Bramhagiri Trek - Trimbakeshwar Jyotirling

  

Travel Date : 15th October, 2022

Mode of Transport : Train and Bus

History of the Bramhagiri Hill

    Brahmagiri is a hill in the Western Ghats of Maharashtra.It is situated in Nashik District in the Indian state of Maharashtra. Trimbakeshwar Shiva Temple is located near this place. The origin of the sacred Godavari river is near Trimbak. It flows for 1,465 kilometres (910 mi), first eastwards across the Deccan Plateau then turns southeast, entering the West Godavari district and East Godavari district of Andhra Pradesh, until it splits into two watercourses that widen into a large river delta and flow into the Bay of Bengal.

    Brahmagiri, the hill (giri) of Lord Brahma, appear in many mythological and legendary documents. The Puranas state that the Gautama Maharishi and his wife Ahilya resided on this hill. Saint Gautam worshiped Lord Shiva to bring Ganga in this hill. This river is known as River Gautami in the Brahmagiri hills.

    The water flows in three directions on the mountain. The one flowing towards east becomes Godavari river, one flowing towards the south is Vaitarna river and the one flowing towards the west is called the west-flowing Ganga and meets Godavari near Chakra Tirth. River Ahilya meets Godavari in front of the Trimbakeshwar Jyotirlinga temple.

How To Reach by Public Transport

• Nashik is the nearest railway station.
• Several trains available for Nashik from Mumbai and Pune.
• From Nashik road bus depot Nashik transport buses are available with 30 - 45 minutes interval for Trimbakeshwar Jyotirling.
• If you reach by road at Nashik then nearest bus depot is Nashik old CBS, you will get Nashik transport buses in every 30 - 45 minutes interval for Trimbakeshwar Jyotirling.
• From Trimbakeshwar Jyotirling temple you have to walk for 30 - 45 minutes to reach at the starting point of trek.

Travel and Trek Experience

    I had done this trek with my parents when I was 3 years old, in 1993. After 29 years, once again i got a chance to trek at Bramhagiri Mountain with my friends (Kaushal, Vinayak and Rohidas), The actual plan was to visit Durgbhandra Fort via Bramhagiri.

    We boarded a Tapovan express train from Dadar station - Mumbai at 6:00 AM and got down at Nashik around 10:30 AM. Outside Nashik station, we had breakfast. In my opinion, the taste and quality of food are not good in the hotels, outside the station; at least for tea, try local vendors at the roadside.

    We decided to visit Vani - Saptashrungi godess temple first, so we boarded the Nashik public transport bus for the old CBS (Central Bus Depot Nashik), and from there we boarded the Vani bus for Saptashrungi mountain.

Note : Do not hire rickshaws or private vehicles; they will charge a lot. There are buses towards Nashik Old CBS bus depot from the Nashik Road bus depot at an interval of 1 hour. From the old CBS bus depot, buses are available every hour towards Vani and Trimbakeshwar.

    We reached Vani - Saptashrungi mountain at around 1:30 PM; instead of climbing stairs, we decided to go through a ropeway (train), which cost 100 Rs with a return ticket. We had a close darshan of the godess Saptashrungi and returned to the base of the temple. The temple trustee built a building for devotees, which has a food court, shops, and rest rooms. We had lunch over there, the food is tasty and reasonable. After having lunch, we started our return journey towards Nashik's old CBS depot at around 4:30 p.m.

Vani Saptashrungi Ropeway

Godess Saptashrungi

    We were waiting for MSRTC bus, one shared taxi driver arrived at us and said he will drop at Old CBS depot in just 120 Rs, only 5 Rs extra compared to MSRTC bus, we ensured taxi is not over loaded with passenger and agreed to go from shared taxi.

    We reached the old CBS bus depot at around 6:00 PM, had tea at a roadside stall, and went to the CBS depot to check the timing of the Trimbakeshwar bus. Luckily, the bus is standing in front of us and ready to depart. We reached Trimbakeshwar at around 8:00 p.m.

    We already booked a room in Shri Gagangiri Maharaj Bhakt Niwas. We reached at Bhakt Niwas and came to know that I forgot to bring an ID proof (Aadhar card) photocopy with me, so we go outside in search of a printer/xerox shop. After spending almost 30 minutes, we found one shop, took a printout of my Aadhar card, and checked in to the rooms, but we missed the darshan timing.

