A Monsoon Weekend in Matheran
Disclaimer : This is going to be one long photo heavy post
Maharashtra had become my home almost a decade ago. I had come to Mumbai for the first time during the Monsoon to join my new job. Monsoon was not a very pleasant word that year as the people in Mumbai were still reeling under the memories of the deluge the year before. People were scared of rains.
But me as an outsider, I was awed by the emerald green rolling hills and scattered waterfalls in the backdrop of my office campus. I had never experienced before monsoon could be so beautiful. Maybe that was the thing that made me fall in love with this state and I am still as much in love even after 10 long years.
Maybe it was Maharashtra's beauty that made a travel enthusiast. Now be it sunny or rainy I am always ready for a trip. Still its the monsoon that transforms everything into a fairyland. I have been to many popular destinations all over the state, yet in this 10 years I had never been to Matheran during the Monsoon. Matheran is among the top monsoon destinations of this state and yet I never had the opportunity to experience Matheran in rains. So this time when our group of friends wanted to go on a trip during rains we considered Matheran in the list of places. Ajanta Ellora however remained the first choice. But as luck would have it due to budget and time constraint the Ellora plan went kaput. Though a bit disheartened at first we came together and thought we will do this trip on the decided date to which ever place we get accommodation availability. Bhimashankar, Karjat, Matheran, Mahabaleshwar - the names kept going round the table. Finally we got some great offers though goibibo, and 4 days before the date of travel we booked the last available rooms in Hotel Premdeep (the only one which fitted our budget).
The headcount which was 11 during the Ellora plan came down to 7 when we had booked rooms for Matheran. And due to some weird turn of events on the final day of travel there was only 5 (Manav, Sai, Anup, Vartika and yours truly) of us who could finally make it. But we knew these 5 power packed people were crazy enough to ensure there would not be any dull moment during the entire trip. There were certain consequences with the room booking bit though but i will come to that later.
On the morning of 29th July, Manav picked me from my home at 6 in the morning. Sai, Anup and Vartika were about to come together to the station together. The sun was just coming up and it was nearly dark all around when I left my home. We had good spells of rain in the past few days hence we were sure about witnessing a green Matheran. With the rods being practically empty, it took us 35 minutes to reach Shivajinagar station from Dhayari. We learnt that Vartika was coming alone by Auto as Sai had ditched her the evening before. While Sai and Anup were coming by Bike. All these 3 people live in Aundh-Baner area which is closer to the station than Dhayari. And they were the ones who came in later than us. Our train was at 7 AM and till 6:45 AM only Vartika had come. We wondered whether Sai and Anup will make it on time or it will be only the three of us who would be travelling. Fortunately at 6:55 AM we saw both the guys walking down the station. They looked super relaxed while we were panicking due to their late show up.
The temple in our society at 6AM |
After we settled down the main concern point was what would we do with the rooms that we had booked considering 7 people. Before that let me give you a background of how we had reserved the rooms. We had odd number of girls (3) and even number (4) of boys. Out of which myself and hubby booked a single room with double bed. The other three boys booked a room with three bed. And for the other two girls we wanted to book a double bed room as well. Now we had clicked on the book button on goibibo at the same time to ensure all our rooms our booked at same time. But unfortunately the booking of the girls room didn't go through as all double rooms were exhausted. We panicked what to do because other two bookings went through. Finally after much deliberation we decided to book the only room available with 4 beds. Though it was costing us a bit more we decided to split the extra cost between ourselves. So eventually we had 9 beds for 7 people. And to get the maximum discounts we had booked the rooms which were cancellable only till two days before travel.
And just before the day of travel two drop outs happened - my hubby and the other girls who was supposed to share room with Vartika. Now the figures looked like 9 beds for 5 people. What a sheer wastage of bed and money. So we decided to call up goibibo, explain our plight and ask them if we could get one room cancelled. Though the chances were thin we decided to give it a go. The goibibo people tried their best but the hotel owner was not ready to listen. We were even ready if he gave the room to any other tourist and gave us 20-30% of the room fare. But the owner didn't agree to that even. In any case we were not getting our money back so we decided to retain our third room as well.
UNO Time Masti |
Breakfast time |
Photos on the Platform |
From left: Anup, myself, Manav and Vartika |
Vartika and Sai |
Sai leading the way |
On the way to the waterfall |
There was so much greenary around that it almost hurting the eyes! |
The mountains bekoned us |
All smiles |
And our trek begins |
Shoes came off as we got ready to walk though the water |
Posing in between the stream |
The small 'jungle' |
Monkeying around in the jungle |
Still in the Jungle |
And finally we reach the opening |
Thats what the terrain looked in front of us |
The diffucult crossing |
The Blue tent |
Near the Tent |
The natural Enclosure of water in front of the tent |
In the thicket |
The obstacles didnt seem to end |
First Glimpse of the waterfall |
Resting! |
The human chain |
Our photobreaks didnt stop |
The waterfall coming closer |
Finally we did it! The smile says it all |
And the final step |
Boys under the waterfall |
The clouds had nearly covered us and it had started to rain also. So we decided to go back. And anyway it was getting late, we had to be at the Hotel before the lunch hour ends. The backward trail was almost a similar story only this time the rain added to our miseries. The DSLR had to be finally put into the cover and shoved inside the backpack. The rapids became more difficult to cross as the water current increased with the rain. Somehow Sai and Anup helped us through the entire trail to come back on even ground unscathed.
