Ghangad: Far (Very Far) Away From The Maddening Crowd

Last weekend for a change, I wanted to venture out to an area where I had not hiked much. Ghangad is a small fort located some 40 kms from Lonavala, near the backwaters of Mulshi dam. A tricky rock patch requiring equipment was the reason this fort had not been attempted but thanks to an enterprising trekking group, ladders and ropes have been installed making things much easier. With that information in hand I was off in the morning to Lonavala, waiting for the rest of my group, who were coming from Pune.

Approaching Ghangad from Ekole village

The drive to Ghangad is probably one of the best in the country: the road is smooth, the greenery around is enticing and best of all in the rains, the area is completely misty for long stretches. However this dream ride only lasts till Ambavne – this village is near Korigad fort and now more importantly near Amby valley. After this point, a bifurcation takes you towards Bhamburde village and since there are no high-flying city types coming this way, the road quality really dips down.

The route goes through Salter village (near Telbaila massif) and finally to Bhamburde; at places the road was so narrow that it was difficult to imagine an ST bus on it! Bhamburde village rests idyllically in what seems like a valley surrounded by large hills; the smallest of these is Ghangad.

We walked from Bhamburde to Ekole village at the base of Ghangad. The fort is quite small and one can finish it in an hour and a half from the base. Initially a large ugly track leads to the forest; once inside the forest, a more natural small path takes one to the temple of Garjai devi.  A useful map of the fort  is posted here. Moving ahead one reaches a col between Ghangad and a giant neighbouring hill. From here one can see the hills falling steeply into Konkan.

Valley behind Ghangad fort

A short walk takes one to the fortification of the hill. Once inside, you move to a rock face where a ladder has been kept. Inspite of the ladder, in the rainy season, there is a tricky step one has to negotiate; after that its a steep but safe route to top across crumbling steps and bastions. On the top there are a few tanks and two bastions; its the views that are marvellous. The hills around enclose a plain area at the edge of which across Ghangad stands the double peaked massif called Telbaila; all of this eventually falls down into Konkan and the deep valleys are fantastic. One can also see Sudhagad (its nearer to Telbaila); on my previous treks to Sudhagad, I have always wondered at these valleys and where they go; now I know!

Descent was quick and in no time the hike was done! On the way back, our road was still misty even in the afternoon, but as one nears Lonavala, the maddening crowds near Bushy Dam make one cringe! When will Indians know how to enjoy and respect nature?!

Travelling: ST buses ply between Lonavla and Bhamburde (apparently twice a day, once in morning and once in afternoon). Best way would be to have your own transport. Cars can go beyond Bhamburde, right upto Ekole village. One can also descend down into Konkan (near Sudhagad) via Ekole village (4-5 hours route)

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CHANDERI FORT- SO CLOSE YET FAR....

Chanderi (right) and Mhasmal (left) - the route to both rise to the 'V' point between the two

The Matheran range and surrounding hills have been the usual suspects for most of my monsoon treks. So its a surprise to find any trekking point not visited in the vicinity. After an earlier trip to Irshalgad, it was now turn of Chanderi – another mountain that I always had wanted to climb but somehow just had not yet.

Chanderi fort has a sharp, squarish massif at the top which requires technical rock climbing. Probably due to this reason, it was passed over for other destinations. However its turn had come and on a Sunday morning, I was waiting for the Karjat local from Dadar station. However I missed my train and as a result we started the trek late at around ten.

The fort seems to be close to Bombay; after all you just hop on to the local. But the base village of Chinchavli is far from Vangani station where one alights from the local and even from Chinchavli its a half an hour walk till the base.

Once the climb begins it is relentless as one has to ascend to a col between Chanderi and Mhasmal. The route is beautiful as it skirts around a waterfall, sometimes even going right through it. It was a cloudy day with little or no drizzle but the waterfall was gurgling with water and just the sound itself was refreshing. The feeling of being somewhere remote was very strong as the forest around was very thick and verdant.

The climb was longer than expected and we rested at the col, gazing at the view on the other side which looks towards Panvel. On one side of the col, we could see the sharp top of Mhasmal but our fort could not be seen yet, hidden as it was in the clouds. We took the left turn and began climbing a sharp, steep ridge. Eventually we could the towering Chanderi massif with a few trekkers dotted at its base. The views at the base of the massif were great; we could see Prabal and Irshalgad and even Morbe dam backwaters.

