Purandar-I should have trekked there!

12th September, 2009

Purandar-I should have trekked there!


I had missed the last time my friends went trekking to Purandar. Wonder where I was??? Anyway, I convinced them to go back since they hadn’t gone all the way up. So, we got onto our bikes ( at around 8.30 I believe) and made our way to Solapur road. It is not difficult to find your way as long as you take the correct right turn at Saswad Phata. It could get a bit confusing since there is a bus stop at the turn which is very crowded. I don’t remember exactly where but somewhere along the way you pass the infamous Urali Devachi. I had only heard of the place before but now I can understand why the poor people out there were protesting. The mountains of garbage out there are unbelievable.

The route mainly follows the main road except that you have to take a left turn from the main road in order to get into Purandar village which then leads you on to the foothills of Purandar fort. Since, the rest of the group had already trekked to the fort, this time we decided to go on our bikes. The road didn’t look too good but we didn’t think it would be too bad either. However, we were proved wrong. That road may be motorable for cars but for bikes with not-so-good shock-absorbers it can leave you with a backache. It definitely left me with one since I already have a weak back. The road winds a long way through the mountain but the view keeps you engaged.

I think it was the first time that I saw the Indian Tree pie around here. I have seen it on my two trips to Kerala but never around Pune. Although I am told it is not an uncommon sight out here. We also saw the Malabar Whistling Thrush whose ID a friend confirmed. We might have seen a Short toed Eagle but didn’t get a definite ID. It was definitely an eagle but not sure as to exactly which one. It was spotted at the water reservoir near the top (which, by the way, looked very tempting for a swim.) The road to the very top was barricaded for some reason and no one was in a mood to trek further up, so, we turned around and trudged back on the graveled road on our iron horses.

Earlier, we had had a measly breakfast at Samarth Wadapav in Saswad mainly owing to the fact that all the money we had added upto Rs.50/- After breakfast, we thankfully found an ATM. On our way back, we stopped at the same place but had a more filling lunch. We were back home by around three which made the trip all the more worthwhile because we still had the rest of the day to ourselves.