For all those who feel that Lonavala is passé then go that extra mile to Lohagad (Iron fort) just about 20kms from Lonavala. After crossing Lonavala, go towards Walvan and then ask for directions (no signage) to Nangargaon, Bhangarwadi and Lohgadwadi in that order. Lohagadwadi is at the base of the hill atop which is Lohagad.

Here you can park your vehicle and climb up a short distance of around 500 steps.

There are a couple of dhabas here too where you can get bottled drinking water, colas and packaged munchies or your hot refreshing cuppa chai.

It is at an elevation of 3,450 feet (1,052 m) and worth the climb for the panoramic views that one gets not only from the top but also from various points on the way.

Lohagad has a long history with several dynasties occupying it at different periods of time: Satavahanas, Chalukyas, Rashtrakutas, Yadavas, Bahamanis, Nizamshahis, Mughals and Marathas. Shivaji captured it in 1648 CE, but he was forced to surrender it to the Mughals in 1665 CE by the Treaty of Purandar. Shivaji recaptured the fort in 1670 CE and used it for keeping his treasury.

Historical records show that in the later Peshwa period, Nana Phadnavis (1742-1800 AD) built several structures in the fort such as a big tank and a step-well.

Lohagad is a fairly large fort. This is one of the better preserved forts in the region.

Many of its distinctive medieval defence features can be seen during the serpentine winding ascent to the top.

On top of the fort, there is a Mahadev temple adjacent to which is a tank with steps descending to the water.

There is also a grave of a Muslim Pir.

On the western side, there is a long and narrow wall-like fortified spur called Vinchukata (Marathi for Scorpion’s tail) because of its shape. It was used to keep a watch on enemies and activities in the nearby region.

From Mumbai, you can take a train to Lonavla. Malavli is the next station from Lonavla in the direction toward Pune. There are a number of local trains operating between Lonavla and Pune; you can take any of them. From Pune, you can take any of these locals.

From Malawli railway station, the fort is just 9 km away, and people walk all the way till the fort. Bhaja Caves is on the way to Lohagad if a small diversion is taken. This walk is a particular favorite of trekkers, especially in the monsoon. It is a simple and easy trek and the distance from Malawli station to Bhaje gaav takes about 20 min. Distance between Malavli and Lohagadwadi can be covered in around 2-2.5 hrs

We were on a road trip from Mumbai to Bengaluru and had halted for a short while at Hubbali . We left early the following morning via Gadag, but had to pause on our journey again, thanks to two beautiful temples . The first one, Amruteshwar, was 35kms from Hubbali in Annegiri.

The Amruteshwara Temple was built in the Dharwad District in 1050 CE with Dravida articulation, and was the first temple made of soapstone.

Built in the Kalyani Chalukyas style, the temple has a roof supported by 76 pillars and carvings of mythological figures on its walls. Next was the Someshwar temple in Lakshmeshwar which is another hour’s drive from Annigeri.

The temple complex with three main entrances and surrounded by high walls looks like a fort.

It is a splendid specimen of Chalukya architecture.

In middle of the Temple complex, there is a Someshwara temple, surrounded by many small temples mainly dedicated to Shiva built with granite and some halls in the complex meant for devotees to rest

The Nandi and Shiva Parvati idols in the temple are exquisitely sculpted. These idols are referred to as Saurashtra Someshwara because these idols were brought by a Shiva devotee from Saurashtra and installed at Lakshmeshwara. There were some more temples that needed to be visited but due paucity of time we moved on to the glorious NH4 onward to Bengaluru.

In quite a few places along the highway there was corn spread out to dry. We finally reached the outskirts of Bengaluru at six in the evening but it took us another hour and a half to crawl through the congested streets before reaching Malleshwaram, a beautiful laid back area in Bengaluru. Being on the road had its moments and we discovered quite a bit of life out there .

