Harishchandragad via Nalichi Vaat
The journey to the majestic Konkan Kada
It all started over a year ago when Claws
(trek group) resumed the trekking season in the monsoon of 2013. Scaling
Harishchandragad had become a pet dream ever since hearing about its enchanting
beauty from fellow trekkers. After having scaled peaks like Harihar and
Prabalgad, it was time for the Mogambo of mountains - Harishchandragad. A small group of young 20 somethings set out
to conquer the great escarpment of India, the Sahyadris and its big daddy - The
Konkan Kada.
Harishchandragad represents one of the most
difficult hikes in western India and nalichi vaat is what gets the adrenaline
rushing for serious trekkers. It is a difficult, dangerous and steep rocky path
between two huge precipitous mountains and leads all the way up to the top of
Konkan kada. The peak is about 4300 feet high from sea level and is a test of
endurance for trekkers.
Our journey began on friday night when we
reached Kalyan to catch an ST bus. To reach our destination, we had to travel
to Savarne village which lies just before Malshej ghat on the Kalyan –
Ahmednagar highway and then walk towards Belpada, which is the base village on
this side of the Konkan kada. Rudresh, the trekker cum cook had got a tiffin
full of onion laced kaleji masala for us to devour before we set out on our
journey. The group assembled shortly after 11pm at Kalyan station and by 1am,
we were having tea and biscuits by a roadside dhaba in Savarne. Needless to
say, the kaleji masala was slurped up right down to the last onion.
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| All set for the adventure |
As overnight treks go, the most exciting
part is the night hike. It takes 3 hours to reach Belpada from the highway on
foot, crossing a small hillock on the way. If somone flying overhead in the
darkness had observed the Claws group at this time, they would have seen just a
chain of flashlights moving through the trees in the middle of nowhere. Night
treks are tricky as it is difficult to find your way in the dark in an area
populated by shrubs, trees and rocks. By relying on a hand drawn map and
directions from startled villagers of in between villages who were woken out of
their slumber in our quest for getting some sleep of our own, we finally
reached Belpada base village at around 3.30 am. By this time, the temperature
had dropped to bring-out-the-warmest-clothes-you’ve-brought degrees Celsius and
the group had settled down in the cozy house of a local villager by the name of
Kama. Finally, after a few intervals of sleep in between feverish chilling, it
was time to get ready to conquer the majestic Kada via nalichi vaat.
The first thing that hits you when you
check out the view from the base village during the early morning light is the
size of this gigantic piece of rock. It stretches as far your eyes can see,
both horizontally as well as vertically. It is a sight to behold and it reminds
you of a king sitting in his throne being flanked on two sides by his generals.
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| Sunrise over Konkan kada |
Awestruck, we set out on our most challenging journey yet. For a local like
Kama who was going to be our guide on this trek, it takes barely 2-3 hours to
climb the nalichi vaat. However for first timers like us, it is quite a
daunting task. For starters, the entire steep path between the two mountains in
covered by sharp chipped rocks ranging from the size of a cricket ball to the
size of dinosaur eggs. This is the spot for a flowing river complete with
waterfalls during rainy season and hence the landscape is replete with enough intimidating
90 degree rock patches to make you think twice about your decision to come
here.
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| Thats what I am talking about! |
It is advisable to start early before the
sun bears down on you in full force and saps you of valuable energy. As we
slowly made our way up the rocky path, the full impact of the beauty around us
started to sink in. The sun rays had started pouring over the kada besides us
and Rahul, Nilesh and DJ, the click happy photographers in our group made the
proverbial hay while the sun was shining.
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| Sun rays leaping over mountains |
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| Soaking in the morning sun |
As we progressed in our adventure, we
were faced with the 90 degree vertical climbs of 15-20 feet in two places. This
is where our guide Kama and his years of experience came in handy. Kama climbed
these walls of rock with the same effort it requires Keiron Pollard to hit a
ball out of the ground. And he did this while wearing paragon chappals! Lucky
for us, he threw a rope down which we used to pull ourselves up. Vaibhav managed
to climb without a rope by using his forearms and Kama encouraged the rest of
us to make it in one piece.
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| That's Kama sitting on the top |
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| Ye vaat meri hai aur mai yaha ka Jaykant Shikre! |
Beating the sun drenched climbs with glucose and
cucumbers and scraping through many such close calls where it was a rock wall
in front and a deep punishing valley behind, we reached the top of the kada 7
hours after we began -with bruised knees, scraped hands and tanned faces but
with a victorious heart.
The first feeling to fill my exhausted yet
exhilarated body after having reached the top was of relief; having conquered
the much revered nalichi vaat safely. A gulp of water later, we stood on the
edge of the kada and gaped at the Konkan land as far as our eyes could see. The
evening sun was setting and the impressive landscape was a breathtaking mixture
of smaller hills, laidback villages, pockets of forests and pristine clouds. The
Malshej ghat could be seen in the distant mountains with the vehicles
negotiating its meandering turns.
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| This piece of rock is over 100 million years old |
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| View from the top |
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| The sun sets over a successful day |
The plunging Konkan kada is a major
attraction for sunset lovers. Relaxing on the edge and watching the sun set in
the west is indeed a sight to behold. Over here, the fierce winds from all
sides create a unique phenomenon where water thrown from a bottle over the edge
takes the form of several droplets which float magically in midair for several
seconds – like they are making up their mind about which direction to go,
before finally raining back over us to the shouts and howls of several amazed
onlookers.