Note: Room rents are cheaper than other private hotels; rooms are clean and neat; they also have geyser facilities, so there is no need to wait for hot water in the winter season. You can book rooms online from the below website: https://yatradham.org/ Search for your state or destination and book your room.

Swami Gagangiri Maharaj Bhakt Niwas

    We got fresh and went towards the temple, but found the gates were already closed, so we had dinner, took some walks around the temple, did some shopping, and went to the Bhakt Niwas for rest at around 11:30 PM. The next day, we woke up at 3:30 in the morning and got ready for darshan. Around 5:00 a.m., we were in the darshan queue. Around 5:30 a.m., the temple gates opened, I had a darshan of Trimbakeshwar Jyotirling, had some clicks outside the temple, and went for a break fast.

Trimbakeshwar Temple North Gate

Trimbakeshwar Jyotirling Temple

    After having breakfast, we started our trek to Bramhagiri at around 7:00 a.m. One of my friends had already warned me about monkeys, so we had prepared accordingly, After reaching the gate of Fort Bramhagiri, we saw a group of monkeys, and even after taking so much care, one of the baby monkeys scratched my hand. We crossed the gate, took a rest at the lemon juice stall, and also cleaned the wound.

Bramhagiri Trail

Bramhagiri mountain map

    After drinking two glasses of lemon juice, we started our journey towards the top of the mountain. We reached the top at around 10:00 a.m. We took a halt to find the correct direction and took a left towards Godavari temple, where the Godavari river originates. We visited 2-3 temples and also had sankalp (resolution) at each temple.

Goumikh Temple - Gautamrishi

Mulganga Temple

Note : Pujari / Pandit in each temple asks you to sit and hold water in your hand for resolution (sankalpa) purposes. After that, they ask for dakshina (fees), As per my personal opinion, this is a scam; it is in each individual's interest to do sankalp at each temple. You can simply refuse, but we were not aware of this scam and became victims.

    After taking darshan in all the temples, we turned around and went towards Jata Mandir, which is on the right side of the mountain, where traces of the god Shiva struck his hair tress (Jata). After taking darshan, we had a cucumber from the outside stall and started the journey towards Durgbhandar fort, The way towards Durgbhandar fort starts from the backside of Jata Mandir.

Jata Temple

    While moving towards it, we observed that the path is too narrow, and on the left side is a 600-foot valley. Still, we carried on, but after reaching midway, we observed the path was covered by grass and we were unable to identify the path easily, so we decided not to take the risk and turned around and started our return journey towards Jata Mandir.

Durgbhandar Fort

    It was almost 11:30 a.m. We started to descend, After 30 minutes of descent, we reached the old building known as Dharmshala. We took some photos and moved towards the gate of Gangadwar. We took a left towards Gangadwar, took a short break, and had snacks to gain energy. When we reach the Gangadwar route, we are surprised to see that we need to climb more than 200 steps. We had already decided to visit each and every temple, so we started climbing towards Ganga Mandir. We reached Ganga Mandir at around 12:30 p.m.; after that, we went to see the 108 Shivling Cave, Gorakshanath Cave, etc.

Dharmashala

Gangadwar Gate

Note: You must see the stepwell beside Dharmashal; take the help of locals to locate it; we missed this beautiful monument as we were not aware.

    After taking darshan and having prayer in each cave, we started to descend towards Trimbakeshwar temple. We reached the mountain base around 1:00 PM, did some shopping, and reached the Bhakt Niwas room. We made an inquiry about bus timing at the Bhakt Niwas reception, and they asked us to leave early at around 2 PM to avoid traffic due to Sunday devotees coming for darshan. After getting refreshed, we pack our bags and check out of the Bhakt Niwas. We had lunch and went towards the MSRTC bus depot. We were again lucky; the bus was standing in front of us and was about to depart towards the old CBS depot.

Gautami Ganga

108 Shivling

    We reached the old CBS depot at around 4:00 p.m. From the outside depot, we hired an autorickshaw, which agreed to drop us at Nashik railway station at normal rates. We reach Nashik railway station at around 4:30 p.m.

    We purchased the famous Kondaji chivda outside the station, but this time we had bad luck. The train was supposed to leave at 6:00, but it was delayed by 6:45. We reached Mumbai - Dadar at 11:00 pm.