We drove down to Bengaluru in late October 2010 and no this is not about a boring drive down the superb NH4, part of the Golden Quadrilateral. Am aware that everyone and his dog have been there and done that. Hence i decided to do this drive slightly differently. Since the rains were around till quite late this time, the greenery on both sides of the highway was soothing. Added to that was the burst of colour in the median.

Just before reaching Satara there was this beautiful sight.

No idea which flower this is but it did brighten up a cloudy day! Had heard about a lot of unexplored temples near Hubbali so decided to stop over at Hubbali before continuing ahead. We had a sumptuous breakfast and then walked around a bit and captured some interesting sights.

Our first halt was the Durga Mata Mandir

There are 2 idols in the temple – Dhammamma ion the left and Durga Mata on the right

We stopped at Mishra Pedha – The most famous and trusted sweetmeat shop in Hubbali

Our next temple was the Shiva Krishna Mandir in Hubbali

We stopped for a while to admire the skyline, only to resume on our road trip again

Our journey continues as we will soon join you in our next photofeature on two ancient temples enroute to Bengaloru

Ganpati Bappa Morya’ is what you will hear in Mumbai, during the festival period of Ganesh Chaturthi which lasts upto a period of 12days. Ganpati is the most loved God and is invoked prior to the beginning of any task for his blessings.

This festival today is celebrated across all castes and classes. Till 1892, this was a private celebration in peoples’ homes but ever since Lokmanya Tilak recognized the wide appeal of the deity Ganesh as “the God for everybody”, he popularized Ganesh Chaturthi as a national festival in order to bridge the gap between various communities and to build a new grassroots unity between them to generate nationalistic fervor among people in Maharashtra against the British colonial rule.

Two to three months prior to Ganesh Chaturthi, artistic clay models of Lord Ganesha are made for sale by skilled artisans.

They are beautifully decorated and depict Lord Ganesh in various poses. The size of these statues may vary from 3/4th of an inch to over 25 feet.

Ganesh Chaturthi starts with the installation of these Ganesh statues in colorfully decorated homes and specially erected temporary structures mandapas (pandals) in every locality. The pandals are erected by the people of a specific society or locality or group by collecting monetary contributions from the devotees.

For 10 days, from Bhadrapad Shudh Chaturthi to the Ananta Chaturdashi, Ganesha is worshipped. On the 11th day, the statue is taken through the streets in a procession accompanied with dancing, singing, and fanfare to be immersed. At individual homes the Visarjan is also done on 3rd, 5th or 7th day as per the family tradition

Today, the Ganesh Festival is not only a popular festival, it has become a very critical and important economic activity for Maharashtra. Many artists, industries, and businesses survive on this mega-event.

I wanted to begin the new year by indulging in my passions of travel and photography and did just last month. We drove down to Karde from Mumbai for a rejuvenating beginning to the new year and spent a couple of days gorging on sea food and gorgeous sunrises and sunsets!
We set out from home at 0630hrs on the first day of 2010 and got on to NH17. Had an idli dosa breakfast at Kamaths in Mahad and moved on to Khed from where we take the turn for Dapoli and onwards to Karde where we had booked a room in Hotel Kinara.
We finally reached the hotel at 1230hrs after covering a distance of 290kms. Our lunch order was confirmed on the phone by the hotel a day earlier. This is the practice followed by all the hotels in the area hence you cannot just walk in and expect to be served. The meal order has to be placed at least a couple of hours in advance.
The fish thali and the veg thali were delicious. We got back to the room and rested awhile before proceeding to Harnai beach to witness the fish auction.

Harnai beach is around 8kms away and we reached there via a treacherous path by car. The boats had come in and the auction was on in full swing.
What struck us was the way the fish was transported from the boats to the shore. The boats cannot come in right up to the shore due to shallow waters and hence bullock carts take sacks of ice to the boats, offload the fish onto the ice in plastic crates and cart it ashore!

