Saguna Baug: Weekend Gateway from Mumbai

I was in luck last weekend when my friend invited me to visit the Saguna Baug with him! My finances are at an all-time low, and yet I was itching to travel “somewhere” and this weekend gateway seemed like the right option.

I was sceptical at first as the place should ideally be visited in the monsoons. But like I said, anything is better than sitting at home.

The moment I stepped into their compound, I knew I had made the right decision. Established in the middle of a small ‘village like city’, Saguna Baug has rural charm with modern facilities. They have stay facilities, of different kinds and numerous activities. You can visit them for a day too! That’s what I did!

One of the stay options. My next trip here will be with 2-3 day stay

We began by a guided tour of the place. I was amazed by the variety of trees and plants which the place flaunts. They mostly grow rice and onions there according to the nature of soil. But they also have a beautiful area of flowers like red roses. Small ponds which flaunt beautiful lotuses after a few meters itself. Even though we roamed under the harsh sunlight, the air was refreshingly cool. 

Banana Tree: Photo courtesy Anil. Parmar

My friend and I decided to skip the guided tour midway the moment we discovered this! We could not resist taking nap! I realised that nothing beats sleeping under a tree near a resting river!

My favourite thing apart from travel. Photo Courtesy: Anil. P

Well, we decided to follow our group again after sometime, and we discover that they are enjoying catching fish. Saguna Baug is well known for fish rearing, and local boys dive in the ponds to catch these. This is an activity itself. I respect all foods, however, I was completely grossed out by this. Somehow the sight ghastly feel to this. No pictures here guys! Individual fishing rods are also provided if asked for.

                                                                

Archery: One of the many activities

The best part of the activity is the dip in the Ulhas River which flows right through this compound. We could see the water bed the moment we approached the sight. I could not have imagined a free flowing clean river just 2 hours away from Mumbai. We swam in the river, floated and collected stones. Splashed!

The clear water bed of Ulhas River. Photo courtesy: Anil P

We head off for the need of survival- Food! The food is prepared by local villagers and delicious is not the word for it! The service is by young men who are very eager to serve you. My friend said, “They are so good because they are young! They work with zeal.” We ate till we could not even get up from our seats! We were too engrossed in food to think of clicking. So no pictures here. But the rajma, dal, rice, roti, salad, chaas, sweeets, palak sabzi were irrestible after the Ulhas dip. We though we might just sleep of the afternoon, but headed for the river yet again. 

Enjoying the cool feel. Photo Courtesy: Anil. P

How to reach Saguna Baug

I took a train to Karjat (S) from Thane (T).

We get off at Neral

We take a rickshaw from Neral to Saguna Baug.

Things to keep in mind while you travel to this part

  -          For Saguna Baug, the amount includes food and tea. The food is really good

  -          Neral is crowded on  weekends as a number of weekend gateways are through this station. No worried here as it is just  the family crowd

  -          Rs. 100 is the cost of the individual rickshaw to Saguna Baug

  -          Keep a change of clothes

Top three things I loved about Saguna Baug

1. Ease of reach

        2.The Ulhas River

        3. Reasonably priced

Check about other weekend gateways on this link

 http://chaikitapridiaries.blogspot.in/2013/08/kundalika-water-rafting-and-tamhini.html

Kundalika Water Rafting and Tamhini Ghats

We are known for planning at the end and making it work! The magic is created by my friends whom I accompany every time. This time we planned rafting at Kundalika followed by a drive to Tamhini. After chit chatting till 3 in the morning, we are set in the morning 5 for our drive. We hire a cab from Thane and set off to a drive of about 3 hours through lush green fields, hills and clouds.

The drive is to Kolad which is a small village nestled between the western ghats. There are numerous operators for rafting, but during monsoons it’s good to have a pre booking done. 

Kundalika. Photo courtesy: SJ

River water rafting at Kundalika is early mornings and evenings when the water is released from the dam. The gush of the water makes it an apt place for rafting. The guides brief us on safety and security during rafting. After the 45 minutes talk we are allowed to jump into our rafts! Our guides welcome us onboard with a splash of water shouting “good morning”. Well dude! What a morning indeed. The good morning game is one of the numerous games we play along the way which continues till the end! The guides are friendly and have war cries ready for “waring” the raft. It is just wow!

Photo courtesy: One of our guides

The Johnyy Walker  and Laughing Buddha just shake us off from our lazy bones . The 12km stretch is marked by small and big rapids, fun filled fames by our guides and lush green fields and hills. The rafting experience ends with an area where you can swim in the water, just laze around. We floated on water watching the clouds go by.

River water rafting is fun for all ages. The guides sometimes have a dry bag for you to keep your valuables. Or else, you can also ask your driver to stock your things for you! For bookings to Kundalika river water rafting, you can book directly with an agent- that’s what we did! Or google up other contacts online!

Rafting has to be followed by sumptuous lunch. We had carried our dabba and just delved into it. 

Fun time after rafting. Photo courtesy: SJ

We then head towards the Tamhini Ghats which is on the way to Pune. The ghats have waterfalls at almost every turn and are they gorgeous. One can see nature at its purest form here with deep ghats on one end and the falls on the other. After a drive for about ½ hour we run to the nearest waterfall. We were lucky to get a waterfall which had a huge rock crafted like a seat right under the water flow. The icy cold water hit us and we divulged in ecstasy.  Amidst nature all one can do was to surrendered to the speed and flow there, to feel the bliss.

After about an hour at the fall and lot of photography we headed back to our car. Another lovely weekend comes to an end. It’s a must visit during monsoons!

Dint want to get out this water fall. Photo courtesy: SJ

Just a few basics:

1. Kundalika and Tamhini Ghats are around 180 km from Mumbai

2. Its best to go in a group and hire a cab- saves time and efforts

3. Carrying your own lunch/ snacks is preferred. (you never know about hygiene levels in monsoons)