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India > Tamil Nadu > Ooty > Bellikal

Bellikal (many times written as Bellikkal) is a small village on the way to Ooty when going from the Kalahatti ghats side. It is a quiet place that provides some great views of the Nilgiri hills and is situated right on the edge of the forest area. It is a popular place for mountain biking and trekking as well, as the ghats offer some challenging climbs. Neelakurinji bushes are one of the main attractions here. These flower bushes blossom once in every twelve years. Each bush has many branches of Kuriji flowers which are light blue in color during their early stage and when they are at their full bloom, these turn into purple colours. These flower bushes when in full bloom add a bluish haze to the area which looks magnificent.

Silver Stones is one of the popular places to stay here.

The Silver Stone Estate is a tea estate off the steep Kalhatti ghat road to Ooty from Bandipur. The place is untouched and not frequently visited by tourists. No one stays at the estate full time. The estate owner, Mr. Pannalal comes down to host the occasional visitors. Accommodation here is a portion of an ancient estate house built by the Britishers. The place has no mettled roads, telephone services or electricity lines. The estate adjoins the forests of Mudumalai and Bandipur. The lake in the estate is a major water source for the surrounding areas and attracts many wild animals in the evenings. The tea plantation covers only a part of the estate lands. The rest of the land has been forested and it is frequented by bisons, bears and even elephants.

This is a great place for bird watching. The Silver stone estate has a view point from where you can sit and watch shrike, wood peckers, bulbuls, drongo,
morning dove and the crow pheasants. Also you can have stunning views of the Moyar plateau from here. Sunset point is another place of interest here.

Dont go with expectations of great food and accomodation :)