To get a feel of the ancient Raj there is nothing greater than a walking trip along the western Ghats to Kerala, Tamil and Karnataka in India, journeying on the famous narrow gauge blue mountain train and dropping in at the sultans palace in Tippu.

The phrase Ghats refers to a series of steps going down to a body of water that you can appreciate when you are travelling in the area with all of the rich growth. Buying silk in the 2nd biggest city of Karnataka gives you a sensory rush with its rich colour and feel and as you travel about the merchants stalls you are assaulted by the variety of colours I didn’t feel to out of place with my colourful street wear and certainly the stall holders seemed happy to see me.

There are huge forts and Maharajah’s palaces to experience that at one time would have housed royalty or protected the areas trade paths, trade routes that I have now actually walked along, you cant quite describe the feeling of history that you sense when travelling among the landscape. Exotic temples nestle amongst the architecture of Kerala, revealing themselves as you are trekking in Tamil, Karnataka and Kerala you aren’t ever sure what you are going to view as you walk round the next building or through the next clearing.

When travelling amongst the flora and fauna you don’t get a lot more tranquil than Kerala, Tamil Nadu and Karnataka in India. These beautiful, rural states have a beauty that is rich and verdant, supporting animals such as tigers, elephants, endemic birds, plants and butterflies that are just great to walk through and If you were purely going their of an Indian wildlife tour you wouldn’t go far wrong.

In the Biosphere reserves of the Western Ghats you know that the wildlife in the western Ghats is so gorgeous and un touched as you travel through it and the beautiful spice farming Cardamom Hills draws you into the strong ecological farming tradition of the district which incorporates nature in its turning of the seasons.

Historic Cochin with its early churches and synagogues stands out as a jewel amidst the greenery, lush and verdant tea plantations, and coastal regions with beautiful surf and golden beaches framed with coconut palms and leafy vegetation.

If you are walking in these places ensure you use somebody that has a great deal of knowledge and even better hire local trackers to show you elements that you would have not seen if you had not been walking with them in the states of the western Ghats. I would recommend walking in the western Ghats just because of its tranquil splendour that seeps into you as you walk its landscape.