Vadakara's Ooty is Payamkuttimala

Payamkuttimala is Vadakara's Ooty. If you are wondering where this place is, it is in Kozhikode district, just five kilometres from Vadakara town. Not for nothing has it earned the title of Vadakara's Ooty, for so picturesque is the place, a hilltop which offers a panoramic view of the town below and places nearby.

The place holds you in thrall as the pure, light air filters through the hills around. Payamkuttimala is where one sees the hills, vales, mountains, glades, the sky and the sea coexisting in absolute bliss. An 800-metre drive from the road on the eastern side of the renowned Lokanarkavu temple, Vadakara's landmark tourist spot, will take you up to Payamkuttimala.

Set about 2000 ft above sea level, the hilltop is a major tourist attraction. Visitors flock to the top every day for a glimpse of the splendorous sunrise and sunset and also for the 'Muthappan prasadam.' The festival at Muthappam Mala falls during the second week of January. The place then turns a canvas for thira and other traditional forms of dance-art performances.

Folks go up the hill by evening to be in sync with nature and share their twilight confidences as the sun goes down bathing the place in rainbow hues.

As you stretch your gaze towards the west, you see the vast expanse of the sea as it seemingly rolls over coconut tree tops. The green palms, the deep blue sea and the white surf are a study in nature's contrasting colours.

Undoubtedly, Payamkuttimala is the place to go if you want to set your gaze at the Arabian Sea, or Velliyamkallu, the quaint island with its quaintly shaped rocks where history sleeps, or the Thikodi lighthouse and the silhouette of the distant Wayanad mountains. Payamkuttimala is the synonym for serenity.