Periyar Lake: A Human-Made Lake

Updated: 02-May-23 Kerala is a place with beautiful lakes and it has 34 lakes in total. Periyar Lake is one of the most beautiful lakes in Kerala so far. This lake is the best way to experience and explore the national park. This lake is situated in the middle of the Periyar National Park. The activities this place offered by this national park to the tourist is incredible. Activities such as boat safari on Thekkady Lake, Jeep Safari, Trekking, Bamboo Rafting, and Elephant Rides.

So one of the most beautiful and eye-pleasing activities that are offered by this national park is Boat Safari on Periyar Lake. So in today's blog, we will be discussing the Periyar Lake and the boat safari.

Periyar Lake:

This beautiful lake totally justifies its presence in this beautiful national park. This artificial lake adds beauty to the Periyar National Park and glorifies the look of this national park. This beautiful lake was established in the year 1895, also the area was announced as a forest reserve with the name given Periyar Lake Reserve in the year 1899. It was established during the construction of the dam across the magically beautiful river Mullaperiyar.

So the answer is the beauty it presents and also the presence of water birds in this river that you can witness during a boat safari. This river comes under the protected area and also it provides conservation of plants, birds, animals, and fishes. So this lake is not like any other lake, it has its own agenda and beauty of course. Soo can even witness some rare, endemic, and incredible species there as well.

How to Reach Periyar Lake:

This lake is a part of the Periyar National Park. so if you want to reach Periyar Lake you need to reach this national park. People often plan the whole trip but forget about planning the ways to travel and leave this for later. But planning and researching about the different ways to reach the specific place is really important. So, no worries, we are here to help you.

There are specifically three ways to reach the Periyar National Park which we are going to mention below.

• ● By Air: There are two airports that you can opt for but the nearest airport is Madurai Airpor to Periyar Lake. this airport is situated in the neighboring state of Tamil Naidu. After you reach the airport you have to take a 4-hour road journey. Thai airport is 150 km away from Periyar National Prak. the other airport is Cochin International Airport which is situated in Kerala. This airport is 170 km away from the national park, so you have to take a car ride of 4.5 hours.
• ● By Train: If you are not comfortable traveling via air for any reason let it be money or fear of heights or anything. Then traveling via train is another option. It can be good for your pocket and it is another quicker option to reach this place. The nearest railway station to Periyar National Park is Kottayam Station which is at a distance of over 100 km and will take 3 hours to reach the national park.
• ● By Car: Many people consider traveling via car because they love the journey as much as they love the destination. So the main goal of the people is to enjoy the journey to the fullest. Kerala’s roads are a great option as you will get a great and pleasant road to drive along, but car rides can bit of a time-consuming.

Boat Safari in Periyar Lake:

The boat safari is one of the activities which is offered by this place. There are different time slots for boating safari which you can choose according to your convenience. Timing as follows 7:30 AM to 9:00 AM, 9:30 AM to 11:00 AM, 11:30 AM to 1:00 PM, 1:45 PM to 3:15 PM, and 3:30 PM to 5:00 PM.

So if you really want to sight birds and their species which include migratory birds then it is highly advised to reach there on time and take the boat which will depart at 7:30 AM.

And if you are there in the afternoon then you don’t need to get upset about anything, it might get a little hard to get comfortable because of the hot weather but this will lead you to witness tigers and elephants. Because there is a high chance that they can come out from their own spot to drink water or take a shower.

Also, to add to this lake you can witness amphibians such as caecilians, frogs, and toads. This lake is home to over 40 species of fish. So it is advised to carry your binoculars to get a clear vision of these and also birds because it is a great place for bird watching as well.