Trek to PEB (Vikatgad) - Ek Bhatkanti

Trek to Peb (Vikatgad)

निसर्गाचा कुशीत एक सुंदर दुर्ग म्हणजे पेबचा किल्ला. पेबला विकटगड असेही म्हणतात. या किल्ल्याला ट्रेकर्स बहुतांश पावसाळी मौसमात भेट देतात. पावसाळ्यात या किल्ल्याचा परिसर घनदाट वनराईने, धबधबाच्या वाहत्या पाण्याने, सोसाट्याच्या वाऱ्याने आणि ढगांनी भरून आलेला असतो. निसर्ग रम्य असा हा किल्ला आपले लक्ष पहिल्याच क्षणी वेधून घेतो.जुलै महिन्याच्या १५ तारखेला शनिवारच्या साप्ताहिक सुट्टीत आम्ही या गडावर भटकंती करण्याची मोहीम आखली.

पेब गडाची माहिती 

पुण्यापासून १३८ किलोमीटर अंतरावर हा सुप्रसिद्ध किल्ला उभा आहे. इतिहासात या किल्ल्याची नोंद ध्यान्य साठासाठी होत असे अशी आहे. या किल्ल्याची उंची २,१०० फूट आहे. या गडावर पाहण्यासारखे काही रोमांच जागा आहेत. २० फुटी रॉक प्याचने आपले स्वागत होते. गणेश गुहा, शिडीचा मार्गे दुर्गप्रवेश, पेबदेवीचे मंदिर, शिवमंदिर आणि शिडीच्या मार्गे गड उतरून माथेरानला ट्रव्हर्स करत जाने अशा काही गोष्टी अनुभव करायला मिळतात. 

copyright - @संकेत सांगवीलकर 

ट्रेकची  सुरवात 

आम्ही एकूण २५ सहभागी होतो. दिलीप ओच्छानी, गिरीश कर्णिक, योगेश्वर चौधरी, गजानन पाटील  आणि मी (अभिजित मोरे ) ट्रेक कॉर्डीनेटर होतो. पहाटे ५.३० च्या सुमारास पुण्याहून सुरवात केली. एक्सप्रेसवेने  खोपोलीहून आम्ही चौक-कर्जत मार्गावर लागलो. खालापूरला आम्ही सकाळी ८. ३० ला चहासाठी थांबलो. सकाळी ९.३०च्या सुमारास नेरळ पासून ५ मैलावर असलेल्या आनंदवाडी गावात पोचलो. गावात पोचण्याआधी आम्ही सगळ्या सहभाग्यांशी ओळख करून घेतली. आम्ही ३२ सीटर बसने प्रवास केला. बसला आम्ही नेरळ फाट्यापाशी थांबायला सांगितले. आमचा ट्रेक नेरळ फाट्यापाशी संपनार होता.

या गडावर जाण्याचे ३ मार्ग आहेत. पहिला मार्ग नेरळ पासून आहे, दुसरा मार्ग आनंदवाडी पासून आहे तिसरा माळढुंगे गावापासून आहे. माळढुंगे पासून गडचढने अवघड आहे. ट्रेकर्स नेरल मार्गे सुद्धा पेब  किल्ल्ल्यावर जाण्यासाठी सुरवात करतात. आनंदवाडी पासून पेब सुमारे २ ते २.३० तासाचा रास्ता आहे. आनंदवाडी पासून विद्युत तारांचे मोठे खांब दिसतात. त्या विद्युत खांबांपासून पेबला जाण्याची वाट सुरु होते. वाट तशी सोपी आहे पण जर गरज भासली तर आनंदवाडीपासून गाईड सोबत घेता येतो. गाईड सुमारे ५०० रुपये घेऊ शकतात. सुरवात करताना आम्ही सर्व सहभागींना आपण किल्लयावर कसे जाणार आहे याची माहिती दिली. 

हा किल्ला तीन टप्यांचा आहे. पहिला टप्पा गावापासून किल्ल्याच्या पायथ्या पर्यंत जंगलातून आहे, नंतर धबधबाच्या सोबत पहिल्या रॉक प्याच  पर्यंतचा  आहे. दुसरा टप्पा रॉक प्याच पार करून गुहा गाठणे आणि काही अंतरावर शिडी चडून दुर्गप्रवेश करण्याचा आहे. रॉक प्याचला तुम्हाला मदत लागते आणि फार काळजी पूर्वक पार करावा लागतो. गडावर पेब मातेचे मंदिर आहे. पेब मंदिरावरून माथेरान पर्वत रांगेचे दृश्य विस्मरणीय आहे. गडाच्या दक्षिण बाजूस बुरूजापर्यंत चालून परत दोन शिड्या उत्तराच्या असतात. तिसरा टप्पा पेब गडावरून माथेरान टॉय ट्रेन ट्रॅक पर्यंतचा ट्रव्हर्स करून आहे. तिसरा टप्पा सर्वात धोकादायक आहे कारण माथेरानच्या वाटेने जाताना एके बाजूस खोल दरी आहे आणि या भागात भरपूर वारा आणि धुके असते. टॉय ट्रेन ट्रॅकवर जाईला काही अंतरावर फलक आणि पायऱ्या आहेत. सर्व टप्प्याच्या माहितीचा कार्यक्रम आटपला आणि आम्ही जंगलाच्या वाटेने सुरवात केली.