While coming we saw the Nepali family having their feast under the tent. It was hardly 20 minutes form the time we had crossed them and they were already done preparing their meals. We were hungry from all the walking and thought if they would also let us participate in their picnic.
We came down at the right time. Not only the rain played spoiltsport but also we saw some groups of boys scaling the rocks, who were reeking of alcohol. There was also one group of boys who were openly consuming alcohol.
After we came down to where we started we saw some officials checking bags of youths who were going to the waterfall. But what about the ones who were already up there? We didnt know.
Now the next thing to be sorted out was the means of going back to the station. We took the dirt road back to the village but there was no auto in sight. There was no range in our cell phones as well so there was no chance of calling our autowalah from the morning. We were thinking whether we should walk to the main road when we saw an auto coming. It was also bringing in tourists like us. We talked with the autowalah and he readily agreed to drop us off at Rs. 20 per head.
After a 15-20 minute ride we were dropped in the backside of the station. A local resident showed us the alleyway which led to the main road of Neral. All of us were feeling very hungry at that point. The Poha from the morning had been digested like hours ago. We stopped for some snacks at a local shop. Though the shop didnt look much hygenic at first but the food was being made then and there and served hot. We had Chai, vada pav and medu vadas. All of them were finger licking good. With some energy back in our bodies we were ready to start our original trip to Matheran.
Some of us went to draw cash from the nearby ATM while the others booked a shared cab. It was Rs. 70 per person, standard flat rate. We bundled up in the omni and soon were off towards Dasturi Naka, the last motorable point before Matheran.For those who doesnt know, vehicles are not allowed beyond Dasturi Naka, the starting point of Matheran. In this one of a kind vehicle free zone you either walk to take a horse ride. Yes you heard it right- a horse ride in an old fashioned way.
As the ascent began for Matheran the gradient of the terrain became steeper. It was raining quite a bit and the scenary looked pristine. At many places there were sharp turns and the driver manuvered those turns at high speed. We did feel scared at times but there was not much we could do, these people were seasoned on these roads. After the roller coaster ride the taxi droped us at Dasturi Naka and we were on our own from there.
It was drizzling outside. We had to pay some 50 bucks as entry fee into Matheran. None of the people apart from Manav and myself had carried a raincoat. I had even carried an umbrella and later on it proved quite useful. Anup was talking about some use and throw raincoats available in Matheran and we did find them bang at the entrance itself. I hadnt believed Anup then that you could get a raincoat at 30 bucks but when I saw that was really the case even I bought one for myself. Its simply a big polythene packet with sleeves. Vartika, Anup and Sai bought safari hats as well but I skipped that as I had my umbrella. So now we were fully armed with raincoat for the phone as well as ourselves. And with that we set our foot on the red soil of Matheran.
"How much time will it need to reach the hotel?' Sai asked casually.
I had already looked up in the google maps for the location of Hotel Premdeep and it was somewhere near to the station.
"Nearly 30 minutes" I said.
"What? 30 minutes of walk" There was a joint exclaimation. I nodded in affermative.
"Please let us know if there are any more surprising information up your sleeves. It will prevent us from the shock at least!" Sai said.
A short distance from Dasturi naka was the station of Matheran. We took a lot of pictures around the tracks and the signature Matheran Platform entrance.
We followed the train tracks to the town centre. Me, Manav and Anup were walking in front and Vartika was walking behind us with Sai trailing at the back. Suddenly we heard Vartika's shriek and all of us turned back. I saw a monkey running away with a biscuit packet that he had snatched from her backpack.
Vartika was still frozen on her tracks with a stunned expression. We took a moment to realise what had happened and all of us burst laughing. Seems like she felt someone was digging into her backpack pockets and she thought it was Sai untill she turned to take a look. And we had already seem what had happened after that. After this incident we were being a bit careful with our cameras and phones but soon realised the monkeys were only after any food items and were not tech savy, which was a relief. The hike led us through the forest of Matheran. It had rained earlier which had made walking over the puddles a difficulty at times. It again started to rain soon and we had to take out our just bought raincoats. It was difficult to fit in the backpacks and ourselves within the finite limit of the raincoat. Sai ended up tearing his slightly while struggling to get into it.I didnt bother to put my backpack in the raincoat as I had my dear umbrella. Seeing the four of us in uniform rain gears Manav also wished to buy one from the market. |
On the Tracks |
After checking in we tried to talk with the manager about our situation and the extra rooms. But as usual he didnt agree to any options, so we were eventually stuck with three rooms. We decided that the boys will stay in the four bedded room, I would be in the two bedded one and Vartika in the 3 bedded room. We girls had the luxury of owning the entire room ourselves. One downside was that all three rooms were at three different corners of the property. We freshened up quickly and made way to the lunch room. It was past 2 PM and we were the only group who were left to have lunch.
