DEVKUND WATERFALL ( JUNGLE TREK TO HIDDEN WATERFALL)

Devkund (Dev means God and Kund means Reservior) is hidden waterfall which is less known and more Nailing. It is ‘plunge’ waterfall pouring massive amount of water on rocky surface. The place is till date so true to its name. It is confluence of three waterfalls and it is said to be the origin of Kundalika River. It is located in Bhira Patnus and recently went viral on social media. Recently It has become more popular and one of the crowded place. Several live has been lost as some armatures tried to visit without knowing anything. It is three hours trek from base village passing through back water to reach ‘Devkund’.

HOW TO REACH DEVKUND

Devkund is close to 170 km from Mumbai and 100 km from Pune. One can take direct train to Karjat, Khopoli from Major cities like Mumbai, Pune and Nashik which is further connected to other cities of Maharashtra state in India, then travel to Pali by bus and from there again to Bhira village which is base village of this trek. Traveling with own vehicle can also be good option and time consuming. From Mumbai you can drive to Khopoli-Pali-Bhira. From Pune you can drive to Tamhini ghat and then to Bhira village. ( From Khopoli to till Bhira bus fare goes upto 60 to 70 rs one way).

After getting in touch with social media I found Devkund a hidden waterfall from Bhira village which is less known and more graceful. I goggled more about this hidden trek and found  one of the mesmerizing trek from Maharashtra and went on my bucket list. I started collecting information to reach there and also heard that though it is mesmerizing it is also dangerous as several live has lost there. I gathered more information from people who have been visited there. I found it is safe if we go with proper information. It was monsoon when we made plan to head to Devkund.

Being frequent traveller I usually prefer to travel by bike which is money saving and also time consuming for me. So this time also I took my Honda shine and Activa along with my 3 more group mate travelled to Devkund via Khopoli Pali road. It took us 2 and half hours to reach Pali as road ahead of Imagica on Pali road is under construction. As we were reaching Bhira village there were so many bikers and cars on the way to Bhira. Those crowd was only for hidden trek. We reached Bhira village and parked our vehicle at one corner. After reaching near to Devkund we all were so happy but here comes some twist in story. There was huge queue of people coming for Devkund at entrance of the forest where start point of trek lies and those people were disappointed. When we went to check what has happened, there were few police in front and said us due to huge crowd near to waterfall area we are sealing off tourist to enter. All our happiness was gone till now. As like other treks in monsoon Devkund can one of those trek that can be done in heavy rain but our prediction was wrong After sometime everyone tried to request police as they had come from far away that too with long trouble wherein few travel companies came with their group, after 10 minutes they showed their kindness and asked us to move in queue towards our landing place, and our happiness started recovering. (Message to take is avoid going in heavy rain as chances of road blocks and trek closed are more because of water flow).

Moving further we started our trek through dense forest where the walking trail is as narrow as people have to hold each other while passing to those who are coming from opposite direction. Initial 45 minute trek is through dense forest and some vast area that also passes through Bhira dam with marvellous view of back water on left side. People also do camping near to this back water in other season as view of surrounding is amazing. This trail is well marked with arrow so there is least chances of getting lost. Slight descent from here will take you along the banks of the reservoir from where the trail advances further into forest. In this 45 minutes trail you have to cross the river as increased in water flow was making it bit difficult. At one crossing there is one thick rope tied to cross this water streams, and at second river local villagers have put wooden bridge to cross Kundalika river that goes from this trail and  as only 3 to 4 persons at a time can pass through that bridge that takes some time when there is crowd. There was only lust greeneries wherever you keep your eyes that was putting a glimpse on our eyes.

