Trek: Bhimashankar
Height: Appx 3500 ft
Region: Karjat
Grade: Medium
Bhimashankar is one of
the 12 Jyotirlings of India,
a pilgrimage place approximately
3500 feet high up in the hills. The area around Bhimashankar is covered
with thick dense jungle. The Maharashtra
Government has also declared it a Sanctuary. The sanctuary is small (only about 100 sq. km’s), but
it is home to a wide variety
of animals Leopard, Sambar, Barking deer, Porcupines, Grey Junglefowls, Wild
pig, Hanuman langur, Rhesus macaque and Flying Squirrel etc. The sanctuary is
famous as the home of a highly endangered subspecies of the Indian Giant Squirrel – Shekharu (Ratufa indica
elphistoni), which is also the state animal of Maharashtra.
Shiva Temple : The temple
of Bhimashankar is around 1200 – 1400 years old and is built on the Hemad
Panthi style. There are very beautiful sculptures and paintings on the
roof and pillars of the temple. At the front of the temple hangs a huge metal
bell cast in 1729. There is also a 15-20 feet high “Deepmala”
or lamppost in the outer corridor of the temple. There is also an inscription
on stone on this lamppost. It is to be noted that the original name of the
river Chandrabhaga at Pandharpur is Bhima. This Bhima
River originates at Bhimashankar.
Gupt Bhimashankar : There is a water stream route going down from the left of the Ram temple. Taking that route, we enter a thick jungle. We reach a temple around 25 minutes through this route. A route going toward the waterfall, left of this temple, leads to the “water sculpted” “Shiva Linga” under this waterfall. This is called the Gupt Bhimashankar. There is a huge waterfall at this place.
Gupt Bhimashankar : There is a water stream route going down from the left of the Ram temple. Taking that route, we enter a thick jungle. We reach a temple around 25 minutes through this route. A route going toward the waterfall, left of this temple, leads to the “water sculpted” “Shiva Linga” under this waterfall. This is called the Gupt Bhimashankar. There is a huge waterfall at this place.
Nagphani : We reach a pond when we climb towards Bhimashankar from the Ghat. The route going towards the right, from this pond, takes us to the Hanuman temple. The route going up through this route leads to the Nagphani. We can have a view of the forts of Peth and Padhar and the plateaus of Peth and Matheran.
Itinerary:
13th July 2013
Meeting point: @ Karjat
station Near ticket counter
Catch Karjat Slow (S5) local from respective
stations
CST
: 5:19
Byculla : 5:27
Dadar : 5:36
Kurla : 5:47
Ghatkopar : 5:53
Thane : 6:13
Dombivali : 6:35
Kalyan : 6:45
Karjat: 7:44
Byculla : 5:27
Dadar : 5:36
Kurla : 5:47
Ghatkopar : 5:53
Thane : 6:13
Dombivali : 6:35
Kalyan : 6:45
Karjat: 7:44
08.00 hrs: Breakfast
08.30 hrs: Move to khandas by local transport
10.00 hrs: @ Khandas
11.00 hrs: @ Shidi
Lunch on the way
15.00 hrs: @ top
15.30 hrs: Move to gupt Bhimashankar
20.00 hrs: Dinner
Stay in local hotel
14th July 2013
06.00 hrs: Weak up call
06.30 hrs: Breakfast
07.00 hrs: Move to Nagphani
11.00 hrs: Lunch
12.00 hrs: Descend
15.00 hrs: At
Khandas (Base village)
16.30 hrs: At Karjat station
17.00 hrs: Proceed to Mumbai / Pune
Here is a list of
all the things that we need to carry:
1. A haversack to
put in all the things to be carried. So that one has hands free while trekking.
2. A bottle of
water (1.5 ltr).
3. Lunch for Saturday
4. Rain cheater
5. Camera
(Optional).
6. Electoral /
Energy powder, 2 Lemon, some snacks & biscuits (optional).
7. Torch with
extra batteries.
8. Personal
medicines & 2 plastic bags for weight distribution, mosquito’s cream.
9. A good trekking
shoes.
10. And most important: A sense of adventure.
The
charges for the trek are Rs. 800/- per head, which includes travelling from Karjat to
Karjat , breakfast (Sat-Sunday), Lunch(Sunday), Dinner (Saturday) and expertise
charges.
One needs to deposit Full payment into the following bank account
to confirm his/her registration.
Bank Details:
Bank Name: STATE BANK OF INDIA
Branch : WORLI NORTH-MUMBAI
Account Number: 31072085902
Name: NILESH KRISHNA KENGA
IFS Code: SBIN0000290
MICR Code: 400002088
Bank Name: STATE BANK OF INDIA
Branch : WORLI NORTH-MUMBAI
Account Number: 31072085902
Name: NILESH KRISHNA KENGA
IFS Code: SBIN0000290
MICR Code: 400002088
After transaction do email us transaction_id along with participant’s details (name, email and mobile number) at trekoking@gmail.com
For
registration and more details please contact
Sushama:
9820863407
Nilesh:
9987446261
Plz do sms
your name and email_id if call not received
