Palghar is known for many forts, mainly sea forts and hill
forts.
My last trek was to Kaldurg Fort, it was my second attempt
and I was successful. So I planned to do Kohoj which was nearby to Kaldurg.
I gathered information online about the whereabouts of the
fort. The fort can be identified by a
human like rock formation atop the fort. Reminded me of the movie “Behind Enemy
Lines featuring Owen Wilson, which had a statue of an Angel up the hill and how
the enemies destroy the statue with gun firing.” This fort is located in Wada.
Now the question you have in your head is how do I get to Wada?
Wada is near Manor which can be accessed from Palghar either
via a ST bus or rickshaw. But the bus is faster. The distance is approx 32 km
from Palghar Railway Station to Vaghote Village which is on the Wada Road,
where the fort stands.
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| Kohoj fort in a distance |
Now this was a short notice trek meaning Nelson spoke to me
a day before and within 16 hours we decided to go to Kohoj Fort. As it is the
month of May, the hottest month of the year I advised Nelson to carry atleast 3
litres of water. After all trekking Kohoj we were nearing the sun.
Nelson who stays in Mulund had boarded the 407 hours train
to Dadar and from there switched to Western Railway and boarded the 504 hours
Virar fast which arrived at Andheri at 519 hours. I got my tickets at Rs.15 one
way.
It was nice to meet Nelson after a long time and we chatted
on women who were a part of our lives. Haha.
At 610 hours the train reached Virar and so we hurried to
board the 615 hours shuttle to Palghar.
Finally in the train and a place to sit, we started off. We
were lucky that there was no fish being transported unlike last time to Kaldurg
when the entire train smelled fishy.
In the train Nelson told me that he didn’t have a ticket to
Palghar as the train booking counter was closed. I was surprised to hear that
as the train counters open 15 minutes before the first train starts. I had my
ticket with me. Only problem is Ticket Checker. If we caught then we would have
to pay a fine. But it is strange that no tickets were sold at Mulund.
My worst fears came alive. A ticket checker was there
inspecting tickets. We were lucky enough to sneak out of the station without
getting caught. It is always advisable to travel with valid tickets else pay
a fine.
We had breakfast at a Hotel Lokmaya near the station. Our
Breakfast comprised of two plates of Medu Wada and two tea's costing us Rs.70. Though
the food is not big shake but having a breakfast is always good. We
didn’t know when lunch would be served.
We then boarded the 730 hours bus to Manor. Manor is around
24 km from Palghar. In 30 minutes we were there at a cost of Rs. 14 each. The
view from the bus was scenic. The hill ranges that stretched across the
backdrop were amazing. One hill range followed by another, like a chain of
them. But no sign of Kohoj.
The dried fields in a distance stretching till the hill
ranges with a few houses and trees to make it a beautiful scene.
We alighted at Manor at 800 hours and later found out from
one of the shopkeepers that we should not have alighted from the bus as it was
going via Wada and we had to alight at Vaghote Village.
Manor was a small town flooded with shops on either side of
the narrow road leading to Palghar at one end and Wada on the other. There was chaos. There are shops selling everything here. This
is also a major bus stop junction.
So we had to wait there for another bus, finally at 850
hours we boarded another bus at a cost of Rs.14 per head and we reached Vaghote
Village at 915 hours. While travelling we could see Kohoj and it appeared to
grow bigger and bigger as we were nearing it. The road does a traverse to reach
Vaghote Village. There is a human shaped rock formation atop, and it appears as
if a human is standing there.
Vaghote Village consists of around 25 houses but no shops
there. So if you need to collect food or water Manor is the place. The trek
starts from here keeping the fort on your right hand side. We inquired with a
few locals and they showed us the way to reach the lake from where the trail
leads to Kohoj.
The lake was beautiful. Saw women cleaning clothes in the
water and a few children playing next to eat. I noticed that shell fish is
available in plenty in the lake. I make this statement based on the no of
shells I located near the lake premises. I saw some boys enjoying a swim in the
water to chill in the hot sun.
It was just 930 hours and the heat was unbearable. Nelson
said if this is the condition now what will happen when we reach the top. Hot
Hotter Hottest and to top it the no winds. So sweat like pigs in the hot sun.
The villagers are very friendly in giving directions and so
we took it and followed the trail. There are stones marked with arrows on the
way so that we are on the right part. But they disappear as we start climbing
up the hill.
Don’t know if they vanished in the rains or if they were
never marked so we had to find our way up the hill. But as per the villagers
the way up is from the backside so we started to climb in that manner. There
are many trails on the hills so had to follow them to some extend just to find
if we were on the right track.
Finally the worst happened. We were lost and we decided to
climb up there via the waterfall route. Though now there was no waterfall just
huge rocks’ standing there with thorny bushes for company. The way up was bad luckily I didn’t slip
thanks to my new Action High Ankle Trekking Shoes. But the thorny bushes made
the climb very difficult. Both of us were bruised on our legs and hands. We had
cuts and blood flowing through it.
My rucksack strap broke. Shit climbing was a pain and now
this. It was nice of Nelson to carry the bag up via the rocky and thorny
patches. We were just 20 feet away from the top and the climb was getting
steeper and steeper with thorns for company.
I checked my phone for signals got none. So I told Nelson
that it is better to get down. As there was no way we could communicate with
anyone and we didn’t know if we were on the right track. That is the problem
with waterfalls.
The climb down was going to be difficult and we had to do it
in order to get down.
With ample breaks midway we decided to head back from the
hills at 1230 hours. We prayed all the way down till we crossed the thorny
bushes and till we reached down the hill.
Finally at 1430 hours we were back at the lake. We jumped
into the water to cool ourselves from the hectic climb we had up the hill. The
water was refreshing and it cooled us out completely and we felt fresh to head
home. All our tiredness disappeared in a jiffy.
After having a Jacuzzi for around an hour we headed off to
the Wada Road from where we were to board a bus to Palghar.
Rickshaws are available to take you to Manor and Palghar but
the journey is more perilous. As they fit as many people as possible in the
rickshaw and it is difficult to sit in one position for more than 15 minutes
without stretching.
So we boarded a bus to Palghar after waiting for it for
about 45 minutes. Finally got our tickets at a cost of Rs.28 per head. It took
us around an hour to reach Palghar.
As we were hungry we headed straight to Hotel Lokmanya to
have Puri Bhajji’s and Masala Dosa and gulped it down with cold drink. After
having our full we decided to board a train to Virar with a valid ticket.
After we knew the train would be crowded and
we had no other option than to adjust.
We boarded the 1855 hours Valsad Bandra Passenger. It went
slow till Virar and from then did Borivali and then Andheri. Finally I reached
home at 2045 hours and Nelson at 2200 hours.
The trek was difficult primarily because we climbed in the
summer and to top it we got lost in the hills and had to climb up via the
waterfall route filled with thorny bushes that bruised us. But the trek was a
learning experience for us and thank God I didn’t get dehydrated on the hills
like I did in Mahuli.
But I will come again to conquer this fort. A promise I made
to myself.
