Yercaud.
By Train
The nearest
railway station is in Salem (36kms) and Salem Town (33kms). Also there are direct trains to Yercaud
from Chennai, Coimbatore and Bangalore.
By Bus
Yercaud is 190 km
from Coimbatore, 220km from Bangalore and 357kms from Chennai and is well
connected to all these cities through an efficient
road network system. Many buses pass through Yercaud on their way to and
from Salem, which is a mid-size industrial town.
