Head out to this Unexplored Hill Station of Maharashtra.

Tripoto
13th Aug 2016
Photo of Head out to this Unexplored Hill Station of Maharashtra. by Radhika Thankar
Day 1


Rainy Trip for this season was Chikhaldara. Chikhaldara is the only hill station in Amravati district and is featured in the epic of the Mahabharata, this is the place where Bheema killed the villainous Keechaka in a herculean bout and then threw him into the valley. It thus came to be known as Keechakadara—Chikhaldara.

So we started planning this long weekend trip in August when it doesn't rain a lot so you can do all the sight seeing without any Hassel and the weather is just beautifully perfect. Everything was planned ahead of time and the day arrived for us to start our journey to the most beautiful hill station in the state of Maharashtra.
We boarded Howrah Mail from CST station at 20:45 and reached Bandnera railway station at 7:45 in the morning.

We had booked a room for 2 nights at Satpura Retreat in Chikhaldara and they arrange a pick-up, drop and sight seeing vehicle for 7k. Accordingly 8 seater vehicle came to pick us up from Badnera Railway station. We placed our luggage in the vehicle and started our way up to the hill station. As we were nearing our destination the air started getting chilled and it was foggy all around. I could smell the freshness in the air. We reached our resort at around 11:00. Resort was placed at the end of the road so no traffic and we could clicked some awesome pics sitting on the foggy deserted road. Resort was not a luxury one but was clean and well kept and the best one in Chikhaldara. We checked in into our rooms and freshened up and went out for a stroll in the resort. The resort is a small one with a machan where u can have lunch or dinner and a beautiful water body, we could see clouds floating on the water, a beautiful sight to remember.

We had our lunch in resort itself and after lunch we were picked up by our driver for local sight seeing. Our first stop was Bheemkund,  it is believed as per the mytholgy, Bhim killed a demon "Kichak" here and then washed his hands in what is now called Bhim Kund. It is also a pilgrimage place. One of the spectacular waterfall in the region ,from where you can enjoy the breathtaking views of the valley and waterfall. Later we had a boat ride in Shakkar lake with clouds passing by slowly across the lake. Beauty at it's best and we throughly enjoyed the ride. Our last stop for the day was Gawilgadh, unfortunately by the time we reached it closed and therefore we just clicked some pics around and returned back the next day morning.

We went back to our resort had our dinner and went to sleep peacefully. The best part was throughout the trip we experienced a Misty atmosphere which was absolutely romantic. 😍

Photo of Head out to this Unexplored Hill Station of Maharashtra. by Radhika Thankar
Photo of Head out to this Unexplored Hill Station of Maharashtra. by Radhika Thankar
Photo of Head out to this Unexplored Hill Station of Maharashtra. by Radhika Thankar
Photo of Head out to this Unexplored Hill Station of Maharashtra. by Radhika Thankar
Day 2

Next day morning after our customary morning cup of tea we visited a nearby market and bought some stuff to eat which was snatched away by the monkeys while returning back. Beware of the monkeys here, they are quiet mischievous. 😉
After the breakfast we set out for Gawilgadh. This historically significant place was the mountain stronghold of the Maratha Empire during the British rule in India.  The constant repulsion and war raged against the British by the mighty Marathas led to a situation where the British had to shed away their idea of taking over this place. This is a must visit place. The most noticeable features of Gawilgarh fort are – its Persian inscriptions, two lakes, teen darwazey (3 gates), a ruined mosque inside the fort which was built using pathan style of architecture. We could not cover the whole fort since we had a child with us but we would definitely visit it again to see more.

After the fort visit we had our lunch and got all ready for the most beautiful experience. As the Melghat Tiger Reserve was closed due to monsoons we were taken for a ride around the reserve and it was one of the best ride I ever had and then we visited the top most point named Vairat where a small temple is situated. The experience is beyond words. You have to visit this place specifically in monsoons to see heaven on Earth. After the delightful ride we were dropped back to our resort.

Photo of Head out to this Unexplored Hill Station of Maharashtra. by Radhika Thankar
Photo of Head out to this Unexplored Hill Station of Maharashtra. by Radhika Thankar
Photo of Head out to this Unexplored Hill Station of Maharashtra. by Radhika Thankar
Photo of Head out to this Unexplored Hill Station of Maharashtra. by Radhika Thankar
Photo of Head out to this Unexplored Hill Station of Maharashtra. by Radhika Thankar
Day 3

We had planned to visit Narnala Fort on the last day but due to some health issues we cancelled the same last minute. Narnala Fort is around 3 hrs from Chikhaldara which is again a place of historical importance. It is the birth place of Aurangzeb's great grandson. Narnala, also known as "Shahnur Fort", is a hill fortress named after the Rajput Ruler Narnala Singh. The fort was first established in 10 century A.D. by Gond Kings. In the 15th Century it was occupied and rebuilt by the Mughals. It consists of three small forts: Zafarabad (or Jafarabad) fort on the east, Narnala in the centre and Teliagarh to the west. The lake within the centre of the complex is said to possess healing properties.

As we dropped the plan to visit this historical fort we just relaxed in the resort and left for our way back home with loads of beautiful memories to look back on and a promise to visit this place again before it catches eye of maddening crowd of the cities.