Shri Trimbakeshwar Jyotirlinga, Trimbak near Nashik

Trimbakeshwar (Trambakeshwar) is an ancient Hindu temple in the town of Trimbak, in the Nashik District of Maharashtra, India. It is 28 KM away from the city of Nashik and 40 KM from Nashik Road. One can easily reach to this place via road from Nashik, Mumbai, Pune and Shirdi. It is advised to visit the place early in the morning as temperature is very high during the midday mostly. After our last day - Sula Vineyard trip, We visited the temple early in the morning as we stayed in Nashik only. We had the car to reach the place. VIP darshan is available at 200 INR though we did not go for it as it wasn't much crowded. Soak yourself in the holiness and purity of the place which washes away all your regrets and sins; and brings wisdom and spirituality.

Trimbakeshwar temple is dedicated to the Lord Shiva and is one of the twelve Jyotirlingas. The origin of the sacred Godavari river is near Trimbak. Plenty of parking is available for private vehicle. The temple is located between three hills namely Brahmagiri, Nilagiri and Kalagiri. When you reach the place you see the ancient and old temple building from far. This is a black stone structure or turned into black shade due to atmospheric effects of Sun and waters. You can carry phones and take pictures inside premise but not inside the sanctum. The Shivalinga is small and located in a garbha griha that is down in a flight of stairs. However, a mirror is placed for easy darshan by devotees. It is not allowed by the priests to touch or go down to bow head. Usually one can stay there just for a few minutes. 

Kusavarta, a kunda (sacred pond) in the temple premises is the source of the Godavari River, the longest river in peninsular India. The current temple was built by Peshwa Balaji Baji Rao (Nanasaheb). Outside the temple premises, you can see plenty of shops and stalls so you can enjoy and even stay nearby as there are a lot of hotels including a few good ones. This place is also famous for doing many poojas to remove different types of doshas. People from India and all across the world visit this place for this purpose. These poojas are performed by Pundits in the temple complex and their homes during day time. 

At Nashik, you can visit other temples like Sita Gufa, Muktidham, a temple of hundreds of Gods. We visited only Muktidham temple and It has really wonderful depicting of lots of Indian Mythologies and Stories in temple premises. En-route to the temple are Coin Museum, Anjneri, Swami Samarth Temple and Gajanan Maharaj temple. Surrounded by hills one can plan to spend a day here visiting nearby places like caves and other temples. 

Maharashtra Jyotirlinga Tour is considered to be a very sacred pilgrimage and thousands of pilgrims travel to these holy places every year to get blessings of lord Shiva. In total, there are twelve Jyotirlingas in India. To cover all five Jyotirlingas in Maharashtra, you can start your trip either from Mumbai, Pune or nearby places. These cities are well connected by rail, road and air. It usually take four days to cover all the places. There are five Jyotirlingas in Maharashtra. 

1. Shri Trimbakeshwar Temple, Trimbak near Nashik

2. Shri Grishneshwar Temple, Aurangabad

3. Shri Bhimashankar Temple, Bhimashankar

4. Shri Aundha Nagnath, Hingoli 

5. Shri Vaijnath Temple (Parli Vaijnath), Parli near Beed

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Mulsi Lake Trek and Paradise Cafe at Mulshi

If you are coming from Pune, you will also see Mulshi Dam, which is ~40 KM away from Pune. It is a very good place for nature loving people. As it is quite far from city, so better to have your own vehicle, if you are traveling from Pune or nearby areas you can ride on your two wheeler as well. The roads are not in good condition when you are near Mulshi. But the scenic beauty will surely touch your heart and mind. Water from this dam is even used for irrigation purposes. Lots of small local shops near the area sell tasty delicacies (bhaji, fresh corns etc.) which are ideal during the monsoon season. We too didn't miss these, and stop by during my each visit to Mulshi Lake. 

Paradise Cafe and Trek to Mulshi Lake:

Mulshi Lake is among the most visited places near Pune in Maharashtra, which is away from the hustle bustle of the city and crowd. It's a good place to visit during monsoon season. We stayed at Paradise Cafe for one day with friends. You can spend quality time with your family, friends or loved ones. The view from cafeteria is simply superb, for which they are charging. Paradise cafe has a great view and lake access. I have read about this place and feedback at multiple forums. Please keep in mind that all the money you need to give in advance, then you will enjoy your stay and you will be in peace. Do not expect too much. They need to improve on their services, and room conditions. The owners converted their farm house into a business place. I would not recommend this hotel to stay if you can stay somewhere else because now you have lots of options nearby. If by all means you decided to stay, you need to have your own music system, and your own trek and camp accessories to enjoy. We had all that as we have done multiple trips. But food is overall good specially the Punjabi food like parathas, lassi and other items, but price is at high side. There is a Souvenir Shop, where prices are little costly too. 

