A Karjat Trek : Khondana/ Kondana Caves

A busy week filled with work should always end in an offbeat location or in a calm and quiet weekend gateway. And if in search of such a location you are in the midst of the monsoons, then you must head to the hills. A short trek, a bathing friendly waterfall, picturesque surroundings and close friends/ family around. Nothing, absolutely nothing, gets better than this.

With the Sahyadris in colors of green, along with some people I knew and many others I met for the first time we set up for Kondana Caves at Karjat. Kondana Caves are ancient rock cut Buddhist caves. The sculptures and stupas are specimens of ancient Buddhist architecture. An earthquake in the early 19th decade damaged the floor, many stupas and caves.

Drinking liqour and smoking is banned during the trek and also in the caves. If you plan to trek to this place, kindly take all measures to keep the place clean.

The waterfall at the Khondana caves

The base of the trek to Kondana Caves is Kondhivde Village. A 30 mins ride from the Karjat railway station takes you to this village. The route to the trek goes through the main road in the village. A walk for the  next 10 mins amidst green fields and a river flowing on the right, you will see a board asking you to turn left for Kondana Caves. This is all thanks to the Archaeological Survey of India.  The route is a walk  on a gradual incline with only at times you find yourself climbing rocks. It passed through an Emu farm on the left and also three - four streams, one of which is quite bigger, spacious and has a nice waterfall too. Once you walk continuously for 45 mins from the base you reach the summit point.

After getting down from the hill, we had a gala time time in the river which flows along the village. You need to be careful and ask the villagers where to get into. There are a couple of reasons, one the river bed is not uniform and the slope if not gradual and you have to be really careful while taking each step. Two the river current increases when it rains up the hill. So absolutely no warnings!

How To Get There: Karjat is a couple of hours from Pune and Mumbai. The best and the fastest way from Mumbai is to take the Central Railway. Get a train from CST which goes to Karjat. Tip: Catch a window seat and get your camera ready at a very high shutter speed. Enjoy the scenes outside as they change from concrete jungles to an green jungles. Also if you aren't comfortable using the nature as a toilet, the railway station is the last place to pee and shit for you. Your next goal is to get a seat in the TumTum (8 seater rickshaw) to the Kondhivde village. Get a seat inside if you are scared of off-roading. Because the roads are bad (when an Indian says its bad, they are really bad). The ride lasts for 30 mins and the rick sways left, right and centre. Its a real bumpy ride. And guess what, there are no seat-belts on this roller coaster!! 

What To Eat:  Now let me tell you, there aren't a lot of options but whatever you get is tasty. The Divadkar Vadas are lip smacking. ( Can Vada Pavs be lip smacking, Dunno !!) I always eat a couple of them and carry another 2-3 with me ahead when I pass Karjat. The Kondhivde village at the base will look after your Tea-Coffee requirements. And you also get very good Poha here. Poha is a tasty Indian snack made out of flattened rice with different elements and mildly spicy. Yes, mot of the times, its not eye watering spicy. Tip: Do mention how spicy you want it to be. And yes there is no food that you will get on the top.

Best Time To Visit: Go after it has rained for a good couple of months. Mid August onwards till September. Not only will the surroundings be green then, but also if you are a flora, fauna and a botany person, there are a lot of wild migratory flowers which bloom in this season. And if you plan your trek during the wet spell of the August, be rest assured that the water fall will be flowing. And that's what is necessary to make your day just perfect. 

The walk through the village to the trek

Taking a slow shutter speed shot at the base of the waterfall

My friends Darryl D'Costa and Samson Fernandes at the base of the waterfall

Kaas Plateau of Flowers

Kaas Plateau of Flowers… It is a rich heritage. Protect it.

“Don’t stop, you keep moving.” The localite at the Kaas Plateau tells me.  Its 3 hours we are walking. He is explaining and I am stopping and clicking pictures. I look at him and both of us break into a smile. Both of us know he has won.

On my way to Kaas, I met a local person at the Satara ST stand. We sat next to each other in the bus which goes to Tetli at 530am in the morning and he curiously enquired about my trek bag, my camera and the tripod. He was also visiting the Kaas Plateau. He worked as a tourist guide in the forest department there and agreed to accompany me on my nature trail on the plateau. While speaking he told me that when u reach the plateau, you will see flowers as long as you can walk at one stretch. I was zapped and took that as a mere hyperbole. When he saw my ‘I-don’t-believe-you' expression, he challenged me. I gleefully accepted.  

And well he did win in the end.

Imagine yourself at a place where in one stretch there are just flowers and more flowers of different colors, shapes and sizes. No.. No.., this aint a traditional Bollywood set trickery with a backdrop of flowers, this is a beautiful plateau surrounded by the evergreen mountains, valleys and a calm lake.

