Igatpuri—Mt.Kalsubai

On 13th June 09, I and Ashish Negi set out for Mt.Kalsubai. We reached Dadar station at 11.45 p.m. to catch the Mahanagri express , however the train was delayed for more than an hour and arrived at 2.15 a.m. instead of its actual departure at 00.25 a.m. At 5.00 a.m. we arrived at Igatpuri station and after using the public loo on the station we set out. We walked towards the platform 1 and came out of the station. There is a rickshaw stand immediately outside, however we proceeded towards the bus stand which was towards the right hand side once we were outside the station. We arrived at the bus stand after walking for roughly 10-15 minutes. The shops were closed since it was only 5.25 a.m. We enquired at the bus stand and were being informed that the first bus to Bhandardara was at 7.00 a.m. and Kalsubai was one the way. Immediately outside the bus stand are tea vendors and I had tea. The entry point of the bus stand has a dargah and the exit point has a temple. We waited at the temple and caught the bus at 7.00 and the bus left sharp at 7.00 a.m. Total Damage: INR 40.00. After a journey over almost an hour we arrived at Bheri—small village which is the base from where one starts for Mt. Kalsubai. There was a small outlet where we got down and we took tea and Poha. Total Damage: INR 26.00. There is no other option except for poha and biscuits. One can see majestic Kalsubai from the stand and was magnificent. We proceeded towards the Bheri Village and after walking for 15-20 minutes arrived at the village. There is a well outside the village which was surrounded by villagers collecting waters which were dropped in by the tanker. We walked just beside the school and asked the locals for the direction and they were quite helpful. We walked and passed across the fields and kept on moving. There was no major trouble in finding the path since they were made on account of people walking. On the way we came across Bheri temple and few huts of villagers and we kept on walking and finally were very close to the base. There was a group of hikers who were walking down and had come from Mumbai. They informed of starting the trek at 6.00 a.m. and at 8.30 a.m. were down. They told us of the climb and step to be taken. Our journey had started at 8.35 a.m. and we were pretty comfortable in our timing. Finally we arrived at the spot where there were iron girdles and steps which were to be climbed. The steps and the iron girdles were of great help and additionally I was carrying a bamboo stick which was of great help in the climb. Ashish unfortunately was not wearing any cap and was neither carrying stick. After climbing on the steps for 20 minutes we came across iron ladders which were laid since steps could not be built as it was vertical rocks. One needs to be cautious while climbing the ladders. We kept on climbing with intermittent halts of 2-3 minutes to restore energy. Finally we came across a family with 2 children’s who had started at 8.00 a.m. we arrived at 10.40 a.m. at a spot where there was a tree and a huge stone where we all rested and infact we took a nap for 20.00 minutes. I was under impression that we had arrived, however the guide with the family informed that still there was a steep climb. By this time the sun was also bright and was taking its toll. We kept on walking, on the step, sometimes flat land and finally with intermittent iron ladders. We reached a flat top where the small temple of Behri was visible and that spot was the tallest peak in Maharashtra. The last step to the temple was through the iron ladder and finally we had arrived at the summit and it was 11.37 a.m. It took us 3 hours to reach top without any stretch. The view from the top was something which left us forgets out tirelessness. On the one side we can see the Bhandardara Lake and on the other side were the wind mills on the mountains. As far as our eyes could see there were only mountains and nothing else. At the top beside the small temple there was nothing and there was no shady place to take rest. We rested and ate Sattu, dry-fruits which I had got. After resting for 25 minutes we decided to travel down and decided to rest at the place where we had waited earlier while climbing. While travelling down we came across cattle’s i.e., cow grazing. We took rest at the spot and after resting for almost 1.5-2.0 hours at 2.30 p.m. started descending down. While climbing down it was easier, however on the iron ladder one needs to be really careful. We finally arrived at a small hut where we had nimboo-pani for INR 5.00/ glass. We arrived at the village and it took us 2.00 hours to reach the base. We had not eaten and Ashish was quite hungry and there was not a single hotel since it was a small village. We reached the main road and at the roadside shop we ordered for Poha and tea. Total Damage: INR 41.00. We waited for the bus at 6.00 p.m. since we had missed the 4.30 p.m. and finally caught the bus and arrived at Igatpuri station and it was 7.05 p.m. we roamed in the local market and Ashish had Chinese at the dinner and I took some fruits. We caught the Howrah-Mumbai at 8.25 p.m. and arrived at 11.05 p.m. at Dadar. Thus one more memorable journey came to an end.