Places to see nearby

Anjaneri hill, birth place of Shri Hanuman

Panchavati

Harihar fort

Spending Tracker (Excluding Food)

Harishchandragad Trek: Discovering the Hidden Gems of the Western Ghats

 

Commence Date : 29 Jul, 2022

Mode of Transport : Train and Bus

History of the Fort

    Harishchandragad is mentioned in the ancient Agni Purana and Matsya Purana. Changdeva had performed penance in the caves of this fort. This fort is one of the oldest forts in India. The idols of Lord Vishnu are carved in the caves near the temple of Harishchandreshwar, and they are believed to be from the 11th century. Many caves were carved here in the 11th century. There is a Shiva temple on this fort, which dates back to the 12th century. The Mughals captured the fort from the Adivasi Koli Mahadev community. In 1747, the Marathas took this fort from the Mughals and appointed Krishnaji Shinde as the head of the fort. The British captured the fort in year 1818.

Travel and Trek Experience

    This was the trek I had awaited the most till date. Due to limited information about the trek, this time we joined the group ‘Bhatkanti Dhyas Gadkillyancha’ and group leader Mr. Vijay Sutar for the trek.
Including the group leader, our group had a total of seven members. Different members boarded the Kasara train from different stations. Myself boarded the train from Dadar at 11:05 PM and got down at Kasara at 1:30 AM.

Kokankada

    At Kasara railway station, we all gathered and stepped out of the station, where Vijay had already booked a jeep. Around 1:45 AM, we left from Kasara station and reached Pachnai village by 5:00 in the morning. We were almost an hour late. At Rajur, where the Forest Department checkpoint is located, we paid a fee of ₹30 per person and ₹100 for the vehicle. The group leader had arranged breakfast and lunch at a house in Pachnai village. We freshened up and had breakfast (homemade poha and tea). Around 6:30 in the morning, we began our trek. The morning weather and the view of the waterfalls were so beautiful that our excitement only grew further.

Waterfall at base village Pachnai

    After walking for a while, we reached a welcome arch — this is where the actual Harishchandragad trail begins. We took a group photo near the arch and proceeded ahead. As we climbed, we saw a few villagers carrying supplies. We asked one of them, “Is there any event happening at the fort?” He replied, “Yes, the month of Shravan has started, and tomorrow is the first Monday of Shravan. We’re taking flowers to decorate the temple.”

After trekking for about 30 minutes, we reached a spot that most tourists love to spend time at: a small cave and a tiny waterfall along the trail. We got a little wet under the waterfall and clicked some pictures before moving on. A little later, we reached a stream, which further turns into a waterfall. Some tourists were enjoying a dip in the stream. We decided to take a dip on our way back and continued ahead. A short distance further, we saw a metal bridge built by the villagers and the forest department. We crossed the stream over the bridge and reached the other side.

Trail from Pachnai to Harishchandragad

    In just two hours, we reached the top of the hill. The view from the summit was beautiful and mesmerizing. We captured the game of hide and seek between the clouds and the hills in a time-lapse and moved ahead. While walking, we saw a blanket of clouds parting below and the ancient Harishchandreshwar temple emerging in sight, which instantly took away our fatigue. The temple was so captivating that, without a pause, we kept walking in that direction.

Harishchandreshwar Shiv Temple

    Harishchandreshwar Shiva Temple was built at the source of the Mangalganga (Mula) river by Shilahara King Zhanj during the 11th to 12th century. King Zhanj constructed a total of 12 such temples at the origins of 12 rivers in the Pune and Ahilyanagar (Ahmednagar) regions.

    We entered the temple premises. On the entrance arch, there are two sculptures of Kirtimukhas, along with verses (ovyas) written by Changdev. We visited the sanctum and had darshan of Lord Mahadev, then began exploring the surrounding area of the temple. Though the temple is small, the surrounding area is filled with small caves, were idols of various deities kept.

Statue of Nandi and Shivling

Group photo

    I came out of the temple premises and turned left towards the Kedareshwar cave; inside the cave, there is a massive Shivling. Out of the four pillars, three are broken; according to mythology, the four pillars represent the four Yugas (ages). It is believed that when the fourth pillar breaks, Kaliyuga will end. If we set aside the mythological tale and look into the history of Harishchandragad fort, it is evident that at one point, the fort was under Mughal control. As was their usual practice after conquering a fort, the Mughals likely attempted to destroy the temples.

