Friday, December 21, 2012

Tel Baila

telbaila, thetravelinfo.net

Tel Baila is an old watch tower which makes for a good 1-day trekking option. It consists of 2 sheer walls of rock separated by a column in the center. Climbing the walls would require a technical climb, but the climb to the column in the center also makes for a great experience. 

We took the Lonavala exit from the Mumbai-Pune Express way and proceeded along the road towards INS Shivaji. Because of earlier trek to Korigad, we were familiar with road. We stopped at the Lion's point for some photos and refreshments and made our way ahead. Telbaila is very well covered by GPS. We had enabled Google Navigation at the start of our journey to guide us to the fort. From Telbaila phata, the road started to worsen gradually. By the time we reached the Telbaila village we were worried if the i10 would be able to make its way back. 

We parked the car under the shade of a tree in the farm and started on our way up. We had some difficulty finding the way and almost gave up. But our perseverance paid off and we finally found a path going towards the top. 

The climb towards the column is fairly easy, though there were few spots that we amateurs felt were tricky. The climb provides some great views of the surrounding areas. 

 More Photos below..

Monday, December 17, 2012

Birding @ Bhandup Pumping Station

Birding @ Bhandup Pumping Station, thetravelinfo.net

Just discovered another birding spot in Mumbai. Got my first spoonbill sighting in Mumbai here. It has a vast area through which you can walk around. Saw a number of birds and butterflies here.
mihir_joshi's Bhandup Birding album on Photobucket