Matheran trip

Technically, this is not about information for a trek. It is more to do with a trip to Matheran by the toy train. Treks to Matheran are there but I haven't done one to comment on that. Last Thursday, we went to Matheran by the toy train. It is an interesting journey but needs careful preparation. We were in Matheran only for the day, i.e. we started in the morning from IIT and wanted to come back on the same night.

Now, many of us may think (like we thought) that the toy train can be availed easily. This, unfortunately, is not true. The time-table for the toy train can be found out here. The train at 7:30 runs only on weekends and gazetted holidays. So, the first train available to Matheran is at 8:50 AM.

The toy train has five coaches. Of these, three coaches are second class seating reserved coaches, one is a first class seating reserved coach, while the fifth is a second class unreserved coach. The tickets for the train can be booked online from IRCTC's website. If you want to try your luck, reach Neral station atleast one-and-half hour before the train's scheduled time of departure. This is because, the number of seats in the unreserved compartment too are fixed. The ticket window for filling up the unreserved seats opens up 45 minutes before the train's scheduled time of departure and you can expect a big rush for the tickets, especially on weekends and holidays.

If traveling from Mumbai, it is better to take the Karjat local and get down at Neral. The Deccan Express does stop at Neral, but it has chances of getting delayed and thus you may end up missing the 8:50 train. The Karjat local timetable can be found here.

The toy train journey is about 2 hrs. Once on the top, you need to pay an entry fee of Rs. 25/- per person to enter and roam around Matheran. This is collected by the local governing body and is used for the upkeep of Matheran. At the same place, you can find a map which shows the various points of interest in Matheran. Use that map and roam around Matheran. Motorised vehicles of any kind are banned in Matheran. Hence, all touring is either on foot or on horseback. But I would favour going around on foot as you can enjoy the weather and the locations at your will.

While returning, the last train is at 4:30 PM. On weekends and gazetted holidays, the last train is at 5:30 PM. So, if you have no reservation, again, be in line by 2:45 PM to stand a chance of getting the return ticket.

Facilities: Since Matheran is a popular tourist place, everything needed is available over there. Food arrangements are excellent and there are a number of eateries to satisfy your hunger. The type of food ranges from Maharashtrian to Gujarati and South Indian to Chinese. Bottled water too is available in the various shops and stores over there. However, be prepared to pay more (even on M.R.P. items) as all the items are hauled up from Neral/Karjat. A safe way is to carry some snacks and water with you from your home itself.

Trekking to Karnala

Reaching Karnala: This was the most recent treks that I did. To get to Karnala, you must first get to Panvel. If you are in Mumbai, you can get to Panvel by the following routes- a) On Central Railway line: get to Kurla and board the train to Panvel on the Harbour Line (I think it is platform 6 or 7). b) Western Railway: Get to Dadar. At Dadar, change to Central Railway local and get down at Kurla. At Kurla change over to Harbour line and catch the train to Panvel. Another option for people coming from Andheri side, is to board the Harbour Line train to CST, get down at Wadala and at Wadala board the train to Panvel. Check here for the local train timings.

Once you arrive at the Panvel station, ask for the Panvel ST stand. The Panvel ST stand is a 10 min walk from the railway station. Have something to eat at the ST stand. Since you are likely to reach the ST stand in the early times of the morning, you will have to contend with the road-side vendors. But be assured, they serve good vada-pav and kanda-bhaji (onion-bhaji). Being early business hours, you can expect hot bhaji and tea at the vendors.

Alternately, people from Mumbai, Thane, etc. can take the ST buses from Mumbai Central, Parel, Thane and Kalyan depots to reach Panvel. Even for people coming from other parts, viz. Pune, Nashik, etc. (except the Konkan region), it is better to reach Panvel. These cities are connected by the state transport service to Panvel.

At Panvel ST stand, look for the platform from where जनता गाड़ी leaves. You can ask the paper vendor for the platform from where buses to Karnala leave. Generally these buses connect to smaller villages in the vicinity of Panvel. So, better ask the conductor or co-passengers whether the bus goes to Karnala or not. The stop at Karnala fort is not well marked, so request the conductor to remind you when the stop arrives.

Facilities at Karnala: At the base, there is a rest house. You can request the care-takers of the rest house to prepare some lunch for your group. However, make this request before you set out for your trek. These people will not prepare anything for you if you ask them after finishing your trek. At the top, there is no source for drinking water. I would not trust the small ponds of water at the top. Most of them are in a state of disuse and hence unreliable. Therefore, carry adequate amount of water with you. Also, carry a few snacks with you.

If you do not wish to dine at the rest-house care-taker's residence, there is a restaurant named "Hotel Fort View" that is 20 min walk down the ghat. Ask the guard at the check post for directions. The hotel is decent and is reasonably priced.

Stuff to carry: Adequate amount of water, reasonable amounts of snacks. Water is almost not available at the peak, hence be sure that you have enough.

Documenting Trekking preparations

I am not an avid trekker. But, I do undertake two-three treks every year. The most difficult task of undertaking a trek is gathering information about reaching the base. Also, not much information is not available about the facilities at the pinnacle of the trek. Of course, one needs to ask friends, but what if they are not informed enough? With treks in India, sometimes Google too fails to pop-up good information.

Therefore, I thought of writing this blog, which will have good info on reaching the base of the trek and about the facilities available near the trek. I hope this serves as the Google to new trekkers.