In every walk with nature one receives far more than he seeks. – John
Muir
Have you sat and looked at the beauty of nature surrounding you and
thought I" I would love to explore and discover what is there?; Sometime
10 years ago in India, I could see these 2 mountains in daily travel. It made
me wonder whats there. I like to explore nature walks, trekking, picnics in
national park. They added lots of happy moments to my “I did this list”.
I wanted to visit this fort called PrabalGad. Forts are called Gad in our
language. Just 2 hrs drive from city this area is surrounded by forts,
natural beauty and waterfalls. There are many stunning one day treks in
this area.
In India the rains are from June to September period, when our natural
beauty at its peak. I love the rains. I love to get wet in first rain. I love that
natural smell of the first rain and relief from hot weather. It is so cool and
fresh.
I also like to be a friend with nature, walk in the rain, smell and observe
natural beauty.
In India, I gained enough experience of trekking through first level type of
forts where there are steep steps and some marked walking trail.
My office colleague planned a Trek to Prabalgad. I felt it was planned just
for me, monsoon season trekking to such wonderful locations
I wanted to climb Korigad, lohgad, dattatekdi, national park, kankeshwar,
walking the whole day on each 4 outings.
PrabalGad the same mountain, From my daily travelling, they looked very
far away and maybe too big. If I don't do it now maybe I never will!
I was all packed and ready some water, good pair of shoes, hat, light
raincoat and snacks, all done. The whole Prabalgad trekking route had
only 2 small cafes and one family run lodge.
Rainy season trek usually are more muddy trails, slippery roads and
unexpected waterfalls. Any supplies shops are run by villagers at base
point village.
Forts are built on the pinnacle of the Mountain. There is good history of
forts. They are strategically located so the warriors could watch the
movements of enemy. These warriors ride horses and attack the enemies
stocks, travel plans to get much idea of strength. So these forts were never
visible. Enemies have no direct access to the fort location. Over time,
many forts were destroyed and few were maintained depending on the
community of the surrounding villages.
It's difficult to imagine a situation where you just have the local guide who
takes you through a proper route.
As planned our meeting point was early morning 5 am to reach and 3
hours traffic time to “ The destination Prabalgad.” Almost 34 hours walk
was estimated to reach top
It was indeed scenic, clouds were floating on top of mountain. Rain drops
were making the weather cool and the road wet. I started to walk. 2 km
stretch, had to cross a river and we finally reached the forest, the starting
point of PrabalGad.
We had one local villager as our guide. Its always good to make buddy on
a trek with one who matches your pace.
When I looked up I thought it's too far. You start slowly and steadily we
made it through. There were no railings to hold. No steps were created. It
was not a typical forrest but lots of wild trees with big and small plants. Old
trees with weird shapes.
Some patch was rocky some with plain red dusty road. Big and small
rocks. And I came across big rock nearing my shoulder. As I was busy
clicking photos I hadn’t notice how person before me managed to climb,
just had to hold on to the next big rock to cross. I learned it never hurts to
ask for help, when stuck. So I had to stretch legs, do stunts, attempt to
climb some of the rocks and support by my hands. I really enjoyed each bit
of walking.
Good on us, there was long stretch plain plateau to walk. As we reached, it
started pouring. We took our first halt and photo session. It was back in
2007. It still run like a film in my mind. What if situations analysis made
some trekkers to quit. They wanted to wait and join us on return journey.
We saw small 2 homes of villagers. It was home run café. Relief as our
friends got place to wait there. Since there was no other group trekking up
with us & we had never attempted Prabalgad before.
When you reach half way, it is different feeling. You can make choice, to
chase your dreams or adjust with surroundings. And everything is
right. We found a big rock chair where we all did photos on the rock. On
the top of that rock it feels just like a King of your time . You can
experience the chilled air, forceful wind, experience the picnic in the clouds
from the peak of the hill and it will show you its different shades.
Experience the twinkling lights of Mumbai city, Rasayani, Panvel and
nearby areas from the height. To experience this exciting package of fun,
happiness and refreshment.
At Prabal gad, near top of the mountain, I was actually in clouds. Whole
remaining trek we had to cover walking through clouds, only seeing the
next few meters. I remember the scenic view of clouds from base village
was mesmerizing.
The thought that I was in the clouds, I was so happy I did something I
wanted for a long time. It was not raining but rain drops were presenting
slight wetness on skin.
Almost 10 years from that moment, I've visited many more places and
acouple of countries. But the immensely joy I felt still lingers. The trueness
of moment, that you can experience anytime. Was it fog or cloud. I didn't
want to analyse my experience.
From top you see your trek starting point and all difficult points, dangerous
trails, my words are limited to describe the scenic beauty. The flat top area
of the fort is covered by dense forest. Because of the dense forest it is not
always easy to find paths for walking.
Actually we had only covered 3/4th distance, everyone was bit scared as
the route was not visible and the forest was getting dense. This fort had
North and South end. Our tour manager decided to return as we had some
youngsters with us and they lacked preparation for an overnight stay.
At entry point, then there is no problem for climb. Route is little steep for
climb, occupied with all small and big rocks, more challenging to climb
down.
Some had great pictures and videos of trek, but I had my best experience
in that moment. When I was absolutely happy, my happiness was not
depend on anything. I wish absolute joyful moment to everyone.
