[Jignesh]

My Company has an Ecology Club that organizes various nature trips periodically. I used to get invites for these events regularly but I somehow missed them in past.

This time around the plan was for Saturday morning (27th July 2013) at Shilonda Trail at Sanjay Gandhi National Park, Borivali, Mumbai. As seats were limited, I ensured to register myself on time & my nomination was confirmed.

I need not mention anything about Sanjay gandhi National Park (SGNP), but two facts deserves a attention:
1. This is the only National Park in City limits in the World.
2. The total area covered by SGNP is 103 Sq. Kms.

More information about the Park, the Flora, the Fauna, etc is availlable here:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SGNP
http://sgnpmumbai.com/

One more thing, one can also hire bicycle (inspiration - ADC) at SGNP & explore the various place in the park.

Now, coming to Shilonda Trail:
Shilonda Trail is approximately 3 Kms from Borivali Entrance of SNGP & the Trail itself is approx 1.5 to 2 Kms long. Shilonda Trail is a restricted area & one needs to procure the permission for this place at entry gates & generally it is easily available to naturist groups.

One can drive till gate of Shilonda Trail in private vehicle and then it is purely a nature walk in literally a zero pollution zone right in the heart of one of the most polluted cities in India.

Enough of gyan & now let the pictures do the talking.
Disclaimer: The pictures below are clicked by my humble 7.2 mp Point & Shot camera. Luckily our friend & BHPian - SDP was also part of this Nature Trail & I request him to post his (ever excellent) pictures in this thread.

[Jignesh]

Entrance to the park:



Children's play area:







Some streams en route:







walking the beautiful jungle roads:



We reach Shilonda Trail finally.

Details of the nature walk:

[Jignesh]

The day being a Saturday, there were a couple of groups from schools. Each group was accompanied with a Naturist who was briefing us about the place, flora & fauna.



Below is a soccer-ball fruit tree. Though the fruit is non-edible for humans it serves a great purpose for birds especially those who are feeding their young ones:



An insect, I do not know the name of:



The walk continues:





Below is touch me not plants, found in abundance at the trail. Just observe the leaves below & in next picture:



I pressed a stem & it instantly closed it's leaves:



Wild flowers:





Details of the tree well explained:



Nature at its best:







A very tiny snail; it was smaller then our little finger's nail:







A perfect camouflage; spot the spider in the below picture:



The Bamboo tree. I was surprised to know that Bamboo is considered as Grass:



The walk continues:



Every now & then the group halted to get some interesting facts:

[Jignesh]

Some more wild flowers:



The red umbrella like objects below are Mushrooms:



As the above mushrooms are dark in color, there are not fit for human consumption.

Another insect, almost perfectly camouflaged:





Crabs:





Below is the another unique plant; after growing from stem, the leaf splits into multiple leaves:







Another growing Bamboo (Bamboo grass):



Could started gathering but luckily it did not rained:



Road to nowhere or Road to peace & tranquility:

[Jignesh]

Some more Crabs:





A little Grasshopper:



A Butterfly:



Details of Cicada plant:



Termite nest & mound:





Standing alone, standing strong:



Crab holes:







A worm passing by, actually climbing down:







Details of Taman tree & the tree itself:



A dead leaf:



Man made waterhole & watch-point, for animal census in summers:

[Jignesh]

After being on foot for almost two and half hours, we reach the destination. A serene place near a fresh water stream. The place was guarded by a attendant & people are not allowed inside the jungle beyond this point:





We had our breakfast here & clicked group photographs:





Some random pictures taken while returning (walking) back:







Below is Cup & Saucer fruit plant; the flower looks like a cup on a saucer:



Walking back:



Monkeys:





Further random pictures:



















The end.

I now request our friend & BHPian - SDP to post pictures taken by him during this nature walk.

Thank you,

[SDP]

Jignesh,
First upon all thanks for providing wonderful company during the trail and taking care of the kids who were not in their best of moods (to say the least).

The trail was good fun and I enjoyed it. Although the kids would have loved to have the trail much smaller, I would have personally liked the trail to be slightly bigger. I also wished, we could have spent a good amount of time just relaxing at the stream. But never mind, there is always a next time.

Thanks for sharing the snaps and creating this thread!

I have still not filtered and processed the snaps that I clicked that day. Would get to those soon.

[sinharishi]

Excellent set of pictures.

These pictures remind me of my childhood. The days when i used to ride my bicycle to the Park in the early hours of the day, Climb up till Gandhi tekdi and enjoy the view of the mumbai suburbs!
The Lion Safari,Van Rani,Krishnagiri,the stream during the monsoon and not to forget the Khaneri caves! Have lots of memories attached with SGNP (Specially,with the monkeys).

The place is blessed with wildlife,beautiful floara and fauna making it a ideal destination for citizens of Mumbai for a day's outing.

Thanks for sharing Sir!

[yogibear007]

Originally Posted by Jignesh

Enough of gyan & now let the pictures do the talking.
Disclaimer: The pictures below are clicked by my humble 7.2 mp Point & Shot camera. Luckily our friend & BHPian - SDP was also part of this Nature Trail & I request him to post his (ever excellent) pictures in this thread.

Thanks for sharing the moments Jignesh. Was that the red 'Duma' that we are seeing in front of the entrance gates ? Waiting for more snaps from SDP. We have had the Yewoor trail covered last year. Similar trails in Yewoor too but a little tricky due to the hilly slopes. But that part is restricted strictly now partly due to unruly crowd and mainly due to the bangalows of the great leaders we have chosen for ourselves.

