Off the beaten track in Ooty

A walk beyond the touristy trail in Udhagamandalam explores roadside lilies, beetles, the mountain rail and local confections

“I just don’t get Ooty,” said a young photographer. “What is it about this place that people rave about so much?” “Maybe Ooty doesn’t get you,“ was the response from Anne.

Anne aka Anita Nanjapa is the founder of Amble with Anne, a venture in which she takes tourists on walks around the hill station and its heritage spots. A national level co-driver and navigator at motor rallies for 22 years, she relocated to Udhagamandalam, her hometown, then launched tailored walks for locals and vistors; each route unraveling different aspects of the town ensconced amid tea gardens and hills.

The Untravel Show, a recent YouTube video by a participant, has turned the spotlight on her. Anne, however, prefers to be incognito and wants the genuine walker to seek her out. “I am just this older person in the hills who likes to walk and tell stories,” she says.

Anne studied at Nazareth Convent School and was encouraged to go walking by her mother. One of her favourite walks was on Wenlock Downs on the Gudalur Road. This wide expanse of grassland was a hotspot for film shootings. Earlier she took walkers to this landscape rich in natural beauty, but the Forest Department no longer permits this.

“I am interested in the plants and little things I see, so during the walks, I point out things that they might have missed or are not familiar with. Like the lilies growing on the roadside , the willow trees, wild flowers, the birds on the lake, little beetles and spider webs,” says Anne who finds the interaction with her guests most refreshing.

Before the pandemic, her clientele consisted mainly of western travellers who undertook long morning to evening walks. “We often took a bus out of town and walked back.” The young Indians who now form the bulk of her guests are friendly . “They are the work-cation crowd and I learn many things from them, yesterday even about Metaverse . One was so curious and asked my age. I told him it was not a polite question,” she laughs.

A popular trail is the five-kilometre stretch from Udhagamandalam to Lovedale and back, which takes three hours. She chooses never to return on the same route. “We see the Nilgiri Mountain Train twice during this trail,” she says. The Heritage Walk and In the Woods are other walks. The routes that include St Stephen’s Church and St Thomas Church too are popular.