We were famished and had lunch. We decided to have a look at the cave on the fort; it was not the cleanest but it can house a good 10-12 people. We could see clouds charging towards us and soon enough it began to rain. The rain died out after some minutes but it was misty and windy. Going back, as we descended the ridge, we could feel the force of the wind; any stronger and we could have rolled down into the valley!

The ascent took around three hours and descent was quick though the gradient is steep and slippery. We could not resist taking a dip in the waterfall. Even though this is trek route, there are enough private spots in the cascades to enjoy. And somehow on this hike, despite presence of several trekking groups one still felt alone and could enjoy nature peacefully. And speaking of groups, one inexperienced large groups of college-going kids was climbing up at three, still an hour away from the top and they had started at ten like us! If you are newbie to trekking, give this one a miss! For those who are seasoned monsoon trekkers, don’t let this one get away!

Directions: Catch the Karjat local and get down at Vangani station (before Neral - the stop for Matheran). An auto takes one to Chinchavli which is about half an hour away. Take the driver's number as there is no ST bus to the village

Pics at:

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Irshalgad - The One That Got Away

There are very few places left around Mumbai where I have not trekked as yet. One of those is Irshalgad, a sharply peaked hill that cannot be missed on the old Mumbai-Pune road. Somehow I missed this trek, having been to almost all the mountains around it. So I tagged along with a commercial group that was heading that way on what was ‘friendship day’.

Irshalgad pinnacles

Now I am not one for commercial groups as they are too big and noisy for me personally. I enjoy the intimacy of a trek with friends. Plus there is the benefit of setting the pace and itinerary as one wishes. Nevertheless here I was on a Sunday which was also the aforementioned ‘friendship day’ – luckily for me, many people had more celebratory ideas in the city and ditched the hiking group. As a result we were a group of about ten, on our way to Chowk via Karjat.

The hike starts at the Morbe Dam colony near Chowk phata on the Mumbai-Pune old road. From the colony, a sharp ridge rises towards Irshalgad. Once you are high up on this ridge, Irshalgad is visible with its sharp pinnacles and its ‘needle-hole’ point. The ridge takes you to Irshalwadi, a small hamlet on a plateau dotted with grassy expanses and tiny rice fields.

We had a heavy downpour when the hike started but later there were only clouds. The clouds played hide and seek with the sun, affording us great views all around. On one side you could see Matheran and on the other the imposing Prabalgad. From the village, we walked  towards the other end of the massif and then gradually climbed up a sharp ridge to the top. Its difficult to scale the rocky tops of this mountain; the route from the ridge eventually starts zigzagging through rocks and gets narrower. I suppose as one goes ahead it just gets more exposed as well.

We did not go too much on the rocks and instead enjoyed the peace and quiet. We were only warming up to each other as we had started the morning as strangers. We had lunch at the top and lazed around for a while enjoying the scenery. This is a small trek and a couple of hours is the most it will take you to reach the top!

Travelling: You can take the Karjat local and then a private vehicle or a local ST bus to Chowk and then to Morbe Dam colony or Poinje village. Shorter way would be to take the Panvel local and reach Chowk and then the base villages. Those with stamina can try combining Prabalgad and Irshalgad together for a robust workout!

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Yet again to Bhimashankar

Two weeks back I returned to Bhimashankar – crowds were expected as it was a Saturday. We, ourselves were a group of fifteen or so, hurtling towards Khandas (the base village) in an air-conditioned chartered bus! We planned only to climb and the bus would  pick us up at Bhimashankar top. We went by the Ganesh Ghat route which is long but easier. It did not rain for the first half but the weather was beautiful with mists swirling about us even at lower heights. Later it rained as we gained height. Long walks, watery paths, misty views, cascading waterfalls, grassy slopes, thick dark forests; we enjoyed it all. Beautiful as it all was, it was not a patch on my previous fantastic visit in 2010..(http://monsoontrekker.blogspot.in/2010/08/awesome-beauty-of-bhimashankar-trek.html) 

Still, it was a Saturday well spent! Only the long way back from Bhimashankar to Bombay proved to be irritating – almost six hours in a bus after a long trek!

Bhimashankar in the rains

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