We were so hungry at thta point that we could eat anything they served us. Hotel Premdeep and most of the hotels in Matheran are Veg hotels, so I was just hoping that the food was good at least. Though we were the last ones, the service was amazing. They first placed all the side dishes around the plate which was kala chana sybzi, aloo subzi, patta gobi subzi, dal, moon daal vada, papad, salad and Kheer. All the dishes looked quite inviting. Then they brought us piping hot tandoori wheat rotis with a dollop of ghee on top. The rotis were so amazingly tasty that all the sides went very well with them. They kept on repeating all the dishes untill we were completely full. Me being a hardcore non-vegetarian, this particular veg thali totally bowled me over.
After a good meal we were ready to go on exploring Matheran. In the morning when we had started Manav was emphasising that he wanted to walk in Matheran instead of taking horses. But after the unplanned hike none of us was in the position to be able to walk and explore places. So we all hired horses. I was very particular of the fact that we should get big horses not the small ones, because I felt really sad to see those small horses carrying people double its weight. And not all of us belonged ot the light weight category.
So our horses were there and one by one we got on them. Though all of us were feeling a bit shaky at first but still managed. But it was Manav who was going all franatic with hishorse. Me and Sai were the first two to lead the way followed by Vartika and Anup and finally Manav. We could constantly hear Manav's bickering from the back. Especially difficult was the time when the horses walked though areas which had downward slope. More than us I felt bad for the horses. We had experienced how difficult it was to walk on the rocky paths and these horses were carrying us on top of that.
We had choosen the 12 point trip. Well I have forgotten almost all the points name except Charlotte Lake, Louisa Point, Echo Point , Panorama point, Alaxender Point, One tree hill point. All the points were covered in clouds so we could only catch glimpses of the valley below when the cloud cleared occassionally. The whole valley kind of comes alive in the monsoon.
Charlottle lake is about 2 Km from the Market, and this lake provides water to the resident of Matheran.Pisarnath temple is located at one end of the lake. There are two view ponints around this place – Louisa Point and Echo Point.
Around Charlottle Lake |
Cloud Covered Charlotte Lake |
It was almost 6 PM and it was a day well spent. We changed and got into some dry clothes. After that we went to the boys room. We discovered that the room of the boys was the best among the three rooms. Maybe it was new thats why all the furnishing and wall colours looked very nice and bright. The rains had further intensified hence we thought of not going to the market in the vening and instead we sat down with UNO cards and steaming hot cups of tea. Movies or songs played in the back ground, so whenever we needed a break from UNO we saw TV. The rounds of UNO went on infinitely till the dinner time. People who know UNo check out the card combination I had got - the best ever combination I had ever got in life!
UNO rounds |
The bad food couldnt take away our enthusiasm. After dinner we hanged around the courtyard for some time. Some other guests had music on and were dancing in front of their rooms. After a while we again went back to the room for UNO session and were up playing UNO till 2 AM in the morning. When me and Vartika finally left to get some sleep it was deserted outside.
The next morning greeted us with intense rains, worse than the day before. We didnt know that high alert for rains had been sent out for Mumbai - Pune. We had breakfast which was better than the dinner and waited for the rain to slow down a bit before we could venture out. But even till 11 AM the situation didnt change so we decided to start our return journey in the rain itself.
Muddy water on the tracks due to heavy rain |
We visited the market area and everyone except myself had paan. Yes people go for falooda and corns but we are different so we had paan. The downhill walk was easier for us and even after stopping for multiple photo sessions we managed to arrive at Dasturi Naka at the estimated time. The ride from Dasturi naka was also very pretty. All the waterfalls around the mountains had come alive with the heavy rains. At every 2 mins there was a waterfall. We reached Neral and from there we took a local train to Karjat. The local trains were very much delayed that day due to heavy rains. Our return train to Pune was at 4 PM from Karjat. So we had ample time to have lunch. Karjat also looked lush green in this weather. We found a decent veg restaurent and ordered thalis. The food was very good here. On way back I bought some really fresh water chestnuts form a women.
Once on the train we again started to play UNO. We were in 2nd seating and the compartment was filled chock-a-block, still we believed iini the saying, where there is a will there is a way. You might think we are crazy people but once you play this card game you kind of get addicted to it. Nothing much happened in the return journey except at one point the train roofs started to leak. And we were getting the feel of rain inside the compartment as well.
Overall we had a very memorable trip. My long cherished wish of visiting Matheran in the rains was fullfilled. I was sad once back home but happy as well that we had done this trip.
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