[Jignesh]

Originally Posted by SDP

First upon all thanks for providing wonderful company during the trail and taking care of the kids who were not in their best of moods. The trail was good fun and I enjoyed it. I would have personally liked the trail to be slightly bigger. I have still not filtered and processed the snaps that I clicked that day. Would get to those soon.

Hello SDP,

Thank you.

Kids were not in the best of the moods? I do not believe this. I mean even after walking for more than 3 hours, they were in good spirits & by no means cranky. Specially your daughter, I expected that while returning she will request you to carry her, but she did not. Infact in one of the pictures above, she can be seen running while on way back.

I too enjoyed being with you & discussing some interesting topics. Looking forward to another outing like this one. Yes, even I would like such nature walks to be longer & more informative.

Please take your own time to process the pictures & then post here.

Originally Posted by sinharishi

childhood. The days when i used to ride my bicycle to the Park in the early hours of the day, Climb up till Gandhi tekdi and enjoy the view of the mumbai suburbs! The Lion Safari,Van Rani,Krishnagiri,the stream during the monsoon and not to forget the Khaneri caves! Have lots of memories attached with SGNP (Specially,with the monkeys). The place is blessed with wildlife,beautiful floara and fauna making it a ideal destination for citizens of Mumbai for a day's outing.

Hello Sinharishi,

Thank you.

You remember most of the places in the park.

Gandhi Tekdi still gives a commanding view of suburbs, just that the residential area is much closer to this place now. Even better view of the entire stretch from Versova to Dahisar is available from top of Kanheri Caves.

There are couple of lions & tigers in the safari even today, but it is not actually a safari because these animals are placed in huge cages.

Van Rani, the mini trains, still runs. The monkeys are always present all round the park.

The stream of fresh water still flows, especially in monsoon & the entire place is literally zero-pollution zone in normally polluted urban city like Mumbai.

Overall, I think the authorities have maintained the park very well. BEST buses, Autos & Taxis are not allowed inside since many years and only private vehicles are allowed. Places like Kanehri caves are well gaurded & people are not allowed to carry disposable plastic articles inside. Even the morning walkers have to procure a monthly / yearly pass (at subsidized rates).

SGNP literally remains the lung of Mumbai & it is is idealy place for kids to come close to nature. The only problem is that it is encrouched upon from all sides.

Originally Posted by yogibear007

Thanks for sharing the moments Jignesh. Was that the red 'Duma' that we are seeing in front of the entrance gates ? Waiting for more snaps from SDP.

Hello Yogibear007,

Thank you.

Yes. That is SDP's famous 'Duma' at the enterance gate. I know about Yeoor trail, but in to enjoy the beauty of SGNP one needs to enter though Borivali side & just experience the freshness, peace & tranquility in middle of a busy city.

Regards,

[lsp]

Awesome pics Jignesh!! Can't believe that I stayed in Mumbai for 2 years in K'Vali, and never visited this place. I think it might have to do with the leopard scare!!

JK

Originally Posted by Jignesh

....

Sanjay... Is that you in the first pic? Black Tshirt and jeans. Last in the lot.

Originally Posted by SDP

...

[Ddrive]

A good summary about the place and nice photographs.
I liked the stream at the end (breakfast place).
Thanks for sharing

[Jignesh]

Originally Posted by lsp

Awesome pics Jignesh!! Can't believe that I stayed in Mumbai for 2 years in K'Vali, and never visited this place. Is that you in the first pic? Black Tshirt and jeans. Last in the lot.

Hello LSP,

Thank you.

Cannot believe you did not visit this place while you stayed at Kandivali. The place literally comes alive in monsoon.

Yes. That is SDp in the first pic.

Originally Posted by Ddrive

I liked the stream at the end (breakfast place).
Thanks for sharing

Hello Ddrive,

Thank you.

Yes the rest / breakfast place near the stream was really serene & in middle of dense jungle. By no means you feel that you are right inside Mumbai.
I can spend whole day there either reading a book or talking to my wife (provided she is interested).

Thanks,

[Dodge_Viper]

Beautiful pictures Jignesh. This one's a long pending for me. 26 years in Mumbai and not yet visited SGNP .

[carzone]

You have put oil in the fire. Have been planning the last 2 Sundays with friends for a trip there, but it has not materialized as of yet. Now, the urge increases. Let's see how it plans up this weekend.

Awesome pics and would see it we can get entry to that area. I loved the view from Gandhi tekdi, purely awesome experience after you have climbed all your way up. I remember, duing my school days when my father used to take me there, he used to park somewhere down there and we used to have a race till the top. Memories still alive.

We had a bash to Knaheri caves a couple of years ago in this season, truly refreshing the whole experience was. 6 months ago, we had an early morning trip in the SGNP. Entered at 7, walked through to the Lion and Tiger safari point, took the ride, head back to the starting point of the train(alas, they need atleast 10 for a ride which was too difficult on early Sunday morning), and spent some time near the newly created lake chit chatting. Awesome moments those were.

I hope you don't mind me sharing some pictures here.

Please excuse my camera quality!

Originally Posted by Dodge_Viper

Beautiful pictures Jignesh. This one's a long pending for me. 26 years in Mumbai and not yet visited SGNP .

Seems many BHPians haven't visited SGNP. Next meet here?