Blissful In Bhandardara

genesis

After many years of driving around in the foothills of the Himalaya's, we are currently in the process of adjusting to the fact that the 'hill' stations of the Western Ghats of Maharashtra were more like 'hillock' stations, e.g. Mount Kalsubai which is the highest peak in Maharashtra is half a day's hike uphill! But what they lack in height they make up for by the absence of crowds and a sleepy quality which slowly sucks you in. Located four hours from Mumbai off NH3 to Nashik, Bhandardara is one such gem. Checking into the government run MTDC lodge right on Lake Arthur hill, we spent our time wandering around the lake shore, visiting the ancient Amruteshwar temple from where the legendary Pravara river originates and stopped ever so often to take photographs of the numerous lakes and rugged cliff faces. Saving the Randha Falls for a later visit, chose to indulge in a rustic meal of fresh lake fish and rice and then explored the trails around the base of the Wilson Dam. A friendly official from the irrigation department regaled us with stories of the this marvel of British Engineering and invited us to come back again and visit in the monsoons when the river would be in spate and we could see him controlling the ebb and flow of the third largest waterfall in India. As we drove away the following day, we played hide and seek with Mount Kalsubai as she stood guard over her kingdom and knew in our hearts that we would be back to experience again, the bliss that is so easy to come by in Bhandardara...

Here are some pictures of this charming place (click on the thumbnail from the link)

http://www.soumya.org/genesis/2009/03/bl.html

snonymous

Beautiful photographs, you could post some of them in the Photos section here.

Bhandardara is lovely especially in and just after the rains when it is carpeted in green with the waterfalls and streams in spate. It is a pity that it is so deforested. Your photos presumably recent, do not suggest any improvement in forest cover over the past 4 years. Maharashtra ought to take serious steps in afforestation of these once pristine areas.

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rsk11584

ok can u tell me how far will be this bhandadara from Pune or Aurangabad can we go on bikes???

genesis

Bhandardara is 191 km from Pune, 300 km from Aurangabad and around 80 km from Nashik. Yes- you can go by bike (assuming it is a motorcycle and not a cycle )
Directions can easily found on mapmyindia.com

rsk11584

Ok i now need to collect sum gud partners. It will b ideal for weekends to travel there n stay there for one night at MTDC lodge..

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AkhiltheBiker

hey Rk,
did u visit Bhandardara finaly?

rsk11584

no sir, did not get a chance, but if I get a chance will surely visit the place

AkhiltheBiker

Oh! thought you will be able to guide us.
We are planning a bike trip their in mid june.
will update u once we are back.

rushijoshi

Dont wait for someone, kick your bikes and start your journey.

You will realy enjoy that place in mid Jun, prefer to visit that place in Early July, when 1st spel of rain already poured and that area is covering with green bedsheet. Also waterfall activated.

Keep few things in mind, regularly check tier pressure, keep your fuel tanks full and dont go alone (I mean prefer to go with 2-3 bikers), take all toolkit. Last but not least Prepared with any weather you may faced heavy rain falls on ghat region.

Regards
Rushi

AkhiltheBiker

Hey,
thanks Rushi. We are 3-4 bikers. hoping that there are moderate rains and not a downpour. Hope the road is safe even in daytimes.

by the way, any simple and cheap places to stay in and around junnar?

rushijoshi

In Junnar, you can ask for any local residents who can provide you a room with basic facility which can be between 250-400 RS par day, you can also try MIDC resort near Malshej Ghat, there are two-three resorts available at Bhimashnkar, which is also a good place to stay. You can also enjoy Bhimashnakar Bird Century.

Regards
Rushi

piccolina

Are there any places to stay in Bhandardara other than the MTDC resort (I hear it's in a beautiful location but it's fully booked for most of the monsoon )? Anandvan is too expensive.

Another suggestion someone had was that we could stay at Igatpuri and drive down to Bhandardara - is that a good option?

Thanks.

snonymous

Hotel Amruteshwar
Near MTDC resort and Anandvan Resort.
At post Shendy (Bhandardara), Tal. Akole, Dist. A.Nagar
Tel:
Rajusheth Rathod: 02424 2571122
Sachin Rathod: 9420342877, 9421584380, 9421938106

The above information is from:
http://www.mouthshut.com/review/Bhan...-159835-1.html

If you do stay there Piccolina, please contribute your feedback on this hotel. Thanks.

Igatpuri to Bhandardhara via Ghoti: The distance is not too much but it all depends on the road conditions. When we went a couple of years ago, the road was terrible. This year since there has not been much rainfall and it is an election year, the road ought to be good.

piccolina

Lol, love the logic, but it works in India, I suppose!

Thanks snonymous, will contact the Amruteshwar people and will put up feedback if we go there.

snonymous

Believe me it is true. We went on a day trip last Sunday in Wada and Jawhar talukas of Thane district where earlier the roads were horrendous. Well, guess what, every small country road was recently re surfaced and painted!

Unfortunately, the numerous waterfalls that ought to have been roaring, were bone dry due to the scanty rainfall. Pity that the election year cannot fix that!