Trekking is a hobby that I recently started enjoying and exploring. I was blessed to be introduced to a few friends who were regular trekkers and after watching their pictures, I was unknowingly getting pulled into this sport, so strong was the attraction and craving.
After Naneghat and Koraigad, I forcefully had to stop in order to enjoy one of the joys of womanhood of being a mother. So after almost three years and much persuasion, my friends planned a trek to Lohagad. As usual, there were lots of "Ï am coming, I am not coming" issues, but we were able to plan this event with nine of us. Two of our friends had their own cars and they volunteered to be our drivers too. So, our mode of transport was not an issue.
After a sleepless, excitement-filled night, we all left our homes by 5 am approximately, some earlier and some later, and reached Bhandup station by 6 a.m. We were five boys and four girls in two cars and off we went to Lohagad. The travel was so picturesque, it was raining now and then, waterfalls greeting us all the way. The constant chatting of friends was adding to the excitement of the day. Once we reached village Lohagad, we stopped at a small tapri to have chai. It is such a refreshing experience to have piping hot tea with friends amidst such greenery, fog, and rain. If anyone had any remnants of sleep or tiredness from the hour-long journey, the tea did its job to freshen us up.
Once we reached Lohagad, we stopped for a few clicks and had our breakfast of kande pohe, garam garam kandyachi bhajji, and tea again. We dropped our bags in the car and armoured us with our windcheaters. Those who were brave enough carried cameras too.
Lohagad is said to be an easy trek. We reached the fort in less than half an hour. Visibility was so low that we could not see few feet ahead of us. There was a big pond of water and some enthusiastic crowd was having a good time diving and swimming in it, but the cold water prevented us from taking the plunge, and I had not taken a change of clothes, which was my foolishness. After the preliminary inspection of the fort was over, some of us wanted to explore the entire fort. I'd like to mention that till the fort, it is okay for people of all ages to visit, but the exploration of the scorpion tail and the rest of the fort needs some strength and courage. Some of us did not have the courage to looking at the steep descent, but our brave friends encouraged us to shed our inhibitions and take the plunge. They were telling "Darr ke aage jeet hai" every so often, so with lots of aahs, oohs, and screams we made our way to the ends of the fort. There was lot of cloud and we could barely see ahead. It is a steep valley down and the wind was strong, but we were enthusiastic and determined. There were lot of waterfalls and amazing was the sight to see inverted waterfalls. Sorry, this term is derived by me, so I need to give its explanation too. As I said there were lot of waterfalls, but the wind was so strong blowing from below that it was making the water to flow like an upward fountain. Words are not doing justice to express that beautiful and amazing sight.
The ascent back to the fort was a bit easier than the descent. Comparatively fewer people would make the choice of exploring the fort due to the clouds and the steep valley down. The winds were strong enough to push us back, but we were lucky we chose to go on in spite of the obstacles. I learned many valuable lessons there. I was blessed to have friends who did not think twice before lending their hands to support us, especially me when I was too scared to put my next foot.
There were lot of monkeys and it was pleasing to watch the families of monkeys. One was sweetly eating away the grass, another munching on some chips it had managed to snatch from a girl, and rest swinging from one tree to another.
We saw many strewn drinking bottles and chips packets and I want to request people to not do it. These forts are of historical significance and an asset to our country. Please take care of them and do your part to maintain its cleanliness. It is our duty to protect our heritage.
There was one humble chaiwala serving hot tea to beat the cold rains, chilly winds, and exhaustion. Since we had already had two teas before the trek and our spirits were keeping us warm, we deferred the tea, but blessed the tea vendor in our hearts and started to climb down the fort. So after 3 hours, we were back to where we had started at the base of the fort.
We had a lunch of rice bhakari, aagri chicken, rice, lime-sprinkled kanda (onions), and zunka. Then we made plans to visit the nearby Pawana Lake, another must see place and good for boating. We wanted to return to Mumbai before sunset to avoid traffic, hence we did not wait long. Another round of chatting and singing and after 2 hours were back in Mumbai. After having our evening tea, we all said bye to each other and returned to our homes, with lot of joy in hearts.