Shivling in Kedareshwar cave

    After visiting the Kedareshwar Caves, we proceeded towards the Saptateertha Pushkarni. In ancient times, the water from this Pushkarni was used for drinking and other daily chores, but now tourists are using it like a swimming pool, which is wrong and needs to stop. After spending a little time near the Pushkarni, we headed towards the most fascinating spot — the Konkankada. After walking for about a kilometer, we reached the Konkankada, but were disappointed to see it completely covered by clouds. We sat on the edge for a while and ate the snacks we had brought in our bags. Being mindful of cleanliness, we packed all the wrappers and empty plastic bottles back into our bags and started our return journey.

Saptatirth Pushkarni

    After the monsoon, we decided to visit again and started walking towards the Harishchandreshwar Temple. A little before reaching the temple, there is a road on the right that leads to the Ganesh Caves. We took the right turn and arrived near the Ganesh Caves. Inside the cave, there is a beautifully carved 8-foot-tall idol of Lord Ganesh. The cave area is so spacious that 20 to 30 people can stay inside. Even today, tourists and trekking groups spend the night in these caves.

8 Feet Lord Ganesh Statue

The stream on Harishchandra hill

    After spending around three hours exploring the fort, we began our return journey. After walking for about an hour, we reached the stream once again. We took a short break by the stream—some members even took a dip and enjoyed a refreshing bath. Although we were running behind schedule, our group leader didn’t rush us. He allowed us to enjoy every moment! After the break at the stream, we resumed our descent and reached Pachnai village by around 12:00 noon.

    After having a warm, home-cooked meal, we got into the jeep and began our journey towards Kasara. By around 4:30 PM, we reached near Kasara railway station. We boarded the 5:00 PM Kasara–CSMT train and reached Dadar by 7:15 PM.

👉 Blog Post – Harishchandragad and Raucous form of Nature

Places to See on Harishchandragad

Konkankada

Harishchandreshwar Temple

Kedareshwar Caves and Shivling

Taramati Peak

Saptatirtha Pushkarni

Ganesh Caves and Ganesh Idol

Naneghat Trek and the Thrill of its Streams

 

Journey Date : 23-Jul-2022

Mode of Transport : MSRTC Bus

Short History about Naneghat

    During the reign of the Satavahana (230 BCE – 230 CE), the Naneghat pass was one of the trade routes. It connected the Konkan coast communities with Deccan high plateau through Junnar.  Literally, the name nane means "coin" and ghat means "pass". The name is given because this path was used as a tollbooth to collect toll from traders crossing the hills. According to Charles Allen, there is a carved stone that from distance looks like a stupa, but is actually a two-piece carved stone container by the roadside to collect tolls.

Travel Details and Experience

    This was the first trek after the COVID lockdown; hence, I was highly excited for this monsoon trek. We started our journey from Dadar railway station at 5:15 AM and reached Kalyan railway station around 6:35 AM. From Kalyan station, we walked towards Kalyan West MSRTC depot, which is 5 minutes away. We board the MSRTC bus "Kalyan to Ahmadnagar" via Aale Phata or Malshej Ghat. We requested the bus conductor to drop us off at the Naneghat starting point, as there is no official bus stop. (The official bus stop is at Tokawde, which is 5 km away from Naneghat's starting point.) We got down at Naneghat around 9:15 a.m. and had breakfast at a nearby stall. Thanks to the bus conductor for dropping us off at the Naneghat starting point.

    At around 9:45 a.m., we started ascending, as we were aware that it would take 3 hours to reach the top and the same time for the descent. At the first gate, we pay the forest department's charge of 30 ₹ each and move ahead. After crossing the second gate, we reached the first water stream (there are a total of three water streams). As the flow current was low, we took some rest, had some good photos, and moved ahead. Before reaching the 2nd water stream, we came across 2 ways; we took the left one, which reached the top of Naneghat. After crossing the third water stream and climbing a very short, difficult patch, we reached the plateau. The view of the mountain Nanacha Anghtha (Nana's Thumb) is awesome. We took some photos, spent some time, and moved ahead. Note: If rain continues, the water current will increase, making it difficult or impossible to cross the streams. Keep some food with you if the situation arises to spend the night in the jungle. Don't risk your life.

