Imagine waking up in a tent, amidst the nature, surrounded by mountains on three sides and soothing greenery around you with vast stretch of clear lake water. That was, what Camping in Bhandardara looked exactly like. Bhandardara, situated near igatpuri, is a small village near Mumbai And becomes a quick getaway for people living the fast life in big cities. Generally people head out to nearby villages and towns over the weekend to unwind amidst the nature and to take a break from the monotonous activities.
Living in the nature is always refreshing. Hence, I went to camp in this beautiful village with a travel group. This helped me make new friends and explore a part of Bhandardara which cannot be located on google maps. The campsite was in a very small village, 45 mins away from the railway station by tuk tuk.
On reaching we set up the tents, followed by a quick introduction and then games and activities for the evening. Having fun took up our evening, after which we headed back to a local home for our dinner. Later that night I could clearly see millions of stars, shining brightly in the sky. Something which one cannot witness in the city of Mumbai. That night was freezing yet magical. There was serenity in the surroundings and each one admiring it in their own way while sitting around the bonfire.
The next day, early morning we cooked Maggie (Favorite camping breakfast) on our self-made bonfire. As I was here during holi (festival of colors), the organizers had arranged for the organic colors for all the campers. In no time after breakfast, everyone started with the color fight, giggling and coloring faces coupled with playing in the lake and taking too many pictures. And after a long session of Holi & cleaning ourselves up and putting out our tents, we left for our concrete jungles.
Bhandardara is easily accessible by all modes of transportation and therefore becomes a weekend destination especially for nature lovers. To reach here one can use the local transport. By road, one can go on the Mumbai-Nashik highway by a private vehicle. By rail, one has to board a Mumbai local train upto Kasara station. From This station lots of buses, taxis and tuk tuks ply to Bhandardara.
CONCLUSION:
I can say Bhandardara is beautiful. It is surrounded by the Sahyadri ranges so lots of trekking & camping opportunities are available for the youth. People who do not wish to engage themselves into strenuous activities can simply relax. All in all it’s a great choice and has activities which can suit people of all ages.
Read my experience camping in Matheran