Key Takeaway: Start Early, carry eatables, good quantity of water, cap.

For more pictures please follow the following link:
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Nasik—Trimbakeshwar

On 30th May 09 I and parul were to set out for Nasik, however since she couldn’t make it, I decided to go alone. I caught the 00.25 a.m. mahanagri express from Dadar and arrived Nasik at 4.25 a.m. the journey was supposed to be most interesting one as I was carrying only INR 320.00 and the account for which the ATM card I was carrying was out of funds. I asked my father to deposit some cash next day morning. I sat at the station for 15-20 minutes and proceeded to platform no.1.immediately outside the platform was the rickshaw and the bus stand. There were refreshment shops selling tea, vada pav which are open 24 hours. I was asked by the ticket conductor to catch the bus to CBS (Central Bus Stand) and immediately got the bus which was packet even in early morning. Damage: INR 10.00 and in 15 minutes arrived at CBS. At CBS there is a common toilet and paid one for using the service. The first bus for trimbakeshwar leaves at 5.15 a.m and goes from bus stand 1. There was a queue of people already standing and one need to really muscle to get inside the bus. Buses leave every 15 minutes for Trimbakeshwar and I caught the 5.30 a.m. bus. The scenic beauty was too good and one could see huge mountains on the left side of the raod. Toal damage: INR 20.00. At 6.00 a.m. I arrived at trimbakeshwar and as I got out of the bus, I couldn’t believe that it was such a good place. I could see mountains surrounding the place with clouds touching the mountains. There is a common toilet which I availed for INR 2.00 .It was not a great place, however being a budget traveler one needs to be prepared for every eventuality. I immediately proceeded towards the temple and after walking for 5 minutes arrived at the entrance of the temple. There was already queue with people standing since long and I became part of them which started at 6.30 a.m. and finally at 7.45 a.m. I got the darshan of jyotirling and one is not even allowed to stand even for a minute. There were lot of people doing parikrama of the temple and there is a holy water in the temple compound which is however open only to pundits of the temple. The place outside the temple was now buzzing with pilgrimages and one can find shops selling all sorts of things. I took breakfast at the nearby hotel of poha and tea. Total damage: INR 11.00. Towards the left side I walked straight and reached KUSHAWARTA--- a bathing place where there are waters of Godavari river and usually one takes a bath in the water before visiting jyotirling. One can't take a bath with soap since that’s not allowed and there are security people who keep watch on everyone. Immediately I proceeded to the bus stand and at 8.54 a.m. left for ANJANERI on the way to Nasik at a distance of 6.00 k.m from Trimbakeshwar. I asked the conductor to stop at anjani and immediately towards the right side there is a board which reads to Anjani—birthplace of Lord Hanuman. It’s a climb through the village and takes 30-40 minutes to reach the base of the mountain. There is a big mountain which is like a straight rock and can’t be climbed straight. There are steps which I took and was quite tiring since the temperature was almost 40-41. On the way I arrived at a small cave of Lord Buddha. I rested for 5 minutes and proceeded straight up and reached a flat plateau. There is a temple and a place to rest .the wind was so strong and was the windiest place I had ever visited. The view was exhilarating and I proceeded on and took the company of few local students who were also on the way up. Finally we arrived at the summit and walked for 5-10 minutes and arrived at this small temple on which it was written—birth place of hanuman. Immediately we proceeded back and reached the base at 12.00 p.m. at the base there is nothing to eat, however there is a local which sells lemon juice for INR 5.00. There is a place where I took rest and at around 2.30 p.m. proceeded to the main road. On the road I took lunch. Total damage INR 55.00. Usually one finds bus from anjani however I found it difficult since lot of the state buses didn’t stop. Finally I got the bus and arrived at CBS at 4.00 p.m. immediately outside the bus stand there are shared auto which takes to Ram ghat for INR 5.00/person. It took roughly 10-15 minutes to reach the ghat and the place was full with devotees who were bathing and offering deeps. The place is surrounded by market where locals come for shopping and near the ghat is old shiv temple worth a visit. Just outside the road is black Rama temple which is made of full black stone. Immediately next to this temple is the SITA gufa—where sita was supposed to be abducted .proceeding straight I came to a small temple which was Lakshman Rekha and then Hanuman Temple –8th meters. Its worth some time to spend at the ghat and watch people bathing of all ages and wakes of life. There is also boating facility available and aarti which takes place at 7.00 p.m. I proceeded to station and near the station there are small road side stalls which sell milk—full glass for INR 9.00 and half a glass for INR 5.00.