    The actual naneghat (trade route) starts after the plateau; the steps made from stones from 30 BCE to 230 CE are still in good condition. Almost one and a half hours later, we have completed 50% of the trail. We are experiencing difficulty climbing the stairs due to the uneven size of the stones. As we moved ahead, we observed a rain shower, and the surrounding area was covered by clouds. The view of rainwater flowing down from steps and the sound of flowing water work as refreshments for us.

    After climbing for two and a half hours, we come across one water cistern, which is a sign that the top of the mountain is near. As we moved forward, we saw railings installed by the forest department at viewpoints for the safety of visitors. Finally, we reached the main cave at around 12:45 p.m. The view and the weather at the top or in the cave are so beautiful that we feel like we are in HEAVEN.

water cistern

    We spent some time inside the cave. The wall of the cave is full of encryption written in Bramhi font. The encryption was about the donation done by Queen Naganika at the time of the spiritual event Yaga, etc. Near the cave, we meet a German visitor and his Indian friend. We shared information about the cave and Naneghat with them and moved ahead to see the reverse waterfall. Our bad luck is that the plateau or top of the hill is fully covered with clouds, unable to be seen beyond 20 meters. We didn't see the reverse waterfall, so we decided to visit other monuments like Ranjan (coin pot), which was used to collect tolls from traders in ancient times.

Encryption in Bramhi lipi (font)

Coin Pot for Toll

    We had a snack and tea with the German visitor and his friend. They started their return journey, and we decided to reach the peak of the Naneghat, but suddenly rain increased and the wind flow was so high that we were getting pushed backward, so we canceled our plan to avoid risk. Furthermore, we went to see Lord Ganesh's statue carved in stone inside a water cistern. After spending an hour at the top, we decided to start the return journey, but this time we are planning to return to Mumbai via Junnar. We canceled the plan to reach Junnar as we didn't have enough information and no vehicles were ready to give lifts. So we started descending at around 2:15 p.m. As time passes, the intensity of the rain increases, and we find difficulty descending. We were unaware of the problem we were heading into.

    As I mentioned at the start of the blog, we crossed three water streams. While returning, we reached the 3rd water stream (Revers order) and saw the current of the flow was high due to heavy rain. We decided to wait for help. After some time, a group of teenagers arrived. They also got scared by seeing the water current, but they decided to cross the stream by making a human chain, so we also joined them but still had doubts in mind as we were risking our lives. We managed to cross the stream safely, but two more water streams were there. We moved ahead along with a teenage group and reached the second water stream (reverse order). Here, we didn't see any big rocks for support. I decided to spend the night in the jungle as I didn't want to risk my life, but from the opposite side of the water stream, some trekkers saw me and encouraged me to cross the stream. We again joined the teenage group to make a human chain and crossed the stream safely. We thank the trekker group and God for helping us to cross.

Note: If the rain continues, the flow of water in the streams increases, making it difficult or impossible to cross the streams. If there is a situation of spending the night in the forest, some food items, dry clothes, water bottles should be tied in a plastic bag and kept with you. Do not risk your life by trying to cross streams.

    When we reached the first water stream, the water current was very low due to the dam wall. We felt relaxed, seeing the low current. After crossing all three water streams, we increased our speed to reach the highway to board a bus. We are unaware of the new problem we are heading into. No public or private vehicles were stopped for lift. We waited for around 30 minutes and then decided to walk towards Vaishakhare village, which is 3 km away. It was around 5:30 p.m. We were too tired, but there was no other option other than walking towards Vaishakhare village. After walking for 2 km, we saw a dhaba (restaurant) and decided to have lunch as we were hungry and tired. After lunch, but it was already late, 6:00 pm and it was raining heavily, so he told us to go to Vaishakhare and get an auto. But Vaishakhare was still 1 km away 😟.

    After having some rest, we again started our return journey towards Vaishakhare village. We reached Vaishakhare village at 6:30 p.m. Luckily, an autorickshaw was standing near the restaurant. We asked him to drop by at the Tokawade bus stand. He also shared his contact number. (Contact Number: 9021086353 for autorickshaw) At Tokawade, we waited for the MSRTC bus. At around 7:00 PM, finally, the bus arrived (Junnar-Than), We boarded the bus and got down at Thane CBS bus. depot at 10 PM.

    Though the trek was easy, due to heavy rain and a lack of return journey planning, it turned difficult and hectic.

 

Places to Seen Near Naneghat

Jeevdhan fort

Malshej Ghat

    

    

Spending Tracker

Random Clicks

Naneghat Name Board