Lakkidi is a

rain forest Rainforests are characterized by a closed and continuous tree canopy, moisture-dependent vegetation, the presence of epiphytes and lianas and the absence of wildfire. Rainforest can be classified as tropical rainforest or temperate rainforest ...

located in a gateway of the

Wayanad 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 ...

district of the

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 ...

n state of

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 ...

. During

British Raj The British Raj (; from Hindi ''rāj'': kingdom, realm, state, or empire) was the rule of the British Crown on the Indian subcontinent; * * it is also called Crown rule in India, * * * * or Direct rule in India, * Quote: "Mill, who was himsel ...

, a horse track in Wayanad attracted European investors and traders. They cultivated

Malabar pepper Malabar pepper is a variety of black pepper that originated as a chance seedling in a geographical region that now forms part of the present-day state of Kerala in India. The area of production of this variety of pepper now covers all the regi ...

, spices, tea, and coffee. National Highway 766 connects

Kozhikode Kozhikode (), also known in English as Calicut, is a city along the Malabar Coast in the state of Kerala in India. It has a corporation limit population of 609,224 and a metropolitan population of more than 2 million, making it the second la ...

in Kerala with

Kollegal Kollegal is one of the major taluks in the Chamarajanagara District of Karnataka State in the south of India. It is also the largest taluk in Karnataka, Kollegal is well known for its silk industry which attracts traders from all over the stat ...

in Karnataka via

Mysore Mysore (), officially Mysuru (), is a city in the southern part of the state of Karnataka, India. Mysore city is geographically located between 12° 18′ 26″ north latitude and 76° 38′ 59″ east longitude. It is located at an altitude of ...

, creating business opportunities in tourism and agriculture. Lakkidi is surrounded by a

biodiverse Biodiversity or biological diversity is the variety and variability of life on Earth. Biodiversity is a measure of variation at the genetic ('' genetic variability''), species ('' species diversity''), and ecosystem ('' ecosystem diversity'') ...

environment and unspoiled nature which attracts visitors interested in bird-watching, trekking, and

off-roading Off-roading is the activity of driving or riding in a vehicle on unpaved surfaces such as sand, gravel, riverbeds, mud, snow, rocks, and other natural terrain. Types of off-roading range in intensity, from leisure drives with unmodified vehicl ...

Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalaya Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalayas (JNVs) is a system of central schools for talented students predominantly from rural areas in India. They are run by Navodaya Vidyalaya Samiti, Noida, an autonomous organization under the Department of School Educati ...

is situated there.

Geography

Lakkidi is situated at one of the highest locations in Wayanad, above mean sea level, above

Thamarassery Thamarassery, formerly known as Thazhmalachery, it is one of the taluk in Kozhikode district and major hill town in the Kozhikode district of Kerala, India, 30 km north-east of Kozhikode (Calicut) City and 29 km east of Koyilandy. It li ...

ghat pass.

Vythiri Vythiri is a small town and tourist destination located in the Wayanad district in the Indian state of Kerala. It is one of the three Taluks in the district with the other two being Mananthavady and Sulthan Bathery. Suburbs and villages Vythir ...

is the nearest town, 5 km from Lakkidi. Chain tree,

Pookot Lake Pookode Lake is a scenic freshwater lake in the Wayanad district in Kerala, South India. A major tourist destination in the district, Pookode is a natural freshwater lake nestling amid evergreen forests and mountain slopes at an elevation of 770 ...

and a mile-long viewing side-walk are within five km. Pookot Lake is 3 km away from Lakkidi. It is a rain-fed lake spread across 15 acres. It is one of the few fresh-water reservoirs in Wayanad. It is surrounded by meadows and hills, and is a picnic spot. Annual rainfall here averages up to 600–650 cm causing seasonal floods downstream of rivers flowing east. Many species are found in this bio-reserve park including

lion-tailed macaques The lion-tailed macaque (''Macaca silenus''), also known as the wanderoo, is an Old World monkey endemic to the Western Ghats of South India. Characteristics Lion-tailed macaques are covered in black fur, and have a striking gray or silver ...

flying squirrels Flying squirrels (scientifically known as Pteromyini or Petauristini) are a tribe of 50 species of squirrels in the family Sciuridae. Despite their name, they are not in fact capable of full flight in the same way as birds or bats, but they ar ...

