[W16rocks]

A small Introduction
Me being a fairly new member to team bhp, I am getting accustomed to writing a travelogue, I will request you all to overlook my small mistakes in this travelogue. Sometimes I feel my father should have been a member here long ago, both for his love of road trips and Cars, and also his vast experience of driving multiple vehicles from his days in the army to the corporate world.

So the circumstances that led to this small but enjoyable road trip was that my yearly exams had just got over and I was bored as hell, so my father suggested we take a road trip. My new session was starting in four days, which gave us only three days to make a trip and be back, as we just moved to Pune, we figured what better than than the Punekars’s go to hill station, Mahabaleshwar. It was just 119 kms away from Pune and due to the approaching festivities(Holi) what better time to go on a trip.



So we decided to leave the next day after lunch, we planned it to be a two nights, three days trip. As luck would have it due to our sudden planning and festival season we couldn’t find a single good hotel/resort, but we decided to proceed to Satara where we could meet some of my father’s colleagues with better knowledge about the places and the resorts. As a last resort if no hotel was available we decided to book my father’s company guesthouse for just in case. We decided to take our trustworthy mile gobbler City, for the trip.

Day 1 - Pune - Satara - Koyna lake
We started from home at 1:30pm for Satara which was 133 kms only but the route was very scenic so we took many stops in between to take photos, some of which I will attach so you all can enjoy it yourself.

We took the Pune Satara Highway and joined it as soon as possible. The highway was pretty nice and smooth, after a while it separated for the ongoing and incoming traffic.

The route was pretty busy that day due to many Pune and Mumbai people heading to the hill stations for the Holi weekend. There was a diversion along the way to go to Mahabaleshwar but since we first wanted to go to Satara and then to Mahabaleshwar we headed straight.

We reached Satara at around 4:30 pm and went directly to meet my father’s colleagues, we asked them about hotels and resorts with nice views and location, due to Holi most of the hotels were booked out, but they suggested a resort which was situated right next to the Koyna lake in the Koyna reserve. We talked to the manager and reserved a room.



The resort was around 50 kms from Satara, after some light snacks, we left at around 6pm, but while leaving we were able to take in the beautiful sunset sights at Satara. The route was through heavy jungles and it was a single road. The road was newly built but very narrow, we kept honking at turns to notify incoming drivers as the road was very curvaceous and also it was getting dark. We also lost gps at this time, so we proceeded by asking people.



While going we saw the UNESCO heritage site Kass plateau - Valley of Flowers, it is a place where flowers grow naturally, but due to the season, there were no flowers at the time.






Due to our almost zero knowledge of the route and the narrowness and darkness of the roads we drove extra carefully. That’s why it took us extra long to reach our destination. We reached by 8 pm by the time it was dark and so we could not see the magnificent lake.



We were initially pretty dissatisfied by the “resort” as it was devoid of basic amenities like cutlery and the rooms were also pretty basic. But as we had drove a long way here we decided to stay the night here and had a light dinner and call it a day.

[W16rocks]

Day 2 - Koyna Lake - Mahabaleshwar
After the last day’s activity, we decided to wake up early and enjoy the lake and then leave after lunch for Mahabaleshwar.



The mediocrity of the hotel was more than compensated by the beautiful view it commanded, the morning was as peaceful as it can be with the chirping of birds and the magnificent view of the lake, I will let the photos do the talking.




After enjoying the morning view, and breakfast we decided to do some adventure activities at the lake for which we went boating and then rode the water scooters both of which were exhilarating and exciting. Due to the relatively less tourist traffic at the place the water was very clean. The views were pretty awesome as the lake was surrounded all around by hills. Also the lake was surrounded by only two hotels so we could tell this area was still pretty unexplored and that’s why clean and serene.
The natural beauty of this area was indescribable. I am attaching more pics so that you all can enjoy the view yourself.





Anyway after a light lunch, we left for Mahabaleshwar at 1:30pm, the route was different from yesterday’s, Mahabaleshwar was around 40 kms from our resort. On the way we witnessed beautiful scenery and also some cool viewpoints. The roads were still narrow but due to the daylight, it was safer than yesterday. We stopped at a strawberry farm at 2:30 pm and saw how strawberries are cultivated and also had a glass of yummy strawberry Icecream/Milkshake. The road ahead was filled with beautiful points and places, many of which we stopped at to take photos.





At around 4 we reached Mahabaleshwar, and started searching for Resorts and Hotels, but as it was Holi that day most places were booked out, but luckily we found a room at MPG Club, Mahabaleshwar. We decided to relax and chill for the day as that was the main aim of this journey, to relax and enjoy. The Resort had a beautiful view and comfortable rooms, also the food was delicious, we thoroughly enjoyed the stay here.

[W16rocks]

Day 3 - Mahabaleshwar To Pune Via Panchgani
After waking up to a beautiful sunrise, we planned to do some local sightseeing and then go back to Pune via Panchgani.



We first went to the old Mahabaleshwar shiva temple, due to the festive season there was a lot of traffic, but the temple is an ancient one and was worth visiting also the views from the temple are magnificent. There is an even older temple near the main temple, it is 5000 years old and I would recommend everyone to visit that as well if they are visiting the main one.






