[kunalsb]

Referred to as the only hill station in MP, it’s a watering hole for hard core trekkers and those in search of solitude. It’s a picturesque town & has abundance of beautiful treks, trails & temples to offer.
Getting there We are located at Bhopal & took the following route:-
Bhopal----Hoshangabad----Piparia----Pachmarhi (total distance 192km)

Driver’s delight We travelled on NH69 upto Hoshangabad. It is recommended to start early to beat the traffic of heavy vehicles particularly near Mandideep on outskirts of Bhopal. The road is excellent except for a stretch of 6-7 kms near Mandideep that is under repair. From Hoshangabad onwards, we moved on the SH22 till Pipariya and the road is excellent. Pipariya onwards, is a ghat upto Pachmarhi & is a driver’s delight! Superb road, nicely banked numerous turns & it was a delight to throw the Ritz Zxi along them. We really exploited the ABS & the 185/70 Michelins XM1+ to the best of our abilities.

Wonderful roads all along



Pachmarhi On reaching here, visit the Bison Lodge, which is a museum (not much to see) & more importantly, one can get a Govt guide here. Rule of ‘Early bird catches the worm’ applies here as Govt guides are scarce in the peak season. Pachmarhi has numerous waterfalls & unlike many hill stations, whenever you see a waterfall you will be at the summit of the fall. There are numerous treks from the summit of the falls to their base. Bee falls, Silver falls, Angel falls are some of the treks. We visited the following places:-

Dhupgarh The highest peak in the Satpuras, located in the Satpura National Park. Must see for photography buffs as the sunrise & sunset photos are beautiful. Unfortunately we lost our photos for this phase due to a corrupt memory card.
Distant view of Dhupgarh


Silver Fall Considered to be the highest fall in MP, it's worthy of a visit. The adventurous can try the trek to the bottom.

Bee Fall A very popular water fall & the bathing pools at the top of the falls are generally crowded with tourists.

Angel Falls Recommended to us by a friend & we too highly recommend it. A fall not visited by many & not in the itinerary of many guides. We were the only ones when we visited & had the place to ourselves. The fall forms two step pools at the bottom & both deserve a dip. The descent to the base of the falls takes upto 1hr but the effort is worth the sight of the pristine falls. The cool water will definitely rejuvenate you for the climb upwards(upto 2hrs).

Enroute the falls


Angel Falls


Jata Shankar A beautiful shrine of Lord Shiva Located in a cavern. Worthy of a visit.

Hanuman Rock enroute Jata Shankar


Reechgarh A natural rock formation in the form of a hollow square.


Places to stay Accommodation is quite reasonable with tariff varying from Rs.700/- upwards. All MPTDC hotels are good & if you are opting for a private hotel, we recommend ‘Misty Meadows’.

Tips
Climate is good all throughout the year hence AC should not be a ‘must’ while booking hotels.
Club all the sites inside the Satpura National Park as an entry fee of Rs.250/- is charged every time to you visit the park.
For all the site seeing places, vehicles can go upto a certain distance only. Rest will have to be covered on foot. Gypsies are available on rent but cover a max of three sites for Rs.1500/- (quite steep). It is best to bring you own vehicle & nothing better if you happen to own a SUV.
The best thing is that you can chalk your own trek here as the entire Satpura forest is your playground. May avid trekkers go on a trek for 6-7days through the wilderness.
Employ a Govt guide. Though expensive, they are well trained & reliable as opposed to local ones.
The climate is comfortable all throughout the year & there is an onslaught of tourists during the summers. Better to plan in advance.

[hvkumar]

MP seems to have made giant strides in improving highways and other roads in the last couple of years.
How long did the drive take to and fro? What is your rating of the facilities en route - restaurants, petrol pumps, etc?
Any contact details for the hotel Misty Meadows?

