Yercaud :India
Yercaud, at an altitude of 1,500 metres (4,920 feet), stands in the Servaroyan (Shevaroy) Hills above the city of Salem in Tamil Nadu. The first proper hotel in the station only opened in 1971. Until then Yercaud had not been a tourist resort but a town famous for its schools and surrounding coffee estates. Yercaud is still comparatively more peaceful and cheaper than the major southern resorts ot Ooty and Kodaikanal, bul every year the influx from the plains is growing larger. For the time being, its population of 35,000 gives it the atmosphere of a large village. The climate is also particularly pleasant; residents say with pride that they never need to use a fan. The most popular seasons are February-June and September-November, while late November and December tend to be cold and misty. Around April there are the pleasant showers which bring the coffee bushes into blossom.

BACKGROUND
The name Yercaud comes from two Tamil words: yeri or lake and kadu or forest. The spot was discovered by the British in ihe 19th century. Coffee was introduced into the Servaroyan Hills in the 1820s but the first house in Yercaud wasn’t built until some 20 years after that. The first motorable road to the settlement was completed as late as 1900. The economy of ihe area is dependent on coffee ,\m\ (here are 17,000 estates, mostly small. The majority of the estates are owned by local people, although before Independence they belonged to English, Scots, Welsh, French and German, as well as Indian planters. One West Indian planter is still remembered by locals. He was an ex-boxing champion by the name of Mr Terry. The mixture of nationalities in the community led to an exceptional camaraderie. Everyone could be a member of the club where tennis, bridge and other games were and, to a lesser extent, are still played.

The cool climate attracted a number of Christian denominations and the sight of nuns and priests is not uncommon. They run the two prestigious schools – the Sacred Heart Convent for girls and the Montfort School for boys.