Torna to Raigad Trek: An Enriching Journey...

Maharashtra has a very rich culture of historical forts due to which there are many people who are interested in Trekking. This blog is dedicated to all the enthusiastic trekkers.

            We are also a group of college friends who are very much interested in trekking. We have done many treks and the interesting part is that all of them were night treks but those were not very tough. As this was the last summer of our college so we decided to go for a long trek which should at least take two days. It was my wish since college days to have a trek from Swarajya's first fort 'Torna' to the capital 'Raigad'. I proposed a plan of this trek and everybody happily accepted but was a little concerned about the hot summer. Our desire to complete this trek was very strong so despite of this heat so we decided to go.

21st May 2015 to 24 May 2015 was the decided dates according to everybody's availability. After reading some blogs and collecting all the necessary information we were ready for the trek with the rough route map. 

On 21st May we decided to meet at Swargate Bus Stand Around 5 PM We went with the expectation to catch the last bus from Swargate to Velha which is at 7.15 pm but luckily we got a bus at 6 pm which is very irregular and most of the times it gets cancelled.

            Our group of ten people including 9 college friends and our 55 years Young Sir started our journey towards Raigad.

Left To Right :Samadhan, Ashish,Vipul, Rahul, Prashant, Pandit Sir, Sachin, Vishal, Ankur, Swapnil

After travelling for approximately 2 hours we reached Velha around 8 pm and had our dinner in the hotel in Velha which is the only hotel nearby. There we had our tiffin as well as Misal which was the only dish available in the hotel. Hotel's owner is a very kind person. He asked us to refill our water bottles as there is no water to drink on Torna. He gave us the very important information about the weekly Bazaar of the Velha which was on the next day i.e. Friday. 

After taking all the necessary information and refilling our water we headed towards Torna. The atmosphere was very cool and energetic. The sky was full of stars and the wind was keeping us cool all the time. Some of us were from Mumbai and after experiencing such a cool breeze they said that when will we experience such a cool and fresh air in Mumbai. But we all know such climate is not in the fate of Mumbai and so we should go to forts and enjoy the peace.

The exact trek route was difficult to find because of full dark night but we had our ‘Sure Shot’ guide Vishal who always leads the group in such difficult routes. Slowly but steadily we were going towards the top. In between we also missed the traditional trek route but came on track later. When we were off the traditional track our friend Samadhan found a bamboo tree and he detached one bamboo from the tree and after that the bamboo was his companion till the end of the trek (which we can make out from the later photographs).

  

We took almost three hours to go at the top of Torna. We reached Mengai Devi Mandir at around 12 in the night. The temple is a nice place to stay. It can accommodate almost 30-40 people comfortably.

We decided to get up early in the morning at around 5 am and make a move towards Walanjai Darwaja which will lead us to Bhatti village. There were 5 hours to sleep and everybody pretended to sleep. At 2.30 am one of us got up and discovered that everybody was awake except Sachin. After 2.30 am everybody slept quietly.

As said all of us woke up at 5 am and went out. We were amazed to see the nature’s beauty.

In this photo the left most mountain we see is the Rajgad and the mountain range which is covered by the clouds is the trek route from Torna to Rajgad. By looking at this scene it feels that the nature has wrapped the surrounding area by the shawl of clouds so that they will be safe from cold winds that are blowing.  

This was the amazing sunrise which most of us don’t take efforts to see when we are at our home.

After getting refreshed by these beautiful views of nature we headed towards the Walanjai Darwaja which is a bit tricky to find. We have to move towards Budhla Machi having an eye on the right side. As we move ahead we can see one saffron flag on the right side which was the Walanjai temple now shifted to Bhatti village. Our way to Bhatti village is from that saffron flag but the Walanjai Darwaja is around 200 m ahead from this flag. Once we find the Walanjai Darwaja we have to traverse back to that saffron flag.

As we have noted that there is dirty water near that Walanjai temple. We just saw it and ignored as we thought there might be some water which is just accumulated but after we reached Bhatti village one of us asked the local villager about that water accumulated. The villager told that there is cave inside and the space we see is the entrance in which we have to go very carefully and once we go inside there is enough space for a person to stand and go. The villager himself went inside it before some 30 years. We just listened and were stunned and naturally the respect came for the people who constructed such a cave.

Anyways as we reached near that saffron flag everybody was hungry and we halted to have a little breakfast. After the breakfast we were roughly able to see our destination i.e. Bhatti village.

It was a steep descend of Torna which is the highest peak in Pune District. The route was very slippery but with the help of small shrubs we were able to go down safely. There was one point where the route was full of hay and we have to move very carefully but Rahul, Sachin, Swapnil came down by sliding on the hay like a small child coming down through a slide in the garden.

