The Southwest monsoon’s arrival hastens the departure of people still reluctant to go back to the plains. Since the air distance to the sea is only 60 km., the rains bring clean, pure, unadulterated water. There are three different weather patterns in the Nilgiris. Coonoor, the lowest at 6100 ft. (1858 mtrs.) has warm, moist air. Kotagiri (Kota, a tribe and giri, mountain) at 6503 ft. (1983 mtrs), is cooler and drier. Ooty, the highest at 7620 ft (2240 mtrs.), is the coldest and least damp. Though summer visitors who experience intermittent rain during their short holiday may be pardoned for not believing this

But even in the monsoon the Nilgiris is still enjoyable. Because only Ooty and its immediate environs in the west get most of their rain from the south west monsoon. Coonnor in the east gets only 25 percent in summer and the rest from the northeast monsoon in Novermber. The amount of rainfall varies greatly from place to place. The variation is so much that if Doddabetta in Ooty gets 50 cms. of rain, Wellington, just 10 km. away, might get only 10 cms, Anaikatti, just 10 km. from Ooty on the Sigur ghat road, has less than 60 cms. rain but some mountain peaks get more than 800 cms. On an average, there are 107 rainly days- from 86 in Coonoor upto 141 at Devala in Gudalur

So though the summer is officially over, there are still many weeks of sunshine even after the rains start. And when the rains do start, the meadows come alive with flowers. September is the pleasantest month of the year without the frost or cold of the winter, the head of the summer or the rains of the monsoons. Ooty’s temperature is the highest in April- 28 degrees, while Coonoor is warmest in May when it can be fairly hot. The days are coldest in Ooty in December and nights in January sometimes dipping to the minus range, while Coonoor is about 3 degrees. An interesting fact is that the Nilgiris are probably the highest mountains not to have any show

Most tourists come unprepared for the hills. But they are not to blame. It is hard to think of warm woolens in summer when one’s thoughts are swathed in cool cottons. Warm clothes are essential. Even a warm day can turn suddenly cool if a cloud decides to travel across the sun and maybe spend some time there. And even cooler if it decides to bring a shower with it. Cloudy or not, it is cool in the open, and in the evenings and nights. A very important point to remember is that even if the sun is not hot is the hills, it is sharp. Because of intense radiation, the sun, though mild, tans the skin very quickly, perhaps because it makes it very dry. It is wise to put on some sun screen lotion before setting out to prevent sunburn and some cold cream to prevent dryness. Do not confuse the result of altitude with that of latitude

The Nilgiris has one of the most equable and temperate climates in the world, the maximum temperature having a variation of just 9 degrees in the year. Practical advice is to wear warm clothes and not overdo the walking and climbing. The sensible locals always weat a light coat, sweater or shawl and are generally prepared with an imbrells to keep out the sun or the surprise shower

Fortunately, it very rarely rains in the mornings. But it is better to visit the viewpoints a little later in the day. Whenever the mist rises, and this sight never fails to enchant when one moment everything is bright and clear and the next it is difficult to see even a few inches from your nose, the mists do not clear till the early afternoon

Temperatures drop suddenly so even though it is a very pleasant 28 degrees Celsius during the day, the evenings are cool and nights chilly at around 10 degrees. Winter temperatures during the day are not that drastically different because it is about 21 degrees but the night can be a cold zero. The Nilgiris has been described as ‘a cold tropical island rising above the warm tropical sea of southern India