Edakkal Caves

The Edakkal Caves feature a crevice of around 96 feet in length, 30 feet in depth and 22 feet in width. There is a fissure at this site that was created due to splitting of a rock. This fissure and rock walls feature carvings of animal and human figures of the pre-historic period.

The caves are located around 25 km from Kalpetta and about 3 km from Ambalavayal. The trekking trail to these ancient caves from Edakkal extends around 1 km. These caves can be best visited in the morning and can be easily reached from Sulthan Bathery, which is around 16 km away.

Trekking is possible through Ambukuthi Hills to travel to these Edakkal Caves. The trekking route is covered with coffee plantations and takes around 45 minutes to climb up the hills. There is a ticket office situated on the hill top from where travellers can buy entry tickets. An iron gate at the entrance leads inside these caves, which take tourists to the pre-historic period.

There is a telescope near these caves that are used for seeing the surrounding valley. The Edakkal Caves were discovered in 1895 by the Superintendent of Police of Malabar District, Fred Fawcett, when he was going on a hunting trip.

These caves also comprise three different sets of petroglyphs that are more than 7,000 years old. It is the sole place where tourists can see Stone Age carvings in South India, with few of them belonging to the Mesolithic and Neolithic Age. Recent findings state that these caves were once related to the Indus Valley Civilisation, where tourists can see around 400 signs, including ‘a man with a jar cup’.

Timing: Morning till 5 pm