[kunalsb]

1. We took 5-6hrs each way but we were driving at a leisurely pace. Also we halted at Bhimbhetka(40km from Bhopal), famous for prehistoric rock paintings.
2. There are adequate petrol pumps & decent refreshment facilities enroute. MPTDC has a restaurant at Pipariya with clean washrooms(most hard to find!)
3.Contact details of Misty Meadows:-
Tel: +91-7578-252136 Fax: +91-7578-252333
24 Hours Hotline Number : +91-9425310436
Bookings can also be done on makemytrip.com

[Fordmanchau]

Hey Kunal, don't know how I missed this thread.
But it's a good little travelogue by you with nice bits of information. Would be useful in future.
Can you tell me how will the tourist situation be in August at Pachmarhi? Will it be a offseason ? And also any pics of "misty meadows".
I know you memory card got corrupt and you lost your photos, but any slim chance that we will get to see few more photos?

[gd1418]

Enjoyed, but seems to have ended too abruptly.. Loosing pictures due to a corrupt mem card is like loosing something very precious & dear.

Could you elaborate a bit more on the Satpura Reserve?

BTW, what camera gear were you using?

[onesomeone]

Thanks for sharing the pics, did you not go to Pandava caves?

[kunalsb]

Originally Posted by Fordmanchau

Can you tell me how will the tourist situation be in August at Pachmarhi? Will it be a offseason ? And also any pics of "misty meadows".
I know you memory card got corrupt and you lost your photos, but any slim chance that we will get to see few more photos?

1. Tourists visit Pachmarhi all through the year. I would suggest against visiting (jun-sep) during the monsoons as the tracks will all be boggy & trekking would be difficult. Best time for me would be end of September as the monsoon is over & the entire landscape is lush green.
2. Sorry, I do not have photos of the hotel but please check this link. Hope it helps
Hotel The Misty Meadows Resort Pachmarhi, The Misty Meadows Resort Hotel, Hotel The Misty Meadows Resort Pachmarhi :Travelguru.com
3. Have already put all my best shots up there. No more in the kitty.

Originally Posted by gd1418

Enjoyed, but seems to have ended too abruptly.. Loosing pictures due to a corrupt mem card is like loosing something very precious & dear.

Could you elaborate a bit more on the Satpura Reserve?

BTW, what camera gear were you using?

1. The Satpura Reserve is a dense forest & has a number of treks & its best to consult a guide (the govt ones) & chalk out your plan. Depending on the type of adventure you are looking for, the guides will plan your trip. If you are lucky, you may also spot wild animals.
2. If wildlife is your area of interest, then as one goes from Pachmarhi towards Bhopal, is located the Satpura National Park (not very famous as compared to Kanha & Bandhavgarh)
3. I was using a Nikon Coolpix S550.
4. I am planning to upgrade to an entry level DSLR & am confused between Canon 1000D & Nikon D3000? Which do you suggest?

[MohsinRoadster]

Nice little travelouge there. Could have been better with more pics as i believe this is a less explored place.

Any pics from silver/bee falls?

[kunalsb]

Originally Posted by MohsinRoadster

Nice little travelouge there. Could have been better with more pics as i believe this is a less explored place.

Any pics from silver/bee falls?

Sorry, I lost many of the photos as my memory card got corrupt.

[gd1418]

Thanks for the input on Satpura. If budget is not a constraint then my suggestion would be the D5100.

Originally Posted by kunalsb

I am planning to upgrade to an entry level DSLR & am confused between Canon 1000D & Nikon D3000? Which do you suggest?

[kunalsb]

Originally Posted by gd1418

Thanks for the input on Satpura. If budget is not a constraint then my suggestion would be the D5100.

Thanks for the advice but budget is a big constraint & hence i have shortlisted D3000 & 1000D. Most probably I'll go with Nikon D3000.

[aeroabir]

go for D3100. Its an updated version of D3000. Should be around 35 grand.

[kunalsb]

Originally Posted by aeroabir

go for D3100. Its an updated version of D3000. Should be around 35 grand.

Thanks for the tip but my budget permits me to go for the D3000(Rs.22500/-).

[Safari_Beast]

Hi Kunal

Message me your email id through teambhp message system . I will mail you the software which can extract software from corrupt memory card .

Well we also went through satpura jungles to pench national park .

Originally Posted by kunalsb

Sorry, I lost many of the photos as my memory card got corrupt.

[Safari_Beast]

Sorry for hijacking your thread , i clicked snap of our car somewhere in between of satpura jungle highway .