T

The main deity, Lord Ayyappan is an embodiment of both Siva and Vishnu.

Pilgrims take a 41 days Vrutham (Austerities) before heading for Sabarimala. All carry the Irumudi Kettu (twin sacked sacred pouch ) on their head to the temple. It contains coconuts to be broken near the 18 steps to the temple.

Unlike many temples , the Sabarimala Temple doesn't open all round the year. The pilgrimage season is mid November- mid January . Other wise the temple opens for a few days around the 1 of each Malayalam month ( that's around the middle of each English calender months). The climax of the pilgrimage season is marked by Makara Jyothi , the light that appears in the in the mountain range called Ponnambalamedu facing the temple. Millions assemble to witness this , as it is believed that seen this light brings good fortunes.

While Sabarimala itself is not a huge mountain, it is surrounded all around by imposing and heavily forested mountain ranges. It is located in the in the midst of one of the thickly wooded forests of the Western Ghats. Many millions of people visit Sabarimala temple each season. Once the season is over, the temple vicinity is practically devoid of any human activity except the odd staffs manning the outposts. The whole area again turn into sanctuary of wild animals contiguous to the forest around.

Sabarimala ( the Mountain of Sabari ) is located in the south Kerala district called Pathanamthitta. This is a hilly district, especially its eastern portion that fringes the Western Ghats. Sabarimala ( also called Sabarimalai or Shabarimala) is at the northeast of Pathanamthitta, in the midst of the forest that stretches all the way to the neighboring Tamilnadu.

TREK PATHS
Pampa is the nearest point to Sabarimala where one can reach by motor vehicle. The only way to reach Sabarimala is by walk ( rather trek ) from Pampa. The route about 6 kilometers through the semi paved and often uphill forest terrain. It can take anything from 2 to 3 hours for this trek. The great majority of the pilgrims to Sabarimala follows this path. Pampa has a bus station with connectivity to major towns in Kerala.

There are a few more trek paths pilgrims use. For Example the Uppupara - Sabarimala path ( 4 kilometers / 3 hours ) route and the Erumeli - Pampa - Sabarimala trek path ( about 35-50 kilometers ).

The Uppupara route is mostly used by pilgrims coming from the Vandiperiyar side.
The Erumeli trek path is more tedious and is believed to be the same path Lord Ayyappa followed to reach Sabiramala. So that path has some special significance for the devout followers.

ACCOMODATION
There are not many accommodation ( rooms) available at Sabarimala or Pampa. And what is available as guesthouses is minuscule compared to the number of pilgrims that visit Sabarimala. But there are giant open halls made for pilgrims to take rest. As a norm people carry bed sheets that can be used as a spread to sleep on. There are the toilet facilities setup both at Pampa and Sabarimala.

[#road]For Sabarimala all the road routes in general head towards Pampa. That's practically the final and closes point for Sabarimala the vehicle can carry you.

There are frequent bus services ( state owned KSRTC buses) from the nearby towns to Pampa during the pilgrimage season. Direct bus services to towns located far relatively less frequent , nevertheless there are long distance bus services to Pampa. So the best strategy is to look for ditect bus to Pampa from the town of your choice; if that is not feasible break your journey into logistical segments. There are many around the area which offers good connectivity to both Pampa and to other big towns. Include one of such towns in your itinerary. Ernakulam, Kottayam, Alapuzha, Kollam , Pathanamthitta, Thiruvalla , Chengannur , Punalur, Kottarakara, Erumeli etc are some of such towns that are located at different distances and with varying options of connectivity.

Airports for Sabarimala:

Trivandrum and Cochin are the two airports - both are about 250 kilometers from Pampa - nearest to Sabarimala. Cochin is located in the north and Trivandrum in the south of Sabarimala. From Cochin and Trivandrum cities one can travel towards Pampa by bus or a combination of Train and then bus. Of course one can chose for a private vehicle as well.

Railway stations for Sabarimala:

Kerala has a busy rail route runs along the length of the state. Chengannur, about 90 kilometers west of Pampa is the nearest railway station. About two dozen express trains pass through this route. Many of them are long distance trains. Look for a train that pass via Chengannur. The other nearby stations in the stretch are ( from south to north ) : Trivandrum , Quilon, Kayamkulam , Mavelikkara , Chengannur , Tiruvalla , Changanacherry ,Kottayam , Vaikom Road , Ernakulam Junction . Some trains pass via Alappuzha , bypassing Kottyam between Ernakulam and Kollam.

Your chances of rail connectivity is further enhanced , if you look for a train to Ernakulam, which is a large city some 200 kilometers north of Pampa.

[#road]

Road Routes for Sabarimala:

A few national highways and state highways crisscross this region of Kerala. Your route map to Sabarimala include some long stretches of these National Highways, State Highways and then the network of local roads leading to Pampa.

See the below road routes map to Sabarimala.

If you are traveling from outside Kerala, see how to reach Sabarimala by train. Also see road routes to Sabarimala from Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Telengana and Andhrapradesh.