By Priya Nair 7 min read · 27 April 2026
The forest department boat left the jetty before 7am, engine cut to a low hum so it wouldn't spook anything drinking at the shoreline. We saw a small herd of elephants within twenty minutes — close enough that nobody on the boat said a word for a while.
In the afternoon a spice-estate guide walked us through pepper vines climbing silver oak trees, cardamom growing low in the shade, and clove trees taller than I expected. He kept breaking off leaves for us to crush and smell, unprompted, like he still couldn't quite believe how good it smelled either.
I bought more cardamom than I had any reasonable use for. No regrets — it's the only souvenir from that trip that still means something six months later.
