The Adventures of Trekking on Vikatgad Fort, Matheran

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The Adventures Of Trekking On Vikatgad Fort,
Matheran
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The Adventures Of Trekking On Vikatgad Fort,
Matheran

• There is something about these mountains that I
  am addicted to. Every step I take, every pain I
  encounter, gives me sheer pleasure of doing it
  more. The drug of climbing is addictive. It is
  not just the views, but the nature that calls me,
  every time when my soul gets polluted of city
  lights. I thank the god of nature to give me a
  chance to encounter such beauty.
• Every time I think about Vikatgad, I cherish the
  adventure and moments I spent there. This trek is
  unique for its hiking trail. It is steep enough
  to make one exhausted, but gentle enough for the
  first timers to conquer it.

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The Adventures Of Trekking On Vikatgad Fort,
Matheran

• It was one of the monsoon days when I decided to
  go for this trek with my best friend Natesh.
  Vikatgad comes in the Matheran range of
  mountains. It is also called Peb Fort. We got
  down at Neral station early morning to have our
  chronicles with Chai. We asked the Chai wala
  about the trek. It is the best way to know
  everything about the area from a local.
• We walked the 3 Kms to its base village,
  Fanaswadi through the lone houses shedding fired
  smoke. Its vast fields and tall grasses covered
  the beautiful flowers. The villagers were doing
  their daily chores. As we enter the base village,
  the way straight goes to the veranda of a huge
  temple surrounded by the red roofed huts.

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The Adventures Of Trekking On Vikatgad Fort,
Matheran

• The curious staring eyes of the villagers make
  you feel like an alien. But you ask them
  anything, and they are ready to help you.
• We started our trek from the backside of the
  temple, entering a murky green jungle. Our ears
  were soon pleased to hear the roaring rhythm of a
  waterfall. It was a little dangerous as we walked
  on the slippery path of green algae till the
  waterfall.
• When the fierce force of water dropped on the top
  of my skull, all my thoughts vanish. And suddenly
  I felt so light and happy. We further exited the
  jungle and cross the small stream of the river,
  entering vast open meadows.

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The Adventures Of Trekking On Vikatgad Fort,
Matheran

• The green empty patches surrounded by mountains
  are so picturesque that you just cant stop
  yourself from getting clicked. The gradual
  incline walk is the most pleasant part of the
  trek. And then the real adventure starts!
• We start hiking the steep terrain of the
  mountain. No, its not that hard, tiring or
  scary. A climb through the path surrounded by
  green trees, its fallen dried leaves, few drops
  falling through its edges, the scent of the wet
  mud and the vast ground landscape on the back
  side.

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The Adventures Of Trekking On Vikatgad Fort,
Matheran

• All this is enough to forget the pain and make
  you want to climb for more. As we reached to a
  top, exiting narrow paths, Jaw dropping views
  awaited us. I couldnt believe my eyes! Not that
  I havent seen it before, but it felt so like the
  first time.
• The vast blanket of forest spreads like an ocean.
  There were no open fields for farming, only the
  dense, dark green jungle as far as my eyes could
  reach. The cotton white fog floated on it like a
  sailing ship. It virally spread covering half of
  the landscape.

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The Adventures Of Trekking On Vikatgad Fort,
Matheran

• Its greenery dotted with silver pond and covered
  with dancing fog made a sight to behold. I
  couldnt hold my excitement and burst on my
  friend telling him just look at this view man!
  Wow! Its so beautiful! Damn! I cant believe
  this! And he acknowledges it with a big smile.
• Next, was the most daring part of the trek. A 10
  foot rock exposed from the both sides was
  supposed to be climbed to go further. With utter
  care, and holding the right patches, I pulled
  myself up. It took 4 men to push my friend up.

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The Adventures Of Trekking On Vikatgad Fort,
Matheran

• It took 4 men to push my friend up. As soon as
  you climb up, you are greeted with a cave temple
  on the left side. Obviously left, because there
  is only a deep, deadly valley to the right! The
  small temple in the cave makes you wonder whether
  pilgrims would like to climb so much for their
  faith in God? The water dripping from the rooftop
  of the cave makes the entrance edge slippery.
• We were further greeted with a fort wall. We
  climbed the rustic stairs to reach the top. It
  shacked so much, felt like a mini earthquake.
  After this there is a section which needs to be
  climbed to go up. There are 2 ways.

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The Adventures Of Trekking On Vikatgad Fort,
Matheran

• You either go left climbing the fully exposed and
  dangerous natural rocks or go straight entering
  room like structure from where you can take left
  to go up. Take the straight path which is much
  safer. By this time I realized that we had
  already entered Vikatgad fort.
• We climbed the slippery mud and gravel to reach
  the top, there was again a temple. There was only
  the temple and nothing else. 360 degree panoramic
  views surrounded us. Rain started pouring
  vigorously and thats when the shelter of the
  temple came to our rescue.

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The Adventures Of Trekking On Vikatgad Fort,
Matheran

• While I am writing my experience sitting with all
  the comforts, it is thrilling to imagine that I
  was standing on a lonely mountain. Devoid of
  anything or anyone, bombarded with clouds and
  rains.
• We then started to descend from the other side of
  the peak, which connected to the main hill
  station of Matheran. Due to the rains and fog,
  the view was almost blocked. We could barely see
  what was ahead of us. And as we descended from
  the temple amidst the fog, it felt as if we were
  entering heaven.

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The Adventures Of Trekking On Vikatgad Fort,
Matheran

• Just few minutes after we started descending, we
  encountered a small ashram. It was run by a Baba
  that lived there all alone. His calm and composed
  figure showed his years of experience. He made
  lovely tea for both of us.
• He told us lots of stories. One thing that
  fascinated me is that he made a rope way to
  Matheran hill station so that he could bring
  supplies at his ashram.

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The Adventures Of Trekking On Vikatgad Fort,
Matheran

• We then descended, traversing through the
  mountain. You could see the Vikatgad fort,
  clearly left behind. We then reached the railway
  tracks of Matheran. It is always fun to walk on
  them.
• It connects to the road from where you get jeeps
  taking you till Neral station. They charge 70
  bucks per person. We had some delicious food
  before leaving from Neral station.

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