Exploring Harishchandragad: A Pilgrimage for the Adventurous Souls

Malshej Ghat is a mystic place situated in the lap of the Western Ghats that is extravagantly adorned with mountains, various waterfalls. This place attracts tons of trekkers, hikers, nature lovers, travelers, and bikers. Malshej has been the new traveler attraction for the individuals around Mumbai and Pune.

What makes Malshej Ghat a singular place to explore is the sight of how the cascading waterfalls behold your sight, the varied flora, and fauna, and the way various forts provide you with a glimpse of the wealthy heritage.

In this journal, we tend to square measure aiming to explore the Mystic Harishchandragad via the Khireshwar route.

How to Reach:

By Road:

• From Mumbai, it is 155 km.
• From Pune, it's 124 km.

Best Time to Visit:

The best time to visit is from August to February.

About Harishchandragad Fort:

Harishchandragad Fort is an ancient hill fort in Ahmednagar district of Maharashtra, India. The remnants of Micro lithic man have been discovered here. It has an elevation of 4000 feet above sea level. The references of this fort may be seen in various Puranas (ancient scriptures) like Matsyapurana, Agnipurana, and Skandapurana. The fastness was engineered throughout the rule of Kalachuri dynasty within the 6th century. Its aforesaid many caves with the idols of Lord Vishnu - Hindu deity were graven out in the 11th century.

Harishchandragad has three major peaks specifically, Taramati, Harishchandra, and Rohidas. The Taramati Peak is the highest point of all and is the most visited by trekkers which offers a mesmerizing perspective of the complete Konkan region. Forts like Shivneri, Mahuli, Jeevdhan, Gorakhgad, Hadsar, Chavand, Nimgiri, Sindola, Machhindra, Siddhagad, Kaladgad, Bhairavgad, (Moroshi), as well as Bhairavgad (Shirpunje), Kunjargad are visible from Harishchandragad.

Trek Details:

Our journey began around 2 pm from the Kalyan bus stand. Earlier the plan was to ride to the base village of Harishchandragad fort and start the trek, however, due to some personal reason the plan changed and we decided to travel by public transport. It takes around 3-4 hours to reach the bus stop of the base village. We took the bus towards Ahmednagar and got down at khireshwar bus stop. The base village is about 4-5kms away from the bus stop. We walked around Pimpalgaon dam which took us around an hour to reach the base village. Had some Maggie, poha, and chai for breakfast, relaxed for a moment and began our ascend.

Pimpalgaon dam

Breakfast at Khireshwar

It takes 4-5hrs to succeed in the summit. Keeping in mind the piece of land and also the time we carried nearly three litres of water. The route was physically and mentally challenging so we had decided to start the trek in the evening and have a halt at kokankada. We almost started our trek around 6 pm. The sooner trial was via a dense forest that was straightforward, later on, the climb was rocky with less flora and fauna. We reached a point from where we were able to see the base village. There are stalls at regular intervals, which are open during the daytime.

Rocky trail

At night it's tough to trace the signs and marking done by our fellow trekkers and hikers. At some point when we lost the track of the signs and marking, we realized that it was a full moon night and took a halt and enjoyed the moment. After watching the wraith-silver disc hanging in the lonely sky we started our rummage around for the path and headed towards our destination.

Full Moon

On the way towards kokankada a rat snake crossed our path. Try not to disturb these wild animals. We reached kokankada after 5 hours of trek. We had already booked our tent for a night in advance. After freshening up we were served with the native culinary i.e. Bhakri and hot and spicy Pithala. We were exhausted and hungry that each of us ate almost 2-3 massive Bhakris. Post dinner everybody visited their tent and tried to take nap. The next day early morning we visited kokankada to witness the majestic view. It was spellbinding that we could not justify it in our words. 

                  

               kokankada view

kokankada view

Later we freshened ourselves, had our breakfast, and headed towards Harischandreshwar temple. 

Camping at Kokankada

While heading back I met with an accident. My gliding joint was twisted and was in deep pain. We had carried the first aid kit, which proved to be useful. My friends brought me a stick so that I could walk and cut back the pressure on the twisted gliding joint.

Harischandreshwar temple entrance

We fell in love with the carved sculptors and the complex design of the Harischandreshwar temple. It is carved out of a single rock, it is a testimony to the marvelous artistry of the ancient artisans. River Mangal Ganga originates from the tanks near the Temple. There are 3 caves near the temple. Moving towards the right direction of the Harischandreshwar Temple, we came across a huge cave that houses the Shiva Linga- it is the Kedareshwar Cave. The unique attraction here is the Shiv Linga which is surrounded by ice-cold water and a large rock with 4 pillars around the Linga works as a support for this cave. However 4 out of 3 pillars have already fallen. We took the blessing and clicked some pictures of the temple.

Harischandreshwar temple

Kedareshwar Cave

We were supposed to visit Taramati peak, however, due to my twisted gliding joint situation, we had to change our plan and started our descent. It took us almost 5-6 hours to descent down the fort. Thanks to my friends I was able to reach the base village and complete the trek safely.

This place is good for solo as well as group trek, but I will prefer you to visit this place in the group. As per my experience, when we had visited this place, it was less crowded and we were able to explore and click some good pictures at the main points.

Trek difficulty is medium and the cost of the whole trek was around 1200 INR per person.

Note:

Do not litter while trekking and also see if anyone is doing so please request them not to litter. Do not throw wrappers or plastic, kindly carry it down your backpack and throw it in the dustbin.

Things to carry:

• 2-3 liter Water 
• Wear full pants and full sleeves t-shirts
• Wear Trekking shoes as they provide a good grip
• Cap / Sun cream / Glares
• Dry fruits / Energy bars / Dry Snacks (Glucose Biscuits)
• Glucon-D / Tang
• Napkin
• ID proof
• Blanket/warmers
• First Aid kit

 Check out the vlog of Harishchandragad trek.