In 1985, British backpackers Bob & Tanya visited Kodaikanal for "just a few days". They never left. Instead, they spent decades resurrecting Tamil Nadu’s dying shola forests—one of India’s most magical ecosystems.
Let's start at the beginning. In 1852, Major Partridge introduced invasive eucalyptus & wattle trees to the Palanis, calling grasslands "wasteland." Big mistake. These foreign species choked sholas—ancient forests that act like giant sponges, feeding rivers like the Cauvery.
By the 80s, disaster struck. 87% of grasslands vanished. Sholas shrank to fragments. Trucks hauled away timber while rare orchids, langurs & birds disappeared. Then arrived two clueless backpackers with zero botany degrees… and unshakeable grit.
Bob and Tanya turned their rented cottage into a Shola Emergency Room. They germinated hundreds of species never propagated before, funding it by selling cacti to hotels! Locals joined, and the Vattakanal Conservation Trust was born.
After years of begging for permission, the Forest Department finally let them replant inside protected sholas in 2001. Their breakthrough? Proving restoration was possible—even botanists couldn’t tell revived patches from original forests!
Imagine hauling saplings up slippery slopes, getting nettle rashes, battling leeches—all while documenting every plant. They rediscovered species like the Elaeocarpus blascoi (Palni Hills Rudraksha tree), a tree so rare it was presumed extinct.
Before passing (Tanya in 2016, Bob in 2023), they trained a generation of Tamil conservationists. Today, their Trust’s work guides policy—protecting the Palanis’ water sources that quench Tamil Nadu’s thirst.
Why this matters to YOU Sholas supply water to 5 states. Their survival affects your drinking water, monsoon rains, and rare species like the Nilgiri tahr. Bob & Tanya proved that ordinary people can fix the ecological sins of the past.
Two backpackers. 1 accidental mission. Bob & Tanya proved ordinary people can do extraordinary things for India’s forests! Be like them, start small. Plant native trees. Join local eco-groups. Real change begins when we stop waiting for "experts" and become them!