Spent nearly an hour there, watching and clicking all the activity, after which we returned back to our Hotel to watch the sun go down that created a magical ambiance with paragliding activity on the beach.
Had an awesome dinner of, yes, fish! Retired early for the day as had to get up early to go for the ‘dolphin viewing’ boat ride at dawn.
The motor boat puttered in on time, and we, along with 8 other tourists, were helped aboard by the crew. And on we went in search of the elusive dolphins.
Managed to spot a few in the half hour ride that cost us only Rs.100/- per head.
The sunrise witnessed from the ocean was awesome!
Back to the hotel, had ‘kanda pohey’ for breakfast and got ready to visit the ‘Kadyavarcha Ganapati’ which is around 20kms from the hotel at Anjarle.

This idol is believed to have come ashore Anjarle from the sea and was installed on the cliff using wooden pillars in around 1150. Later it was renovated during 1768 to 1780. The Ganesh idol’s trunk is curved towards the right, which is very rare. Kadyavarcha Ganapati is also considered as the live deity (a jagrut daiwat) who responds to distress calls of common people (nawsala pavnara Ganapati).The dome of this temple has the ‘Ashtavinayak Ganeshas’ embedded on it.
We sat there awhile and returned back to the hotel for yet another excellent meal of fishfried and curried and ‘vaalaach beerd’.We spent the evening walking along the beach, watching a glorious sunset.
For dinner that night had an unusual prawn biryani. It was a Malwani flavoured biryani and absolutely yummy! And of course every meal was accompanied by delicious solkadi.
We got up early on the final morning at Karde as we wanted to take in as much as possible of the ambiance of a lovely morning on the beach.

We went for a long walk on the beach and around 0930hrs set out on the return journey to Mumbai. But had a stop scheduled on the way. There was this beautiful old temple at Murud Harnai which is just about 2kms from Karde.

Murud is also the hometown of our great freedom fighter Bharat Ratna Maharshi Dhondu Karve whose bust is erected opposite the Durga Devi temple.This Durga Devi temple was built almost 300yrs back and the pujari affirmed that his was the 6th generation looking after the temple. The carved wooden pillars in the temple are beautiful.There is a large bell at the entrance of the temple. The temple poojary told us that it was brought by Chimaji Appa after winning over the Vasai fort, from one of the churches there.

We finally had our breakfast at Dapoli and returned to Mumbai via Mandangad covering a distance of 249kms. The roads were largely good and the traffic minimal. We reached Mumbai at 1630hrs after a magical holiday at Karde.

Getting there
By Train

Mumbai – Karde
• Mumbai – Khed Station (via Konkan Railway)
• Khed Station – Dapoli (29 km) (via private transport – jeeps, etc. / state transport – ST buses)
Dapoli – Karde (20kms) (via private transport – jeeps, etc. / state transport – ST buses)
By Road
Mumbai – Karde
290kms Route Mumbai – Panvel – Mahad –Khed – Dapoli – Karde (Mumbai –Khed NH17)
250kms Route Mumbai – Panvel – Mangaon – Mandangad – Dapoli – Karde (Mumbai – Mangaon NH17)

Ellora represents one of the largest rock-hewn monastic-temple complexes in the entire world, that too of three different religions – Buddhism, Brahmanism and Jainism. These caves are hewn out of the volcanic basaltic formation of Maharashtra, known as ‘Deccan Trap’, the term trap being of Scandinavian origin representing the step like formation of the volcanic deposits. The rock formation, on weathering has given rise to the appearance of terraces with flat summits. One can also have a glimpse of the channels (near Cave 32) through which the volcanic lava once flowed. These channels, due to overheating, have a characteristic brownish red colour. The basaltic rock is ideal for rock hewing, as it is soft during the initial excavation and hardens on exposure to environment. This induced the religious followers of various creeds to establish their settlements in them. The Ellora caves are datable from circa 6th – 7th century A.D. to 11th – 12th century A.D.