ट्रेक सुरु करताना सर्वांना विनंती केली की कुठलाही कचरा गडावर जाताना किंवा गडावर टाकू नये. आपण कचरा पुण्याहून आणला आहे परत पुण्यात टाकावा. कचऱ्यासाठी सर्वांना एक प्लास्टिक बॅग आणायला सांगितली होती. 

पहिला टप्पा - आनंदवाडी ते रॉक प्याच 

सुरवातिचे २० ते ३० मिनिटे अवघड जातात कारण आपल्याला चढण चढाईची सवय नसते. काही सहभागींना सुरवातीचा चढ अवघड होता म्हणून आम्ही काही ठिकाणी ५-५ मिनिटाचे विसावा घेतला. सहभागींचा प्रवेश घेताना आम्ही ही काळजी घेतली होती की त्यांना आधी ट्रेकचा अनुभव आहे. या गोष्टींमुळे कॉर्डीनेटर वर जास्ती भार येत नाही. प्रथेक ट्रेकला आम्ही एक फर्स्ट एड कॉर्डीनेटर नेतो.

गावापासून काही काळ चालल्या नंतर जंगलात जाणारी वाट

सहभागी ट्रेकर्स

जंगलातील काही दृश्य

पाऊस ये जा करत होता आणि आम्ही आगेकूच करत होतो. काही ट्रेकर्सनी लगेच आपले रेनकोट घातले. आपण चालत असताना घाम येत राहतो आणि जर आपण रेनकोट घातला तर आजून येतो.आम्ही त्यांना सांगितले की रेनकोट अतिदृष्टीचा पाऊस आला तर घाला नाहीतर पावसाचे आनंद घ्या. या गडावर मी (अभिजीत मोरे) टीम लीड करत होतो कारण दिलीप ओच्छानी आणि मी या गडावर आधी आलेले कॉर्डीनेटर होतो. बाकी एक्सपेरियन्स आणि विश्वासू ट्रेक कॉर्डीनेटर इथे पहिल्यांदा येत होते. 

सेल्फी 

जंगलात चालत असताना एका पॉइंटला तुम्हाला डावीकडे वळावे लागते आणि तिथून धबधब्याची वाट सुरु होते. इथे एक वाटपाटी लावण्यात आली आहे. याच वाटेने वरती रॉक प्याच पर्यंत जाता येते. पाण्यातून जाताना बरीच काळजी घावी लागते. पाय कधीही निस्तु शकतो आणि तुम्ही दुसऱ्यावर आदळू शकता. धबधब्यातून वाट वरती चढत जाते. काही ठिकाणी छाती पर्यंत दगड धोंडे आढळतात. पाण्याचा प्रवाह तसा कमी होता पण जस जस आम्ही वरती चढत गॆलो आणि पाऊस वाढत गेला तोच प्रवाह वाढत गेला.

विसावा घेताना एक सहभागी

धबधब्यातून वाटेचे दृश्य

काही ठिकाणी चढण अवघड होते पण आम्ही तोच टप्पा व्यवस्तीत पार पाढला.

अवघड चढन

या गडावर चढताना एक विशिष्ट झाड दिसते आणि ते म्हणजे केळ्याचे झाड. या परिसरात आम्हाला बरेच केळीची झाडे आढळून आली. मी कधीही केळफूल पहिले नव्हते,पण या वाटेवर मला ते पहिला मिळाले.

केळफुल

११ च्या सुमारास आम्ही पहिला टप्पा पार केला.

पेबला जाणारी अशी वाट

दुसरा टप्पा - रॉक प्याच, गुफा आणि पहिली शिडी

दुसऱ्या टप्प्याची सुरवात २० फुटी रॉक प्याचनी होते. इथे सर्वात जास्ती लक्ष्य लागते. रॉकच्या मधून चढाई करून तुम्हाला वरती जायचे असते. या ठिकानी एके बाजूस दरी आहे. योगेश्वर आधी चढला आणि नंतर दिलीप. सेट झाल्यावर त्यांनी बाकी सर्वांना वर ओढले. दिलीप काही सहभागी घेऊन पुढे गेला. योगेश्वर आणि मी शेवटी आलो. योगेश्वर पेबला पहिल्यांदा आला होता आणि आता पर्यंतचा प्रवास त्याला आवडला होता. प्याच चढत असताना भरपूर पाऊस सुरु झाला.आमचं नशीब होत आम्ही सगळे पाऊस असताना देखील पार करू शकलो.

प्याच वरचं दृश्य

"वादळ वार सुटलं ग,वाऱ्यानं तुफान उठलं ग" अशी काहीशी गत होती रॉक प्याचवर. १२ वाजता आम्ही गुहेत पोचलो. सगळे सहभागी पावसाच्या माऱ्याने थकले होते. आम्ही गुहामध्ये जेवण्याचा थांबा घेतला. ट्रेकला आम्ही नेहमी जेवण आणतो. ठेपला, चटणी, दही आणि काही गोड असे आमचे लंच पॅकेट होते. या व्यतिरिक्त आम्ही ड्रायफ्रुटस, ओले फ्रुटस आणि काही एनर्जी बार, इलेकट्रोल आणायला सांगतो.

