Kalsubai (Mountain in the western Ghats), being the highest peak of Maharashtra, is subsumed in the bucket list of an avid trekker. Its summit, situated at an elevation of 1,646 metres (5,400 ft), the highest point in Maharashtra lies within the Kalsubai Harishchandragad Wildlife Sanctuary. The mountain can be viewed in its entirety from Bari village located on its eastern side, about six km from Bhandardara. It can be reached by road, via Igatpuri on the Mumbai-Nasik route. Trains leaving from Mumbai provide an alternate mode of transport to Kasara railway station, with connecting State Transport buses, plying on the Akole-Kasara route, leading up to the base village.
So finally, at 01:00 am we were catching a glimpse of Kalsubai peak and were getting ready to start the trek. One of the most unique experience of this trek was that it was a night trek…yes you heard it right…A night trek!!!
So, after doing some stretching exercises, we geared up our bags and with our torches out we went ahead for a long and dark climb to the highest peak Mount Kalsubai. It was a 6.6 km long trek with an elevation gain of around 2,700 feet (820 m). We started off from Hanuman Temple near to our base village. The route from behind this temple took us straight to the summit.
The trek was a mix of easy to ascend slopes along with treacherous rocky outcrops surrounding the valley below. Another unique thing of this trek was iron ladders built along the vertical hill slopes. It was thrilling, adventurous and scary at the same time. It was so mesmerizing as we all were climbing the iron ladder in a que with torch in one hand. The mellow and radiant moon light and ambient music added to the adventurous experience we were witnessing.
Finally, after hiking for 3-4 hours, we reached the summit at 4:30 am in freezing cold. The sky lined with stars and moon was so surreal that we were just gazing it for almost an hour or so. The truncated summit provides a modest area of flat land which holds a sacred temple of Kalsubai. It is believed that a young village girl named Kalsubai, lived in the mountains. One day she left for the summit and never returned back. So, in her memory, a small temple was built.
Finally, at 5:30 when night turned into day there was a glow in the sky as we were all desperately waiting for the sun to rise. After half an hour, dawn came seeping down the mountainsides and it was all enigmatic. The mystifying view of the sky along with golden beams of sunlight were so soothing to the eyes that it was beyond description. We enjoyed the sun blooming over the horizon and it was so appalling to behold the changing colors of the sky.
Lastly, after having breakfast we descended back to our base village and finally bidding adieu to each other.
It was a surreal experience for all nature lovers and trek enthusiasts. It was a challenging yet fun-filled trek offering an amazing panoramic view of several more mountain ranges like Alang, Madangad, Kulang, Ratangad Pabhargad, Ghanchakkar & Harishchandragad.