Pic : Deepak A

There are nearly 100 caves of which 34 caves are popular and visited by many tourists. Caves 1 to 12 are Buddhist; Caves 13 to 29 are Brahmanical and Caves 30 to 34 are Jaina. Thus, we have the greatest religious conglomeration at a single place, signifying the religious tolerance and solidarity of different faiths. The caves are excavated in the scarp of a large plateau, running in a north-south direction for nearly 2 km, the scarp being in the form of a semi-circle, the Buddhist group at the right arc on the south, while the Jaina group at the left arc on the north and the Brahmanical group at the centre.

Pic : Deepak A

The parking lot at Ellora is right in front of the largest single monolithic excavation in the world, the great Kailasa (Cave 16). The Great Kailasa is attributed to Krishna I (c. 757-83 A.D.), the successor and uncle of Dantidurga. A copper plate grant from Baroda of the period of Karka II (c. 812-13 A.D.) speaks about the greatness of this edifice.

A tourist can plan the visit of these caves according to the time available and depending upon the interest in ancient art. If a visitor has at his disposal three to four hours, then Cave nos. 10 (Visvakarma Cave), 16 (Kailasa), 21 (Ramesvara) and 32 & 34 (Jaina group of caves) should not be missed and one can have a glimpse of the representative art of Buddhism, Brahmanism and Jainism.

Pic : Deepak A

If a visitor has an entire day at his disposal, then Cave nos. 2, 5, 10 & 12 of the Buddhist group; Cave nos. 14, 15, 16, 21 & 29 of the Brahmanical group and Caves 32 to 34 of the Jaina group should be visited. All this valuable information about the caves has been gleaned from the Archaeological Survey of India’s website We had barely a couple of hours, hence just reveled in the beauty of Cave 16 and visited Caves 10 & 12.

The sunset from Ellora is also worth a view and we spent some time gazing at the beautiful sight. Some important information about Ellora Caves Open from sunrise to sunset Closed on Tuesday Entrance Fee: Citizens of India and visitors of SAARC (Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan, Sri Lanka, Pakistan, Maldives and Afghanistan) and BIMSTEC Countries (Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan, Sri Lanka, Thailand and Myanmar) – Rs. 10 per head. Others: US $ 5 or Indian Rs. 250/- per head (children up to 15 years free)

Pic : Deepak A

Ajantha caves, famous for its murals, are the finest surviving examples of Indian art, particularly painting. They were excavated (circa. 2nd century B.C. to 6th century A.D.) in the shape of a horseshoe, overlooking a narrow stream known as Waghora and each cave was connected to the stream by a flight of steps, which are now almost obliterated. The caves attained the name from a nearby village named Ajanta. Apparently, these caves were discovered by an Army Officer in the Madras Regiment of the British Army in 1819 during one of his hunting expeditions.

Pic : Deepak A

Totally, 30 excavations were hewn out of rock including an unfinished one. The earliest excavations belong to the Hinayana phase of Buddhism. These caves are datable to the pre-Christian era, the earliest among them being Cave 10 dating from the second century B.C.The object of worship is a stupa and these caves exhibit the imitation of wooden construction to the extent that the rafters and beams are also sculpted even though they are non-functional.

Strawberries cherries and an angel’s kiss in spring …

That is exactly what Mahabaleshwar is all about in the Indian summer! A place to escape the torrid heat , a place to romance strawberries and mulberries, a place to cool off in the thunderous hailstorms that shower the hot tin roofs and plunge the temperatures for lovers to revel in!

Pic : Deepak

Mahabaleshwar has something for all – young and old, trekker and stroller, shopper and foodie or maybe someone who just loves to laze around. You will find a medley of people – families, backpackers, moony honeymooners, all doing their own thing and soaking in the atmosphere .

We spent a lazy afternoon in the market. Rows of strawberries, mulberries and chick peas beckoned us as we set out to do a recce of the restaurants in the area. There were quite a few vegetarian restaurants and a couple of restaurants serving non-vegetarian fare. We settled for a moghlai lunch. It was okay, nothing to write about, just about average.

Pic : Deepak

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