Trek to Torana - Article written for KALPAA magazine

Trek to Torana (July 2009):

The month of July is heavenly time for trekkers in the ghats and hills near Pune. It's one of the most luxurious things to do while living in Pune, you can pack your bag any time and go for a nice outing. The whole area is lush green once it starts raining and also temperature drops down. The numerous waterfalls add to the glorious adventures.

In one of the weekend 5-6 of us from IISER (me, Madhur, Akshaa, Rahul and couple of others; one of them to whom we named Rani Laxmibai because she always use to walk ahead at the front) decided to go for a trek at the Torana fort. This is one of the forts of great Maratha warrior Shivaji Maharaj. We started early morning at 5 AM and reached Swargate bus stand by 7AM. The bus to Velhe (the base village of Torna Fort) was at 7:30. We had breakfast in the Canteen at the bus stand. We had Poha, Misal and Idali for the breakfast, what a way to start our trip and hot tea. It was cloudy in the Pune but wasn't raining.

The bus took Satara highway and turned at Narsapur for the Velhe. Once we turned away from the highway the greenery all around us, pool of waters, small waterfalls and the fields being readied for sowing Maze...gosh! it was spellbinding and mesmerizing. Once we reached Velhe village we had another round of tea before starting our climb. It was cloudy and raining.

We crossed a small river (made up of rain water). Most of us went mad and we had a sole aim to go in the water and under one of the numerous waterfalls. However in spite of these distractions we started climbing. By now it started raining heavily. We wanted to take a different route instead of taking the usual route and in turn making our life a little more complicated. Due to rain it was more slippery and we realised that the following traditional route is the best way. After a flat climb for about 2 hours the route became steep. Thankfully on those part they had put iron rods to hold and made stairs. We reached on the top by 2 PM among heavy rain, though target was 12:30, thanks to the distractions due to numerous waterfalls on the way. We carried food for ourselves: Bread, Butter, Cake, some fruits and chocolates. Over many trips we have realised Chocolates and Choco are the best mood changers when you get tired. There is a temple on the top of the fort where we took shelter and had our lunch. Of course we were drenched and soaked in water and heavy wind made us feel shiver and cold. There were few huts of the local villagers where they sell traditional food and tea. We needed hot tea before we started climbing down.

We came down by 5 PM to the base village Velhe and after another round of refreshments we took bus back to Pune. It was one of the most memorable and adventurous trip (because of slippery ground) but a great satisfaction to see flora and fauna of the region.

Looking forward to many more trips and also participation from larger group of people.....