गुहेतले दृश्य

गणेश गुहेबाहेर 

काही काळ गुहेत विसावा घेऊन आम्ही शिडीच्या वाटेला लागलो. शिडी पर्यंत जाताना थंडागार वारा , पाऊस आणि दगडातून पाणी झिरपत होते. 

गुहेजवळ वरून झिरपणारे पानी

योगेश्वर आनंद घेताना

गुहेतून शिडीकडे जाणारी वाट

शिडीची वाट

गुहेकडून डाव्या बाजूस २०० मिटर अंतरावर पेबगडावरची पहिली शिडी येते. आम्ही सगळे शिडी चढून किल्ल्याच्या वरच्या बाजूस जाईला तयार झालो. ही शिडी चढताना पाणी तुमचा अंगावरून जात असते. 
आधी इथे एकचं शिडी होती पण आता इथे २ शिड्या लावण्यात आल्या आहेत. आम्ही सगळे नवीन लावलेल्या शिडीने वरती चढलो. इथे आपले लक्ष लागते कारण शिडीच्या दुसऱ्या बाजूस खोल दरी आहे. 

शिडीच्या दुसऱ्या बाजूस असणारी दरी 

शिडीची जागा

शिडी चढताना

शिडी चढून आम्ही सगळे सुखरूप वरच्या बाजूस आलो. इथून दिसणारे दृश्य विस्मरणीय आहे. वरच्या बाजूस पाण्याचे एक टाके आहे. 

पाण्याचे टाके

सर्व सुखरूप शिडी चढून आल्यावर 

इथून मंदिराचा रास्ता जरा अवघड आहे. तीव्र चढन असल्यामुळे पाय सांभाळुन ठेवावा लागतो. 

तीव्र चढन -पहिली शिडी ओलांडल्यावर असणारी वाट

पहिली शिडीनंतर गडावर जाण्याची वाट

तीव्र चढण पार केल्यावर आम्ही गडावर पोचलो. काही अंतरावर गडावरचे काही अवशेष दिसतात. इथे आधी २ मंदीरे होती.

शिडीवरून आल्यावर तुम्हाला पेब देवीचे मंदीर दिसायला लागते. त्या मंदीराला जाण्याच्या २ वाटा आहेत. एक वाट गडाच्या कडेने आहे आणि दुसरी वाट थेट मंदिराचा खालून आहे. आम्ही खालच्या वाटेने मंदिराला थेट पोचलो. इथे आमचा दुसरा टप्पा संपला. पेब देवीच्या मंदिरावरून दिसणारा माथेरानचा डोंगर सुंदर होता. मंदिरापासून तुम्हाला चांगले फोटो काढायला मिळतात. पेब मंदीराला पोचायला आम्हाला ३५ मिनिटे लागली. दुपारी १ च्या सुमारास आम्ही मंदिरात पोचलो.

समोर दिसणारा माथेरानचा डोंगर

सुंदर दिसणारी दरी

पेब देवीचे आधांतरी असे वाटणारे मंदिर 

माझे काही फोटो

दुथडी भरून वाहणारी नदी 

पेब देवीची मूर्ती 

तिसरा टप्पा - पेब मंदिर ते माथेरान रेल्वे ट्रॅक

पेब मंदिराजवळ आर्धा तास वेळ घालवून आणि फोटो काढून आम्ही दक्षिण बाजूस असलेल्या बुरुजा पर्यंत जाईला सुरवात केली. दुपारचे २ वाजले होते आणि माथेरानचा डोंगर पार पाडायचा होता. सर्व सहभागींना बोलावून त्यांना वेळचे भान ठेवण्याची विनंती केली. आपण ट्रेकला आलो आहेत, सहलीसाठी नाही असे त्यांना सांगितले. काही सहभागी म्हणत होते की आपण आलेल्या मार्गे परत जाऊ कारण तोच मार्ग जास्त साहसी आणि रोमांचक होता. बाकी कॉर्डीनेटर त्यांना म्हणाले की आपण हा ट्रेक तुमचे आणि माझे साहस चालण्यासाठी नाही करत आहोत, तर सुरक्षेतपणे करण्यासाठी आलो आहोत. जर रोमांचक रित्या तुम्हाला गड सर करायचा असेल तुम्ही परत या तुमचा आवडी नुसार. आम्ही त्यांना सांगितले की मागच्या आठवड्यात या गडावर अपघात झाला होता आणि २ ट्रेकर्सचा जीव धोक्यात आला होता. त्यांना रेस्क्यू करावे लागले होते. अशी तंबी मिळाल्यावर सर्व सहभागींना सुरक्षेचे महत्व पटले. 

२.३० च्या सुमारास आम्ही पेब किल्ला उतरायला सुरवात केली आणि माथेरान ट्रेकच्या दिशेने आगेकूच केला.

पाऊस जोरदार सुरु होता आणि ढग सुद्धा गडावर खालावले होते. प्रचंड वारं होत. पाऊस आम्हाला झोडून काढत होता. यात आम्ही दक्षिण बुरुजास पोचलो.

