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Sree Thrikkaikunnu Mahadeva temple drone view

Visiting Sree Thrikkaikkunnu Mahadeva Temple, Koothuparambu in Kannur, Kerala

Before I begin, I wanted to inform my readers that the below photos are from a visit I made to this temple back in 2020. I waited to post this after I was done with my Vietnam series… but then I forgot.

Anyway, I had heard about Sree Thrikkaikkunnu Mahadeva Temple from a relative who told me about how big it was. There weren’t too many blogs, articles or vlogs about the temple. I mean, it’s not a tourist attraction or a popular pilgrimage site, but despite its age and size, it doesn’t see as many visitors as Peralassery temple does — which I guess is mostly due to its famous step well which people of all faiths can see.

Sree Thrikkaikkunnu Mahadeva Temple is located in the town of Koothuparambu and is 23 kms from Kannur Railway station. The locality the temple is in is called Kottayam (not to be confused by the city of the same name in central Kerala).

This is the entrance one sees when getting on to the road off the main Koothuparambu highway
Sri Thrikkaikunnu Mahadeva temple koothuparambu
The grounds of the temple spans over 2 acres

The temple has two sreekovils (inner sanctum) and is dedicated to Lord Shiva. You can read about the mythology surrounding the temple on this website.

Sree Thrikkaikunnu mahadeva temple Kannur Kerala
The temple is hundreds of years old, but even the temple staff I spoke to couldn’t give me an approximate era
Rates Thrikkaikunnu Mahadeva temple Koothuparambu
Since this temple became a popular spot, they have rates for photography and filming

You have to pay Rs. 100 for photography and Rs. 300 for videography. But like with most temples, I was told I could not photograph inside the inner sanctums.

Sree Thrikkaikunnu Mahadev temple architecture Kannur
So I just stayed outside to be safe

I had come to the temple with my cousin sister, her husband, their daughter and a friend. They wanted to shoot some classical dance sequences for their daughter and my cousin’s husband, who is a music teacher, wanted to film a music video for his flute performance here.

Thrikkaikunnu Mahadev temple design Kannur Kerala
The temple is constructed using local red stones, which have gotten some modern upkeep over time
Sree Thrikkaikunnu Mahadev temple behind
From the back
Sree Thrikkaikunnu Mahadev temple Kannur Kerala
I know these photos may not give you a good indication of the size of the temple

So I decided to step out of the temple grounds to take out my drone.

Sree Thrikkaikunnu Mahadeva temple steps Kannur
These steps lead you to the adjoining lake
Lake sree Thrikkaikunnu Mahadeva temple Koothuparambu
It’s a pretty big man-made lake
Thrikkaikunnu Mahadeva temple lake Kannur
I took a drone shot of the lake
Temple lake mirage Kannur
This was around 5pm
Old tree Sree Thrikkaikunnu Mahadev temple Kannur
An old tree at the footsteps of the lake
Steps Thrikkaikunnu mahadeva temple Kerala
My cousin’s husband continued taking videos for their daughter’s dance

(Unfortunately, for reasons cited below, my cousin’s family was unable to obtain enough good shots to complete the dance performance)

Sree Thrikkaikunnu Mahadeva temple Kannur
This is a tighter crop

I was told I could not fly the drone above the temple and so I assured them I would limit the flight to just outside the gate.

Sree Thrikkaikunnu mahadev temple Kannur aerial view
If you want to see what the complete structure looks like (cropped in)

My cousin sister’s daughter and friend are the two green and red specks you see on the left side.

Sree Thrikkaikunnu Mahadeva temple drone view
I took one parting shot before leaving

We had to end filming because some local guy who was sitting by the temple entrance objected to me flying the drone near the temple, just as I was done taking the final shot. He created a ruckus and accused all of us who had come for filming saying we were not allowed to film like this. Mind you, the actual temple staff member who we paid the filming fees to, had left the temple by now (it was a Sunday).

My cousin’s husband tried reasoning with the guy, but my cousin sister said he could be drunk. None of us wanted to create a scene on temple grounds, and my cousin’s young daughter also got scared. So we all left the temple rather upset after having our evening ruined.

So just be careful about such people if you are planning to visit this temple for photography or vlogging. If you get a receipt from the temple office after paying the fee, hold on to it until you leave the temple site.

If you want some more footage, Kerala Tourism has some glimpses of the temple exterior in their video:

My cousin sister’s husband managed to record his flute performance which uses most of the drone footage I could take (watch it in HD):

Palakkayam Thattu blog post

Palakkayam Thattu – the second highest viewpoint in Kannur

Date: 21 December 2019

I had been longing to visit Paithalmala, the highest peak in Kannur, for quite some time. But one of my cousins told me that there is another hilltop destination that is worth visiting. Palakkayam Thattu is 50 kms from Kannur city center and actually along the same route one would take to get to Paithalmala. Elevated at 3500 feet above sea level, I figured that is high enough to get some great shots using my newly acquired drone.

Brown grass Kannur Kerala
We were a group of 8 and we hired a van to take us to Palakkayam Thattu and back
Kannur highway Kerala
We left from our homes at around 7:30am

Palakkayam Thattu is open from 5AM to 9PM so it’s a popular choice to come watch the sunrise and during sunset. But none of us in the group wanted to wake up that early and for me, if the hills got too foggy, then I would not have been to able to capture the height of the hills.

It took us around 40 to 45 minutes to get to the parking area near Palakkayam Thattu. Use this location on Google Maps to find your way to the parking area. The van parked and from there, we had to hire a jeep to take us to the top. Jeeps cost Rs. 700 and can accommodate 7 adults or 8 to 9 children.

Continue reading “Palakkayam Thattu – the second highest viewpoint in Kannur” »
St. Francis church Fort Kochi

Fort Kochi 2018: St. Francis Church, Jew Town and Mattancherry

Date: March 14, 2018

This was our last day in Kochi. After breakfast, we set out early to take the ferry to Fort Kochi. We took an auto rickshaw from our hotel to the Ernakulam boat jetty.

Ferry boat jetty Ernakulam
Our ride
Inside Fort Kochi ferry
Boats are frequent — and cheap
Cochin Port Trust administration building
This is the Cochin Port Trust administration office building
Taj Malabar Resort Spa Cochin
And this is the Taj Malabar Resort & Spa
Sukhayus Fort Kochi Kerala
We got down at Fort Kochi jetty and just walked to the tourist area
Continue reading “Fort Kochi 2018: St. Francis Church, Jew Town and Mattancherry” »
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