I enquired for my train to find that it was 10 hours late so I took general ticket and entered Amritsar express which arrived at 12.00 a.m. there was not a single place to sit and came standing till igatpuri. There I managed to find a place to sit and had slept for only an hour and arrived at Mumbai at 5.10 a.m.

Key Takeaway: Start early, visit Anjani, caves on the Mumbai Highway (I couldn’t).

For pictures follow the following link:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/30002962@N05/

Ahmadabad—Modhera

On 22nd May I and Ashish Negi set for Modhera and caught the Lok Shakti express at 8.25 p.m. Andheri. The train was packed with locals who usually travel till Palghar. Next day morning at 4.59 a.m. we arrived at Ahmadabad. Immediately we rushed to the platform No.1 to enquire for a train to Mehsana and go 2 general tickets for INR 28.00 /head. We rushed to platform no.3 and found Bandra-Jaipur express and were about to leave at 5.30 A.M. the next train was a local passenger at 6.30 A.M. we reached Mehsana at 7.59 a.m. and paid 100.00 to the TC for travelling in Sleeper class which was the difference amount and took the voucher. There is an ATM of SBI at the station and one can find lodge for INR 100.00 immediately near the station. We took breakfast at the nearby shop i.e., Dhokla, bhajia and tea. We took the straight main road i.e., Raj Mahal road and reached the bus stand in 10.00 minutes. The bus was at 9.00 a.m. from bus stand number 1 and the total damage was INR 30.00. The distance between Modhera and Mehsana is 25 K.M.and we arrived at Modhera around 10.00 A.M. we didn’t get down at the bus stand instead got off near SHAKTI FURNITURE from where the temple is much closer. One need to walk for roughly 10-15 minutes to reach the sun temple distance would be 800.00 metres. The temple is really a fine art and has much more intricate designs then the one at Humpi. There is water reservoir outside the main temple which has 108 small temples of SHIVA, Sheetlamata, and Ganesha etc. There is an assembly hall in front of the main temple and the visit was worth. The entire place is surrounded by a big garden where there a langoors. Local cultural festivals are held over here. There is just one refreshment counter outside the main entrance. The entrance fee is INR 5.00/ person. Outside the temple towards the bus stand when one walks down there is a step well—one step which can be visited .the step wells were built to help quench the thirst of the locals in those days. After spending almost 1-1.30 hours we left for the bus stand at 12.20 p.m. and had to walk down to the stand roughly 15 -20 minutes walk. The temperature would be 40-42. The bus was at 1.00 p.m.; however one can also take local auto which packs up passengers like anything. We arrived at Mehsana and took the Jammu Tavi express at 2.10 p.m. and arrived Ahmedabad at 4.48 p.m. our train to Bombay was at 8.10 p.m. Mumbai special and hence we decided to visit Adalaj vav –step well. There was a local bus which goes but since we were short of time, we negotiated an auto for INR 200.00 and reached the place at 6.15 p.m. the step well really marvelous with 3 steps down and are sure not to be missed and have an entrance from the top towards the garden side. It’s in the middle of this place adalaj. We rushed back and just before the station out rickshaw person took us to an old Jain temple which was built almost 175 years back and is great. We arrived on time and reached Mumbai next day at 5.00 a.m.

Key Take-away: carry water, caps.

