Banasura Hill is one of the tallest mountains in the Western Ghats of the

Wayanad district Wayanad () is a district in the north-east of Indian state Kerala with administrative headquarters at the municipality of Kalpetta. It is the only plateau in Kerala. The Wayanad Plateau forms a continuation of the Mysore Plateau, the southern ...

Kerala Kerala ( ; ) is a state on the Malabar Coast of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, following the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, by combining Malayalam-speaking regions of the erstwhile regions of Cochin, Malabar, South ...

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

. The hill is named after Banasura, a mythical character of Indian legends. It is one of the highest peaks exceeding 2,000m between

Nilgiris The Nilgiri Mountains form part of the Western Ghats in northwestern Tamil Nadu, Southern Karnataka, and eastern Kerala in India. They are located at the trijunction of three states and connect the Western Ghats with the Eastern Ghats. At le ...

and

Himalayas The Himalayas, or Himalaya (; ; ), is a mountain range in Asia, separating the plains of the Indian subcontinent from the Tibetan Plateau. The range has some of the planet's highest peaks, including the very highest, Mount Everest. Over 10 ...

after

Chembra Peak Chembra Peak (Chembra Mala) is a mountain in the state of Kerala, India, with an elevation of above sea level. The highest peak in the Wayanad hills and one of the highest peaks in the Western Ghats, adjoining the Nilgiri Hills and Vellarimal ...

Geography

Banasura Hill has an altitude of and is a part of the Western Ghats. It is the northernmost peak higher than south of the Gangetic plains in India. It lies off the state highway from

Kuttiady Kuttiady is one of the Major towns situated in the north-eastern part of Kozhikode district of Kerala, India. It is located from Vadakara and from Kozhikode. Kuttiady is situated in the slopes of the Western Ghats. The four-sided junction o ...

Mananthavady Mananthavady is a municipality and ''taluk'' in the Wayanad district of Kerala, India. Etymology The popular view on the etymology is that the word is derived from "Maane Eytha Vady" (English: "The place where an arrow was shot at the deer"). T ...

which lies 25 km away is the closest town and the closest state transport depot. The closest National Highway is

NH 766 National Highway 766 (NH 766) (previously NH-212) is a National Highway in Southern India. NH 766 connects Kozhikode in Kerala with Kollegal in Karnataka via Mysore. Of the total distance of 272 km, 117 km is in Kerala and 155 is in ...

that passes through

Kalpetta Kalpetta is a major town and municipality in the Wayanad district, state of Kerala, India. Kalpetta is the headquarters of Wayanad district, as well as the headquarters of Vythiri taluk. It is a bustling town surrounded by dense coffee and te ...

which is about 37 km away.

Trekking routes and visitor information

One has to take a deviation at Vellamunda village and go via Pulinjal to reach the peak. About 1.5 km from Pulinjal you pass by Banasura Hill Resort, unique for its rammed-earth architecture. About 500 meters beyond the resort begins a treacherous but adventurous track. Along the way there is a thunderous waterfall that locals call " Meenmutty". It is a good three-hour climb to the top of the hill. The view from there is spectacular. Permission from the North Wayanad Forest Division office located at

has to be obtained for trekking up Banasura Hill. At the foot of the hill is the

Banasura Sagar Dam Banasura Sagar Dam, which impounds the Karamanathodu tributary of the Kabini River, is part of the Indian Banasurasagar Project consisting of a dam and a canal project started in 1979. The goal of the project is to support the Kakkayam Hydro ele ...

, the largest earth dam in India. The dam is another point from where one can start the trek up Banasura Hill.

Flora and fauna

The narrow trail that leads up to the top of the hill winds through thick tropical vegetation. The

flora Flora is all the plant life present in a particular region or time, generally the naturally occurring (indigenous (ecology), indigenous) native plant, native plants. Sometimes bacteria and fungi are also referred to as flora, as in the terms '' ...

includes some rare medicinal plants. The

fauna Fauna is all of the animal life present in a particular region or time. The corresponding term for plants is ''flora'', and for fungi, it is ''funga''. Flora, fauna, funga and other forms of life are collectively referred to as ''Biota (ecology ...

found en route consist of monkeys,

wild boars The wild boar (''Sus scrofa''), also known as the wild swine, common wild pig, Eurasian wild pig, or simply wild pig, is a suid native to much of Eurasia and North Africa, and has been introduced to the Americas and Oceania. The species is n ...

deer Deer or true deer are hoofed ruminant mammals forming the family Cervidae. The two main groups of deer are the Cervinae, including the muntjac, the elk (wapiti), the red deer, and the fallow deer; and the Capreolinae, including the re ...

and wild elephants.

Tribes and local history

There are four tribal settlements at the foot of the Banasura Hill belonging largely to the

Kurichiya Kurichiya or Kurichiyar also known as Hill Brahmins

tribe. The Kurichiyas have a martial tradition, and are experts with the bow and arrow. When

Kerala Varma Pazhassi Raja Pazhassi Raja () (3 January 1753 – 30 November 1805) was known as Kerala Varma and was also known as Cotiote Rajah and Pychy Rajah. He was a warrior Hindu prince and de facto head of the kingdom of Kottayam, otherwise known as Cotiote, in ...

revolted against the

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...

for imposing exorbitant tax on agricultural products, and fled to the forests of Wayanad to fight a long-drawn guerilla war against them, it was to these

Kurichiya Kurichiya or Kurichiyar also known as Hill Brahmins

tribesmen that the

Pazhassi Raja Pazhassi Raja () (3 January 1753 – 30 November 1805) was known as Kerala Varma and was also known as Cotiote Rajah and Pychy Rajah. He was a warrior Hindu prince and de facto head of the kingdom of Kottayam, otherwise known as Cotiote, in ...

turned for support. The

used their knowledge of the topography of the area to inflict defeats on the

forces. The rugged and thickly forested terrain around Banasura Hill with numerous caves, streams and watercourses formed an ideal hiding place for the

. In modern days, the higher elevations are inhabited by descendants of the

who have set up an intricate system of Ziplines and swinging ropes to traverse the network of tree houses they've constructed.

References

External links