In search of the Treasure where the Rainbow meets the Horizon

John Muir, a Scottish American naturalist, mountaineer and ecological thinker had once written, in what has now become an iconic statement – “ The mountains are calling and I must go …” Our calling, as a family (my wife Meera, daughter Kavya, son Krish and me), came in May-June 2022, when our tryst with the Himalayas finally materialized. After an earlier cancelled trek to Dayara Bugyal also in Uttarakhand in 2021, owing to the pandemic; and initial uncertainty due to board exams,   Kedarkantha (not to be mistaken with Kedarnath) it was to be. Kedarkantha is popular for it winter trek but as novices we decided to keep it relative easy and decided to do the summer trek. Our preparations started 4 months in advance, initially mainly to purchase trekking gear, as we let loose our purse strings and later, from April, in preparation for the trek as we religiously set out achieving the set target of 5 kms under 38 minutes. Postcard from Kedarkantha Day 0 - The Initial Journey Lon...

  Grade: Easy                                      Height: 3579 ft Base Village: Tikona Peth         District: Pune Tikona is a fort in the Lonavala region of Pune district. Its twin fort is Tung. You can do Tikona and Tung together in only one day. Tikona is surrounded by Lohagad, Visapur, Tung, and two lakes on each of it’s sides. One is Pawana lake, and the other is Mulshi. The word ‘Tikona’ means triangle or pyramid. Tikona is also known as Vitandgad. History It is not known who built this fort. In 1485, Malik Ahmad Nizam Shah I captured this fort. Later Shivaji Maharaj took control of the fort in 1657. To know more about the history of Tikona visit this link My Journey I have actually been to Tikona twice. The first on a Saturday, and the second one, just two days later! My friend’s mom was so amazed by the photos, she really WANTED to do ...

More than seventeen years back when my wife and I decided to shift base to Pune, it was driven by the need to move anywhere out of Mumbai and because, it was the closest city to our respective hometowns where I could find an employment. Pune, still a sleepy and quiet cantonment city then, had the small city charm we both were used to. However, we hadn’t given any consideration to some of the other riches the city had to offer in our decision. Over the next decade and a half, as we made Pune our home our love for the city continued to increase, despite its rapid and at times ugly urbanization and growth. What was not to love about Pune. Culturally vibrant, historically significant, economically progressive, climatically pleasant and endowed with the bounties of nature. Seeking Nirvana If you are wondering what these meandering words about my love for Pune has to do with the this blog, let me cut to the chase. But not before I give you some back story. Despite the fact that Pune is...