Visapur trek and Matheran Hill station

Visapur trek and Matheran Hill station

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Visapur trek

Visapur fort is a fort near Visapur village in Maharashtra. It is a part of Lohagad fort. Visapur fort trek difficulty can be considered as a moderately graded trek, good option for trek learners and beginners. There are three routes to ascend the fort, where one can choose any of the three and climb to the top around 2-3 hrs. One can trek with energy and excitement only for knowing the Visapur Fort history.

Each and everyone can enjoy the trek experience especially during the monsoons as the shores and the rains make the place even more beautiful as there is water gushing through your path as you ascend.

Matheran Hill station

Have you heard of this pollution-free hill station in the state of Maharashtra? Situated close to Mumbai, this plateau is home to dense forests, waterfalls, and the lovely Ulhas River, a visit to Matheran is a must on any traveler's list, for it offers one a peaceful, quiet and laidback holiday. A special feature of Matheran is that no motor vehicles are allowed there, not even cycles, making it not only pollution-free but also a noise-free hill station. Literally meaning ‘forest on the head’, Matheran refers to the thick woods at the top of the hill. Matheran retains the vintage charm of hill stations developed by the British. Here you can experience Parsi lifestyle and enjoy staying in British cottages. As a matter of fact, Matheran is known to be the smallest hill station in India with an area of just 10 sqkm.

Just like any other hill station, Matheran too has numerous viewpoints and 38 of them have been officially marked. Panorama point gives us a 360° view of the entire region. Apart from being the main source of water for the people of Matheran, Charlotte lake is set amidst the densely forested area, sprawls out with a dam at one end and the Pisarnath temple at the other. Also, from the lake, one can see get to see the view of the famous vantage point of Matheran - Echo Point and Louisa Point. If you’re visiting Matheran in the monsoon, there are chances that you’ll get to see a reverse waterfall which is one of its kind. If time permits you can tick off various other viewpoints too.

Best time to visit:

Matheran can be visited at any time of the year, including monsoon. Temperature varies from 15 C to 30 C depending on the climate. In monsoon, the entire place is the midst of a foggy climate which makes the scenery even more spectacular, and you’re sure to enjoy walking down the foggy roads not knowing what scenery is going to be unraveled, making the suspense even better.

Hyderabad to Lonavala by Train (Day 0)

Board the bus around 8.30 PM at the Secunderabad Station . While you pack your backpacks, also pack some energy and excitement for a good trek. Carry water bottles and snacks.

Your guide will meet you at the station/ at your designated seats.

Trek to Visapur Fort (Day 1)

Wakeup early. Fresh up and have some morning talks with your fellow passengers. We will reach Lonavala Railway Station/Bus terminal by 10 AM. After getting down the train, you can have breakfast at the nearby restaurant. (You can also use restrooms and change your outfits). Then, we will board the private vehicle hired only for GoAdventure. From there we will head towards the Visapur fort. On the way to Visapur fort, we will stop for lunch, where you can have lunch of your choice.

Visapur Fort near Visapur village, which is a sister fort of Lohagad. Trek to this fort can be considered as a moderately graded trek, one of the good options for beginners. Here you can enjoy the glory of the nature. Each and everyone can enjoy the trek by knowing the history of the Visapur fort. Especially, during the monsoons, this trek would be even more special and beautiful as there will be water gushing through your path as you ascend. It will take around 3 hours to trek this fort.

Then, after spending some time there, we will go to the campsite with good amenities. ( Washrooms are available).Then you can have your dinner provided by GoAdventures. The dinner would be a Maharashtrian thali with some authentic flavours. Here, you can enjoy some good music and enjoy the night with some entertainment and camp fire. You can also sit together and share your travel experiences with your friends and fellow trekkers. Then end your day with a good sleep.

Matheran Hill station (Day 2)

Matheran is the only no pollution place in India. Vehicles are not allowed into Matheran and one has to walk their way up or take the toy train or ride a mule. We will be walking along the toy train track route to reach Matheran from Dasturi. The route is very scenic and there are no steep ascends at all, so anyone can walk along easily. Once we reach Matheran we will drop our luggage in our booked stay and go sightseeing to different viewpoints.

There a innumerous points to visit in Matheran, we will visit the most famous and worth visiting sights as per our time feasibility. The walking trails to the viewpoints are a different experience too since there won't be much sunlight and it is as though you're walking in a deep forest. We will be visiting Panorama point from which you have a 360 degrees view of the nearby ranges from Matheran. Next we'll be going to the echo point, as the name suggests if you shout here the valley will echo back.

Charlotte lake is our next stop. This lake is a feast to the eyes located amidst lush green forest. Very close to the Charlotte lake we have a reverse waterfall. The simple logic behind a reverse waterfall is the strong winds that blow the water upwards. We will walk back to our booked stay, have dinner and retire for the day. If the whole group is interested and are ready, then our trek leader will take you guys to a night forest walk and trust us, it's bound to be a crazy experience. There you will have dinner and end your day with a good sleep.

Lonavala to Hyderabad (Day 3)

Early morning wakeup call and freshen up. We will have proper washrooms since it is a room stay and not camping.

We will head to cover the rest of the viewpoints such as Monkey point, Honeymoon point, Alexander point, and incase if we miss any places on the previous day, we will cover them this morning. We will have breakfast and get back to our stay, packup and checkout.

We will be descending along the rail track route the same way like the ascend. Once we reach Dasturi, we will take a local vehicle and go to Lonavala bus station and board a bus back to Hyderabad.

Clothing & Footwear

Walking/Sports/Trekking shoe. (Please make sure that you are using soft rubber-sole footwear)
30-40 L backpack (Do not carry suitcases or trolleys)
Sleeping bag (You can replace it with a thin blanket or bed-sheet if you don't want to invest in a sleeping bag)
3 pairs of quick-dry clothing. (Please wear one pair on Friday night before coming to the railway station. You'll not get an opportunity to change during our travel.)
3 pairs of socks
Raincoat, rain cover for your bag, zip-lock pouches for mobiles

Food & Beverage

Min 2 liters of water each (Please bring reusable water bottles so that together we can discourage the use of plastic on the trails)
Snacks (Carry plenty of dry snacks, energy bars, candies & ORS to munch on during the trek)

Miscellaneous:

Camera
Power bank
Govt. Issued ID proof
Headtorch / Hand-held torch (Avoid mobile flashlights.)
Medicines (If you have any health issues. Please ensure that you inform our trek leaders beforehand.)
Sanitation kit (Carrying Odomos would come in handy)