Tada - Fish Collection and General Funtime Trip, by R.R. Sriram

Tada
Fish Collection and General Funtime Trip

by R. R. Sriram
Photo Credits: Sriram, Ravi, Beta

On the way back from Cauverypattnam, we were thinking of another expedition to a better place where the water is good, the temperature is ambient, there would be tons of exercise to the body and there would be lots of aquatic plants and fish to catch and study. We then decided to go to Tada which fits most of the requirements mentioned above. The trip took place on the 10th of October 2004.

A little background on the place before telling the entire story (well it will read as a nice long tale). Tada is 55 kms from Chennai on the Chennai-Vijayawada Highway. Once you reach Tada, you need to take a diversion towards the Avanthi Leathers factory which is en route to the falls. The drive from Chennai to Tada will take around 2 hours to the first biotope. The first 55 kms are great, then the village road takes over for the next 2-3 kms and after that it’s a plain DIRT TRACK. You would require a SUV to reach the place. Though Ravi, Venket and Beta have taken a UNO, I would not suggest it. If anyone wants a cracked floor in the car then please go ahead. The one important thing to remember when going to Tada is to leave very early and reach the place before 7 a.m. The place has become a sort of a weekend resort for a lot of Chennai folks and they go there to have fun. The sick thing is the water gets spoilt, the fish go into hiding, the aquatic plants are trampled and the air smells of alcohol (just to name a few).

CLICK ON PHOTOS FOR ENLARGEMENTS, THEN GO "BACK"

Well now to the tale. I would not like to leave out the tiny, itsy bitsy details of the trip so you guys have to bear with me. Ravi, Beta, Venket, Shankar, Sathi and yours truly (rrsriram) met at Ravi’s place at 5:30 in the morning. We had a hot cup of coffee at his place with some biscuits, and left to Tada at 6:00 in his 4x4 Scorpio. (This was bought for trips like this, claims Ravi. Well, you need to inquire further into this statement). We had planned to leave at 5:30 so there was a delay of 30 minutes right at the start.

The drive to Tada was uneventful (well you can't say that… Venket as usual was the prime target for all of us). At the highway, we stopped for a cup of tea and a smoke. From this place onwards the journey was exciting. The inner road is a couple of kms of OK sort of a road and then to Dirt Track driving. Once the dirt track starts, progress becomes slow with lot of potholes and ditches to drive over or through. At some places the road is so bad that only a SUV with high ground clearance can go over them. On the way there were a few more biotopes which we decided to check on the way back.

We reached the first biotope after a couple of hours' driving from Chennai, at around 7:45 a.m. The place where we stopped was just a couple of metres from the first biotope. Here we stretched our legs a little and had breakfast before starting our journey to the four different biotopes along the stream.

First Biotope

As we approached the first biotope, we found a bunch of blue tiger butterflies (Tirumala limniace) on a branch. They looked so beautiful that we spent about 5 minutes enjoying their beauty.

We then went to the first biotope. The first thing that catches the eye is the crystal clear water. The temperature of the water is around 20° Centigrade. The water is around 2 feet deep and the bottom is clearly visible. Here we sighted a lot of killifish (Aplocheilus lineatus), Garra sp., flying barbs (Esomus danricus), scissortail barbs (Puntius mahecola), and giant danios (Danio aequipinnatus), but very few aquatic plants. Beta and Venket were trying to catch fish but the flow of water was quite fast and the fish were also very elusive. It’s a big stream with lots of shallow rocks for the fish to hide. From here we walked up the hill to the second biotope.

Second Biotope
The second biotope is around 500 meters from the first one and it is uphill. The water gets slightly cooler (did not measure it but could feel it) and the clarity is the same. Mosses are aplenty here and the area has a lot of killifish and garras.

Aplocheilus lineatus, the 'Malabar panchax'

Garra sp. (A cyprinid. Caught on a different trip.)