दक्षिण बाजूस असलेला बुरुज 

दक्षिण बुरुज - दरीचे दृश्य

काही काळ तिथे घालवून आम्ही परत दुसऱ्या शिडीच्या मार्गाने माथेरानच्या दिशेने निघालो. दक्षिण बुरुजाकडे  जाताना एक मोठे झाड लागते. या झाडाच्या बाजूस दुसऱ्या शिड्यांचा मार्ग आहे. या शिड्या सुद्धा नवीन आहेत. पावसामुळे इथे एक छोटा धबधबा सुरु झाला ज्याचा प्रवाह पाऊसामुळे आणखी वाढला. या परिस्थितीत आम्ही त्या शिड्या उतरलो.

दक्षिण बुरुजापासून माथेरानकडे जाणारी शिडीची वाट

शिडी पासून ३०० मीटर अंतरावर कोळ येतो जो पेबला माथेरानशी जोडतो. या भागात सुसाट वारा, तीव्र उतरन आणि एका बाजूस दरी आहे. इथून माथेरानला जाताना काळजीपूर्वक जावे लागेते. ट्रव्हर्समधून जाताना  काळजी घ्यावी लागते. सगळ्यांनी आपले मोबाइल बॅगेत ठेवावे असे सांगितले कारण वाटेवर तोल जाण्याचे काही ठिकाणं होती. मागच्या आठवड्यात झालेली घटना ही याच भागात झाली होती. ही गोष्ट सगळ्यांच्या ध्यानी होती. ट्रव्हर्समध्ये एका वेळेस एकाच माणूस जाईल एवढीच जागा आहे. 

माथेरानच्या दिशेने जाणारी एकेरी वाट 

माथेरानला जाणारा अरुंद ट्रव्हर्स

मागील वेळेस मी या ठिकाणी घसरलो होतो आणि दरीच्या दिशेने थोडा खाली सरकलो होतो. हे घडताना दिलीप ने मला पाहिले होते. त्या जागेवर परत ४ वर्षांनी आल्यावर मी दिलीपला हाक मारली आणि दोघे हसायला लागलो. एक तो दिवस होता आणि एक आजचा दिवस होता, मी परत त्या जागी आलो होतो. माथेरानच्या डोंगराला वेढा घालणारी ही एकच ट्रव्हर्स वाट आहे. या वाटेवरून आम्ही किमान ३०-३५ मिनिटे चाललो. काहीसे पुढे आल्यावर आम्हाला डोंगरावर जाणाऱ्या पायऱ्या दिसल्या. इथे आम्हाला शेवटची शिडी लागली. ही शिडी जरा हालनारी होती. शिडी पार करने रोमांचक होते. खाली पाहता तुम्हाला दरीचे दर्शन होते. इथून वर माथेरानचा टॉय ट्रेनचा ट्रॅक लागला. 

माथेरान ट्रॅककडे जाणारी शेवटची शिडी 

माथेरान ट्रॅकवर पोचल्यावर - घंटी पॉईंट

टॉय ट्रेन ट्रॅकवर पोचल्यावर सर्व सहभागी आनंदीत होते. अवघड अशी वाट आम्ही सुरक्षित पार केली होती. कुणालाही काही इजा झाली नव्हती. ३.३० च्या सुमारास आम्ही ट्रॅक वरून माथेरान रोडला सुरवात केली. ट्रॅकच्या वाटेवर बरेच धबधबे पाहायला मिळाले. ५.३० ला आम्ही नेरळ फाट्याला पोचलो. बसने आम्ही पुण्याला रात्री १० ला पोचलो. असा हा रोमांचक पेबचा ट्रेक आम्ही सगळ्यांनी यशस्वी पार पाडला.

परतीच्या मार्गावर धबधब्याचा आनंद घेताना

माझा आनंद मावेनासा झाला होता

ट्रॅकवर मस्ती करताना

नेरळ फाट्यापर्यंत रस्त्यानी जाताना

सूचना - पेबचा ट्रेक आखताना काही गोष्टींची काळजी घेणे गरजेचे आहे.

१) सदर हवामानाचा अंदाज घेऊन ट्रेक कारावा. वाट माहित नसेल तर गावातून गाईड घ्यावे. 

२) सहभागींची क्षमता पाहून पुढेचे पाऊल उचलावे. नेहमी सोपी वाट धरावी. रोमांच म्हणून आपला आणि दुसर्यांचा जीव धोक्यात घालू नका.

३) सदर ट्रेक ७ ते ८ तासाचा आहे, पुरेसे पाणी आणि खाद्य पदार्थ न्यावे.आनंदवाडी ते नेरळ फाटा ट्रेक १४ किलोमीटरचा आहे.

४) आपली सॅक जरुरी वस्तुंनी भरावी - ४ लिटर पाणी, इलेकट्रोल, बिस्किट्स, ड्रायफ्रुटस, ओले फ्रुटस, टॉर्च, मोबाइल, फर्स्ट एड किट, रेनकोट, कचऱ्यासाठी पिशवी जरूर न्यावे. 

५) गावकरांचे फोन नंबर जरूर घावे आपत्कालीन परिस्तिथीसाठी. 

६) फोटो काढताना आधी स्वतःला सेफ करावे आणि मग फोटो काढावे. 

७) धबधब्याच्या खाली जाण्यापूर्वी दगड धोंडे यांचा अंदाज घ्यावा.