For more pictures follow the following link:
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Karnataka—Humpi, Pattadakal, Badami, Aihole

On 31st March, I, ashish negi and Deepika (friend of Ashish) set out for Humpi and arrived at Dadar station to catch Chennai Express departing at 20.30. Our ticket was not confirmed. Deepika was carrying the army pass since her father was in army. We boarded in the army compartment and next day at 11.15 a.m. arrived at Guntakal station. Immediately we took the local passenger train to Bellary. Total damage was INR 27.00. The train left at 11.45 a.m. with the next train being at 12.40 p.m. the train was overcrowded with people and there was not a single place to sit. Deepika managed to find a place to sit, whereas I and ashish reached Bellary standing at 1.05 p.m. the station was too small to handle to passengers and was over crowded. Outside the station we bargained for an auto to Humpi .total damage was INR 600.00. Auto took the NH-63 and after travelling for half and hour took right to DAROJI. Roughly 19.00 k.m. from daroji is the bear sanctuary. The journey to humpi was on a lonely road with boulders on both the sides. We stopped on the way to take snaps of the lakes, boulders. We arrived humpi at roughly 2.30 p.m. the first glimpse of the place left all of us speechless. It was an area spread in diameter of around 7 k.m. on the way to the humpi market we could see lot of temples. On reaching the market, we were followed by guest house agents and we took 2 rooms at Deva hotel for INR 200/room. It was a single room with attached toilet, however the biggest advantage being just 2 minutes walking from the main temple. Immediately after taking bath we took an auto who promised to show all the important places in Humpi. Total damage: INR 500. We saw vithala temple. There is one main road surrounded by shops on both the sides. The market had cyber-café, restaurants, garment shops and an ATM.Next day morning we took 02 bikes from the nearby shop. Total damage was INR 200 / bike for whole day and INR 150/ scooty, petrol charges separately. He takes the advance money and an identity proof. We left at 8.00 a.m. and drove all the way towards the vithala temple to catch a dongi to take us to the other side of the river. The last stretch to the dongi is quite narrow and one needs to be careful. The dongi carries 2-3 bikes and 8-10 people. It’s made of bags used for carrying food grains and tied with bamboo sticks. The dongi however turned out to be quite strong to handle such weights. This was the most amazing moment for all of us, since we had never travelled in dongi earlier. The local authorities were building flyover, however the same couldn’t be completed as it caved in. total damage: INR 50.00. We drove our bike towards left and straight towards monkey hill, and pampasarovar.from this place we went straight and reached a market and from there we took right and reached a dam which was awesome. We went straight and reached a village called JUNGLEE. The place was simply magnificent with fields spread across. We lied down over there in the cool breeze. From this place we headed to monkey hill. The hill has some 750-1000 steps to be climbed and on the top is a temple and big boulders where Jackie Chan had shooted for MIRAGE. One can view entire humpi from there and is worth a climb. Finding a food can be an issue as the stalls at the base sell only tea and coconut water. We reached our guest house in the evening after visiting the other temples which we had left on the first day. By 6.30 p.m. we left for HOSPET in auto and total damage was INR 100.00.we arrived at near the bus stand since the major hotels were nearby. We took a room in the nearby lodge and total damage was INR 550.00 for 2 rooms. The rooms were big; however the toilet was not clean.
We decided to visit Pattadakal, Aihole and Badami. We negotiated with the local taxi and we all settled for INR 1900.00 and to start next day morning at 5.30 A.M. we all left at 6.10 a.m. and after travelling through the highway the taxi driver took left for the road to Belgaum and we arrived at Aihole in one an half hour. Aihole had temples which were built in 10-11the century A.D. and has fine work and is worth a visit. We left for Pattadakal (UNESCO site) and reached in next half and hour. The place was magnificent as compared to Aihole and there was a main temple which contained small pictures of various episodes of Ramayana and Mahabharata. Here we found local woman selling bhakri, vegetable and butter milk homemade. The best food I have ever eaten in my travelling carrier and the total damage was INR 75.00. Finally we arrived at Badami, which is in the middle of the city. The place has a big lake at the centre and was surrounded by hill on the left side and 4 caves on the other side. The climb to the top is worth as one can see the entire city. The caves are marvelous with huge idols of Krishna and Siva. Cave 4 is of Mahaveer Jain and is worth a visit. On the way to the cave there are monkeys. We all set for Badami railway station to catch a local passenger train to Sholapur. The train was supposed to depart at 12.25 p.m. and one can take the general ticket and enter the sleeper class with paying the difference in the train. We arrived at Sholapur at 8.45 p.m. and immediately managed to find a train for Mumbai and reached the next day morning at 5.00 a.m.

