“The best of the journeys are the ones that are least planned.”

Harishchandragad trek is possibly the best trek in Sahyadris. 

I always wanted to trek but had never got that chance. 

Aur khehte hai na, “Kehte hain agar kisi cheez ko dil se chaho … to poori kainath use tumse milane ki koshish mein lag jaati ha”

And out of nowhere that opportunity came. My friend asked me if I am interested for Harishchandragad trek, and within a span of 5 minutes my reply was YES! because I had to start it from somewhere.

It was a pre-monsoon clouds special trek and we decided to do it with Mumbai Pune Adventures.

On the night of 4th June, we all met at Kasara railway station from where we were taken to Panchai village. We were around 20 participants divided in 2 cars. The journey was about 2-2.5 hrs from the station to the village. We took a small water/tea/washroom break of 10 minutes at a Dhaba which was on our way. Our journey on the way was quite a musical one as everyone was playing Antakshari at 2 a.m on the way to Panchai., Ya, you heard it right! Another interesting part being on our way we spotted fireflies in the dark. It was one of the most beautiful sights. We took a halt, dimmed the headlights of our car and took pictures of trees lit up by “jugnus”.

After reaching the village, we all took a quick break to rest and prepare ourselves for the trek.

It was around 5-5.30 a.m. of 5th June, and in the dark we began our trek.

Our trek leader was Swapnil Kawad. He did a short round of introduction and gave us some instructions as well. Our trek started with a torch in our hand to guide us through the trail. We started brisk walking. Around 15-20 mins of walking against the gravity was quite tough, but we made sure we took mini-mini breaks, breathed well and started moving ahead.

As we started moving upwards it got better and better with our body and with the view as well. It was dawn and to see the first light on mountains, greenery all around, clouds looking like an ocean. It was very beautiful. We saw a beautiful morning sunrise, Took some pictures and started to move ahead in search for a better breath taking view.

Around 9.30 a.m., we reached the top of the mountain and had breakfast where we were served Poha and black tea with lemon. We relaxed for a while clicked some photos then everybody were refreshed and recharged for the next spot which was ‘The Kokan Kada’.

Not knowing what the big deal was all about. Frankly, I had not watched much videos for the place before going because it kills curiosity & steals the magic of the sight. Kokan Kada overlooks the Kokan region hence the name. Kada means cliff in Marathi.

On the way, we came across Harishchandreshwar Temple while on our way to Kokankada. It is said that the temple has been carved out from a single huge rock.

On the right side of the temple is a huge cave called Kedareshwar. It has a Shiva Linga surrounded by water. The most fascinating thing about the cave being it hanging on the strength of one pillar only. Initially, there were 4 pillars of which 3 pillars broke. The pillars are said to depict the Yuga’s and it is said that a pillar breaks off on its own at the end of each Yuga. So after the end of Satya Yuga, Treta Yuga, Dvapara Yuga, one pillar for each Yuga was broken. At present the pillar is said to symbolize the last Yuga i.e., Kali Yuga. Thus, it is believed that, whenever the remaining pillar breaks off, it will be the end of Kali Yuga.

Back on the way up towards Kokankada. I was stunned that this nature’s architecture is beyond description. It had a concave structure. The clouds swirling above makes it a totally surreal place, as we were watching from the edge. It was a panoramic view where clouds were slowly rising along the edge of the cliff. About 5-7 minutes of enjoying this view at Kokankada, the clouds slowly covered the whole valley. It was as if the view got covered like a canvas and a circular rainbow right in the middle could be spotted. It is called the “Indravajra”. I was in awe of what was happening at that moment. I could see something amidst the rainbow, a reflection.

It is said that an Indravajra is a rare sight, and you can see your own reflection surrounded by a round rainbow.

I was just soaking myself in the moment, thinking of the moment. I had said yes to the trek, and was among the lucky ones to have spotted such a phenomenon. It was all worth it for that very moment. After spending a good amount capturing these moments of our group in our cameras and our hearts, we started to descend our way back to base as it was starting to get hot.

On our way back we could see locals selling berries, java plums, karvandas so passer-by could relish and refresh themselves while there way back.

We reached back down balancing, tired around 12pm and rested at a house for our lunch break.

Pithala, bhakri, varan-bhaat, pickle that was our lunch and it tasted like wow after so much of our kasrat. 

After lunch, we came back to our cars on our way back to Kasara station and back to our homes with fun-filled magical memories.

It was my first trek and a memorable one. What a mesmerizing experience to cherish for a lifetime. My heart is just so full as I complete my blog. One should definitely visit Harishchandragad once for this lifetime experience. Kudos to the MPA team. Thank you for the arrangements and this adventure. Looking forward to more.