Biking Trip to Mhad and Khopoli

 Adios!!!

Here I am one more time with travelogue of my one day biking trip to Mahad Ganpati (my choice) and Shri Chaitanya Gagangiri Maharaj Ashram (Atul’s choice) with Atul. 

Till the morning of our trip i.e. 15th September 2011, we weren’t sure as whether we would be travelling by car or on bike. But on contemplating a lot we decided to take a bike, the reason being the weather. The weather was really enjoyable and lovely. Although it was a tiring trip, all the pain was worth it.

We started off from Dombivali, took Manpada road to Kalyan Shilphata road. From there we headed towards Panvel via Kalyan Shilphata road and then Panvel Phata. From there we headed towards the Mumbai-Pune Express way. From there we took a slip road onto old Mumbai-Pune Express way towards khopoli, took Panvel Bypass road to join NH4. We took an exit on the right to Varad Vinayak Temple. It took us about 2 hours or so to reach the temple. 

The temple is situated in the Khalapur taluka of Raigadh district and enshrines ‘Varad Vinayak’ (the one who fulfills all the desires and grants all the wishes). Mahadcha Varadvinayak is considered to be one of the most revered places of worship and is one of the Ashtavinayak temples of Maharashtra. The temple looks like an ordinary house, so don’t get confused when you reach there and don’t see a authentic templeJ. All the corners of the temple have pairs of elephants and its sections covered in gold. The idol is a ‘Swayambhu’ and faces east with its trunk pointing left. The consorts Riddhi and Siddhi can be seen on either side of the idol. The most distinctive thing about the temple is a lamp that has been burning constantly since 1892 AD (so says the legend).  

The swayambhu idol was found in 1690 AD by Shri Dhondu Paudkar in a lake. The idol was kept in a nearby goddess temple for some time. In 1725 AD Varadvinayak temple was built by Peshwa Ramji Mahadev Biwalkar and he gifted the temple to the village. 

More or less all the worship places have one or the other legend associated with it. This temple is not spared as well. As per the legend, a rishi by name Vachaknavi was visited by a ruler by name Rukmangada, and during the visit the rishipatni Mukundaa expressed her attraction to the king. The king turned her down leaving her seething in anger. In the meanwhile, Indra, the king of the Devas came down to the earth in the disguise of Rukmangada and accepted her romantic moves. An illegitimate son Grutshmadha was born out of their union. The son, learning of the story of his birth was grief stricken, and prayed to Ganesha in Bhadrakavana for purification of his soul of the sins of everyone concerned. His prayers were granted by Varadavinayak of Bhadrakavana (now Mahad).Hence the name Varadvinayak.

From Varad vinayak we went to visit Shri Chaitanya Gagangiri Maharaj Ashram, Khopoli. One has to head towards Khopoli highway and then on to NH4. You will come across Khopoli bus stand on you left, after going some distance take a left and you will see the Ashram on your right side. It took us about half an hour to an hour to reach there.

The Ashram is quite peaceful and is situated between the lush green mountains on all the sides. The environment is spectacular with Patalganga river leaping and frolicking by its side. The ashram halls are open so one can enjoy the openness of the ashram. In the main hall, Gagangiri baba seats on a flower bedecked swing with an imposing altar with sculptures of faunal life. 

Gagangiri Maharaj had severed his hands and legs when he undertook penance in water. Here his limbs were injured extensively due to attacks by fish; as a result he was unable to walk. He used to be carried on the shoulders of his disciples wherever he wished to go. His teachings are been followed not only by Indians, but also from people across the globe.

Though I am not a big fan of visiting ashrams, but what I liked about being there was that it offered me the quietness which mumbaikars require after being in a city which does not sleep. We spent some time here and then headed for lonavala for lunch 

As soon as we left from ashram, the weather became amazingly pleasant. Felt really good once we took Khandala Ghat road. After about 45 minutes we reached Kamat Hotel where we halted for lunch. While returning back we decided to go off the road and explore the interior roads to Mumbai. 

On our return journey, it started raining heavily… all the roads were covered with fog so we had to halt for sometime… The weather was really beautiful and enjoyable… We chose to go off-track discovering the rural beauty. We then were on the same road back towards Mahad. Without deviating towards Mahad, we continued towards Kalyan shill road. Approximately, after 7 km from Mahad junction is a right turn towards Matheran and Neral via Karjat. This road is unlike urban cemented roads. However, it connects you to the farms, mountain ranges, scenic silence and rural life. It is real beauty to see farm houses. Now this does not mean the “farm house” that we know. The farmer actually stays close to the farm and completes farming tasks. We crossed small villages / hubs like Dolavli, Kelavli, Palasdhari and then Karjat. Each station is separated by 5 – 7 km rural routes / roads.

The road then leads us to Karjat junction from where the Karjat station is at a distance of few yards. We continued going straight towards Neral and then badlapur and then ambernath and then to Kalyan Shilphata road, reaching dombivali wrecked ;)

We were extremely tried by the time we reached home but as I said earlier, it was all worth it. Would go on a long biking trip if given a choice……