Pachmarhi - A hill station in Madhya Pradesh - India
Probably
the most beautiful thing that can exist on this planet is the thing that has
not been touched by us humans ever; for in our touch lies an arrogance and
in our humility, even more so.
This is the place which I first visited in 1991 and then I liked it for its
calmness, the abundant natural beauty and above all very less interference
of the modern development. One can find the nature in its true shape here,
untouched. I visited this place many times since then and every time I found
it more beautiful. This is a good place just to sit back and relax and watch
nature very closely. If you are lucky enough, you may snatch en eye contact
with big cats in the wilderness.
Pachmarhi was discovered in 1857 by Captain Forsythe, a Bengal Lancer, who
was struck by the beauty of Pachmarhi. The British soon adopted the place as
a sanatorium and hill resort. As always they left their colonial legacy in
the architecture
Once you set your eyes on the view at the top the steep walk up is
definitely worth the effort. The Satpura range is a mixture of green
hills and rocky gorges. Madhya Pradesh in general has the largest forest
cover in India and every effort is made to preserve it. A number of ranges
have been converted into reserve forests with their share of Tigers,
bison, leopards, deer, bears and wild dogs.
Pachmarhi situated on a large plateau
ringed by hills on the evergreen central Satpura ranges, is known as the
Queen of Satpura for its spectacular beauty. The hill station at a height
3550 ft. is located in Hoshangabad
district, Madhya Pradesh. The place is surrounded by low lying rugged hills,
ravines, beautiful forests, 12 breathtaking waterfalls, serene pools and
quiet glades.
Before I
begin here, I would like to issue a warning, if you will, which is this. Pachmarhi
is a place that can be enjoyed thoroughly but certainly not
without being prepared to walk miles after miles, without looking back, but
looking around or alternately, cycling down cross country, negotiating
rugged tracks and at the same time giving your eyes a treat of green and
undulating. It is foolish to come here in order to have a lot of physical
relaxation. Mental relaxation is unlimited here.
Every tourist destination has it�s own set monotony. Flocks of people come
in a definite season, with the intention of watching a definite number of
places on definite days, and having tired of their sightseeing pursuits,
retiring to their lodgings to spend the night in the quiet of their rooms
with the honeybee-like buzzing of their spouse and children. Certainly, not
many people have an idea of how those definite number of places look and so
going to each one of them is a discovery that you make. But that discovery
is and has been made by several others like you, and so there is no
uniqueness in the discovery. All you are left with saying is: Yes, it was a
beautiful place.
B-Fall:
B-fall is a toddler among the waterfalls in this region- yet a very sweet
toddler. It is not particularly difficult to access nor is it particularly
awesome in dimensions. Yet, it is one of the most picturesque waterfalls
among those that can be found here.
The road that leads to B-Fall actually leads to the top of the cliff from
where the water actually falls. A rather tricky descent later, you shall
find a massive column of water falling into a stream making a loud noise to
your left. The noise this waterfall makes muffles the usual roar that the
crowd makes, yet in it�s own way, calms your mind and relaxes you. Yes
nature is funny, isn�t it?
Chauragarh
Chauragarh is the name of a big adventure. To reach to the top of it, one
has to climb up and climb down a total of seven hills varying in height,
walking through forest-covered tracks that offers you glimpses of hills and
forests and trees all around you, without a break. It is the zenith
Chauragarh is a 4 km sheer climb with 1300
steps from Mahadeo. There is a temple on the rectangular top with an idol of
Lord Shiva. Ardent devotees make the strenuous climb, sometimes carrying
Triscends (Trishuls) on their shoulders as an offering to Lord Shiva. This
tradition is followed as a mark of devotion, especially during Shivaratri.
Dhoopgarh
The highest point in the Satpura range, with a magnificent view of the
surrounding ranges. A very popular spot for viewing sunsets. There is a
1000ft ascend from the road level if traveling on foot or riding a bicycle.
The peak 4429 ft. high from the sea level also called the Elephant can be
reached by road from the north side. The view is spectacular with the
mammoth rock formations reflecting the light in a variety of delicate shades
of purple and violet.
The best way to tour
Pachmarhi is on Bicycles. Getting there is not a difficult task as there are
plenty of buses run by state owned transport from capital Bhopal. The only
hitch is the bad condition of roads. bicycles are available on rental at few
shops. The shop owners themselves will tell you the paths and pitfalls. Even
though if you opt for bicycles, you have to cover a lot of distance on foot
as the whole region is hilly and forests do not have motor able roads. but
going this way is really adventurous. While on the foots, you can easily
look out for PUG-MARKS of the Big cats. Caution: Do not venture in the
jungle or cross the town limits after it is dark as the predators are on
prowl once it is dark. The best time to visit this place is after monsoon
till April.
The best trip which I took to Pachmarhi was with 3 of my friends, Kuldeep
alias THAAKUR, Varun alias TAKLU and Ashish alias NAAGU. We undertook this
one in the year 1994 when we all were in our first year B.Sc. We reached
Pipariya in a jam packed second class, then boarded the state transport bus
to Pachmarhi, stayed at a cheap but good 25 Rs. per day room at one guest
house. We stayed there for 4 days, hired bicycles and use to clock around 30
km per day on bicycles and around 8 km on foot. We enjoyed a lot, trekked a
lot, climbed a lot, ventured into the national park a lot on our own risk
J.
Though we never encountered any predator but we spotted many fresh pug marks
of big cat at few places. Soon I will upload the pictures of the same trip.
