Exploring the Highlights of Mahabaleshwar--The Hilltop Fortress of Pratapgad, the Towering Lingmala Waterfalls and the Many ‘Points’

Friday, January 12, 2024:

Exploring the Highlights of Mahabaleshwar--The Hilltop Fortress of Pratapgad, the Towering Lingmala Waterfalls and the Many ‘Points’

We devoted the day to exploring Mabi’s highlights and after a very restful night and a very modest breakfast of idlis with sambar and chutney (provided by our hotel from the South Indian restaurant next-door), we told our driver Ravi (who stayed with us for the duration of our stay) that we were all set to drive to the first site on our agenda: Shivaji’s hill fortress of Pratapgad.

The Hill Fortress of Pratagpad:

Pratapgad is the most famous of the Maratha leader Shivaji’s many hill fortresses. It is located 24 kms (roughly 12 miles) away from Mahabaleshwar and it took us 45 minutes to arrive at the spot after driving around more hair-raising hair pin bends up and down the mountain slopes that offered stunning views of the plains below. Pratapgad is renowned for the great victory that Shivaji had over the Moghul leader of the Bijapur Sultanate, Afzal Khan (a general of the Adil Shah dynasty) on November 10, 1659. Shivaji’s victory established Maratha power in the Deccan and prevented what is now the state of Maharashtra from coming under Moghul rule. This is the main reason why Shivaji is such a celebrated hero among Maharashtrians. Apart from the stirring history (which, in itself, is a very good reason to visit this venue), its setting is simply glorious. The fort is constructed on the very summit of one of the highest hills which afforded the Maratha armies a powerful vantage point from which to be warned of marauding enemy armies. It’s thick black basalt stone bricks which form the main construction material have stood the test of time quite brilliantly. As in all hill fortresses, you can drive up to the base where you can park your vehicle after which you are expected to climb up at least 200-300 steps. I do believe that Lohargad Fort which we climbed last month during our visit to Lonavla was far higher and involved much more climbing. By comparison, Pratapgad seems less challenging. At any rate, I was very grateful for my hiking boots which provide superb ankle protection from twists and sprains and also allow me to grip the rugged ground while providing tremendous security.

Once we were at the summit of the fort, we realized that there were a few spots to traverse. Guides are available at the base and they state that they will take you to 13 different spots once up on the summit. However, their commentary is either in Hindi or Marathi and we preferred to use our notes to help us negotiate the area.

As in the case of all tourists, we passed by the main gates that have large wooden doors plus canons to denote forms of defense. As we climbed every higher, we loved the bracing quality of the mountain air and clean, unpolluted freshness. We followed the saffron flat that took us up a wide and steep set of stairs to get to the very top where we were, quite delightfully, treated to a young boy who mouthed a lengthy tribute to the great Maratha leader. He was obviously on a school field trip and had been well-trained by his elderly, male teacher who looked deeply pleased with himself and with the tremendous talent of his pupil. Understandably, he got a great ovation when he finished. With this lovely bit of theatrical performance done, we followed the teacher with a few of his pupils to the opposite set of stairs which led up to a temple. There we found a small souvenir shop where I was actually able to buy a magnet of Mahabaleshwar—much to my delight. Cold drinks and snacks were available in the little eatery at the top and a temple bell kept ringing every time someone entered it. We spent about 45 minutes at the summit before we made our way down again. I have to say that the place was mobbed. It happened to be a holiday weekend and the number of school children that were on field trips was quite amazing. Overall, Pratapgad was an excursion that is certainly well worth taking and I was glad to receive a lesson all over again that brought back to mind my history lessons of my school days.

On to the Lingmala Waterfalls:

I do not remember visiting the Lingmala Waterfalls but since it is now touted as a chief attraction in Mahabaleshwar, I told Ravi, our driver, to take us there next. He used his GPS to drive us back to the town which we crossed in order to find this place. All along the drive back, we were fascinated by the views of Pratapgad mountain that seemed to follow us almost until we arrived at Venna Lake.

The Lingmala Waterfalls are apparently seen at their best during the monsoon season or just after. At this time of the year, it is barely a trickle as it is watered by the river that cascades over a towering cliff to empty into the gorge below. Once you park your car in the parking lot, you are asked to pay Rs. 100 per visitor to get to the site from which you can actually see the falls. It involves a long hike of at least half an hour each way, but the path is beautifully constructed out of local red laterite stone and you pass by wild vegetation that makes you feel fully enveloped by the arms of nature.

About ten minutes into our hike, we arrived at the lower level of the falls which involve two streams that are not very high but offer good photo opportunities. A further half hour later, we did arrive at the spot from which you can actually see the falls that cascade abut 500 meters into the green valley below. Sadly, the natural landscape is today dotted with luxury hotels such as the Courtyard by Marriot which, in my opinion, robs the scene of quiet serenity that one hopes to find in the hills. We did not spend too long at the viewing spot—just took some pictures and then started the long hike downhill.

Once we had finished with the fort and the falls, we were ready for some lunch and we found it in a very small eatery en route, where we opted for the Prawn Thali. This turned out to a mound of rice, two chapattis, prawn curry and about five fried prawns. Really nothing to shout about, but it satisfied our hunger that had built up steadily after our grueling physical exertions of the morning. After lunch, we drove back to our hotel where we decided to take a short nap of about an hour before setting out again, This way, we avoided the sun at its hottest and also got the physical rest we needed.

