Gorakhgad One of the Best Trekking Experiences

Gorakhgad Trek is a nice one day outing for trekkers in and around Mumbai. The base village is Dehari in Murbad Taluka in Thane District. It has a temple of Lord Shiva at the peak which is named after Saint Gorakhnath who did tapasya (devoted prolonged prayers) and stayed at the peak.

Alongside the hill is another mountain called Machindragad named after saint Machindranath.

It was February and around that period when the winter is over and it had just started becoming a little hotter. Moreover, as it was 13^th February there were many drop outs considering the Valentine’s Day that followed.  But as it eventually turned out this time, like in many times earlier we had a lot of fun.

 In all we were eight people with a mixed spread from central & western suburbs so we all decided to meet at Kalyan Junction Railway station and coincidentally we managed to catch the same train which reached at about 7.17 a.m. at Kalyan station.

Now there were two options we had worked out to reach Gorakhgad. One was to take a bus to Murbad from Kalyan S.T.  stand and then take another bus from Murbad to Dehari.  The other is to book a taxi available outside Kalyan station on the west. I had already booked an armada taxi and he was there at station right at 7.15 a.m.  

We were waiting for just one more friend so we used that time to negotiate with the cab driver. Also the station would be the last best place to take a washroom break so we did just that. Eventually, we left at about 7.45 a.m. towards what would be one of the most amazing treks of my life, opting for the second option as it cost us a negotiated price of Rs. 1300/- which meant we had to pay only a meager sum of Rs 160 /- per head for a to and fro trip with stops wherever we wanted to. The route is pretty as any typical ride in Maharashtra would be, with a single main road surrounded by the green fields which appeared a little pale & dry in this season. The road wasn’t too crowded either, and as we moved away from the Kalyan city our jeep has started dominating the road by its huge presence. We spend this time for ice breaking of new members, jokes discussions & songs.

At about 9.00 am we had reached Mhasa Village where the driver asked us for breakfast as it was the last place for breakfast & carrying lunch and water.  

We had about 15 minutes break for a hot Tea, missal pav and Bhajji. Having carried light lunch and water we then moved to the last part of our journey towards the base village Dehari. All the excitement and enthusiasm was flowing through, and we were lost in beautiful fields and the kutiyas (small village houses)   surrounding the road. All of a sudden the car stopped. “We have reached the base”, the driver said.

We came out of the car and saw two beautiful peaks at the top. There were steps at the village for a temple presenting a warm welcome.  

It’s the base temple of lord Shiva. It is meant for those who cannot reach the top due to some reason or other, a replica of the temple at the top. Many trekkers use the courtyard of the temple to rest in the night in case they are want to start trekking very early in the morning to see the dawn. If one wishes one can also stay at the ashram, which is about 5 minutes walk from the temple. 

 The way towards the top starts from the back side of this temple, where there is a board with instructions about the precautions to be taken, while you are around the sanctuary. We started at about 9.30 am from here.

The trek

 It is a very clear and one of the least confusing trails towards the top. There’s a distinct pathway to reach the top and all the time you can see the top because the climb is very very steep as compared to some other treks in Maharashtra.

The following are some important milestones which one may come across during the complete climb of about 3 hrs and the difficulty and endurance requirement keeps on increasing as you reach each one of these. Although it’s not really absorbing but it’s a bit tricky, in a way as it needs proper technique and discipline to reach the top. It is very well facilitated by the provision of steps made of rocks with a slots for grip at critical stages of the trek, thanks to the recent developments (1970s) carried out in the region is what the local people at the base temple told us.

Milestone 1: Small Shiv Linga with a Water Tank and a Shade.

There is a small hill jutted out of the main range which has the only path to reach the pinnacle which makes it a kind of roller coaster ride going up and down the smaller hill to reach the base of the main hill. The path is pleasant with different kinds of trees and, birds chirping along those trees.