Around 9.30 am to 10 am we reached the Bhatti village. It was a very peaceful village full of greenery and lots of water. After such a tiring descend from Torna everybody was exhausted but as soon as we saw water everybody got refreshed and had lunch under the tree which was very dense. After having the lunch all of us were having rest under the same tree.

At this point one third of the trek is complete. The next target was to reach Mohari village which is on the boundary of Pune and Raigad District (Konkan).  It was very far from Bhatti. One can go walking to Mohari with the help of local villager or if one is lucky enough to get the vehicle till Kelad Khind then he can go from Kelad Khind to Mohari.

I used the word lucky because there is no state transport bus which goes by this road and the private vehicles are also very rare. The villagers assured us that there is a chance for us to get a vehicle because of weekly bazzar of Velha which is the Taluka. In that hope we were all relaxed and really the luck was on our side. We got a truck which was heading towards Kelad. On the way to Kelad, we get spectacular view of Torna from all the sides and also we see the mountain ranges which join two great forts Torna and Rajgad.

It dropped us on the Kelad Khind at around 12.30pm which is about 15-20kms from Bhatti. The truck driver was a very kind person. We were giving him some money but he refused it saying that “You are not passengers. You are fort lovers (Gad Premi), you are our guests and it is our honour to help you”. We were surprised to hear that from people whom we never saw and probably never see again.

It was a hot summer season going on and there was no single tree on that road. And we were walking and walking in that hot sun.

This part really tested our patience, stamina and the determination. Strictly everybody was carrying enough water to prevent from dehydration. This road is very boring, tiring and energy exhausting. After continuously walking for one hour we found a place which was full of dense trees but the base was full of ants and some small creatures. If we were in city or if we were not on trek we would have not even thought about that place to wait but as we know trek teaches us many things and when there is question on survival anyone can adjust anywhere.

After resting for an hour we again came out on that dry muddy road and started walking. Some of us were motivating each other; some of us were consoling each other by saying that “thodech rahilay 2 km”. Again at one point everybody were tired and slept under one very small tree. Ankur and me were searching that Mohari village on Google maps but were unsuccessful. In search of network we went a bit ahead and found one tree which was lush green covering entire road by its shadow and we started laughing thinking that we would have walked for two minute more??? how impatient we are?

Everybody woke up and again started walking with the same energy and enthusiasm. After an hour we again took a halt under one tree and unexpectedly Vipul took out Chivda, Gul Shengdane, khajur, Laadu. After filling our stomach we were again ready for the walk on that same boring road but now the climate was getting cooler as it was around 4.30 pm. And after a walk of around an hour we were able to locate Raigad (the final destination), the Lingana (a huge pinnacle) and were experiencing the cool breeze coming from the Konkan side. We were stunned to see the Sahyadris around. The huge mountains, deep valleys every sight of it was giving us energy and motivating us to do such treks so that we can go close to nature and indirectly to life.

Finally we reached Mohari village around 6.30pm by Singapur bypass road, which was funny to know that we have tribal area called Singapur. As soon as we reached there we stopped in front of one small house for water. Again the villagers were helpful. They served us water gave us there vessel which is used to take out water from the well. They also helped Samadhan by modifying his bamboo.  One thing I observed which is very unusual in cities or in families that whenever a stranger comes into our house the women is always in the kitchen or not in front of that stranger but the scene was different here. When we reached near that house the women of that village didn’t moved at all. They were also sitting and playing a major role in answering the questions which we were asking them.

It was an evening and that too evening of the summer and also we were on the top of the Sahyadris so how can we can miss the sunset???

After enjoying the beautiful sunset the entire day’s tiredness just went off and there was a feeling of satisfaction.

We had dinner in the same house were we stopped for water. They served us two Gavathi chickens for non-vegetarians and Pithle-Bhakar for the veggies. All of us enjoyed the food and slept in front of their house at around 11 pm with a plan to wake up at 5 am and start the most exciting journey of this trek.

The next day no one was in a mood to get up early at 5 am but still we managed to wake up around 5.30 and we headed towards the Boratyachi Naal around 6 am. As we started the area was a forest type area with dense trees. We had our breakfast by eating the fresh fruits from the trees such as Jambul,Dongarchi Kali Maina (Karvande) and it was a very nice experience to have fruits direct from the trees which are fresh and cold. During our natural breakfast Ashish used to get the benefit of his height as he was the longest among all of us. He used to just extend his arms a bit and reach the branch which was out of our range. Enjoying this natural breakfast we reached in half an hour to the point from where Bortyachi Naal starts.

The route is full of rocks and we have to go down with the help of these rocks. It is a very steep descend but not that difficult but make sure that you are not using loose rock for support/grip. After going down for about half an hour there is one right turn to take which leads us to Lingana. This turn would have been tricky to find if earlier trekkers have not marked the arrows.

