Heaven For All During The Rains. Review on Lonavala

I had a great trip to Bushi Dam with my cousins. It was truly a heavenly experience. Bushi Dam is just awesome during the monsoons. I have been here before but never during peak monsoon. I'll give you a brief run down of events.

Total Individuals: 5 (2M, 3F)

Avg Age: 21

Mode of Transport: Car

Duration of the Trip: 7am to 6pm

We left at 7am. There was absolutely no traffic and we reached Lonavala at 8.45am. After a quick breakfast at Ramakrishna, we proceeded towards Bushi Dam which is about 5 kms from Lonavala main. On reaching the base, we found a good pay and park where we left the car with our change clothes, watches, purse, etc. It is safe, no issues. Scurried for Bushi. We came to a place which is now called the 'typical' hangout. Water gushing down through a 'steps like' formation. It was pretty neat, with lots of people clicking pictures and small stalls here and there, some makeshift, right in the middle of the water. After spending about an hour there, we decided to trek up the waterfalls right upto the source. The locals told us that after trekking for about an hour, we would find several beautiful waterfall sources, each just about 10-15 mins apart from each other. Most of the way up was lonely with an occasional group of youngsters. As we went higher and higher, the scenary was getting breathtaking. To add to the fun, it was raining heavily and it was so misty that visibility was just about 20-30 meters. Due to the rainy season, the whole place is densely vegetated and you will find an occasional friend from the reptile world, though we couldnt spot anything except a few crabs. Some of the rocks were very slippery and some occasions, if you lose your footing, you are history. After about 90 mins and bruised legs, we were in sight of the source. It was just awesome..the thunderous noise of the water gushing down on the rocks. We didnt see a big crowd there except a few enthusiasts. Not many people would want to climb for 90 mins, risk death, get bruises all over the place...to see a waterfall source! To make climbing worse, there are huge cactus plants everywhere. Obviously you dont want to hold them for support.

The waterfall source was heavenly. As I said, this was one of the many. Water falling from about a height of 300 feet. My cousin and myself tried to get under the waterfall but it was impossible. The force was just too much. It would rip you apart if you stood under it for more than 5 seconds. Besides, the intensity was so much that it made us choke for want of oxygen. We met a 'Polaroid' fellow there and took a few pictures.

He agreed to take us to another waterfall source (much friendlier than this one) if we paid him some more. We agreed. He took us through some thick vegetation for about 25 mins. We approached a clearing which had another amazing view and a very good waterfall. Here too, the current was very strong, but you could hold a rock and be inside water having a good time. We were there for about an hour. It was amazing. There was no one there. Just the entire place for us.

It took us about an hour to trek down. We literally followed the footsteps of that ''Polaroid' guy. On two occasions...we did something different and slipped. Its very difficult to differentiate the slippery rocks from the non-slippery ones. Looking for moss on the surface wont help much. Locals know the path very well. We thought it would be best to keep our feet on his footmarks.

We came down and settled for a quick snack. Stalls are expensive. 6 bucks for a wada pav, 15 for a bhajia plate and 5 bucks for a Malboro.

We headed back to the car to get our change clothes. There are change rooms available (Rs. 10 per head) where you can don fresh clothes. After getting neat and dry, we drove back to Ramakrishna where we hogged on some delicious Biryani and Aloo Paratha. By the time we were done, it was almost 5pm. We took the expressway and touched Vashi at 6.15pm.

It was great fun. Guys..get to Lonavala, it just rocks during the monsoons.