District Satara is famous for a number of reasons right through the centuries. It was once the capital of the Maratha Kingdom. The great warriors like the Queen of Zhansi, Mahadaji Shinde of Gwalior, revolutionary freedom fighters like Nana Patil, Annasaheb Chirmule, Barrisster Appasaheb Pant were all born and brought up in and around Satara. The rivers Krishna, Koyna and Veena originate here. The villages of Apshinge and Chinchner of the district, even at this day, from ages boast of military personnel from each house. Satara has been and still is at the forefront in state and national politics.

Kaas Plateau is a flat plain also locally known as ‘sada’. The average height above the mean sea level is 1200-1300 meters. Kaas happens to be the topmost plateau in the area. The Plateau receives an annual rainfall of 2000 to 2500mm. The porous laterite rock allows most of the water to seep through or drain off. There is only a thin layer of soil and hence the plateau has no perennial vegetation. Only the rainy season supports vegetation. These peculiarities make this plateau extremely important and sensitive from a botanical point of view.
Later when the monsoon settles in, wild flowers bloom in millions, each in a different hue, of a different shape, of a different texture. Quoting from “Kaas Plateau of Flowers” by Dr. Sandeep Shrotri, President, Ranwata (NGO helping to preserve the biodiversity) – There are 1,500 types of plants in Kaas - 156 botanical families, 680 genera, 1452 species, 400 medicinal plants, and about 33 endangered varieties in Kaas and the neighboring Koyna area. The area is also rich in biodiversity like Butterflies and moths, local birds, migratory birds, reptiles and mammals. The laterite stone allows a rich variety of fungi, lichen, ferns and mosses to thrive. This rich natural treasure can be compared only to the ‘Valley of Flowers’ in Uttaranchal in North India. 

The forest department has now chalked a new tourist management plan for the plateau which is now a part of the 39 sites that United Nations Education, Scientific and Cultural Organization’s (UNESCO) has declared a World Heritage Site. Having gained the WHS tag, the plateau will see only 2000 visitors per day in an attempt to preserve the Indian ‘hot spots’ for biodiversity.

Kaas Plateau is a home to rare wild flowers like the Aponogetan Satarenis, Begonia, Ceropagia  - Lantern Flowers, Euphorbia, Iphigenia, Smithia, Drossera, Cryptocoryne, etc. Amphibians and Reptiles like the Garden Lizard, Fan throated Lizard, Common Indian Monitor, various species of Frogs, Rat Snake, Russel’sViper, Vine Snake. Mammals like the barking deer, flying fox stripped hyena, small Indian mongoose, wild boar and the Indian wolf.

A long walk down the plateau on the other side, and you reach the Kaas Lake and the Kaas Dam. A calm lake stretching north-south lines with dense green forest situated exactly in nature’s large amphitheatre!

The forest department at the entry of the nature trail on the plateau has listed down the do’s and don’ts while on the plateau. Kindly abide by the same and in doing so you will contribute your bit to preserve the bio diversity. Move in small groups of two or maximum four, this will not only help you to be more engrossed in your surroundings but also help you click pictures of birds, butterflies and moths. While moving around keep an informative book of the various species of fungi, ferns, flowers, birds, reptiles and mammals found on the plateau. And not to forget while clicking pictures turn your digital cameras on the macro modes and take care of the plants while clicking them.

How to get there: The base of the visit to Kaas is Satara City. Satara station is well connected by the Indian railway network. The railway station is 10kms from the Satara city and State Transport buses and rickshaws take you to and fro. Another option is the State Transport buses which takes you to the heart of the City, ST Stand. Satara is 6/7 hours drive from Mumbai and 2/3 hours from Pune and the 4 lane tar roads are excellent.From the Satara Bus State Transport Stand, there is a bus to Tetli which leaves at 530am. It will drop you at the Kaas Plateau at 6am. There is one ST bus every hour but you need to reach there at the crack of dawn.

Where to stay: Satara has a wide range of hotels from Rs700-Rs 2000 per night with flexible check in and check out times. All hotels are mainly located around the ST Stand on Radhika Road. 

What to eat: Satara is situated in the interiors of the Maharshtra, And all places in the interiors are known for their spicy dishes.  The Vada Pav, Kande (Onion) Bhajji, Batata (patato) Bhajji, Mirchi (Chilly) Vade make a good snack. Plenty of fruits to chose from. And if you are a Non-Vegeterian, chicken and mutton  with a plate full of rice or ambolis (type of dosa) will keep you looking forward to the next meal of the day. Satara is famous of Kandi Pedhas, so don’t forget to take a box back home. Nothing is available of the plateau. Carry your lunch along. Don’t feed the animals, birds and don’t litter the area there.

Best Time To Visit: September to October second week when the entire plateau blooms. A chill but pleasant wind blows all the time and the area is covered in thick fog during this time. Be well equipped.

And yes let me know of your experience!