अभिजित मोरे 

पुणे 

Trek to Lohagad - Ek Bhatkanti

Trek to Lohagad

Maharashtra is blessed by several natural wonders. The Western Ghats which is a hot bed for bio-diversity, the flora-fauna, the long and beautiful coasts, the Sahyadris and last but not the least, the ever so calm, historically significant and appealing Forts.

Monsoon is the best time to travel and plan for treks. With monsoon setting in, there is a lot of chatter around trekking activities. The climate is ideal for enjoying a long and fun filled weekend over a trek. Being a avid trekker planning a trek is not a easy task. Planning involves a lot of "ifs" that need to be considered along with the weather, the terrain and the capabilities of the participants. 

One weekend in July, I planned a trek with my wife Sneha (budding CA and one who loves traveling) and Mangesh (Student studying in Latvia but in India for summer break). We decided to trek to Lohagad also known as the Iron Fort. Prior to the travel day, Sneha prepared some homemade Methi Theplas along with Coconut Chutney, which was our lunch on the fort in case we got hungry. We had a wake-up call of 5:30 am so as to catch the 7 am train.

About Lohagad

Lohagad has a long history with several dynasties occupying it at different time: Satavahanas, Chalukyas, Rashtrakutas, Yadavas, Bahamanis, Nizams, Mughals and Marathas. Shivaji Maharaj captured it in 1648 CE, but he was forced to surrender it to the Mughals in 1665 CE by the Treaty of Purandar. Shivaji Maharaj recaptured the fort in 1670 CE and used it for keeping his treasury. (content borrowed from wiki)

Location of Fort

Lohagad is situated close to the well known hill station Lonavala. Lohagad is located 52 km from Pune towards Lonavala. The base village for the start of the trek is Malavli. One can travel to Lohagad via train or via other means of transport like car, bus, bikes etc. Local train are the best means of transport if you are planning the trek on a shoe string budget from Pune. We traveled via train and alighted at Malavli station. We reached there by 8.30am.

The road leading towards Lohgad from Malavli Station

School Assembly

Farmer ploughing

The Beginning

There is a saying, "The early bird, catches the worm", if you want to enjoy trek with the least amount of people, reach the fort as early as possible. So here we were nice and early at our destination station. As we made our way out of the station, there were taxis ready for hire who shuttled trekkers to and fro to the base of the fort. We decided to skip the taxis and travel by foot. Sneha and Mangesh were not so happy about that decision though. At Malavli village we had our breakfast. Mangesh had a hot and tasty "Vada Pav", while Sneha and me had "Poha"  the traditional Puneri breakfast along with hot and soothing tasty tea. 

After having breakfast we started our walk towards the Lohgad fort. The walk from the Malavli station to Lohgad is 8 kms with lots of climbs and slopes in between. The terrain gives you a good workout. When I was at the Lohgad a few years back it was still developing and was tooting commercially to cater to the flux of the crowds. Since there was no easy road to reach the fort, the crowd usually consisted of youngsters. But times had changed and people of all walks of live fluxed to the fort for a family picnic. Malavli earlier was a slow and steady village, but commercialization in the last few years had made it a buzzing place to be. 

While walking I told Sneha and Mangesh that the initial few minutes will be difficult as the body warms up and gets ready for activity. Sneha and Mangesh needed breaks on the way and this gave me opportunity to click pictures. I am also a photographer, if i had forgotten to mention that earlier. Its a great skill to possess, a traveler and a photographer.

Mangesh and Sneha taking a break

Some bright colors on the way

Crab Shy of the Camera

Few kilometers up the hill Sneha and Mangesh wanted to catch their breath again. I insisted that they keep walking. They did not like me pushing them to their limits at the very beginning but eventually prevailed as any trek comes with discipline of time. We clicked pictures on the way and also got a good glimpse of Vissapur fort whose bastions were now visible.

Vissapur and its Bastions

Vissapur Fort and its Bastions visible

One of the Bastion Windows visible

Bastion from a distance

Break time photo near Vissapur Lohgad road

Lohgad Fort now visible as you walk up the Vissapur Lohgad road

Base of Fort - Lohagadwadi

After 45 mins walk from Malavli station we were at the base of Lohgad fort. The base village is Lohagadwadi. Commercialization had reached the village as the road was now complete and vehicular traffic now reached the foothill. This was a boon for the villagers as they were not very well connected to the outer world. Their kids could now travel easily to school and buying daily necessities was now possible. The other side of the coin was that the villager could now do brisk business and offer services and make a living in the village itself than travel miles for work. The road and commercialization had brought unnecessary commotion and overcrowding to the place which we witnessed later while descending the fort. We took a break for 20 mins and had some good old lemon water at one of the many small food stalls. We then walked towards the entrance of the fort.

Entrance to Lohgad Fort

The Fort
Entrance to any forts that were built were very unique. The entrance were never straight  or easily accessible. They always wound up towards the main gate. In ancient time this kind of entrance did not offer a direct access to the fort for people and for animals as well. The main purpose was also to tire down any approaching enemy by such tricky climbs. This kind of architecture gave plenty of opportunity for the soldiers on the fort to target anyone climbing. We clicked a few pictures here and it started pouring. There was dense fog or rather shall I say the clouds had embraced the fort by the time we reached the Main Gate (Ganesh Dwar).

