A serpentine road winds through expanses of tropical evergreen, semi-evergreen forests and ‘Sholas’, the local name for patches of stunted tropical montane forests found in the valleys and undulating grasslands that drape the higher reaches of the Western Ghats mountains around Munnar. Gradually climbing higher, the bracing air begins to clear lingering memories of the plains below, an intense communion with nature that ERA has on offer, begins here. Down below, the river Periyar flows between the mountains and the route passes a network of dams and their scenic reservoirs fringed by dense forests.

Leading off the highway, a dirt track with clusters of shrub and rustic houses on either edge leads to the resort. ERA is comprised of exquisitely designed and furnished twin floor independent cottages arrayed in an arc beneath a clump of towering trees. Set along a hill slope descending towards a valley, the cottages all offer spectacular views of the valley below and through the lush vegetation, glimpses of the surrounding mountaintops. The canopy of trees casts dappled pools of light on a delightfully landscaped garden with a profusion of endemic vegetation and neat rows of beautiful flowers.

A forked path leads downwards from the reception to the resort’s pool and another that extends past the entrances to the cottages – deluxe, pool and jacuzzi villas, once again bifurcating to descend towards the resort’s pool, restaurant and climbing to a ridge on the hilltop. Here, an exhilarating view from a deck presents itself, an expansive theatre of nature’s moods, looking over the forests and mountains receding towards the horizon.

Gorgeous sunrises and sunsets, flitting butterflies, mellifluous birds riding the alluring crests and troughs of a breeze, seasons arrive and depart, an era is in progress.