Surreal Kava: beyond the lake, beneath the hills

Picture this.  Rolling greens, a blue lake, palmyra palms silhouetted against the blue mountains in the background. Just before the sun sets beyond the hills yonder, the villagers herd their cows across this greens.  And if we were to tell you that there is a place like this just 13 km away from Palakkad, would you make a beeline for it?

Welcome to Kava, a not-so-popular destination in Palakkad. In fact, Kava is just one of those rustic villages around the catchment of the Malampuzha dam. The allure is heightened by its proximity of to the hills and the lake. An ideal escape from the city life and the mundane daily grind.

Roll down the windows as you drive to Kava. The road snakes through the catchment area of the dam on one side and rubber estates on the other. The breeze that rolls in will definitely calm you down. And then, as you turn a bend, you see the vast expanse of the land in front of you. The water level in the lake is directly proportional to the weather. During the rainy season, cattle graze peacefully by the lake and during the dry weather, the lake bed transforms to a nesting place for migratory birds. 

There is an interesting folk story too - for the hills that surround Kava. It is said that once, long ago, a dragon attacked earth and many kings came together to destroy it. The tail of the dragon fell at Kava - and that, in due course, became the hills.  Whatever be the story, it is said that the rain clouds form over Kava before spreading out. During monsoon, Kava transforms to all green, the lake full and the path slippery.