Aha! that's the geographical feature that we are going to conquer today. There were two buses; each followed different routes within Mumbai to pickup members at various locations. Our bus driver/leaders had to ask locals the route at every junction; we had to retrace the path once and so on. So, our bus reached late. In addition, we had to collect packed lunch (pulav, rice pancake, bhaji (vegetables), salad etc) from a house before we started off. I followed a group of people. Within a kilometre, groups had re-formed due to varying speed of walking. To tell the truth, the slow moving guys formed our team. Some members were more worried about another trekker who was carrying their precious cargo. There were numerous streams to cross, correct branch of forks to take; it was jungle. Summary: we got lost! All explorations by younger members of the team led to the same conclusion: we are hopelessly lost. We had to retrace the path. (continued in the caption of the next photo).
Naration continued from the previous caption: Finally, a member spotted a farmer at at distance, started talking (shouting in Marathi) and finally convinced the farmer to drop his work in the paddy field and guide us to the right track (for an honorarium). After 15 minutes, we heard the sounds of other people. A new gang is formed. Here is a ganglet (a small gang)!
Another shot. Despite the heavy cloud cover, one member has already removed the shirt and showing off his banian (and ...). One has already started leaning on the stick. 'This is just the beginning; a lot to go man!'
The young lady (in picnic shirt) and her father. This was her first trek; she managed remarkably well.
Mr. and Mrs. Bhuwad on the way up. It was her first (possibly last) trek. She has already got rid of the footwear and given it to her husband; one possible version of her thoughts: "serves him right. Told that it is almost a picnic; just minor climb and so on..."
OK. we are lost again. Do we go forward, left, right and retrace (of course, another option:go straight down :-))
a view of a distant hill range
a granite stone perched precariously
Mr. Hate agrees to pose at an interesting spot on the way up. The fort is on the left; we seem to be moving away from it. Actually, we have to take a U-turn in order to reach the plateau on the top.
Just before the U-turn: a view of the distant plains below
A view of the river in the plains
Aha, we seem to have made it! A small crowd can be seen (could be heard) near a small temple
Here is a close up of the gang of about 100 TIFRites on the Kohoj Fort. People are enjoying the packed lunch they carried from the base.
A closeup of the temple - a regular feature of Sahyadri forts.
Mrs. Ludbe and the kid in front of Shiv temple. The 'board' above the door reads: kusumeshwar mahadev mandir. A member (at lower left of the photo) is trying to open his lunch box (without spilling the contents).
Mrs. Ludbe 'shooting' the pinnacle of the hill. A cistern can be seen on the lower right.
We ate our packed lunch and were ready to have a 'dekho' of the pinnacle. The human shaped pinnacle is seen in the background.
A close up of the two rock formations on the top of the hill (inside the fort).
A view from the top: a templet inside the fort (on the left) and a water body in the valley below
Master Bhuwad (3 years old) with his parents. This was his first trek. He was incessantly trying to draw the attention of his father in order to get an answer to his current question that went something like this: " ... hela kaay maNtaat English madhe?" [What is the English word corresponding to this Marathi word?]. His father was too busy carrying the luggage and helping his wife. I heard the boy repeating the question atleast 3 times while I overtook (passed) this family. I was pleasantly surprised at the persistance of the boy in learning an alien language!