MARKING ON THE WAY TO DEVKUND AT JUNGLE TRAIL

FIRST WATER STREAMS THAT NEED TO CROSS WITH THE HELP OF ROPE

After this trail route started climbing up for some more minutes. Though the climb isn’t steep, you may need good amount of energy. You may find small huts selling lemon juice and snacks. The climb is through dense forest hence little care needs to be taken while maneuvering. Once you start the trek I am pretty sure you will take photo session break for every 10 minutes as view are amazing filled with greeneries. Post completion of this climb a 10 minutes trail is open that passes through rocky patch and it also takes you to Beautiful waterfall called Devkund.  

BACK WATER PLACE AT DEVKUND

WOODEN BRIDGE THAT HELPS TO CROSS THE KUNDALIKA RIVER STREAM

Locals have marked line of control bisecting the pond. Swimming in the first half of bisection is allowed. No one is allowed to go to the point where water streams directly hits the ground as the depth over there is around 60 feet and there have been incidences of visitors drowning in it. We stayed here for sometime to enjoy what we had come for.

we started return journey since we had to reach before sun set. While reaching waterfall it was raining due to which we could not click much photos. You can carry some food and water along with you which will help to keep you energetic. There are home-made food option that are available at base village. This is the end of our trek. This is one of the advent

Our total expenses being couple was:

Petrol- 650

Food-250

Entry fees-100(per head 50)

Guide is not mandatory, one can go on own.

                      some of the memories of trek

IDEAL TIME TO VISIT DEVKUND TREK

It is best to go during the monsoon. Temperature is on lower side and the atmosphere is perfect for trek. Avoid going in heavy monsoon as locals closes the trek. Post monsoon up to February month you can visit there to witness waterfall. Apart from temperature you can also visit there if one wants to do camping near back water.

Do plan for this hidden trek, enjoy your adventure and do follow me by mail for more treks information.

Auther :- Sambhaji Patil 

TREK TO LOHAGAD FORT

LOHAGAD FORT TREK

• Height- 3389 Feet
• Trek Level- Easy Trek
• Trek Route- Steep Stairs
• Time For Trek- 2 Hours

Maharashtra has extensive range of mountains which is named Sahyadri, this range is geographically part of Western Ghats and Lohagad is one of those mountain which also has historical importance. Lohagad fort holds a great relevance as it was captured and recaptured by Shivaji Maharaj.

Lohagad is located in Lonavala. Also known as twin fort as it share fortification with Visapur fort. Built in 18^th Century, the Lohagad fort is coupled with many winding hairpin bends and steps that lead you to hill top. It rises to an elevation of 1033 m (3389 ft.) above sea level, and is located to the southwest of the larger Visapur fort. The range divides the basins of the Indrayani River and Pavana Lake.

HOW To REACH LOHAGAD

Lohagad fort is easily accessible by various modes of travel. The nearest airport is Pune International Airport in Maharashtra state. The proposed Navi Mumbai International Airport will serve as the nearest Airport in the coming future.

The nearest train station is Malavli, which can be accessed by suburban trains between Lonavala and Pune. The nearest major train station is Lonavala.

If one is traveling by road then Lohagad is well connected by the Mumbai-Pune highway and can also be accessed from Paud via Kolvan and Dudhiware Khind for all vehicles.

People can also hike all the way to the fort. Bhaja Caves is on the way to Lohagad if small diversion is taken. This walk is a particular favorite of trekkers, especially in the monsoon season. It is simple, very scenic and pleasant trek and the distance from Malavli and Lohagad can be covered in two hours. A tar road exist all the way to top from Malavli station and one can hire a tempo or cab  to the top, share cabs are also available in 60 to 80 RS per person. The best season to visit the fort is in monsoons. The fort has around 350 steps from the base, so it is not advisable to take a personal car as the road is single lane, steep and very Bad.

