This was not the first time; I have been here thrice, that
is more than what I visited my own village. I knew nobody here, neither anybody knew
me. It was the beautiful minimalism of the village which had left a print in my
hippocampus.
How is the village?
A dwelling of some 30-40 small houses scattered over the
hills. Majority of them kutchha. A stream originating from the slopes of
Ratangad flows by the edge of the village. A check dam on the river serves an excellent
play area for the tourists.
Amruteshwar Shiva temple:
Nearly 1300 hundred years old temple dedicated to Lord
Shiva sets an impression for Ratanwadi. Amruteshwar temple as it is called is constructed using Hemadpanthi architectural style. The genre of architecture is named
after Hemadpanth of Yadava dynasty. Style consists
of using Black stones for construction and lime to glue the different pieces. Tulja
Bhavani and Tambdi Surla are some other famous temples of Hemadpanthi genres.
Amruteshwar temple
Nandi
Base village for Ratangad trek:
Ratanwadi is the base village
from where the Trek to Ratangad starts. Ratangad is an old fort, nearly 2000
years old. The trek encompasses crossing rapid streams multiple times, walking
through the green mountains and continuous ascend for 3-4 hours to reach the
top. Two iron ladders on the top finally take us to the fort. Trekkers use a
natural cave on the fort to stay in night.
Accommodation/Camping in the village:
Expect very basic accommodation
in the village. May be some villager can offer his spare room depending upon
the availability. For campers the place is delight. We have camped on the hill on the other side
of the river. High speed winds and heavy rains are expected in monsoon. Be
prepared.
Let’s begin.
I was riding solo. Left the
Arthur Lake and started riding towards Ratanwadi. The road runs parallel to the
Lake. The Lake water makes the surrounding cool and fills the place with a very
peculiar and light whiff. Now when you go next time and come back don’t say
Niraj fooled us. We didn’t smelled
anything there :) I would say stay away
from the crowd, get yourself wrapped by the elements there the mountains, the grass, the Lake Water, local folks and certainly you will feel it.
I was riding at 25-30kmph for the
16km distance between Bhandardara dam and Ratanwadi village to enjoy the surrounding.
Every time I visit this village I can see the shift in life carried by the winds of modernization.
But this is how the time flows. I feel myself lucky to experience the raw side of Ratanwadi before these winds could expunge the original layer.
It’s fine for a Cobra to be in the temple of Bholenath:
Parked my bike close to the
Amruteshwar mandir. Took darshan of the Shivling and was searching for a nice
spot to film the temple. Right in front of me a middle aged man was posing with
his elbow on the temple wall. A golden snake jumped from the hole below
is armpit. The snake was fast it ran towards the temple boundary. Creeped up the
4 feet straight wall. Then it ran through the fencing wire
criss crossing its body. Finally it disappeared in the tree leaves. Whole temple
was in awe.
I didn’t know it was a Cobra
until a local folk said. I just knew one thing that a cobra can raise its 1/3rd
of its body and run raising his head. The man was still in a state of Shock J
Cobra
Woman with pride
Came out from the temple
premises and went towards the stream for some photographs.
Stream running by the village
Beautiful village scenery
Reached Batliwala guest house
in Bhandardara around 7 PM. I had purchased half a kilogram of big Kerala
bananas for my dinner from the Shendi market. Fruits and curd rice are the best to keep our stomach healthy on trips.
Night was calm and peaceful. Woke
up early in the morning to capture the lake in blue hours. But rain compelled
me to return quickly. Packed my stuffs, broke my fast at Café Bhandardara and
started my return journey.
Let your friends know about this!
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