Nilgiri Hills; Coonoor to Ooty by train

We leave the hotel early (7:15am) to travel to Coonoor in the Nilgiri Hills. It is a spectacular drive, with many sharp hairpin turns, as we ascend the Western Ghats towards Coonoor (1,700m). Coonoor is a hill station known for its tea estates and coffee plantations.

From Coonoor, we take the Nilgiri Mountain Railway to Ooty (another hill station); it was built by the British in the 19th century to negotiate the difficult mountain terrain and dense green forest between the two hill stations (the original train line from Mettupalayam ended at Coonoor). There are many fabulous views as we take this scenic journey to Ooty, rising from 1,700m to 2,200m above sea level and a travelling distance of 12 miles (see captions on photos for details).

We get off at Ooty (see next post).Read more