Malshej Ghat.. a Monsoon wonderland

The first drop of rain that touches the earth does not recount the undoing of the fallen seasons, it sings of redemption, it creates the echo of gratitude. The first rain that touches the barren earth warms the soul of the hardest rocks; the rocks that were thus fashioned by the savage weathers. For sternness is an attire of the shattered souls, of the wounded hearts, the price we pay for the changing seasons; the mussel’s shell that time builds, the cocoon that’s too hard to break, this shell that protects us also breaks us. We all need the rain to purge our soul, to free us from ourselves. In this post I shall take you to a short trip to the monsoon wonderland of Malshej Ghat.

Where is Malshej Ghat?

Malshej Ghat is a 10 km long mountain pass in the Western Ghats in the Pune district of Maharashtra. It is 154 km from Mumbai and130 km from Pune.

How to reach Malshej Ghat?

The nearest railway station is Kalyan in Thane district or Karjat near Mumbai. From Kalyan you can take a taxi rental (ola/uber) .I took a rental from Mumbai which was slightly expensive. It will be better to go to Kalyan by local train and then renting a car.

Things to do in Malshej Ghat

Dance in the rain – Stretching for 10 km, Malshej Ghat has numerous waterfalls and some of them directly open into the road which keeps changing directions with the flowing wind.
Pimpalgaon Joga Dam which yearly hosts the migratory flamingos is also located in this stretch.
Eat and stay in the MTDC resort. If you feel that a day is not enough , you can stay in the MTDC resort.

Things to remember

Carry a raincoat, gum boots
Carry loose cash- There are no ATMs on the way and the MTDC resort was not accepting debit cards during my visit.
This area is prone to landslides, please read the local news before planning your visit.