Spread across the beauty of Periyar Tiger Reserve, Gavi is a quiet, beautiful and pristine forest haven. It is at the eastern extreme of the Pathanamthitta District at 3400 ft above MSL. These evergreen forests are abundant with magnificent Wildlife including the tiger, elephants, leopards, bears, Indian gaur, sambar, barking & Mouse deers, lion tailed macaque, other varieties of monkeys, Nilgiri Marten and a lot more.
For the nature explorers Gavi offers the complete acquaintance with the flora around including Nageia Wallichinia (Podocarpus Wallichinia), a highly endemic species of the Gymnosperm family seen only around Gavi in the whole Western Ghats !
If you are a birder, the forests around Gavi are home to over 320 species of birds –the great Indian hornbills, sunbirds, woodpeckers, kingfishers and myriads of mynas, dongos, cuckoos and bulbuls-truly any birder’s dream!
The sheer beauty of this place is indeed worth a closer look ! Here is nature at its unadulterated best. Gavi often serves as a base camp for deep jungle trekkers, birdwatchers, nature lovers, research students and the like.
Climate
Summer: February-April, daytime temperatures up to 28 C. but can drop to 20 degree C at night.
Monsoon: June - August, daytime temperatures up to 25 C but can drop to 10 degree C at night
Clothing
Casual, lightweight, comfortable, light coloured cotton clothing. Warm clothing may be required at night
Getting There
Gavi is 28 kms south west of Vandiperiyar, a town in N.H 220 the highway connecting Kollam and Madurai, which itself is 14 kms from Kumily,near Thekkady. Let the rough journey to Gavi may better be made on a sturdy vehicle like jeep which are available on hire either from Vandiperiyar or from Kumily. Entry passes must be obtained from the Forest Check Post enroute at Vallakkadavu. Advance booking with the Kerala Forest Development Corporation Ltd. is highly appreciable wherein such formalities will be taken care of by the Company itself.
By Air: the Kochi International Airport (200kms) ,Trivandrum International Airport (250kms)and Madurai (195kms) are the nearest Airports.
By Rail: The nearest railway station is Kottayam (120kms) and is well connected with Thiruvananthapuram and Kochi.
By Road : Regular buses are available to Vandiperiyar from Kochi & Thiruvananthapuram . A small bus rattles even up to Gavi from Vandiperiyar once a day(4 pm) the journey in which will be the most heart throbbing experience.