This is where we saw a lot of small birds, but one needs to be very quiet to spot them and to capture them as they are shy and they fear our presence. I wish I had an SLR camera but we tried our level best to capture whatever we could from the normal digital cameras that we had. We  moved along the periphery of the small hill and on our right (while moving forward) we saw a beautiful range of mountains standing shoulder to shoulder against each other and  the sun rays making way through the curvatures of the top of the hills, showing a clear throw of beam of lights shining upon us. If you are a nature lover as most trekkers are, this is a lovely moment to capture in cameras and breathe the fresh air in the surroundings. 

But as the weather was very dry the green vegetation had turned bone-dry and the strong winds at that height were spreading a forest fire right in our way. We considered the possibility of being stuck up while returning as the fire was covering most of the mountain, but who cared. In fact, that added to the adventure and thrill part and none of us even bothered to stop. The locals keep visiting the temples and you meet them on the way and can get some information about your position when you meet them. 

But tell you what, don’t go by their estimates as they are pretty used to the terrain and they visit very frequently. We met a bunch of boys running (I mean literally running) and shouting on their way to the top.

About a couple of hours of walk at about 12.30 a.m. , taking snaps & stopping at times, we reached the first   mile stone which is a small temple with a water tank with pure drinking water, thanks to the Dehari Sansthan .

It has a small Shiv-ling with some shendoor (vermillion) dabbed rocks nearby. It also has a place of shade maintained by the same Sansthan. This place has a cover of shrubs and trees and is the last shady place on the way forward just at the base of the summit.

Milestone 2: The Cave

Till here it is quiet an easy trek. But reaching the top of the mountain at the temple becomes very exciting, though should be avoided in the monsoon (is what we think).   From here on one can see the a shendoor dabbed door of a small cave way through the huge rock and the treks starts to get almost vertically upwards on the steps made.

 The smaller way through the cave leads through to another patch of rocky steps to climb and finally you reach a very beautiful cave beneath the summit. This is place we decided we will have food on our way back. Here you can relax and can wait if you are planning any overnight stay but make sure you don’t spoil it as it is very clean and nicely maintained.

It has a few water places around its periphery. Some of the sources were good (yet not drinkable is what we thought).From around this cave we walked our way forward and were stuck as after moving along the periphery as we reached a dead end. 

The reason is because we missed a step which is above a vertical rock patch of around 8ft as the first few steps are blown. This is the only part of the trek which misled us. One needs to keep looking for the arrow marks made on the rocks.

Milestone 3- The Temple at the Highest Point

After climbing the small rock patch we headed vertically upwards taking the steps which have a natural spiral swing making it a real thrilling experience.

One has to be very disciplined and cautious here as the steps are steep and have a small space for footing. The fun & fear about this part is that when you look behind you see a valley and one daunting peak of Machindragad. We moved very slowly taking snaps and recording videos.

In about an hour’s time at about 1.30 p.m. we finally reached the topmost point of the trek which is the temple.

There is a Shiv-Ling, a Nandi (Holy Cow) and a Trishul (trident). We all had a bit of rest at the top and after having a good look at the fort and the surrounding ranges we descended down.

Coming down is more fun than reaching up as you keep looking into the steep valleys. We reached the cave for our lunch break.We had a good 15 minutes rest in the cave which is a cooler place surrounded by the water bodies.

 Then at about 3 p.m. we were off to a nonstop descend which took about two and a half hours. One needs to be very careful trekking down the stairs till the base of the summit. 

As it was February the thoughts of it getting darker early was lingering around our minds. On our way back we found lot of spots slippery and the ones amongst us without proper shoes suffered a bit. When we reached the base at the temple we met the locals who were quite amazed by our feet of reaching the top and retuning back. There we drank a lot of water provided by the devotees and they shared the rich history of the fort with us. Our cab driver was already there one hour prior and we then set ourselves into the armada for a return journey to reach Kalyan Station at about 7.30 p.m.

We looked at the twin pinnacles of Gorakhgad and Machindragad almost as if saying good bye to us with the same warmth in which they welcomed us. The two of them stamped in our brains, having created memories that still make us all excited and talking about …. Moments that we cherished …..

At a Glance
Trek -Gorakhgad
Height above mean sea level - 2140 feet
Base Village -Dehari
Transport Kalyan to Murbad by bus, Murbad to Dehari by bus
Time to reach the top -About 2 hours from the base
Shelter -Caves at the top