After Naneghat and Koraigad, I forcefully had to stop in order to enjoy one of the joys of womanhood of being a mother. So after almost three years and much persuasion, my friends planned a trek to Lohagad. As usual, there were lots of "Ï am coming, I am not coming" issues, but we were able to plan this event with nine of us. Two of our friends had their own cars and they volunteered to be our drivers too. So, our mode of transport was not an issue.
After a sleepless, excitement-filled night, we all left our homes by 5 am approximately, some earlier and some later, and reached Bhandup station by 6 a.m. We were five boys and four girls in two cars and off we went to Lohagad. The travel was so picturesque, it was raining now and then, waterfalls greeting us all the way. The constant chatting of friends was adding to the excitement of the day. Once we reached village Lohagad, we stopped at a small tapri to have chai. It is such a refreshing experience to have piping hot tea with friends amidst such greenery, fog, and rain. If anyone had any remnants of sleep or tiredness from the hour-long journey, the tea did its job to freshen us up.
Once we reached Lohagad, we stopped for a few clicks and had our breakfast of kande pohe, garam garam kandyachi bhajji, and tea again. We dropped our bags in the car and armoured us with our windcheaters. Those who were brave enough carried cameras too.
Lohagad is said to be an easy trek. We reached the fort in less than half an hour. Visibility was so low that we could not see few feet ahead of us. There was a big pond of water and some enthusiastic crowd was having a good time diving and swimming in it, but the cold water prevented us from taking the plunge, and I had not taken a change of clothes, which was my foolishness. After the preliminary inspection of the fort was over, some of us wanted to explore the entire fort. I'd like to mention that till the fort, it is okay for people of all ages to visit, but the exploration of the scorpion tail and the rest of the fort needs some strength and courage. Some of us did not have the courage to looking at the steep descent, but our brave friends encouraged us to shed our inhibitions and take the plunge. They were telling "Darr ke aage jeet hai" every so often, so with lots of aahs, oohs, and screams we made our way to the ends of the fort. There was lot of cloud and we could barely see ahead. It is a steep valley down and the wind was strong, but we were enthusiastic and determined. There were lot of waterfalls and amazing was the sight to see inverted waterfalls. Sorry, this term is derived by me, so I need to give its explanation too. As I said there were lot of waterfalls, but the wind was so strong blowing from below that it was making the water to flow like an upward fountain. Words are not doing justice to express that beautiful and amazing sight.
The ascent back to the fort was a bit easier than the descent. Comparatively fewer people would make the choice of exploring the fort due to the clouds and the steep valley down. The winds were strong enough to push us back, but we were lucky we chose to go on in spite of the obstacles. I learned many valuable lessons there. I was blessed to have friends who did not think twice before lending their hands to support us, especially me when I was too scared to put my next foot.
There were lot of monkeys and it was pleasing to watch the families of monkeys. One was sweetly eating away the grass, another munching on some chips it had managed to snatch from a girl, and rest swinging from one tree to another.
We saw many strewn drinking bottles and chips packets and I want to request people to not do it. These forts are of historical significance and an asset to our country. Please take care of them and do your part to maintain its cleanliness. It is our duty to protect our heritage.
There was one humble chaiwala serving hot tea to beat the cold rains, chilly winds, and exhaustion. Since we had already had two teas before the trek and our spirits were keeping us warm, we deferred the tea, but blessed the tea vendor in our hearts and started to climb down the fort. So after 3 hours, we were back to where we had started at the base of the fort.
We had a lunch of rice bhakari, aagri chicken, rice, lime-sprinkled kanda (onions), and zunka. Then we made plans to visit the nearby Pawana Lake, another must see place and good for boating. We wanted to return to Mumbai before sunset to avoid traffic, hence we did not wait long. Another round of chatting and singing and after 2 hours were back in Mumbai. After having our evening tea, we all said bye to each other and returned to our homes, with lot of joy in hearts.
One valuable lesson I learnt is: Life is like a trek - scary, fun, enthusiastic, and full of obstacles - but when you are determined and go step by step, victory meets you at the end."
I thank my friends for lending me those helping hands when I felt I could not go further than this.
A day amidst the constant rain, tricky descents and ascents, and playing with the winds and clouds.. wow..