This was a bit risky point. If we make a mistake in keeping our foot we might go a bit down. The space to keep our foot is very less. Though we do not need rope but we have to be very careful. This was the challenging point for all of us but especially for our sir because after crossing this point sir was on the peak of his confidence and his face was giving a victorious expression. After this point sir was very enthusiastic and he leaded the way till the point from where people go to Lingana.

We have to traverse for about 500m to reach the point from where people go to Lingana. While traversing the scenic beauty of nature is incredible. You just look at the scenes and get lost in the beautiful nature.

Finally we reached the point which is in between the Lingana and the Rayling Plateau.

After such a thrilling experience we reached this point and had rest for about 15 minutes and again started descending towards Lingana Wadi. It took around 1.30 hour to reach this point from Mohari.

Again there were huge rocks and again we had to go down. The route was the waterfalls route in rainy season. Now the legs were not giving the desired response. They started shivering and it was very difficult to balance ourselves with the 10 kg sack on the back. But there was no place to stop so we kept on walking over the big never ending rocks. After two hours of continuous descend finally the point came from where we need to take left turn to Lingana Wadi. We identified the right turn by seeing the small stones arranged upon each other and were painted by the Chuna.  The forest was dense so there was no effect of sun but the legs were not supporting our desire to walk and needed a rest for at least an hour. Finally we reached Lingana Wadi at 10 am and had Bhel.

Our actual plan was to take halt at Pane Gaon but after such a long stretch no one had energy or daring to say that we will move towards Pane.

Everybody was exhausted but Vipul had tremendous energy. He was just running here and there in search of mangoes and Fanas. He was accompanied by Rahul who used to be last in the entire trek but as he saw mangoes he overcame his tiredness and went with Vipul.

Ankur was checking whether the Fanas is ripped or not. He was the expert among us for all such kind of things. Yesterday also while having chicken he was telling us which part of chicken’s body he is eating.

Mangoes were on the ground as if that is the shower of mangoes by the trees and no one to eat except Rahul and Swapnil.

This many mangoes were collected and finished in almost 10 minutes by everyone. We were having mangoes as an alternative source for water as our water was finished.  

Around 1 pm we were very thirsty and the thirst for water motivated us to go towards Pane gaon. Though some of us were not ready to make a move but still we managed to convince them and started walking under that hot sun. In the jungle it was ok to walk but once that jungle finished there was not even a single tree till that village. We had to cross Kal river which had no signs of water in that hot sun. Finally around 2.30 pm we reached in that Pane gaon and once again we experienced the love of villagers. As soon as they saw us they invited us to their home and said that “First of all get relaxed. Take water how much you need. Refresh yourself and then only go ahead.”  After the long walk in the hot sun the two words of care and love relaxed us.

We refilled our bottles and gave them the Mangoes which we brought from the Lingana Wadi as a return gift. And we had rest in the temple till the evening.

At around 5 pm we again started our journey towards the final destination. Villagers explained us the route and gave exciting information that there is a river in your route and you can take bath in that river. All of us got excited and started walking rapidly towards that river. Finally we reached that river and it was a kind of pond not exactly river but who cares…

As soon as we saw the water we went inside it and had a nice bath for almost an hour. Those who knew swimming were guiding others. When everybody was in the water sir proposed a game. The game was to hold the breath inside the water for a long time. And as the game was proposed by sir, he was the only winner. Swimming makes you hungry and all of us were hungry after staying in water for such a long time. I took out the Methi Parathas and Shengdana Chutney which was brought from home. And in no time it finished. Till that time the sun was going down and the cool breeze was making that evening a pleasant one.

When we are travelling or doing a trek we always get a very unexpected place which gives us all the happiness, peace, silence, everything…

This was the place which gave us such things. Everybody just rested on those warm rocks and enjoying the cool evening breeze which takes us close to nature, close to ourselves. We all were sitting near to each other but all alone in our own world of thoughts…

In entire trek I was the one who was forcing or pushing everybody to move ahead but at this point everybody forced me to move. I was just not able to leave this peaceful place. When finally the time came to leave that place my mind was playing the verse of famous song ‘Aaj Jaane ki Zid Na Karo’ sung by Farida Khanum 

"वक्त की कैद में जिंदगी हैं मगर चंद घड़ियाँ हैं यही जो आज़ाद हैं

इन को खोकर मेरी जान-ए-जां उम्रभर ना तरसते रहो... आज जाने की..."

But as we all know time doesn’t stop for anyone and if you are a traveller you have to move towards your destination without considering how much you liked the place where you stopped for few moments.