We could not see any other fish here. Probably they knew we were coming and went into hiding. We spent a few minutes here taking snaps of the mosses which Ravi was very much interested in. Ravi had to make sure that he did not slip on the rocks so was trying all kinds of stunts to get a good snap of the mosses. We did find a very beautiful lizard here, which we later found out was Calotes rouxi.

Male Calotes rouxi in breeding colouration

From here went to the 3rd biotope.

Third Biotope
To reach this place you need to trek over a kilometre on small rocks and very small boulders. The trail is no longer a sandy track - it becomes a pathway of rocks. The third biotope has no fish but lots of aquatic plants.

Mosses in varying shapes and sizes grow all over, and lots of aquatic plants too. The water temperature and the climate must be really helping them to grow well. Beta collected quite a few samples of them, and they are now in Venket’s planted tank. The mosses seem to grow well in Venket’s tank. From here we walked for another kilometre to reach the 4th Biotope.

Fourth Biotope
This is an awesome place. There are tons of fishes and driftwood to feast your eyes on in slightly deep water (around 3' depth). We spent quite a while here watching and feeding the fish with the pellets Beta had brought.

Scissortail barbs (Puntius mahacola) and their habitat

Some of the fishes we found were scissortail barbs, garras, killifish and tiger barbs in various sizes and colours.

All the fish here were amazing to look at. From here we went to the 5th biotope.

Fifth Biotope
To reach this spot you need to be as agile as a mountain goat (Venket). The place is full of boulders and huge rocks over which you need to climb.

The area is infested with bats and the place stinks of bat droppings. The 5th Biotope is very close to the falls and the water is quite rapid here. We found very few fish (only a few garras) and no aquatic plants. We were already half tired by the time we reached this place and were adamant in not going further up to the falls. But Venket, Beta and Shankar (with age favoring them) pushed us to go to the falls and we should thank them for pushing us.

The Waterfalls
This is an awesome spot. The water is so cool that you feel like taking a dip right there.

The only problem is the rocks all around you and the fear of getting hurt. The place is quite slippery and you need to have a good foothold before taking the next step. Right underneath the waterfalls, there is a lush growth of mosses and ferns.

We spent nearly 30 minutes here enjoying the view and the cool temperature and water (though no one took a dip). The entire climb up to the waterfall from the first biotope took us nearly 4 hours, inclusive of spending time in each of the biotopes.

The trek back to the car was uneventful except for meeting quite a few people coming the other way fully drunk and having the time of their lives. A few of us were struggling to walk as our legs were not used to this treachery and mistreatment. We made it to the car by around 2 p.m. and started our drive back to Chennai. On the way we had lunch (Ravi had vegetable rice with raitha and egg curry, and Venket his favorite curd rice with pickle). You can imagine how hungry we were, in that we finished both quite easily.

On the way back we found out that Pulicat Lake is just 2 kms away, and wanted to check out the place. We took a diversion towards the lake and reached the lake, but could not take the vehicle closer and no one was in a great mood to walk very far. So we decided to make the lake our next fishing trip sometime soon. We did stop at a couple of other places, and caught another killifish (Aplocheilus blockii) and some Indian ricefish (Oryzias melastigma)

Well guys, that ends the long short story of our trip to the Tada Falls.

A few things to remember when you plan for a trip to Tada: Leave early to escape the mad rush in the afternoon. Shorts and T-shirt are a must. You have to wade through water to reach the biotopes so you don’t want your trousers or jeans to get wet. A spare change of clothes is great if you plan to get wet. Wear footwear that do not slip in water (canvas shoes are great). Carry a shoulder bag so that your hands are free to hold and balance. Carry lots of water to drink. Cell phones do not work, so in case of a big group, carry wireless handsets for communication. This will be useful if a group gets lost or delayed. Carry cameras in waterproof bags so that they are not spoilt if they fall into water. Hats are a must. The sun beats down hard and there is very little shade except in a few places. If someone has a leg related problem, it would be better that they do not go to the 5th biotope and the falls.