Blissful In Bhandardara

genesis · 1st March 2009, 01:21

After many years of driving around in the foothills of the Himalaya's, we are currently in the process of adjusting to the fact that the 'hill' stations of the Western Ghats of Maharashtra were more like 'hillock' stations, e.g. Mount Kalsubai which is the highest peak in Maharashtra is half a day's hike uphill! But what they lack in height they make up for by the absence of crowds and a sleepy quality which slowly sucks you in. Located four hours from Mumbai off NH3 to Nashik, Bhandardara is one such gem. Checking into the government run MTDC lodge right on Lake Arthur hill, we spent our time wandering around the lake shore, visiting the ancient Amruteshwar temple from where the legendary Pravara river originates and stopped ever so often to take photographs of the numerous lakes and rugged cliff faces. Saving the Randha Falls for a later visit, chose to indulge in a rustic meal of fresh lake fish and rice and then explored the trails around the base of the Wilson Dam. A friendly official from the irrigation department regaled us with stories of the this marvel of British Engineering and invited us to come back again and visit in the monsoons when the river would be in spate and we could see him controlling the ebb and flow of the third largest waterfall in India. As we drove away the following day, we played hide and seek with Mount Kalsubai as she stood guard over her kingdom and knew in our hearts that we would be back to experience again, the bliss that is so easy to come by in Bhandardara...

Attaching some pics...

The complete collection from the trip is at: Genesis - soumya.org: Blissful In Bhandardara

genesis · 1st March 2009, 10:18

Need to add that the MTDC resort in Bhandardara exceeded all expectations. Neat and clean with spacious rooms, with most balconies overlooking the lake. The restaurant makes a good variety of food which was pretty tasty. There are 'guides' offering their services for tours which consist of mostly showing you how to get from point A to point B and then point C. There is another resort called Anandvan which is opposite the MTDC resort but the prices are more than 3 times that of MTDC.

ASHISHPALLOD · 1st March 2009, 11:29

@GENESIS,
you had visited right place at wrong time.
bhandardara is monsoon destination.
pics are nice.
i hope, you will visit this place again in monsoon.

genesis · 1st March 2009, 11:34

@ASHISHPALLOD: yes of course. A return trip Bhandardara in August is already on the list to see the falls. The irrigation official asked us to come in August once the July rains tapered off a bit. He lovingly called it the Cherrapunji of Maharashtra.

Rajesh Rawal · 2nd March 2009, 11:27

right said ashish,this place is heaven in the monsoons,infact the drive from ghoti to bhandardara makes you feel you are in scotland.

while at the randha falls ,dont miss to eat kanda bhaji with tea prepared by the locals there(infact there is only one house there right next to the falls ,that fellow does it all).

neofromcapone · 2nd March 2009, 21:30

Totally agree with the monsoon bit, its like there is a waterfall everywhere you look, simply awesome. The real treat of this place is also in winter when the temp dips into low single digits.

f1fan · 3rd March 2009, 20:25

As all mentioned, a good place at the wrong time. Bhandardara is completely diff after a couple of months of rain. We frequent this place every monsoon. Earlier used to go to Lonavla but that place is getting worse every year.

1st March 2009, 01:21	#1
genesis BHPian Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: Mumbai Posts: 773 Thanked: 339 Times	Blissful In Bhandardara After many years of driving around in the foothills of the Himalaya's, we are currently in the process of adjusting to the fact that the 'hill' stations of the Western Ghats of Maharashtra were more like 'hillock' stations, e.g. Mount Kalsubai which is the highest peak in Maharashtra is half a day's hike uphill! But what they lack in height they make up for by the absence of crowds and a sleepy quality which slowly sucks you in. Located four hours from Mumbai off NH3 to Nashik, Bhandardara is one such gem. Checking into the government run MTDC lodge right on Lake Arthur hill, we spent our time wandering around the lake shore, visiting the ancient Amruteshwar temple from where the legendary Pravara river originates and stopped ever so often to take photographs of the numerous lakes and rugged cliff faces. Saving the Randha Falls for a later visit, chose to indulge in a rustic meal of fresh lake fish and rice and then explored the trails around the base of the Wilson Dam. A friendly official from the irrigation department regaled us with stories of the this marvel of British Engineering and invited us to come back again and visit in the monsoons when the river would be in spate and we could see him controlling the ebb and flow of the third largest waterfall in India. As we drove away the following day, we played hide and seek with Mount Kalsubai as she stood guard over her kingdom and knew in our hearts that we would be back to experience again, the bliss that is so easy to come by in Bhandardara... Attaching some pics... The complete collection from the trip is at: Genesis - soumya.org: Blissful In Bhandardara Attached Thumbnails
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1st March 2009, 10:18	#2
genesis BHPian Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: Mumbai Posts: 773 Thanked: 339 Times	Need to add that the MTDC resort in Bhandardara exceeded all expectations. Neat and clean with spacious rooms, with most balconies overlooking the lake. The restaurant makes a good variety of food which was pretty tasty. There are 'guides' offering their services for tours which consist of mostly showing you how to get from point A to point B and then point C. There is another resort called Anandvan which is opposite the MTDC resort but the prices are more than 3 times that of MTDC.
	() Thanks

1st March 2009, 11:29	#3
ASHISHPALLOD Senior - BHPian Join Date: Oct 2006 Location: MH42 Posts: 2,006 Thanked: 334 Times	@GENESIS, you had visited right place at wrong time. bhandardara is monsoon destination. pics are nice. i hope, you will visit this place again in monsoon.
	() Thanks

1st March 2009, 11:34	#4
genesis BHPian Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: Mumbai Posts: 773 Thanked: 339 Times	@ASHISHPALLOD: yes of course. A return trip Bhandardara in August is already on the list to see the falls. The irrigation official asked us to come in August once the July rains tapered off a bit. He lovingly called it the Cherrapunji of Maharashtra.
	() Thanks

2nd March 2009, 11:27	#5
Rajesh Rawal BHPian Join Date: May 2008 Location: Back in Mumbai Posts: 384 Thanked: 159 Times View My Garage	right said ashish,this place is heaven in the monsoons,infact the drive from ghoti to bhandardara makes you feel you are in scotland. while at the randha falls ,dont miss to eat kanda bhaji with tea prepared by the locals there(infact there is only one house there right next to the falls ,that fellow does it all).
	() Thanks

2nd March 2009, 21:30	#6
neofromcapone BHPian Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: Bombay Posts: 413 Thanked: 439 Times	Totally agree with the monsoon bit, its like there is a waterfall everywhere you look, simply awesome. The real treat of this place is also in winter when the temp dips into low single digits.
	() Thanks

3rd March 2009, 20:25	#7
f1fan BHPian Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: Mumbai Posts: 701 Thanked: 48 Times View My Garage	As all mentioned, a good place at the wrong time. Bhandardara is completely diff after a couple of months of rain. We frequent this place every monsoon. Earlier used to go to Lonavla but that place is getting worse every year.
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