Pilikula Nisargadhama
Coordinates: 12°55′46.9″N 74°53′44.5″E / 12.929694°N 74.895694°EPilikula Nisargadhama[1] is picnic spot / hangout at Vamanjoor near Mangalore in Karnataka.
About Pilikula
Pilikula literally means Pond of Tigers. In Tulu language "pili" means tiger and "kula" means lake. In olden days, tigers used to come to this lake to drink water. Hence, this lake came to be known as Pilikula.
Pilikula Nisarga Dhama Society has developed this area and it has now become the hot spot for people who are looking for scenic beauty & peace. Pilikula has a huge lake & beautifully laid gardens encircling the entire lake. One can see swans & ducks moving around in the lake & sometimes they even move into the gardens. Boating facilities are available in the lake. One can either use pedaling boats (mostly preferred by couples) or bigger boats carry about 10 to 15 persons.
Zoo & Theme park
On the other side of the road, there is a zoo featuring several wild animals. The specialty of this zoo is that the wild animals are not kept in cages. They are in the open. However, there are partitions like wide trenches or wire mesh, in order to avoid direct contact with visitors. There are tigers, leopards, bears and other wild animals inside the park.
There is also a variety of snakes & birds in the zoo
Manasa Water Park
Adjacent to zoo is Manasa Water Park which is similar to the Water Kingdom in Mumbai.
Pilikula Arboretum (Pilikula Botanical Garden)
An arboretum (a garden comprising woody species of plants, i.e. trees and shrubs) extending over an area of 35 ha has been established at Pilikula Nisarga Dhama where about 60,000 seedlings belonging to 236 taxa of flowering plants of Western Ghats, spread over 60 families have been planted randomly as well as family clusters. They include 70 taxa endemic to the Western Ghats region. The arboretum has a focus on the conservation of the plants of the Western Ghats. It not only contains a number of threatened species, but also a few Re-discovered species that were considered to be extinct earlier.
The arboretum also includes 6 acres devoted to medicinal plants with more than 460 varieties, often visited by students of botany and Ayurvedic medicine.
9 aquatic Ponds containing aquatic plants like 1) Lotus 2) Lilies etc. are seen here
Transport
City buses (Route no. 3) are available to this area. However, it would be better to have your own vehicle if you want to visit all 3 areas.
Golf Course
The Pilikula Golf Course is set in an area of 48 acres (190,000 m2). Currently it has nine fairways and nine greens, with a total yardage of about 3131 yards, have been laid traversing the hills and the dales. It is a very challenging course and has been appreciated by serious golfers from the region. Care has been taken to make sure the course is well laid out and maintained. With over 500 members it is slowly gaining popularity. The weather does come in the way of it being utilised fully, but it does not deter serious golfers from playing even during mid-day. Popular times of tee-off are usually early in the morning (06:30), which allows for a full 18-hole round(9 holes played twice) and in the evenings after four.
The Pilikula Challenge Cup, held every year attracts more than 150 golfers from Coorg, Mysore, Chikmagalur and Bangalore.
A new club house was inaugurated in December 2010. It has 7 rooms, a restaurant and a bar.[2][3]
References
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