Mangesh and Sneha walking on steps leading to Ganesh Dwar

Ganesh Dwar
Ganesh Dwar is named after the Lord Ganesh. Every main entrance to the fort depicts a idol engraved to whom it is dedicated. Ganesh Dwar was in very good and working condition. The height of the entrance was close to that of a soldier mounted on an animal (most probably the horse) entering the fort. The side of the main entrance also depicted various other idols of gods engraved within the fort walls.

Sneha and Mangesh at the entrance of the Ganesh Dwar

Moodilipi (Ancient form of text) at the entrance of Ganesh Dwar

After making our way through some vertical steps we reached towards the upper entrance of the fort. As I had mentioned that no fort had a direct access the picture below depicts the same. Noticeably the area around this part of the fort was pretty wide. 

Cloud cover over the fort and the confusing entrance

Fun pics in between

Selfie Time

Narayan Dwar
We walked further towards the fort and arrived at the Narayan Dwar (named after Lord Vishnu). As you can see in the image, this entrance was narrow and not many people could pass through this easily if there was any rush. The height of the entrance too is now lower than the Ganesh Dwar. This was designed in such a way that if soldiers were to be involved in a man to man combat then soldiers on the fort were not to be outnumbered as only a small number enemy soliders could have made it through. This was something similar to the movie "300" and about holding the enemies at the "Hot Gates" The crowd was trickling in so it was easy to take some pics.

Sneha and Mangesh at the Narayan Dwar (Narayan Gate)

Visibly less space through the entrance

As we walked through the Narayan Gate, we encountered a series of turns which finally opened onto the top of the fort. The first sight that you see atop the fort is that of the RajaRani Mandir (Temple)

RajaRani Mandir

RajaRani Mandir Atop the Fort

The area beside RajaRani Mandir was utilized as a courtyard in ancient times when people resided on the fort. There are some remnant structure still there which are still intact. North of  RajaRani Mandir is the AstaKoni Vihir (Octagonal Well). It was designed in such a manner that water collected into the well from 8 different locations. One can get a great view of the well filling up during the monsoon. I could not click pics of the well as it was raining buckets and taking pics was not possible. It had been a while since we had started our journey and also had a very early breakfast. Sneha was hungry and wanted to have a small break where she could munch on some great home made parathas.

A little break for Sneha

Towards Vinchu Kada
Fort exploration too is a very satisfying activity. You get to visit some of the best locations on the fort which have scenic beauty. We visited one such location which is the most beautiful called Vinchu Kada which means Scorpion Sting Bastion. It has started raining again heavily and the 3 of us were completely drenched. I had visited this fort before too but at that time had missed visiting the Vinchu Kada as is was not considered safe due to degraded railing and the path being risky. This time I hoped that the point would be approachable and we would be able to visit and click some pics there. My wish came true.

Sneha at VinchuKada on Lohgad fort

 Vinchu Kada is a narrow strip of land attached to the main plateau of the fort. One can reach the end of the fort walking along the narrow ridge with the guidance of the railings. The view from the Vinchu Kada is breath taking and mesmerizing. One needs to thread the narrow railing path carefully as one fall can result in serious injuries. Do it safely is the moto one needs to keep in mind.

Vinchu Kada

Water Cistern at Vinchu Kada

Approaching the end of Vinchu Kada we saw water cistern that were constructed in ancient times. utilized for portable water storage to be used later in the year. These water cisterns are about 20-25ft in depth. Hence they must be storing enough water. These cisterns are examples for us to learn about rain water harvesting. If our ancestors and kings knew about it and implemented it on the forts they ruled, we should follow suit too.

Water Cistern on Vichu Kada

There is wildlife on the fort now due to the presence of humans Are commotion and love for packaged food has attracted monkeys as food from humans is easily accessible. One monkey visited us.

After walking for about 30 mins from the top of the fort, we reached at the end of Vinchu Kada. To the East of Vichu Kada lies the Vissapur fort. The Vissapur fort was looking scenic in the rain filled atmosphere.

Vissapur Fort from Vinchu Kada

To the West of Vinchu Kada, we can easily see Tung Fort. There are 4 forts in the region very close to each other which were strategically very important for the Marathas leading in the Lonavala valley onto the Mumbai route. Tung, Tikona, Lohgad and Vissapur are the pearl of forts that stood tall for enemies advancing towards Pune.

Tung Fort visible from Vinchu Kada

The 360 view from Vinchu Kada is very scenic in nature. You see the Lohgad and Malavli village, to the East you see the Vissapur fort and to the West you see the Tung fort.

After spending some time enjoying this scenic beauty and clicking pictures we decided to head back. The rain had stopped and it was pleasant atop the fort at Vinchu Kada.

On our way back to the fort

After reaching the top of the fort we were shocked to see the amount of people that had come to visit fort. The amount of people atop the fort was like that similar to a small town mela. Trekkers usually like calmness, but the crowd somehow put me off. One thing we did correctly to avoid the crowd was to start and end the trek early. 

