The other day (23rd Nov) a few friends (Sagar and Nagraj) and I went to trek to Kalavantin Durg. I had attempted this trek in the monsoons and had to return mid-way (actually we had managed 3/4th of the trip) due to heavy rains and low visibility. And it was a good thing that we did return back then, because the last leg was dangerous to attempt in low visibility.
The trek starts of near Shedung village which is at the point where the Kalamboli-Mumbai bypass road meets the Mumbai-Pune highway. We parked our bikes at the base of the mountains and started to climb. The journey is divided into 3 phases. The first phase is a steady ascent over bad roads and jungle trails. Difficulty level is easy and almost everybody should be able to do the first phase. Below are few pics of the first phase of the trek.
The first phase ends at Prabalmachi after about 1 hours of steady walking. Prabalmachi is a flat ground and very scenic. Prabalmachi is the base for two mountain treks, Kalavantin Durg and Prabalgad. There is a very small village at Prabalmachi and a small restaurant of sorts where you can get authentic maharastrian food. You need to order for you food before you go for the Kalavantin durg trek or Prabalgad trek as they take time to prepare the food. Below is the picture that we took of us at Prabalmachi with the view of Kalavantin Durg at the background.
Phase 2 begins from Prabalmachi to the beginning of the stairways to Kalavantin durg top. There is no actual path for the 2nd phase of the trek and you can make your own road here. There are a few trails that one can follow, but the entire route is a 45 degree climb over boulders and trees. There is no flat road and you need to just keep on climbing using your legs and hands. The difficulty level of this is hard and one needs to be fit and be of strong heart to manage this. Below are a few pics of my friend Nagraj trying to navigate this path.
Phase 2 ends after you have climbed up to a small ledge between Prabalgad and Kalavantin Durg. From here the stairs to the top of Kalavantin durg starts. Even though they are called stairs, most of the time they are just holes dug into the mountain surface and one needs to be very sure-footed to be able to navigate them. The climb is risky and a miss footing would lead to a straight drop to one’s doom. This the most difficult part of the trek and not recommended for anyone with a fear of heights or of weak heart. If one looks back, they will definitely be scared, as the only thing one can see is a straight drop down. The stairs are more like huge rocks and you have to actually climb them using all your limbs. Below are few pics of our stair climbing adventure
Reaching the top is a great feeling. As you look down, you would be amazed with the sheer climb that you have mustered and the view is breathtaking. We spent about 30 mins on the top, clicking pics, soaking in the view and eating our lunch. We started out climb down at 11:45 and realized that the climb down is tougher than the climb up. We reached the base at around 2:30 and were thoroughly exhausted, but the entire trip was worth it. Below are pics of the view from top.
The below pic is the pic of Kalavantin Durg (depicting the final phase of the climb) taken from Prabalgad. (Note – this pic has not been taken by me)
Now our next stop is Prabalgad.
I, Nilesh Bhutambara, a rural entrepreneur from Prabalgad Adivasi village want to welcome you all to the most beautiful heavenly abode on earth. With all the wonderful services (food, accommodation, guide etc.) provided by “Prabalgad Hotel and Room Service”, you ought to have a peaceful and satisfied stay at Machi Prabal village. The provided service is first of its kind in the village pertaining to the needs of a number of travellers who have visited and had some difficulty in finding food and overnight stay. We are happy to inform you that, Bhutambara family have started providing all the facilities and services for healthy experience of tourists.
About the place: Machi Prabal is an ancient and beautiful village situated half-way up a mountain (a ledge or “Machi” in Marathi) at the base of “Prabalgad” fort. With excellent scenic beauty and serene environment, you will witness eternal bliss in your visit to the place. It is housed perfectly in between the two magnificent ancient forts namely “Prabalgad” and “Kalavantin” famous for its historical secrets. Notably, Kalavantin has been named in “33 Most Beautiful Abandoned Places in the World” (http://www.buzzfeed.com/…/the-33-most-beautiful…) which has a peculiar design of steps creating a heaven like experience while climbing. This place has been especially attracting a number of tourists, trekkers, historical enthusiasts and also been a perfect weekend for innumerable families housing in and around Mumbai, Pune and Thane. To fully explore this place, you will need at least two days.
For more details and bookings, Kindly visit: http://tour.prabalgad.com/
Thanks and Regards.
Nilesh Bhutambara
Prabal-Machi Village
Website:www.tour.prabalgad.com
Mob No: +91 8056 186321
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