Rangaswamy Peak

Rangaswamy Peak is a site of immense spiritual and cultural importance, particularly for the indigenous Irula, Badaga, and Kurumba tribes of the Nilgiris. They consider the peak to be the sacred abode of their deity Ranga or Ranganada, a form of Lord Rangaswamy (Lord Vishnu). An annual harvest festival, celebrating millet crops, is held here in May and June, with rituals blending indigenous worship with Vaishnava and Shaiva elements.

Devotees are also allowed to visit the temple at the peak during the Tamil month of Purattasi (September-October). The peak is said to have been named after Colonel J.C. Rangaswami, a European explorer. Historically, the area also gained notoriety due to an Air India flight crash in 1950 near the pillar, which resulted in the loss of all 21 individuals on board, including statistician Abraham Wald. The adjacent Rangaswamy Pillar is a striking, unclimbable rock formation rising about 400 feet (122 meters) high, considered mystical and revered by locals.