Wayanad Wildlife Sanctuary

Wayanad Wildlife Sanctuary covers 344.44 sq km of the Western Ghats in two separate blocks: Muthanga, about 18 km from Sulthan Bathery, and Tholpetty, near Thirunelli on the Karnataka border. Declared in 1973, it lies in the Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve next to Bandipur, Mudumalai and Nagarhole, so elephant herds roam between Kerala, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu. Pazhassi Raja once hid in these forests during his revolts against the British.

Dry and moist woodland, evergreen patches, bamboo, grassland, teak and rosewood plantations and marshes cover hills rising to Karottimala at about 3,800 feet. Elephants, sambar, Indian bison, sloth bears, slender loris, tigers, leopards and over 200 bird species live here. Entry needs permission and is limited to outer zones, toured on two-hour forest department jeep safaris at dawn and late afternoon.