100-mile trekking route coming up near Araku

Visakhapatnam: The forest department is developing a 100-mile trekking route near Araku to boost tourism and adventure sports under the Mardhaguda Eco-Tourism Project, expected to be ready within a couple of months. As part of the project, cottages, a restaurant and a coffee house are being set up at Mardhaguda, which will serve as the base camp. This will be the first long-distance endurance trekking facility of its kind in Andhra Pradesh. The project, earlier known as the Butterfly Park, is being supported with Rs 5.5 crore in CSR funds from Simhadri NTPC. It was launched in 2022 but faced delays due to various reasons. Fresh momentum was provided after Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, in the Union Budget presented on February 1 this year, announced plans to develop ecologically sustainable mountain trails across the country, including the Araku Valley in the Eastern Ghats. The initiative forms part of a broader push for nature-based tourism, eco-tourism circuits, skill development and sustainable infrastructure while preserving fragile ecosystems. Chief conservator of forests Dr Mydeen told TOI that Araku would be developed as a trekking destination by facilitating a 100-mile endurance trek, along with short-, medium- and high-difficulty trekking routes to attract tourists and adventure enthusiasts. The focus would include coffee plantation walks, village-to-village trails between Paderu and Dumbriguda, ridge walks such as Raktakonda, and other eco-friendly routes. Initially, the Forest Department had planned 10 cottages and tree houses as part of the eco-tourism project. Following the Centre's announcement, the number of cottages has increased to 30, with additional luxury tents planned to accommodate more trekkers at the Mardhaguda base camp. The project will also feature a canopy walk, elevated paths, local cuisine, promotion of tribal culture, homestays in tribal hamlets, interpretation centres on forests and indigenous communities, coffee plantation trails, and facilities for bird and butterfly watching. The 100-mile trekking route will pass through three forest ranges—Anantagiri, Araku and Jeenabadu—in Alluri Sitarama Raju district. The route runs from Anantagiri through parts of the Galikonda hills to the Araku range, re-entering Anantagiri forests up to Maddigaruvu, where the Jeenabadu range begins. The trek, expected to take six to seven days, will start from Mardhaguda in Anantagiri and proceed via Galikonda Peak, Lembaguda, Maddigaruvu, Nimmalapadu, Nandigummi, Mettavalasa, Gummanti, Daragedda and Kajjamamidi before ending at Durgam. Night halts will be arranged in tribal homestays, with trekkers experiencing local cuisine and tribal culture along the route. -