Harishchandragadh - Weekend getaway - Part I
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| Entrance to the fort |
It started off with a facebook post about the trek to Harishchandragadh, which was supposed to have a session of poetry, and story-telling. Although "I am not a poet, and you all know it", I signed up for it, thinking I could entertain them with my limited guitar-playing skills. I asked around and there were three of us to trek now. But on the day of the trek, two of them backed out. Of course I went, with a guitar in one hand and the camera kit-bag in the other. I was out to trek with Utopia journeys.
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| Our ride |
I woke up early on Saturday morning, by 5 AM, excited to start. I had to catch a 7:35 AM local to Kasara station from Thane, and I was at the station by 7:20 AM. The train was reasonably empty. I reached Kasara at around 930 AM, standing at the door, with both my bags lying at my feet.
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| Halt for lunch |
At Kasara station, I spotted Niki, and the gang, none of whom I had met before. I didn't know what to expect. I said my pleasantries and set my stuff down. It wasn't the first time I was travelling alone, but being a part of a group where everyone had someone to talk to made me feel a little awkward. As soon as everyone arrived, our first halt was for a cup of tea! It tasted good, especially after the mess I had brewed in the morning, which was a waste of every ingredient used to prepare tea. Our first destination was at a village at the foot of the mountain, from where we had to start our trek. There were 25 of us, and we took three cabs to the base village. There were nine in my cab, and a quick intro later, I had my guitar out. We were singing our hearts out! All the singing and introduction continued till we reached our first halt, in 4 hours.
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| The ascend |
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| The fort's temple |
Once all the cabs had reached, we had a brief round of introduction, and we started with the journey soon. We started our ascend by 230 PM, and took a lunch break on the way, near an almost dried waterfall. It still had enough water in it, and we refilled our bottles here. By now, I was starting to feel tired with two bags on me, but I was able to keep my pace up. I knew if I sat down again, I would loose the momentum and it would get even more difficult to climb. We took another halt after an hour. Just a few minutes here, and we started climbing again, to reach a point where we saw a temple, and a beautiful valley. The wind had picked up now, and the temperature had started dropping. At a tea stall near the temple, left our luggage, visited the temple and rested a while. A hot cup of tea later, we were ready for our final climb. It wasn't too far this time around, and we reached our camping location as it was starting to get dark. By the time the tents were setup up, it was pitch dark coz although it was a full moon night, the moon had not risen yet. It was visible, peeping from behind the silhouette of the spooky looking trees. Once the tents were set, it was time to light the bonfire. It was pleasing to just sit next to the fire and feel the warmth on that cold, winter night. Our dinner was simple, yet tasted heavenly. After dinner, it was time to start with the story telling and poetry.
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| Temple, at the top |
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| Full moon |
It was a beautiful setup. The bonfire was burning uninterrupted now. The moon was high, and we could see an outline of the landscape around us, and the poetry. I had a small recital with the guitar as well. That moment right there was etched in my mind as one of my best trek experiences. There were 7 tents, including one common tent where people who didn't feel sleepy could sit down and talk. Since the cold was unbearable, I rushed into my tent, along with the other tent mates. And talked a while before I fell asleep.
Part 2: Harishchandragadh - The weekend getaway - Part II
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