Key Take away: take bike; spend at least 2 days, not to be missed place.

For more pictures follow the following link:
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Mumbai- Kanheri Caves

On 25th April, I, Arun, negi and Trideep decided to visit Kanheri Caves at Borivali. Ashish picked me and Arun from the highway at 8.10 a.m and we arrived at Sanjay Gandhi National Park Gate. Trideep had already arrived. We took our car inside after paying an entry fee of INR 5.00/ person and the car entry fee of INR 50.00. The drive inside the park was great in the morning and roughly in 15-20 minutes we arrived at the base of the Kanheri Caves. If one were to walk down it will roughly take 45-60 minutes to reach the base. It was so surprising to find a small hill with caves in the park. After paying at entrance fee of INR 10.00/person we arrived at the caves. The information board at the entrance surprised all of us since it mentioned of 100 caves. We had never ever imagined of 100 caves. Cave-3 was great with 2 statue of gautam Buddha and a big prayer room inside. All the caves are lined side by side and the surprise element keeps on increasing. Cave 34 and 52 is also good. All the caves are more or less built of the same style. Few caves are at the top from where we could see entire national park. There is also a temple which was not so ancient; however the idol of the god was destroyed. Beside the temple is a dense jungle with langoors. We finished the entire cave visit in 2 hours. Senior citizens will difficult as there is sizeable climb. We decided to visit the safari which was inside the park. After parking the car, we took the bus. The charges are inr 30/person for adults and inr 15/child. The first bus starts at 9.00 a.m. and the last bus is at 5.00 p.m. the bus accommodates 15 people. The bus entered the safari and after travelling for 10 minutes arrived at a huge gate which was opened and we saw tigers which were resting. The tigers were not exactly in open however were surrounded by fence. After the tiger visit we arrived at a place where we could see lion resting under the shade. The lion was not in great health and feeds on the food supplied by the park people.
The place is however good for children’s.

Key takeaway:
Start early, carry water, caps.

For more pictures follow the following link:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/30002962@N05/

Mumbai- Elephanta Caves

On 18th April 09, I, Nikhil talwar and manoj set out for Elephanta Caves. I met Nikhil and andheri station and we caught the 8.15 a.m. fast train to churchgate. We arrived at the station and waited for Manoj. We all left for elephanta and caught taxi from Eros to Gateway. Total damage: Inr 17.00.at the gateway on the left side there are counters selling ferry tickets to elephanta. There are 2 options available: small and big ferry. Small ferry charges INR 100/ person whereas the big one charges INR 120/ person. Total damage to us: INR 360.00. The ferry carries at a one go roughly 40-50 persons and one can sit at the top for which one needs to shell INR 10.00/ person extra. The view from the top is great and as one sees water everywhere. The ferry passes through huge merchant ships on the way. The total ride is for 45 minutes and is worth. Finally we arrived at this tiny island which is full of greenery. Once we got down, there is an option of either catching a toy train which would be carrying roughly 30-40 people at one go. We decided to walk down and in ten minutes we reached at the entrance. On the way we found small shops selling waters, biscuits, wafers. The entrance fee is INR 5.00/ person. There are steps to be climbed and takes 10-15 minutes to reach the elephanta. The step to the elephanta is surrounded by small shops on both sides. These shops sell t-shirts, ladies wear, stones, status of god in silver. There are refreshment centre’s selling dosas, vada-pav, idli etc.senior citizens can avail of doli while climbing the steps.
Finally we arrived at the elephanta, where on the right side was MTDC accommodation which is rarely available. The first glimpse of the site made us feel as if we have arrived at a site which is still so ancient. The first cave is huge with some marvelous artwork on the walls. It’s quite huge inside and at the centre was the 3 faced brahma, Vishnu and Mahesh statue. It was looking so live as if someone had made just recently. Inside there is shiv linga. Just beside was cave 2 which contained a small shiv linga and Ganesha statue. Cave 3 and 4 is at a distance of roughly 5 mns and is not so great as compared to Cave1.

We finished the entire thing by 12.00 p.m. and after taking some refreshment at the nearby hotel returned back home.
Key Take-away: Avoid going in summer, wear cap if going in summer, carry water, and start early morning
For pictures please follow the following link:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/30002962@N05/