• Adventure - Hikes - Nature's Wonders - Places - Sanctuaries - Treks

    Travel in 2020: The End

    (Also read Travel in 2020: The Beginning and Travel in 2020: The Middle) We often hear in literature or in general about how insignificant we feel as a tiny speck in this vast cosmos. Travellers speak about that especially in the context of the Himalayas or other mountain ranges. One doesn’t need to go that far to feel our cosmic insignificance. All one needs to be at any spot by the banks of the huge Shivsagar lake, the backwaters formed by the mighty Koyna dam. More on Koyna later. The final trip of 2020 was the perhaps the most looked…

  • Nature's Wonders - Places

    The Night Life In Amboli – With Herpetofauna In Company

    Amboli has vibrant nightlife. Or so we heard. And we were looking forward for a glimpse of it. The wettest place in Maharashtra has its charms during the day, too. In 3 days, we could enjoy both. The term biodiversity has become a well-worn expression, used by all and sundry without really understanding or appreciating its intensity and depth. For some, it means wilderness or a patch of greenery. (What about our precious deserts?) We even have senior forest officers thinking of building artificial nests for birds displaced out of their natural habitat when trees are cut for widening highways.…

  • Adventure - Nature's Wonders - Places - Treks

    Mighty Harischandragad and Magnificent Konkan Kada

    We have heard a lot about Harischandragad and Konkan Kada. The former is a temple and hill fort at over 4,500 ft above sea level. At one end of the Harischandragad plateau, the land suddenly drops to over 1,800 ft. This semicircular cliff, Konkan Kada, offers an unhindered, spectacular view of plains all the way to Konkan. Sunset at Konkan Kada is a view to behold, so we were told. Harischandragad has been on our trekking bucket list for a few years. Last time when Nature Knights organised this trek, chickenpox stood in our way. This time, we did it!…

  • Adventure - Nature's Wonders - Places - Treks

    Adventure of the Season − Siddhagad in Monsoons

    A couple of years back when we did the Gorakhgad trek, we thought it was a mighty mountain. (Read about the Gorakhgad trek here – The Motely Crowd and Mighty Mountain). Mighty it was then. At that time, we had set our eyes on Siddhagad peak, seen at a distance, engulfed in dark clouds. Little did we realise then that Siddhagad (3223 ft) was taller than Gorakhgad (2137 ft). If Gorakghad was thrilling, Siddhagad was beyond that. Rains lashing with vengeance and water gushing down through the trail added to the excitement. Siddhagad is in the Malshejgat region, but along…

  • Treks

    Pouring Rains, Lashing Winds, Gushing Streams, Slippery Rocks, Slushy Pathways … Monsoon Is On. Treks Are On

    The hills and mountains that cover the entire western part of Maharashtra have many forts. Most of them have seen hectic activities from 1400 to 1900 AD (an average, and an assumption). After the Mughals, the Dutch, the Portuguese, the Marathas and the Britishers finished their party, what was left were more often only rubbles of forts. Except in very few cases, where the government has taken up maintenance for archeological reasons or those maintained as places of worship. From 21 century onwards, it was the turn of city slickers to lay hands (and legs) on these forts. People who…

  • People

    Humility @ Heights. Meet Pradeep Kelkar

    At first glance he would pass off as an uncle next door. Ever smiling, but certainly not the patronizing ones. His nimble body is deceptive of the exceptional feats it has accomplished. Scaling more than 120 peaks in Maharashtra. An unbreakable record of 40 virgin peaks. And 40 odd new routes to some of the known mountains. Meet Pradeep Kelkar, affectionately called as Pradeep Sir by mountaineering lovers in Maharashtra, a winner of many national and state awards including Shiv Chhatrapati Award. If humility can be measured in heights, one has to add up all the mountains he has climbed…

  • Places

    Have Two Days? Try Option #134

    While Outlook Traveller gives us 52 options to de-stress our weekends, in reality, the permutations and combinations of plans one can make out of that is far too many. So, if you are a travel lover, have two days and can manage your own conveyance, here is an option that will leave your senses rejuvenated and spirits recharged. Best done in September as the monsoons are just receding …   A long drive from Mumbai through Pune (Chakan) to Narayangaon. From there, it is country roads through the fields and vineyards to Junnar. Climb the Shivneri fort. Stay in a…

  • Nature's Wonders - Places

    A Motley Crowd and a Mighty Mountain

    A Sunday morning. A motley crowd in their 20s to 40s. A mighty mountain – Gorakhgad. We cribbed about the hot sun and the lack of rain only to realise later that descending would’ve been difficult had it rained. The wind at the top was strong enough to blow one away. One of us was reluctant to remove her backpack fearing she might lose her balance. Climbing down was a little hard at a few points especially for the first-time trekkers. Sliding down was the choice of many. But as usual Nature Knights pulled it off. A dip in the…

  • Places

    Driving Through Dangs

    Dang is a tribal district in South Gujarat, bordering Maharashtra. It is perhaps the tail of Western Ghats that stretches all the way up from Kerala through Tamilnadu, Karnataka and Maharashtra. A complete forest district, Dang in monsoons is nothing short of a bliss. Well laid and maintained roads snake through the teak forests and an occasional tribal hamlet. Saputara is a tiny hill station in Dang, a few kilometers from the Maharashtra border. It is unlike any typical hill station. No colonial hangovers. Simple and very tiny. You don’t need a local transport.From the sunrise point to the sunset…