The Morning Lake Walk
Five kilometres around Kodaikanal Lake, preferably before the town wakes up.
Route at a Glance
Start and finish: The Dunnottar Bungalow, Lake Road
Distance: Approximately 5 km
Walking time: Around 1–1¼ hours at an easy pace
Difficulty: Easy
Terrain: Predominantly level road around the lake
Best time: Around 7–8am
Our usual tea stop: A1 Tea Stall, opposite the Kodaikanal Boat & Rowing Club, if it is open when we pass
Good for: Anyone comfortable walking approximately 5 km
Of all the walks we do in Kodaikanal, this is the one we do most often.
There is no trailhead.
No taxi.
No real decision to make.
Step out of The Dunnottar gate and you are already on the lake.
The full circuit is about five kilometres. At a comfortable pace it takes us around an hour. Allow a little longer if you stop for tea, watch the boats being prepared or find somebody to talk to along the way.
We prefer to leave around seven or eight in the morning.
Earlier is good too.
Later is a different walk.
Before the Town Wakes Up
The lake changes quickly through the morning.
At seven there may still be mist sitting over the water.
The roads are quiet. There are walkers and runners, a few dogs, the occasional bicycle and the beginning of activity around the boat houses.
Boats are still tied up.
On wet mornings, boatmen sweep water from the bottoms of the rowboats.
The horses have not all arrived.
Most shops are only beginning to open.
By late morning, particularly on weekends and during the summer season, Lake Road can be busy with cars, bicycles, horses, visitors and vendors.
There is nothing wrong with that version of the lake.
But it is not the one we go walking for.
Around the Water
The road makes a circuit of roughly five kilometres around Kodaikanal Lake.
It is almost completely level, which is unusual in a hill station.
That is part of why it becomes habit so quickly.
You do not have to decide whether you have enough energy for it.
You put on shoes and leave.
The view changes as you go.
One stretch sits below old houses and large trees. Another brings you towards the boat houses. Elsewhere there are reeds, gardens, wet ground, horses and occasional openings towards the surrounding hills.
But the water never really leaves you.
The Boat Club
The Kodaikanal Boat & Rowing Club has been part of the lake for well over a century.
In the early morning, the water around it is still relatively quiet.
Later there will be rowboats, pedal boats and considerably more movement.
We prefer seeing it before all that begins.
Stop for Tea
One of our favourite stops is A1 Tea Stall, opposite the Kodaikanal Boat & Rowing Club.
It is not an elaborate ritual.
Tea.
Stand for a few minutes.
Continue walking.
If it is open by the time we pass, we stop.
If it is not, we keep going.
Breakfast is waiting at home anyway.
Clockwise or Anticlockwise?
Both.
We have walked around the lake enough times that neither direction feels correct anymore.
If you are here for several days, change direction.
It is enough to make the familiar parts look different.
The morning light sits on the opposite bank. Houses appear in a different order. You reach the busier section earlier or later.
Eventually you stop thinking about where you are on the circuit.
That is when it becomes a morning walk rather than something you have come to see.
If It Rains
Light rain is not necessarily a reason to cancel.
Take a waterproof jacket.
Some of our favourite mornings on the lake have started with mist or a little rain.
Heavy rain is different.
Stay home.
There is always tomorrow.
During the monsoon, the lake walk fits naturally into the day because mornings are often the best time to be outside before the weather changes.
Related: Kodaikanal in the Monsoon: Rain, Roads, Clothes and the Daily Rhythm
If You Run
Five kilometres also makes the lake an obvious running circuit.
The route is relatively flat.
Start early for the same reason we recommend walking early: fewer cars, fewer horses and less activity around the busier parts of Lake Road.
Kodaikanal sits at altitude.
The first morning may not be the morning for a personal best.
With Children
This is the easiest substantial walk we recommend to families.
You are never committed to a remote trail.
There are places to stop. Children can watch the boats. And if someone decides halfway around that five kilometres was a terrible family decision, you are still in town.
Keep young children close where the walking edge meets the road, particularly once traffic begins increasing.
With Older Family Members
The lack of sustained climbing makes the lake circuit considerably easier than most of our longer walks.
There is also no obligation to finish it.
Walk for twenty minutes.
Turn around.
The advantage of starting at The Dunnottar is that even the shorter version follows the lake.
Then Come Home for Breakfast
This is our preferred ending.
Leave around seven or eight.
Walk.
Stop for tea if the timing works.
Come back through the gate an hour or so later.
Then breakfast.
Breakfast is included at The Dunnottar and is served between eight and ten. If the weather allows, we like eating outside.
By then you are properly hungry.
Coffee tastes better.
Dosa tastes better.
And whatever else you thought you needed to accomplish before lunch begins to feel less urgent.
Why We Do It Almost Every Day
The lake circuit is not the most dramatic walk in Kodaikanal.
Dolphin’s Nose has larger views.
Vellagavi is a much harder hike.
The Dunnottar Walk tells you far more about the old houses, shola and history of the town.
But those are walks you decide to do.
The lake is different.
It becomes part of the day.
After a few mornings, you recognise where the dogs usually sit. Which stretch receives the first sun. Where the horses are tethered. Where mist tends to remain above the water. Which boatmen are already working.
Four generations of our family have spent some version of these mornings here.
Perhaps that is why, whenever we return to Kodaikanal, this is usually where we begin.
Out of the gate.
Around the lake.
Then home for breakfast.
This is one of the walks our family does when staying at The Dunnottar. Read more about how we spend our days in Kodaikanal.
— The Puliyadi Family
Frequently Asked Questions
How long is the walk around Kodaikanal Lake?
The full road circuit is approximately five kilometres. Allow around one to one-and-a-quarter hours at a comfortable walking pace.
What is the best time to walk around Kodaikanal Lake?
We prefer starting around 7–8am, before daytime traffic and activity around the lake increase.
Is the Kodaikanal Lake walk difficult?
No. It is one of the easiest substantial walks in Kodaikanal because the route is predominantly level.
Can I start the lake walk from The Dunnottar?
Yes. The Dunnottar sits on Lake Road beside Kodaikanal Lake. Guests can begin and finish the approximately five-kilometre circuit directly from the bungalow.
Can children do the lake walk?
Yes, if they are comfortable walking the distance. Keep children closely supervised around road traffic.
Is it suitable for older guests?
The route has much less climbing than most Kodaikanal walks. There is also no need to complete the full circuit; a shorter out-and-back walk from The Dunnottar still follows the lake.
Where do you stop for tea?
One of our favourite stops is A1 Tea Stall opposite the Kodaikanal Boat & Rowing Club, if it is open when we pass.
Start at the Front Gate
The Dunnottar sits on Lake Road beside Kodaikanal Lake. Walk the circuit in the morning. Come home for breakfast.
The house can be booked as the Whole Bungalow, North Bungalow or South Bungalow. Getting here: How to Get Here.
