Kumorakum

Date arrived: 10th January  2024

Date Departed: 13th January 2024

Favourite sight: Kerala Backwaters

Average Cost: £26.33 PPPD

The Kerala Backwaters is the name given to the network of sleepy lakes and canals that lie just in-land from the Arabian Sea coast of Kerala. They are famous for their houseboats, made out of coverted rice-boats, and slow leisurely transport options. The main town in the backwaters is Allepey (also known as Alapuzza) but we'd heard a few reports of overcrowding on the waterways there. Consequently we chose to go to quiet Kumorakum, which is inland on the shores of Lake Vembanad, Kerala's largest lake.

10th January 2024

The bus trip from Thekkady was better than we had feared, especially as it involved descending 1,000M from the hills of Thekkady right down to sea level in Kottayam. We sat at the front of the non-air-conditioned bus, which gave us good visibility, and the absence of glass in the windows meant that there was plenty of airflow.

Our plan had been to catch another bus from Kottayam to the small town of Kumorakum, a mile or so from our accommodation in the famous Kerala Backwaters. Unfortunately after 45 minutes at the bus station we were having no joy, so we lazily decided to throw some rupees at the problem and booked an Uber. As the taxi pulled off the road along the last mile to our destination, we realised quite how off the beaten track we were going to be - the road was literally a 6 feet wide causeway through rice paddies, giving our driver a bit of a challenge at times!

Arriving at Backwater Breeze, we wondered a little about where we would get food from but it turns out they have an arrangement with the homestay and restaurant next door, so we were able to wander across there and place our dinner order. Offered a plate of very fresh looking fish, we were quite happy to go for fish-fry and prawn curry. This was served on our balcony, along with a bottle of Kingfisher, as we overlooked the quiet backwaters. Perfect.

11th January

Our host, Dibu, offered us several options to entertain ourselves during our time in Kumorakum, and we opted for a bike ride today. With two bicycles available, we managed to get three of the four sets of brakes working with a little fiddling, which probably reached an acceptable level of safety, given the anticipated speeds of <10 KPH. As most of the cycling was along small tracks off the main roads, it was generally quite relaxed, and the scenery was incredible.

We visited the Kumorakum bird sanctuary, where they were quick to point out there were unlikely to be many birds to see, given the time of year and time of day (sound familiar) - but it made for a very tranquil jungle walk, and we did see a massive metre+ monitor lizard just walking calmly along the path!

We stopped for lunch at a local restaurant where we had thali, and got looked after very attentively! I think that being that bit out of the core tourist zone of Allepey means there were far fewer western tourists in this area.

As the afternoon heat built and became a bit too intense to continue on the bikes, we returned to Backwater Breeze and had a relaxed few hours chilling on the balcony, and finalising plans for both dinner and the following day.

As the sun went down we left the balcony for a moment to look out to the west over Vembanad Lake. We were treated to a fantastic sunset, beautifully framed by palm trees, and with a backwaters houseboat posing nicely on the water for us!

12th January

Today was all about the water. After another excellent breakfast on our balcony at Backwater Breeze, we took a two seat Kayak onto the lake, and got to see some of the lilies, birds, and plants that inhabit the backwaters up close and personal. We also discovered that some of the greener areas of the lakes inlets are not as deep as you might hope, and almost managed to get grounded on sticky mud at one stage. Fortunately, with some great teamwork and more than a bit of brute force, we managed to free ourselves without anybody having to leave the canoe. We did get pretty covered in sticky lake mud though.

After a very light lunch of cake (leftover from breakfast) our afternoon extravaganza was a 3 hour boat trip through the backwaters, this time on a powered boat! We spent the first two hours going right into the narrow rivers and inlets that give the area it's name, and passing under bridges too small and narrow for the bigger houseboats to fit, which was very tranquil. We saw plenty of Cormorants and other un-identified wading birds, as well as a couple of Kingfishers up close. It was quite surreal having a whole boat to ourseelves on this trip.

As we entered the last hour of the cruise, we came out into Vembanad Lake just as the sun once more slipped over the horizon, and our boat captain switched off the engine to drift, in silence, and watch the sunset over the lake.  It was absolutely beautiful, and a real moment to remember for us.

13th January

Departing the backwaters today, we arranged a tuk-tuk with Dibu to take us to the nearby Kumorakum jetty, from which we could get the 30p government ferry across the breadth of Vembinad lake. From here it was another tuk-tuk into Allepey itself, and then the train onwards to Trivandrum.