Nilgiris Hill Train - A memorable joyride The fantasy of childhood to venture into a thick and dense forest for the sake of thrill comes true when we board the Nilgiris Mountain Railways (NMR), the 'toy train' of the tourists which takes the people from Mettupalayam in the foothills of the beautiful Nilgiris Mountains ranges upto Ootacamund, the queen of hill stations, atop one of the numerous mountains by traversing a distance of about 45 kilometres in about five hours. The surprised travellers, knowing that the train moves at a snail's pace, desire the speed of the train be little more slow, to enable them to enjoy the scenic beauty of the mountains ranges, as the train moves on its way up the hills, negotiating nearly 200 challenging curves, passing through 16 long, dark and eerie tunnels and crossing 250 bridges over deep ravines and guishing mountain streams flowing down the hills, a wonderful experience. The marvellous feature of this railways system, which is more than a century year old, which transports travellers up the mountains at the height of about 7500 feet above mean seal level, criss crossing the lofty mountain ranges, whereat the Eastern and the Western Ghats merge is aspiring to be a world heritage site of UNESCO. This rail link has the distinction of having the only rack and pinion system of tracks in the entire continent. It prevents the train from slipping down while moving up against the downward pull of the earths gravitational force. It may also amuse the tourists to notice a railman in each of the wagons and coaches of the train independently operating hand brakes and rack brakes by following the whistle codes of the driver of the train. Travellers compare this train to the Alps Mountain Railway System in Switzerland, in Europe. The train journey makes one feel as if he is in a wonder land, with the numerous travellers speaking many languages Indian and foreign. In the plains, it runs past the arecanut plantations where one can see harvesters swinging from one tree to the other. The major fauna in the region includes monkeys who follow the dictum, " wandering one gathers honey." In Kallar, from where the majestic mountain ranges start, the distinct passage of the plains give way to mountainous features with dry deciduous forests. Broad-leaved trees are the trade mark of this region upto an area near Ketty. It is about 5900 feet above mean sea level from where the transition imperceptibly occus in favour of most evergreen forests. On the other side of Kallar lies a State run horticultural farm and a nursery, producing various kinds of fruits and vegetables along with plantation crops, spices and condiments. Temperature falls gradually as the level of the terrain rises. The high-pitched voices of the young and old, when the train passing into long and dark tunnels get mellowed down to pin drop silence when the train crosses bridges over deep ravines and gorges. Gushing waters beneath the bridges make rhythmic sound waves giving a pleasant treat to the ears and eyes. In the Nilgiris, rains frequent the ranges even during the summer keeping the flow of water constant almost the whole year. When the South West Monsoon lavishes the terrain with torrential rains from June through September, and also during October and November, when inter-monsoon brings significant rainfall, many seasonal waterfalls and springs also tempt the travellers. As the train approaches Ketty, tea plantations with their soothing green cover appear beneath the blue haze formed by the mist. The scene appears as a conglomeration of different successive towers wearing greenish caps. After a while, the famous shola system of forests, that is a combination of shrubs and herbs and low-lying plants along with taller trees creep in. Here we welcome the cool, temperate zone and we have arrived Coonoor, a famous Hill Station. After a while, we reach Wellington, the savanna type grasslands begin where carrot, beans, cabbage, beet room and similar other varieties of vegetables are cultivated. The final destination of the train route is Ootacamund, popularly known as Ooty, a beautiful hill town and the district capital where you finally reach, not as a tired traveller but one, fully refreshed with full of energy and fond memories of the pleasant travel amidst such greenery, towering blue mountains and flowery valleys beckoning us to dwell in its laps. |