After an interval of six months, Chembra peak, an adventure tourism destination under the South Wayanad forest division in the district, will be reopened for tourists on Friday.
The site was closed on February 16 after a forest fire broke out, destroying the flora and fauna in the ecologically fragile area. More than 100 hectares of grassland too were destroyed.
The peak stands 2,100 m above sea level and it will take an hour to trek to its pinnacle. A 20-minute drive from Meppadi through the tea estates will lead the travellers to a three-storey watch-tower built on the foothills of the peak.
Springs nearby
From here, it is a 3-km trek to the top. A heart-shaped perennial lake, nearly 1,100 m above sea level, is a major attraction of the peak where drinking water is available from the nearby springs throughout the year. Earlier, the Forest Department had allowed trekking to the pinnacle but, now it is restricted up to the perennial lake owing to the ecological significance of the region.
Ecological and wildlife experts in the State have for long been demanding a sanctuary by incorporating the forest stretch on the Chembra and Camel Hump Mountains to conserve the rare flora and fauna of the region. Keeping the ecological importance of Shola grassland in the region, the human interventions on the hills should be banned, they demand.
Moreover, they oppose the decision of the department to encourage tourism activities on the spot. Trekking had formed gullies on the grassland and it might lead to a landslip in the sensitive region during monsoon, they fear.
200 persons a day
The Forest Department has restricted the number tourists to 200 a day now. Earlier, 1,000-odd people used to visit the peak. Time to issue ticket has been restricted from 7 a.m. to 12 noon.