Coming to my story I always prefer to travel on my Honda shine as traveling with own vehicle is always a good comfort. This time I along with my partner drove the road distance of 170 km two way on bike. The road passes through old Mumbai-Pune express highway where there is less vehicle crowd on road and it feels so awesome to drive. We reached there bit late due to which we started trek at 12 noon. It was not bothering us being small trek. The road which we took was the one that passes through Lonavala’s small village that again meets at Dudhiware Khind. This road is under construction. Final 2km of this road is very worst and risky to drive as it is incline drive and being narrow path it’s difficult for two four wheeler to pass that path at same time. There is enough space available to park vehicle at base but they charge 20 RS for bike and 50 RS for four wheeler at first base check point. Being a Sunday it was as usual rush and most interesting part is there were lots families with their small children’s for trek. The start of this route is with simple steep stairs with half feet distance and it is very easy to climb. After climbing 30 to 40 stairs there is another check point where you need to take ticket to move further to this trek. Ticket cost is 25 RS for Indian tourist and 300 RS for foreign tourist. They also charge for carrying camera. Road continuous with steep stairs. Be aware of Monkies as there are lots of monkies on the way, so my suggestion is do not keep any eating thing in hand or any plastic rapper on side pocket of bag, the reason as soon as monkies eye falls on rapper or food in hand they immediately jumps on you to snatch it. So be careful. You can keep some food stuff to them but do not keep in hand. While ascending towards you will pass through beauty of Pavana Lake which lies on left side of this fort. Pavana Lake is famous for its camping activity.

Pavana Lake which is famous for camping activity

 Structure of this fort is magnificent which is created by the emperor’s century ago. Rules by the Marathas and the Mughals, this fort has unique history of its own. As the trek continues you will come across Ganesh Darwaja (Lord Ganesh entrance Gate) which is first entrance of this fort. Other entrance gate in sequence are Narayan Darwaja, Hanuman Darwaja and last entrance gate is known as Maha-Darwaja. There was mixed climate along with clouds and blue sky that made us more photogenic. We had some energy stuff in bag which helped us throughout the trek.

After crossing all this door you can see the vast, lush green landscape that overlook the Pavana reservoir. The major attraction on top is water pond which was used for the people who used to live and guard the fort. There are also couple of Dargah on the top along with big water body. During the monsoon top of the fort is covered with mist and clouds and becomes wet with growing moss. The road and trails leading to hill are quite slippery at this time of the year and precaution needs to take while venturing the routes. The main highlight of the fort was yet to come.

Main highlight of the Fort called Vinchukata

The highlight of the fort is Vinchukata (Scorpion’s tail) which reminds us of ‘Sanjeevni Machi’ of Rajgad. It is around 1500 m long and 30 m wide part of the mountain, separated from the main part. The route to reach there is just narrow path without any support to descend down from the height of 15 feet. There is valley on left side without any support on side so be careful while passing this route, one person at a time can move from this narrow trail. Viewing from the fort this portion looks like scorpion’s sting and hence it is called ‘Vinchu Kata’. This ‘Vinchu Kata’ was used for keeping a watch on the nearby area. We reached the top at 2 pm and halted for some time to feel the breath taking view of surrounding. At one side the view of mesmerizing Visapur fort wherein other side the view of gorgeous Pavana Lake. Remember there are no hotels on top so carry own food. Descending from any trek is always an easy and speedy trail. It hardly took 45 min to descend down to where we started. This was one of the easy trek for us and also time consuming. For beginners it is easy to do. After reaching at base we had our delightful lunch with Zunka Bhakri and my favorite omelette. Being home-made food taste was superb and worthy. There are two to three hotels available at base that serves home-made food in reasonable rates. Here we end up the trek with cherish memories.

Dargah at Lohagad Fort

Mahadev Mandir at Lohagad Fort

There are lots of Monkies at Lohagad Fort

Ganesh Darwaja of Lohagad Fort

Water Pond at Lohagad Fort which was made to supply water

Narrow trail to pass through Vinchu Kata

Our total expenses for the trek

Petrol 300 (both side)

Parking charge 20 RS

Entry charge-50 for two person

Lunch-200 for two person

(Above expense includes two person).

Refernce :- Sambhaji Patil