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| Independence Trek To Naneghat ….by Aashish R. Chawla |
So finally Trek It Easy(TIE) initiated this Trek…Place Naneghat…I was thrilled because this trek was happening after a big gap if we ignore the water rappelling event in between. Monsoon has its own magic and if that monsoon is over the Sahaydri hills then nothing can match it…“Jahan Dost ho … mausam ho…, Sundar nazaare ho aur upar se TIE ka sath to baat kuch aur hi ban jati hai…“I hope all my friends understood what I am talking about.
Today 15th August,2011,Independence day:
I have never understood this funda that when you have to go to work …getting up at 8 o’clock is a task…however the moment it is a trekking day then things change…getting up for me at 3 o’clock at night is also thrilling prospect…even if I have gone to sleep at 12…I am bursting with energy, dying to reach…grab the view of green mountains ,Clouds…breeze…you name it and you can have it.
I have never read a report where everyone turns up on time ,and this trek of our were no different because as usual someone or the other missed the train and messed the schedule.
The best part this time was that our organiser Kunal missed his train but due to no fault of his, Here I will enlighten you on over eagerness of our mumbai police force.Being independence day naturally the security was very tight and poor Kunal who was carrying a thin bamboo pole for the purpose of Flag hoisting was stopped by the Police …to be suspected as a rioter or a terrorist I presume and was detained..”bechare Kunal ne realise kiya ki apne desh me Zanda vandana karna bhi katarnak ho sakta hai…Desh ki choda pehle apni security kar lete hai”
anyway after some explaining he was let off to catch his train.I always wonder “Ki aisa kyo hota hai ki ek simple citizen has to undergo all the humiliation aur ek terrorist maze se Boat bhar ke desh me gus jata hai…arre yeh police walo ko samajho yaar apni dedication right direction me kare.
Chalo let us not get deviated from our Track (trek)…After everyone got assembled at kalyan and Kunal aur Ganesh got on with their job of trek fees vasooli…..we got ready to board the jeeps which were suppose to take us to Naneghat. 12 people got fitted in each jeep I was lucky to be sharing the jeep with some of my old trek friends like Krupali,Madhuja,Deepashri,Sharrada ..one of the group started with antakshri but some how couldnt find the tempo and antakshri died a premature death….anyway it was one and a half drive from Kalyan via Murbad,Saralgaon to naneghat.
Winding our way through the lush greenery with slight drizzle our jeep was on its way and loo!! we see a board of Naneghat on the right side of the road.everyone got out of the jeep people like krupali, mudhuja ever keen not to miss the opportunity toclip photos jumped on the tree striking different pose till some one literally fell down…..
As usual we had our introduction rounds.. some dos and dont…operation
Trek Naneghat was on..it is essential to have a nice breakfast before starting the trek this is important because it provides a lot of energy required for the trek and secondly this trek doesn’t offer any food on the way. What Naneghat offers is lush .greenery and abundance of natural beauty.
The start of the trek appeared easy I thought the first timers must be saying what yaar trekking is so easy however as we moved forward the road became more wet and marshy specially the red mud making it very slippery and as we moved forward the road became narrow and effortlessly moved into the forest region with the stone steps leading the way.This trek is given Easy Grade but due to the rains the stones become slippery making the assent all the more difficult…but on goes the brigade of this trekker weaving our way forward
occasionally having a peek at thumb like peak of Naneghat
“Dil me hosle buland the …azaadi ka jashn ma nane ki Khwasish pure saroor per thi baas soch liya tha aaj to bharat ka Zanda us oonchee peak per hi leharainge ….” and that is the reason that in my mind these lines of Ram Prasad Bismil was been played…..
“Sarfaroshi ki tamanna ab hamaare dil mein haiDekhna hai zor kitna baazu-e-qaatil mein hai
Waqt aane de bata denge tujhe aye आसमां hum abhi se kya batayen kya hamare dil mein hai “
With determination to reach the top everyone was motivating himself in its own way..some people taking photographs, some first timers panting and crying aloud wishing they had not come only(the view which they will change very soon the moment they reach the top), Friends like Aditi hogging the food and Krupali hogging the talktime my my what a mixture of friend….despite the vargaries of nature with rains playing hide and seek with us we some how reached the entrance of naneghat … what I saw was so mesmerising that for a second it took a while for me to take in the entire view around me the giant chunk of black stone staring at you. I was told that this is trade route pass also know as Naneghat..literally means coin pass or you can say Toll naka of olden days.
We had our lunch here at a cave near this pass ..everyone sharing there lunch box with one another by the time you are over with your lunch you dont have a knowledge as to what went into your mouth whether it was idlis offered by Madhuja,or Fast snacks by Krupali or pau bhajji by akhilesh or apple been offered by Shiraj Ras gullas from Deepshri or Sharrada which dissapeared so fast that before my hands can reach them they vanished my god I am running out of options..but it is always fun to be with friends.Here I want to thank Krupali largehearted as she is because I came to know it was she who sponsored our cup of tea at the top.
After finishing our lunch we moved toward the pinnacle for our Independence day flag hoisting.Friends I have been trekking quite often but what I saw from the top left me speechless. Like a school going kid I was awestruck to see so much beauty of nature around me. We shared a few unforgettable moments of solitude; away from the crushing monotony the urban life offers.The peaceful bliss of the Valley and the experience of sitting on the edge with ground below you at the depth of more then 3000 feets oh! What a feeling!!!! indeed a moment to die for!!!!!
To view pictures of the trek click on the link given below
https://picasaweb.google.com/112989754557849314605/Naneghat
Happy Independence Day!!!!
Jai Hind!!!