As this beautiful place, evening went back, we again were focused on our final destination i.e. Raigad. The local people guided us for the shortcut to Raigad via a small Adivasi Wasti. Otherwise we have to go via Warangi, Chatri Nizampur and then finally to Raigad.

There was a proper road to go which was again very boring because it was a type of ghat and we know that in ghats there are lot of turns and twists. But we had no other option other than going by road because it was dark night. After continuously walking for 2 hours everybody was exhausted and took an undeclared break. We were sitting on the road with no light and suddenly we were able to hear some vehicle coming and saw the focus of its headlight. Everybody got excited and stood up to stop that vehicle. It was a Mahindra pick-up taking up some grains of a local shopkeeper. We were successful to stop him and he was granted us permission to get inside it. Once again we got an experience that if your determination is strong you will get some unexpected help to complete your aim.

That Pick-Up dropped us at the base of Raigad from where there are proper steps to go up. He dropped us around 10 pm. We rested there for almost half an hour and gave a call to our home (as it was the only place after Mohari where everybody got there network) that we have almost successfully completed the trek and will come home tomorrow.

After that again we started climbing up Raigad with the high determination but with very low energy. This was the proper test for patience and determination after walking continuously for entire day. Vipul and Swapnil were leading the way. Ashish, Sir, Ankur, Vishal and I were in the middle and Sachin, Rahul and Samadhan were the last. No one had water to drink but luckily we found water in the hut were we get Sharbat in the day. We refilled all the bottles and happily moved ahead. At around 12.30 am we reached at Maha Darwaja. As we reached at Maha Darwaja everybody just fall down on the steps in front of that Darwaja and the view of the sky from the Maha Darwaja was ultimate. Huge Walls of that Darwaja were surrounding us and were creating more darkness and up in the sky there were beautiful stars twinkling. The shadow of one side of Darwaja was getting on the other side and it was looking very scary in that dark night.

Finally we went to a small hut which was a shop in day time. Some of us were hungry and some of us just needed sleep. So we had the remaining of whatever we brought from home and found our places in that small hut and went to a nice deep sleep.

We got up at around 6 am in the morning and moved ahead to see the Capital of Maratha Kingdom and to give a Manacha Mujara to the Maratha Emperor ‘Shivaji Maharaj’.

We first saw the huge Bazarpeth which gives an idea about the golden period of Swarajya.

Then moved to the Jagdishwar temple and then to the Samadhi of our Shivaji Maharaj.

After giving Manacha Mujra to our Maharaj and his loyal Mawales, the time came to execute another very interesting plan to make food for ourselves. Sachin and Samadhan just gathered the necessary stones and started working to make the Chul. We had two options, one was rice and the other was Maggi (which was luckily not banned till that time). So everybody went with Maggi.

And finally the delicious dish was ready to eat…

Everybody was satisfied and relaxed after having two-two plates of Maggi. No one was in mood to leave that place but there was one pending work i.e. to view our entire journey from Torna to Raigad in one stretch, To see that we all came to the famous Tak-Mak Tok  and just looked back to see whether we can locate Lingana and Torna. It was a cloudy weather so we were only able to locate Lingana and unfortunately not Torna.

Finally we came to the place from where the Shivaji Maharaj used to control the entire Maratha Empire i.e. Raj Darbar.

Finally we owed our respect to this great man. Stored all the things of this great king and the Raigad in eyes, heart and made a move towards ropeway which will send you to the Pachad (Base) in less than ten minutes. From there we got a vehicle for Mahad ST Depot which costs around 30-50 Rs per seat. Ankur, Samadhan, Ashish and I moved to Mumbai and the remaining six went to Pune. 

A journey from Torna to Raigad gave some nice experiences, brought closer to each other, closer to nature, Taught how to adjust in difficult situations, met some really caring but unknown people, got a chance to give a thought about the time of Shivaji Maharaj and realized the greatness of him and his Mawales…

And this is how the Torna to Raigad: An Enriching Journey comes to an end…

P.S.: Brief Route of this Trek

1. Swargate to Velha (60-70 km) by bus takes approximately 2 hours (Buses are not very frequent).
2. Velha to Torna takes about 2 to 2.5 hours to reach on top.
3. Torna (Walanjai Darwaja) to Bhatti Village takes about 1 to 1.5 hours.
4. Bhatti to Kelad Khind is about 15-20 km by vehicle (Very less frequency of vehicles except on Friday and Monday due to weekly bazaar of Velha)
5. Kelad Khind to Mohari (10-12 km) dry muddy road.
6. Mohari to Paane Gaon via Bortyachi Naal and Lingana Fort which takes about 4-5 hours.
7. Paane Gaon to Base of Raigad is about 10-15 km.
8. Pachad to Mahad is about 30 km.
9. Mahad to Mumbai or Pune is around 100-120 km (Frequency of buses is very high).