At a distance of 31 km from Salem, 193 km from Coimbatore, 114 km from Hogenakkal, 349 km from Chennai and 249 km from Bangalore, Yercaud is a beautiful hill station in Salem district of Tamil Nadu and also one of the popular places to visit as part of Tamilnadu tour packages. At an altitude of 1515 m in the Shevaroy hills, Yercaud is one of the top hill stations near Bangalore in summer.



Yercaud town got its name from the Yercaud Lake located at its center. In Tamil, Yeri means lake and Kaadu means forest. Stone-age implements have been found from the ancient shrine located near Shevaroy Hills, which is about 5 km from the Yercaud Lake. Sir Thomas Munroe, erstwhile governor of Madras Presidency in 1842 developed this place. David Cockburn, the Scottish collector of Salem district, between 1820 and 1829, was called the 'Father of Yercaud' because he helped in the development of the resources of the Shevaroy and for introducing the cultivation of coffee, pears and apple. Salem District was purchased by Mr. G.F. Fisher, the only European Zamindar, in 1836. The Tea plantation has been introduced in 1840s by Dr.Wallich on the property of G.F.Fischer.



Some of the best places to visit in Yercaud are Emerald Lake, Anna Park, Lady's Seat, Shevaroy Temple, Small Lake, Bear's Point, Pagoda Point, Killiyur Falls and Botanical Garden. Yercaud is a picturesque hill stations on the Eastern Ghats and trekking here can be one of the most pleasurable experiences. The highest point in Yercaud is the Servarayan temple, which is situated at a height of 5326 feet.



Yercaud is known for its plantations majorly of coffee, orange, jackfruit, guava, cardamom and black pepper. The forests of Yercaud have an abundance of sandalwood, teak and silver oaks. From wild animals like bison, deer, foxes, mongooses, snakes, squirrels to birds like bulbuls, kites, sparrows and swallows can be found in these forests.



Summer Festival celebrated in Yercaud in the month of May is a special attraction. This festival is marked by a 7-day exhibition of flowers, dog shows, boating races and a village fair.



Yercaud has plenty of accommodation options. The closest international airport is the Coimbatore Airport, which is located at a distance of 185 km. The nearest rail head is Salem Junction, which is 31 km from Yercaud. Salem has trains from Trivandrum, Cochin, Erode, Guwahati, Patna, Mangalore, Chennai, Bangalore, Kanyakumari, Coimbatore, Mysore, Madurai, Trichy, Pondicherry, Alappuzha, New Delhi, Vizag, Kolkata, Jammu, Goa, Gorakhpur, Indore, Hyderabad and Dehradun. There are regular bus services between Salem and Yercaud.



The best time to visit Yercaud is from October to June. It usually takes 1-2 days to visit all the places in Yercaud.

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