After visiting the temple we decided not to visit any other tourist spot due to the traffic, and decided to head home via Panchgani. Panchgani is very near to Mahabaleshwani hence it took us only 40 mins to reach there, we visited a few points and took a few pics, and then proceeded with our journey.




In the way we saw some broken patches of roads due to landslides. While going home we visited the Mapro factory and had a yummy lunch there while taking in the views at the outdoor cafe. The Mapro factory is not at this location anymore but has shifted, this location has become more of a sales point or cafe.



After this we started back for Pune, stopped at a few places, and then joined the Satara-Pune Highway, but as I had said earlier the highway at one point separates into two, one for incoming traffic and the other for outgoing traffic. So This time we went through the tunnel instead of climbing the mountain as we had done while going.





With this I would end my little travelogue and if you guys find any mistakes, I will request you to take it as a beginner error as I am still learning my way around teambhp.







Cheers
W16rocks

[Aditya]

Thread moved out from the Assembly Line. Thanks for sharing!

[dailydriver]

@W16rocks, welcome to the forum.

The places you visited and described about are no doubt good, but what is better is your earnestness in writing about them. Apart from serving as repositories of memories, these writeups will also help you easily sail through some tough exams.

It is always nice to see youngsters like you making efforts to document your travels and experiences. At 18, you have a long life ahead; hope to see many more travelogues as well as ownership reports penned and shared.

All the very best.

[W16rocks]

Originally Posted by dailydriver

@W16rocks, welcome to the forum.

It is always nice to see youngsters like you making efforts to document your travels and experiences. At 18, you have a long life ahead; hope to see many more travelogues as well as ownership reports penned and shared.

All the very best.

Thanks a lot for the Kind words and a warm welcome dailydriver

And I totally agree with your points, after joining this forum I have learned a lot about many new topics, and it gives me joy to write about my trips now, and I hope to get better at it learning from the best travelogue writers I have seen.

And yes I hope to make many more travelogues in the coming time.

Thanks again for the kind words.
W16rocks

[Excommunicado]

Very well written W16rocks. The pictures are fantastic too! There were no mistakes to overlook in your travelogue.
I am glad to know someone is doing something to beat this searing summer heat, that too in style.
Also, what caught my eye is that beautiful Black Honda City. Very few dare to go black for various reasons. It looks brilliant

Edit: Just checked the colour options for 4th gen City. Seems like it is Golden brown metallic. Kindly confirm sir. It is brilliant nevertheless.

[W16rocks]

Originally Posted by Excommunicado

Edit: Just checked the colour options for 4th gen City. Seems like it is Golden brown metallic. Kindly confirm sir. It is brilliant nevertheless.

Thanks a lot Excommunicado for the kind words, I really appreciate it.

The colour as you wrote is Golden brown, but the real beauty of this colour is that it shows different shades in different angles and lighting conditions, due to which it can be perceived as black, brown and golden from different angles.
This is what made us go for black as the moment we saw it, we knew this was it.

Cheers
W16rocks

[akshaylad]

I'm planning for a weeklong getaway to Mahableshwar with my Mini Cooper from Goa.

Can you guys suggest what all activities and places to visit in Mahableshwar along with a good resort with a safe parking for the car

Thanks!

[Samfromindia]

Originally Posted by akshaylad

I'm planning for a weeklong getaway to Mahableshwar with my Mini Cooper from Goa.

Can you guys suggest what all activities and places to visit in Mahableshwar along with a good resort with a safe parking for the car

Thanks!

These two videos will help you get started. Parking is not a issue at Mahabaleshwar.

https://youtu.be/pZUmBHXgknU

https://youtu.be/vRSRA9RDBR8

[It's Magic]

I am planning to visit Panchgani and Mahabaleshwar next month.
Can someone please suggest good hotel for stay with family?
Planning to stay in Panchgani and then visit places in Mahabaleshwar.

Thanks!

[sapien]

Originally Posted by It's Magic

I am planning to visit Panchgani and Mahabaleshwar next month.
Can someone please suggest good hotel for stay with family?
Planning to stay in Panchgani and then visit places in Mahabaleshwar.

Thanks!

Aaram is a nice Hotel in Mahabaleshwar, it has a old school charm which takes you back in time. Here’s how,
- Surrounded by lush green trees all around with acres of space for parking.
- Has a temple at the entrance.
- All rooms are big in size with wooden tables and bed, but they are not furnished as per modern standards.
- There’s one guy serving all rooms, one needs to place breakfast order an evening before, its prepared fresh and served as per requested time. Fresh upma, pohe along with Kadak chai 6:30 am in morning is very refreshing!
- If one is fond of maharashtian food, they serve full thali with seasonal jams like strawberry and mango pickles. You just have to let them know 3 hrs in advance as owner himself is a chef and prepares food fresh on order.
- Its located at the exact opposite end of the state transport bus stand and is walking distance from the main market.
- The costs are very reasonable for stay, food, snacks etc

Location: https://maps.app.goo.gl/FT...s6rUw8?g_st=ic

PS : Since they are pet friendly, this has been our goto place since last 10 years and we visit Mahabaleshwar almost every year

[sapien]

Originally Posted by sapien

Aaram is a nice Hotel in Mahabaleshwar, it has a old school charm which takes you back in time.

Correct Location :

https://maps.app.goo.gl/EBRDgVaBHBqjS6W5A

@mods, requesting to merge both these posts.