On our way back after ascending the fort we had our lunch at the same food stall. We had a egg burji (scrambled eggs) and bread and 2 plates of Bhajji (Onion strands fried in lentils dough). The food tastes good when you are hungry and have had a great workout. We clicked pics on our way back to the Malavali Station as the weather had changed again and it had started raining again.

Vissapur Fort from base near Lohgad Fort

Me and Mangesh with Vissapur Fort in the background

Sneha and Me

At the End

We walked our way back to the railway station enjoying the moments we had spent atop the fort and discussing about the next trek we can go together. It was one of the best time Sneha and me had spent trekking. One thing that I loved about the fort was the visit to Vinchu Kada. The climate too made its easy and enjoyable.

Through this blog I have tried to bring the essence of the fort and the moments we spent. Hope you readers, trekkers and adventure enthusiast plan such outing with your family and friends. Until next time and next trek Ciao.

Travel Itinerary-

1) Travel via local train and alight at Malavli station. You can hitch a per seat ride to the base of the fort by bargaining with the taxi services.
2) One can also visit the Bhaje Caves which predates to the era of Buddha. There is a nominal entry fee.
3) Before reaching the base of the Lohgad at Hotel Viraj one can  take a left and go towards Vissapur fort. The route to Vissapur fort is via the waterfall.
4) One can stay at the base village at Lohgad as accommodation can be provided by local villagers at a certain cost. The stay can cost you INR 1000 for stay and INR 1500 (stay and food included) per person. Rates can vary depending upon the season.

Travel Expenditure-

1) Local Train - INR 20 per person return ticket from Akurdi Station as we boarded from this station.

2) Base village food and snacks - INR 500 (for 3 people)

Abhijit More

Pune

Slow and Steady Wins The Race, Fast and Disruptive Takes You Places

From childhood we read stories for various reasons like pictures within the book are great and have an appeal, the story that you are reading is interesting, you like reading and the moral at the end teaches us some life lessons. One such story that we all are aware is the Tortoise and Hare story. This one is Aesop’s Fables creations. Aesop was a slave in ancient Greek and a great story teller, and hence gave the world some interesting and relevant to this era stories to ponder and think about.

The Tortoise and Hare story talks about a race between the fast and the slow, the unequal’s. The Hare used to bully the Tortoise for its shape, size and speed. The tortoise was fed up of this bullying and hence one day challenged the Hare for a race. In this article I have used these two characters      and have tried to apply their story and characteristics to today’s organizational scenario.

Let’s take a look at the characteristics of the Tortoise and Hare. The Tortoise is slow and large while the Hare is fast and nimble. The story drew lot of contradictory morals. For some the moral was “Haste makes waste (Hare)”, “Never be overconfident of your abilities (Hare)”, “Believe in your ability (Tortoise)”  “Perseverance wins at the end (Tortoise)”and some more such morals. But when you apply this story to present day scenarios for businesses it is completely different. To me this story in the present scenario spells out the moral like “Slow and steady definitely wins the race, but fast and disruptive takes you places”

The Tortoise was definitely slow, but he was focused. His focus was to race and reach the finish line not worrying whether he will win or lose but always trying to keep up in the race. Today organizations face the same scenario; they have to constantly keep up to the front runners within view-able distance so that they can catch-up. The Hare on the other hand was fast and focused till a certain point and then was disillusioned that he is already a winner and doesn’t need to worry about the tortoise anymore as his own pace and abilities are getting him the result. This can happen to organizations and can sometimes come in their way as it becomes difficult to move away from adopted practices.

Today there are dual dilemmas, organizations want the focused approach of tortoise of finishing the race and staying relevant by achieving growth and progress and on the other hand run fast (innovate) and be disruptive (bring new things to the table) so that they wouldn’t eventually lose out. Companies need both strategies of the Tortoise and the Hare. Tortoise brings focus and commitment of never giving up while the Hare brings speed and innovation which can be disruptive and essential for the growth engines.

So what do you want to be? The Hare or the Tortoise or both!

The Krishna Sudama Moment

We all have either heard or read about the friendship tale of Krishna and Sudama. Their friendship till this day is considered as the most ideal friendship. The short story goes by like one day Sudama who was not a well do friend of Krishna traveled great distance to meet. Since he was financially weak he had got some wet puffed rice which Krishna liked. Krishna was excited to meet his friend and ate the wet puffed rice with great satisfaction as they were the most favourite food item without demeaning the gift that Sudama had got looking at his financial condition.

Coming back to this age I witnessed a similar moment in my life. We were all set to throw a small dinner party for close family members Thursday was the day for the dinner party. We extended the invitation to guests a day prior and confirmed their availability. The guests had accepted the invitation generously.

After a long day at work I reached home and witnessed both my wife and mom making the dinner preparations for the next day. They had completed cooking the dinner for Wednesday night and were engrossed in conversation as to how to go about the next day for the dinner party. Dad had just informed me once again that the guests had accepted the invitation.

In the mean while my phone rang. I answered the call as it was from one of the guest we had invited. As soon as I greeted, the voice from the other end asked me for directions to our place and notified that they will be reaching our place in the next 15 minutes. They had traveled all the way from Pune to where we resided.

I was lost as to what do I say to them. They had arrived for the dinner party a day prior. I gave the directions to them and post the call informed my family that one of the guest will be arriving today for dinner. My parents and wife were stunned and started laughing. Mom was quick to check with Dad if he had given the right date and time for the dinner invitation to which Dad nodded in the affirmative.