Muir
Have you sat and looked at the beauty of nature surrounding you and
thought I" I would love to explore and discover what is there?; Sometime
10 years ago in India, I could see these 2 mountains in daily travel. It made
me wonder whats there. I like to explore nature walks, trekking, picnics in
national park. They added lots of happy moments to my “I did this list”.
I wanted to visit this fort called PrabalGad. Forts are called Gad in our
language. Just 2 hrs drive from city this area is surrounded by forts,
natural beauty and waterfalls. There are many stunning one day treks in
this area.
In India the rains are from June to September period, when our natural
beauty at its peak. I love the rains. I love to get wet in first rain. I love that
natural smell of the first rain and relief from hot weather. It is so cool and
fresh.
I also like to be a friend with nature, walk in the rain, smell and observe
natural beauty.
In India, I gained enough experience of trekking through first level type of
forts where there are steep steps and some marked walking trail.
My office colleague planned a Trek to Prabalgad. I felt it was planned just
for me, monsoon season trekking to such wonderful locations
I wanted to climb Korigad, lohgad, dattatekdi, national park, kankeshwar,
walking the whole day on each 4 outings.
PrabalGad the same mountain, From my daily travelling, they looked very
far away and maybe too big. If I don't do it now maybe I never will!
I was all packed and ready some water, good pair of shoes, hat, light
raincoat and snacks, all done. The whole Prabalgad trekking route had
only 2 small cafes and one family run lodge.
Rainy season trek usually are more muddy trails, slippery roads and
unexpected waterfalls. Any supplies shops are run by villagers at base
point village.
Forts are built on the pinnacle of the Mountain. There is good history of
forts. They are strategically located so the warriors could watch the
movements of enemy. These warriors ride horses and attack the enemies
stocks, travel plans to get much idea of strength. So these forts were never
visible. Enemies have no direct access to the fort location. Over time,
many forts were destroyed and few were maintained depending on the
community of the surrounding villages.
It's difficult to imagine a situation where you just have the local guide who
takes you through a proper route.
As planned our meeting point was early morning 5 am to reach and 3
hours traffic time to “ The destination Prabalgad.” Almost 34 hours walk
was estimated to reach top
It was indeed scenic, clouds were floating on top of mountain. Rain drops
were making the weather cool and the road wet. I started to walk. 2 km
stretch, had to cross a river and we finally reached the forest, the starting
point of PrabalGad.
We had one local villager as our guide. Its always good to make buddy on
a trek with one who matches your pace.
When I looked up I thought it's too far. You start slowly and steadily we
made it through. There were no railings to hold. No steps were created. It
was not a typical forrest but lots of wild trees with big and small plants. Old
trees with weird shapes.
Some patch was rocky some with plain red dusty road. Big and small
rocks. And I came across big rock nearing my shoulder. As I was busy
clicking photos I hadn’t notice how person before me managed to climb,
just had to hold on to the next big rock to cross. I learned it never hurts to
ask for help, when stuck. So I had to stretch legs, do stunts, attempt to
climb some of the rocks and support by my hands. I really enjoyed each bit
of walking.
Good on us, there was long stretch plain plateau to walk. As we reached, it
started pouring. We took our first halt and photo session. It was back in
2007. It still run like a film in my mind. What if situations analysis made
some trekkers to quit. They wanted to wait and join us on return journey.
We saw small 2 homes of villagers. It was home run café. Relief as our
friends got place to wait there. Since there was no other group trekking up
with us & we had never attempted Prabalgad before.
When you reach half way, it is different feeling. You can make choice, to
chase your dreams or adjust with surroundings. And everything is
right. We found a big rock chair where we all did photos on the rock. On
the top of that rock it feels just like a King of your time . You can
experience the chilled air, forceful wind, experience the picnic in the clouds
from the peak of the hill and it will show you its different shades.
Experience the twinkling lights of Mumbai city, Rasayani, Panvel and
nearby areas from the height. To experience this exciting package of fun,
happiness and refreshment.
At Prabal gad, near top of the mountain, I was actually in clouds. Whole
remaining trek we had to cover walking through clouds, only seeing the
next few meters. I remember the scenic view of clouds from base village
was mesmerizing.
The thought that I was in the clouds, I was so happy I did something I
wanted for a long time. It was not raining but rain drops were presenting
slight wetness on skin.
Almost 10 years from that moment, I've visited many more places and
acouple of countries. But the immensely joy I felt still lingers. The trueness
of moment, that you can experience anytime. Was it fog or cloud. I didn't
want to analyse my experience.
From top you see your trek starting point and all difficult points, dangerous
trails, my words are limited to describe the scenic beauty. The flat top area
of the fort is covered by dense forest. Because of the dense forest it is not
always easy to find paths for walking.
Actually we had only covered 3/4th distance, everyone was bit scared as
the route was not visible and the forest was getting dense. This fort had
North and South end. Our tour manager decided to return as we had some
youngsters with us and they lacked preparation for an overnight stay.
At entry point, then there is no problem for climb. Route is little steep for
climb, occupied with all small and big rocks, more challenging to climb
down.
Some had great pictures and videos of trek, but I had my best experience
in that moment. When I was absolutely happy, my happiness was not
depend on anything. I wish absolute joyful moment to everyone.
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