, buffalo, babblers, and rare water-birds like

Indian Shag The Indian cormorant or Indian shag (''Phalacrocorax fuscicollis'') is a member of the cormorant family. It is found mainly along the inland waters of the Indian Subcontinent but extending west to Sind and east to Thailand and Cambodia. It is a ...

(''Phalacrocorase fuscicollis''), Little Cormorant ('' Phalacrocorax niger''), Little Green Heron (''Ardeola striatus''), and Pond Heron ( ''Ardeola grayii''). Lakkidi has rich soil that supports the farming of coffee, tea, orange and pepper,

cardamom Cardamom (), sometimes cardamon or cardamum, is a spice made from the seeds of several plants in the genera ''Elettaria'' and ''Amomum'' in the family Zingiberaceae. Both genera are native to the Indian subcontinent and Indonesia. They are rec ...

and

ginger Ginger (''Zingiber officinale'') is a flowering plant whose rhizome, ginger root or ginger, is widely used as a spice A spice is a seed, fruit, root, bark, or other plant substance primarily used for flavoring or coloring food. Spices ...

. It receives the highest mean annual rainfall in excess of 3000 mm in Wayanad and

laterite Laterite is both a soil and a rock type rich in iron and aluminium and is commonly considered to have formed in hot and wet tropical areas. Nearly all laterites are of rusty-red coloration, because of high iron oxide content. They develop by ...

, forest loamy and brown hydromorphic soil here retains moisture around the year.

Karinthandan ''yatra''

Karinthandan, the local chieftain of Paniyas, one of the tribes of Wayanad district, lived in the foothills of Lakkidi between 1700 and 1750 AD. A British engineer observed him waling uphill along a secret forest path, The engineer approached him to show the way through the thick forest towards the

Kingdom of Mysore The Kingdom of Mysore was a realm in South India, southern India, traditionally believed to have been founded in 1399 in the vicinity of the modern city of Mysore. From 1799 until 1950, it was a princely state, until 1947 in a subsidiary allia ...

. This came to be known as the Thamarassery-Wayanad Ghat route. Once the engineer found his way, he killed the chieftain so that he could claim the recognition for finding this route. Years later, Karinthandan's ghost started haunting every passer-by appearing as a phantom figure and screaming threats, travellers were scared and met with fatal accidents and the whole region was haunted by the troubled spirit. Scared and desperate, the tribal people and traders asked a

witch doctor A witch doctor (also spelled witch-doctor) was originally a type of Folk healer, healer who treated ailments believed to be caused by witchcraft. The term is now more commonly used to refer to Alternative medicine, healers, particularly in region ...

to help them. He exorcised the spirit and cast a spell to get rid of its evil powers. He tied the imprisoned soul within a huge tree using an iron chain. This tree and chain are near the highway at Lakkidi, and have become a pilgrim spot and tourist attraction. PEEP Wayanad, an NGO working there since 2005, organises an annual ''yatra'' (walkathon) to commemorate Karinthandan's martyrdom on the second Sunday of March. As a part of this ''yatra'', essay competitions and sports events are held to encourage tribal youth to join the mainstream. PEEP is promoted by Kerala Vanavasi Vikasa Kendram. Its founders are Shri S. Ramanunni, Sri.M P Padmanabhan, Sri. E K Soman, Dr P Rajesh and Sri. T V Raghavan. PEEP, along with Paniya folk, has urged the government to install a statue of Karinthandan near the 'chain tree' and name the ghat road as Karinthandan memorial ghat road.

Climate

Rains start in May and end in December. Due to the rainfall and beauty, it is often called "Chirapunjee of Kerala". Average rainfall ranges from 600 to 650 cm or above. It experiences chilly climate throughout the year with mist and fog. It is said to be the coldest place in

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 ...

as well as one of the coldest in Kerala. It enjoys koppen highland climate. Generally,

monsoon A monsoon () is traditionally a seasonal reversing wind accompanied by corresponding changes in precipitation but is now used to describe seasonal changes in atmospheric circulation and precipitation associated with annual latitudinal oscil ...

comes with torrential rainfall and windy weather. Lakkidi experiences warm climate from March–May and cold climate from October to January.

Transport

From

–Lakkidi Ghat road, part of NH 212, connects Kozhikkode and the rest of Kerala, south of Kozhikkode with Wayanad.

References

{{Malabar Villages in Wayanad district