Off to see the “Points’-- Wilson, Echo, Sunset, Lodwick and Arthur’s Seat:

Other than Pratapgad Fort and the Lingmala Waterfalls, Mahabaleshwar is renowned for its stirring mountain views that are best seen from various ‘points’ as they are called in India’s hill-stations. We instructed Ravi to take us to a few of these points and the first one we saw was Wilson Point which turned out to offer nothing to write home about.

We then followed signs and arrived at Echo Point which was quite similar. It was not long before we realized that if you’ve seen one point, you’ve seen them all. That was when we decided to go to Lodwick Point as I had seen pictures of it and it seemed to be distinguished from the others by the presence of a monument that seemed to marks its history.

Accordingly, we followed directions (most of the points are well signposted) and arrived there to find it quite a popular site. Apart from its views of the grand majesty of the mountains, touched appropriately by the setting rays of the sun, we saw large bands of monkeys here. They provided lovely entertainment as we watched their antics. We found them to be much less aggressive than monkeys in most other venues—but, of course, they are still wild animals and one has to be cautious around them.

It was also at this site that I found the father-son team that made the most beautiful footwear, much of which was exhibited even as they actually worked together on crafting pairs of sandals. I could not resist trying them on and ended up buying two pretty pairs—one in red leather and the other in tan brown. However, as he did not have my size in the tan color, he offered to deliver the pair to my hotel by 11.00 am tomorrow. I was thrilled as I really did like the design very much.

This purchase was accomplished, of course, only after we had actually walked along the long and well-marked path that took us to the actual lookout point where the monument to General Lodwick is located. From the plaques that recount the history of his exploration, we learned that he was the first European to set foot in the hills of Mahabaleshwar in 1824. His reporting about the salubrious climate of the venue, led to the establishment of the Mahabaleshwar Sanatorium—a place that was popular in the early 20th century when tuberculosis was raging on the plains. It was also interesting to note that the original monument that had been set up in colonial times had been struck by lightning, but that the efforts and donations of Mahabaleshwar’s hoteliers had led to its reconstruction. This little tidbit of history was a wonderful means by which to understand how and why the hill-station developed into the popular holiday resort it was in the mid-20th century when most Bombayites could not afford to travel overseas and sought venues close by to take a break. Many corporations invested in holiday homes for their employees so that thousands of people flocked to Mahabaleshwar in the 1950s, 60s and 70s. Although the place has fallen somewhat out of fashion (with the affluent looking for far more fancy sites in which to take their vacations), it is still popular among lower income families who enjoy the scenery and the modestly-priced restaurants.

Off to Visit Arthur’s Seat:

With Lodwick Point well explored, all that was left for us to do was to get to the most popular of the ‘points’ in Mahabaleshwar—Arthur’s Seat. I had presumed that the place was so-called because one of the mountains possibly resembled a seat. However, it turned out to have a rather tragic story associated with it. It turns out that one of the officials of the British Raj, Sir Arthur Mallet, lost both his wife and daughter when they drowned in the River Savitri that flows through the hamlet. He chose this point to sit and meditate over his loss as it offered a good view of the river flowing away into the valley below.

Situated at a height of 1470 meters, as in the case of the other points, here too, there is a great deal of walking and climbing past the car park to get to the viewing platform that juts out into the valley. To our good luck, we arrived at this point, just as the sun was setting behind the Western horizon and we were treated to a quite arresting sunset as twilight descended over the hills. In this spot too, the place was inundated by school children on field trips. They come in large coaches that are parked a distance away—so that as you climb to the look out, you pass by hundreds of noisy and highly excitable school kids. It was all fun and I enjoyed their energy as we made our way to the spot where we stood to take pictures against the mountains and the slanting rays of the just-set sun.

After sunset, however, darkness descends pretty quickly in the mountains and the vendors lose no time in packing up their wares and dismantling their make shift stalls that sell strawberries, cucumbers, mulberries, raspberries, gooseberries, etc. We too hurried forward and we did not fancy the idea of having to negotiate the hairpin bends of the mountains in the darkness with just the headlights of our car providing illumination. About a half hour later, we were back in the market area and were through with our sightseeing for the day. It is amazing how much we managed to see and how much ground we covered.

Dinner at The Sizzler Place:

All that was left then was for us to pick a place for dinner and we decided to go to The Sizzler Place which is reputed to offer the best sizzlers in Mahabaleshwar. It is right in the market, exactly opposite the bus depot which was less than a ten-minute walk from our hotel. We dismissed our driver, Ravi, for the evening and told him that we would go out and get some dinner and return to our hotel on our own. All that was left was for him to get his own dinner and then meet us tomorrow morning after breakfast.

The Sizzler Place was also empty when we got there (about 8.00 pm) but it filled up by about 9.00 pm as Indians clearly eat their dinner late. We started off with a Corn Coriander Chicken Soup that was very good indeed before opting for a Lamb Sizzler which came with the works. There was a large helping of mashed potatoes ad a good sized helping of a variety of grilled vegetables and plenty of meat for the two of us to share the dish quite comfortably indeed. With the accompanying sauces—barbecue, pepper and mustard—we had a truly scrumptious and very filling meal and decided again to forego dessert as all we could think of was walking back to our hotel and having a really good night’s sleep.

Our second day in Mahabaleshwar turned out to be just wonderful and we were thrilled, above all, with the lovely weather and the low-key charm of the place.

Until tomorrow…