TRIP TO MATHERAN

Our next trip was on 22/06/2014. this time we have decided to go to Matheran which is 55 kms from Kharghar, Mumbai. 

Matheran is the smallest hill station in India. It is located on the Western Ghats range at an elevation of around 800 m above sea level. Matheran's proximity to many metropolitan cities makes it a popular weekend getaway for urban residents.Matheran, which means "forest on the forehead" (of the mountains) is an eco-sensitive region. It is Asia's only automobile-free hill station.

As usual we have started our trip by 9:30 AM from Kharghar. On the way we had our breakfast and headed towards Matheran. As the destination was nearby we didn't have much stops in between.

Once started climbing the Matheran hill we have seen this beautiful view point. Also there was a  railway station nearby. We have spend 30 minutes there and clicked few pics. 

Next stop was at the entrance point of Matheran. As Matheran is an automobile free hill station, we have parked our bikes at the entrance and walked in. Matheran town was 1 km from the entrance point. There were 3 ways to reach Matheran from the enterance. One is by train, Second is by horse and third is by walk. We chose to walk. There are around 38 designated look-out points in Matheran. From the entrance first what we have see was the Amanlodge  railway station. From Amanlodge there was no road to Matheran. We were walking through the railway tracks.

After walking around 1 km we have reached Matheran town. View points starts from here. As we have reached Matheran late, we couldn't see all the places.

                                                         View points map.

Belvedere Point

One Tree Hill

Big Chowk Point

We have walked around 5-6 kms to see all these places.We all were tired. Thanks to god, there were small shops on the way for refreshments. 

We were also surprised to see lot of private guest houses in side the forest.

Out of all those guest houses only one name was familiar to us "Sri. Ratan Tata"

 It was getting dark so we have decided to leave the place. One shopkeeper shown us the shortest route to reach the entrance. Still it took 1.5 hours. We had enough food and coffee in a restaurant outside the entrance. All were tired and hungry because of such a long walk.
The best time to visit Matheran is at the mid of monsoon. There will be lot of beautiful water falls during the monsoon and mist also. We have decide to visit the same place again during the monsoon also. And one can see all the places only if he reaches the spot in the morning. There were lot of private resorts also available in Matheran for night stay.

Trip Members:

• Kurian Jacob
• Santhosh Mohan
• Tony Abraham 
• Vizal Mathew