While chatting with trekkers from a fellow group, we also came to
know about a boy who used to come here for many years; who fell in love with
the sacredness of this place and eventually surrendered himself to the kada by
jumping off the cliff. The rest of the memorable evening was spent clicking
photographs and sharing stories of treks to other peaks.
As the temperature began to drop again, we
set up our tents and settled down for a nice cozy dinner. There is something
special about how cooking food on a chulha brings back childhood memories of
trips to our villages. The nostalgic smell of the bhakri and peethla take you
back to an altogether different phase in your life. The small khanawali on the
top cooked a delicious dinner for us which also included 3 MTR chicken packets
brought along by us.
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| Chicken Chettinad coming up! |
With our stomachs satiated, the sleep that chilly night
wrapped in a blanket inside a tent was epic.
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| "Tent chya aat yenya aagodar saglyanni shoes baher kadne" |
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| That's Mumbai in the distance - 130 Kms away |
With the first morning light, it was time
to get ready for another action packed day. The agenda for the second day was
to visit the famous caves and temples around Harishchandragad before making our
way down from the other side of the mountain to the Khireshwar village. After
cooking breakfast on the chulha and relishing the warm contents leisurely, we
made our way to the sight of the Saptatirtha Pushkarni. It is a manmade lake
surrounded by temples and caves. The ancient temples were carved out in the 11th
century out of a single piece of rock and the work is commendable.
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| People have been tripping here since the 7th century A.D |
The most
famous amongst them is the Kedareshwar cave. It is a huge rectangular cave inside
the mountain and houses a 5 foot Shivlinga surrounded by one standing and three
broken pillars of stone.
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| Brrrrr! |
It is said around here that when the fourth pillar
breaks, the world will come to an end. Hence it is advisable to stay clear of
this fourth pillar for the sake of humanity when you jump in the water for a
swim. And oh yes, about that swim. Have you ever felt a chill go down your
spine when you see someone fall into an icy lake on TV? Well that’s the first
feeling your entire body goes through when you jump inside for a leisurely swim
expecting a warm affable welcome. The second feeling is that of getting the
hell out of the water as soon as possible. But if you stay just long enough to
get used to it, you will actually start enjoying the cave and its ice cold
water. It is an experience of Kailash Parbat right here in Maharashtra and will
leave you completely refreshed for the rest of the day.
The descent down the Paachnai route was quick.
It was already 4 pm and we had a lot of ground to cover if we had to reach the
highway before dark. Getting there involved reaching the base of the mountain
and walking for a good 3-4 kilometres. By this time, we decided to bring out
our would be lunch of 45 theplas that Amit had packed at the start of the
journey for us only to realize that we had forgotten them near the chulha in
the khanawali at the top during breakfast. Famished, we still managed a good laugh
about it as we thought of the next group that reaches the khanawali and gets served
theplas for breakfast. We had biscuits and fruits as we started the final leg
of our journey. The route passes over a dam with a scenic view that film makers
with strained budgets could use as a replacement for the Pangong Tso lake of
Ladakh.
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| Like a painting from childhood |
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| You're welcome, directors! |
After quickly making our last stop near an ancient site on the way that
was once a grand Hindu cave but sadly lies half in ruins today due to the failed
Mughal efforts of destroying it, we reached the highway around 7.00 pm.
After having achieved some pretty amazing
things in the past couple of days, only one simple task remained. That is of
finding a vehicle to take us back home. But as adventures go, none is complete
without drama and suspense. Flagging a vehicle down on a winding highway that
is populated by trucks carrying goods and local ST buses already filled to the
brim is not the easiest of jobs. So we decided to walk hoping to reach the
nearest dhaba. Luckily, we came across one soon and had missal pav and waited till
an empathetic trucker offered us his services. The dhaba owner would have been
a happy man that day as 10 exhausted and hungry trekkers gobbled up his missal
pavs with the ferocity of lions. With darkness engulfing the valley and no
vehicle stopping for us, hope was quickly fading away. It was 8.30 pm by now
and faced with the option of spending another chilly night in the ghats, we put
our bags to our back and started waving frantically at every vehicle that
passed us. I guess when ten tired hikers with backpacks decide to do whatever
it takes to stop a truck in its tracks; a truck really stops in its tracks.
What we managed to stop were 16 tons of onion on its way to the APMC market in
Vashi. As we made our way into the truck, I looked at the valley for the last
time on this trip. I could not see the kada in the darkness, but I could sense
it was looking back at me, at us. A watchful protector. A silent guardian.
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| Jyotirling Prasanna - Our ride back home |
Sitting inside the cabin with 4 others
besides me and 5 on top of the truck wrapped in sleeping bags, I realized how
our 2 day trip had come a full circle. Having the home made kaleji masala with
onions on Friday night to coming back to the city on Sunday night with onions
on their way to APMC market and eventually to every household in the city, it
was a journey that taught us a lot. It was a journey to remember.
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Photo Credits @ Rahul Takale, Vaibhav Borgaonkar, Nilesh More
