Top Slip is a little hamlet in the Annamalai hills where teak was introduced during the British Raj. In the colonial days, the harvested timber used to be 'slipped' to the plains from the hills through a narrow canal – hence the reason for its name. The Banyan Tree Resort, built as the original home of the landlord of the 4500 acre estate. The house is perfect for relaxing - with its marble floors, small living area and open dining area with covered tiled roof, and traditional Tamilian food. This area borders the Indira Gandhi national park - a place known for its great swathes of forests and wildlife - birds, butterflies, elephants, sloth bears, leopards, gaurs (Indian Bison), dholes (wild dogs), king cobra and the lion-tailed macaques in their natural habitat - all within an area known as Top Slip.
We can stroll through the plantations (coconuts, groundnuts, vanilla, gooseberry, sugarcane); visit nearby villages; meet the local people; bath in the waterfalls; go rafting across the canal; take jeep safaris around the periphery of the park; and take a day visit to Valparai to see the endemic & highly endangered Lion Tailed Macaques which lives in an isolated evergreen forest patches under protection. |