The guests arrived and our family greeted them with great enthusiasm. One of the guest quickly made herself comfortable in the kitchen chatting with my wife and mother while the other guest freshened up. The guest was quick to realize that something was amiss. I came in laughing in the kitchen and told them about the confusion. The other guest too realized the sudden burst of laughter. They were all but ready to leave and embarrassed, but we requested them to stay back and have whatever dinner we had prepared for us that day. The couple who had landed up were sheepish and were inquiring if we had enough food left for ourselves. But we had enough. This very moment made me realize of the same moment when Sudama offered whatever he had to Krishna. This was our Sudama – Krishna moment!!!

Learning  from this situation’s:

1)  Be ready to offer whatever is available to offer selflessly.

2) Do not panic in such situations and happily adapt to the flow of things

3) Adithi Devo Bhava – Guests are like Gods themselves

The Joker Within

We all are fond of playing cards. They help us rejoice some great moments with friends, family and loved ones. The cards also are reasons to bring fortunes and despair to us if you know what I mean J

We all are aware of the various characters within a card deck. The most loved ones being the Aces, the Kings, the Queens and the Jacks. The thirteen characters that hold a card house together.  The cards perform the same roles in the various card houses, yet are distinct and different from each other. This brings me to the most overlooked and the most underutilized card among all the cards “The Joker”.

Have you ever pondered at the “Joker” from a different perspective? Why is that card so special? If people are given the chance to live out a character from within the card deck they would easily choose a role from the Aces to the deuces. People will often overlook and ignore the Joker card as that somehow doesn’t fit in. But according to me the joker card does fit in .

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The Joker card is the most versatile and the most adaptable card that we have ever come across. The Joker can play any role from the Aces to the Deuces, it’s the card which makes us feel one and complete. It is unique J

Well the Joker card completes us. It completes us and keeps us in the game. The game of human nature makes us wear all masks from the Aces to the Deuces. We as people need to realize that we need to be more like the Joker card. Adaptable, Versatile you name it. We need to develop the ability to accept, adapt and build a character which is useful and play any part in any given situations. This in a way will help us in the long run, make us wiser, and make us adapt, acquire and help us make decisions without being naive.

Let us learn and unlearn one character from the other and bring in the flavor of the cards characteristics within ourselves. Let us bring out the Joker within.

Learning from being a Joker:

1)  Let us not stick to one role and one direction in life. Play new roles and enjoy them no matter how small or big they may be.

2) Let life make a character out of you. Be the Joker if needed.

3) Always be ready to accept, adapt and change.

Low Hanging Tree

In marketing terms, low hanging fruit means achieving targets, tasks or goals which are easy and do not require considerable effort.  These “low hanging fruits” bear considerable results as they add up to your growth. Apply the same logic to job opportunities out there this theory somehow doesn’t stick based on my recent experience. Here is that one scenario that I faced with regards to job opportunities. I call this “The Low Hanging Tree” experience.

“I want to try new opportunities” my inner voice said and I decided to search for new job opportunities. I was good at what I was doing, just wanted to try something new and wanted to learn new things. So I posted my resume on various job sites and voila within few weeks I had various interviews lined up. I gave every possible interview as I wanted to maximize my chances on winning every opportunity or shall I say a “very good deal”.

Some time passed and I was amazed that I had offers from three organizations. I finally felt destiny and the work destination was is in my hands. Let me put forth to you the organizations sizes. For some reason I decided to compare them to trees.

Option A – A Mango Tree (Large and bearing fruits)

Option B – A Coconut Tree (Hard to get fruits but self-sustaining)

Option C – Banana Tree (Bears fruits only once and then is discarded)

Looking at the Option A, it was obvious for me that the organization would be the best bet as it would provide everything like stability (stronger root system – strong org values), fruits of labour (seasonal basis – better appraisals) and the fact that it’s a Mango tree, which in itself is a big brand. Moreover, this tree lives a long life.

Looking at Option B, it still was a better bet as there was hard work involved but very little needed for the tree to sustain itself. A good climate (business pipeline), water (funds) and some great growth material (opportunities) and the tree grow. The Coconut tree too is a brand because it offers itself in entirety and is the most useful tree. This tree too keeps growing taller and lives a longer life.

Looking at Option C, well it was very deceptive in nature to what it offered. It bears fruits once and then is discarded offering minimal use. The Banana tree represents short term goals (bear fruit once) and unsustainability (can’t sustain in a large market) if outwardly weather conditions (business scenarios) change.

Well to my educated and calculated guess I chose Option C and was caught by the deceptiveness.  I had various reasons to choose Option C like 1) it was very lucrative, 2) easy and very low hanging to climb and 3) it was bearing fruits with the least efforts.

The deceptiveness that lay within the outwardly appearance of trees (organizations) taught me a few lessons which I would like to share:

1) Thoroughly check and re-check the tree that you are climbing and research whether it can sustain your weight (needs and aspirations)

2) Look at the long term sustainability score (can the tree weather the storm or let the leaves shed to self-conserve)

3) Be extremely vary of low hanging trees and fruits, they can be extremely deceptive and can cause suffering.