Hi Good day Ppl !
I think I should change my goal from 3forts of maharashtra to 3highest peaks of maharashtra :P
On 19th June 2011 trekked to the another highest peak in Maharashtra- Ajoba parvat 4500ft
So on Sunday 6th Nov 2011, trekked to the Kalsubai peak with Kalpvihar group. The highest peak 5400ft of the Sahyadris in Akole Taluka, of Ahmednagar district of Maharashtra.
Story of Kalsubai:
Kalsubai is said to take its name from a Koli girl named Kalsu.' Kalsu, according to the story, was fond of wandering in the forest. One day she came to Indor at the foot of the hill now called Kalsubai, and took service with a Koli family on condition that she should not be asked to clean pots or to sweep. Matters went smoothly till, one day, one of the family ordered Kalsu to clean some pots and clear away some Utter. She did as she was bid, bat, immediately after, climbed the hill and stayed on its top till her death. Where she cleaned the pots is known as Thale Mel, and where she cleared away the litter as Kaldara.
Read more interesting information here
We started by bus on 5th Nov 2011 at 12am. Reached the base village at around 4:30am. Tried to continue sleeping till 6am in the bus.
We started by bus on 5th Nov 2011 at 12am. Reached the base village at around 4:30am. Tried to continue sleeping till 6am in the bus.
Some restless souls like me who couldnt 'try' to sleep anymore, got out, went for a morning walk, made a campfire of eucalyptus branches, discerned patterns of the sky full of stars,...
Once everyone was up, ready after breakfast we started the trek. Vaishali Desai, the trek ograniser here took a roll call, introductions, do-donts. We started the hike @7am.
I have done River Rafting with the Kalpvihar group on 21st July 2010.
We were 35 of us. We also were joined by 2special trekkers. One was partially blind & the other without eyesight, both of them completed the trek in full spirits.
Here comes the sun, tu ru ru...
The audha(stream),well,our natural toilets, farms,...
The Kalsubai peak ! We have to reach there before sun becomes unbearable.
The everyday scene at the well. On the entire route there is no potable water or food provisions, so please carry 2-3liters of water per person & food.A bottle with glucose or electrol will do you good.
We crossed the village to reach the base of the hill.
The base of the hill & start of the trek is from here-Chote kalsubai mandir. The walk until now was warm-up ppl ! :P :D
Again enticed by the deepstambh ! This is not intricately carved, but unique in its own way.
So lets start!
The trek is medium level tough. It being a popular trekking spot, there are such steps/tracks built in the mountain, where there are steep rocky patches which will require rock climbing iron ladders have been built.
One of our special trekkers. Bless Ashok who helped him all the way !
The way up the rocky face of the mountain. The iron ladders I have tried to highlight, since they were not visible to our eyes too, forget in the pictures.
The first ladder. As you can see, its not sturdy + patched up with supports. So at a time few ppl can climb it. Also the same route is used to climb down. So you may need to wait if people are descending at the same time.
There are totally 4ladders at various steep rocky places. The trek groups have to be sensible & responsible. They have to take turns keeping a check that the ladders can handle the load of people & there is no rushing-pushing going on.
Beautiful flowers all around in a weather turning chilly day by day !
We had 2more trek groups on the climb up. There was 1group from Pune which will be scaling the Mount Everest sometime soon. It consisted of 7yr olds to 80+yr old people. The enthusiasm of this group was great & motivating.
This aaji was consistent in her walking & taking breaks. They kept telling each other-walk in rhythm, keep the rhythm.
Before the final ladder there is a plateau with a well on it & a small tapari selling chai, nimbu pani,snacks. The well water was chilled,sweet, refreshing. In summers this water is not potable. We filled up our bottles,rested for 15mins, kept the bags with Vaishali & started the walk towards final ladder.
The final ladder. It was past 12 & the crowd was getting bigger. We just pushed ourselves to walk the small distance & wait at the base for our turn.
Till our turn of 10-15ppl at a time came, we sat & watched the huge spread of terrain around.
It looked like God was in a mood to color, so took out all shades of green,yellow & played around :)
We MADE IT :) This small plateau where the temple is built can hold upto 100 people max, else it gets crowded & difficult to move around.
There was a signature campaign going on to wish luck to the trekkers to Everest :)
The Everest group with its senior citizens taking a breather on reaching top. Good work everyone !
The Kalsubai idol finally. Its a small temple with a low ceiling, can take in 5people max.
The temple. You have to bend down to enter, do pradikshina, get out.
In olden days when there were no ladders, this thick metal rope used to be used to go down & pull people up all the way. People on top used to pull up the rope helping people climbing up. We were encouraged to pull this now empty but quite heavy chain. I tried & could pull up 3-4rounds of the chain. This guy and many others pulled up the entire chain !
Waiting & We keep on waiting ! Waiting for the next and last set of people for noon to come up, so we could climb down.
The Sahyadris range ! There are 3forts on the peaks you see here. Alang,Madan and Kulang. Also Ratangad can be seen from here. The peak point served as a tower to watch the enemies during the Maratha rule.
The Bhandardara dam is very near to Kalsubai. What you see here are the backwaters of the dam.
Perfect for rock rapelling, isnt it ? ;)
On the way back through the village found this interesting Vithal,Rukhmai temple(my favourite) with the courtyard roof made from creepers.
Carry 2-3liters of water & food. Keep sipping on water at intervals to avoid dehydration. Wear proper clothing, caps, shoes. Dont hurry while climbing/descending the ladders. Avoid getting into arguments with people climbing the ladders. Keep walking consistently. There are various places you can take breaks & view the landscape.
Hope this post inspired the trekker/walker in you :) & gets you in the mood to go for a trek soon ! Its winter time coming on & a great time to trek !
Check some more of the adventure activities we have done. You can do one of them too :
Trek: Ajoba Mountain, Valmiki ashram-samadhi, luv-kush cave
Travel: Raigad Fort Trek 2009
Trek:Karnala Fort
Trek-River rafting at Kolad
Travel- Kanheri caves !
Trek: Tungareshwar-2010
Sailing at Gateway of India!
Tour De Web18-2010
Let us know your comments.
Bye. Take care.
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