There is a trek from Paradise cafe which goes to Mulshi Lake side. Be aware of slippery paths during rains. It is small 15 mins walk which is good in early morning or evening. We love this quick short trek to Mulshi lake. There is a gate which leads to Mulshi lake. After touching serene water, felt so fresh. We had few photos during our trip as always. 

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Farmhouse experience at Camp Temgarh Mulshi near Lavasa

If you would like to visit a nature's place like Lavasa, Mahabaleshwar, Panchgani or Matheran but not as crowded, Camp Temgarh could be right destination near Mulshi. Prior to visit I did not have a high expectation from this place. Camp Temgarh is truly an experience amidst the nature with overwhelming hospitality which is as par with Taj Group of hotels (like my last Kumarakom Kerala trip). I had an awesome outing with Chanchal, Dilip, Sanjay, Satyajit and Sunil. We all friends enjoyed each other's company like we used to enjoy during our engineering days. It was a nice decision that we chose Camp Temgarh for one day stay. 

CAMP TEMGARH: Lavasa Road, Mulshi Taluka, Pune Maharashtra - 411032

Directions to Camp Temgarh - The best thing is that the place is not far from Pune. From Chandni Chowk on your way to Lavasa, cross Mutha Gaon and then Kharawade gaon. 1.5kms from Kharawade on the right is a blue bus stop with Ananda Ashram board. Turn left from the bus stop, go straight for 600 mtrs and turn right. Exactly 800mtrs from here on the right is Camp Temgarh.

We booked bungalow (Rajan's bungalow), for which Camp Temgarh is known among nearby villagers. Though there are cottages and Swiss tents for stay as well. This farmhouse is spread across huge resort campus. We reached there in the evening. Though high-tea time was over, but on request we get ginger tea (adarak vali chai). There is a gazebo which has unique experience during the day as well as night. Evenings are for old movies – hook up the projector in the gazebo. 

This farmhouse is perfect place for celebrating a relaxed bonfire, food, antakshari and dance. Guess what, we had all together under clear sky, and on a full moon night. Chanchal did great job bringing speaker. We had full house game and Teen Patti all night. At this moment, none win or lose as all 500 & 1000 notes were ban through out. In the morning, Beautiful views and surroundings overwhelmed us. We also had small trek to riverside, and loved the morning dew and soothing breeze. We observed many holes (could be of snakes, rats or any other animal) on our trek, so be in shoes and don't leave children alone. I captured the sunrise and many other pictures during my stay. 

We met many friendly people with high quality service, food and atmosphere at CT. All our requests were fulfilled within time. Mahavir and his team are just amazing, they make sure that our stay be comfortable and memorable. I would say - Rajan! keep them, these friendly people are your strength. Tasty fresh food is big big plus at CT. They also have mineral water all the time freely available. They also have refrigerator in the Gazebo to chill beverages. It was surprising to see over-friendly dogs, with whom we play for few time (specially Satya & Sanjay). CT also have facility for multiple options of games as soccer/basketball/volleyball/TT/snooker/badminton, and trampoline for children. We also played as per our choice as we had few in our own kit as well. Biking, Fishing and bird-watching can also be enjoyed here. Good to see dustbins around the farmhouse to dump all the waste. If you are visiting this place during monsoon, don't forget to carry raincoats, umbrellas, good quality shoes, and lights/torch for night. What I feel that rooms can be managed in a better way in bungalow. 

The place is very well maintained and truly fit for family and friends of all age and groups. Great place to celebrate small team events. Only note, this could feel like a haunted place, if visiting on weekday alone or as a couple, unless someone has craze to explore haunted place. But place is quite safe, clean, and surrounded by nature at its best. We will love to visit it again.

After checkout we spent few time at Temghar Dam and then back to Pune. 

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Bhimashankar Jyotirlinga near Bhorgiri MH

Quote of the Post: "Bhimashankar is definitely God's unique creation worth visiting for jungle lovers, trekkers as well as devotees." - Quote about 'Bhimashankar Maharashtra' - Sachin Kumar Gupta 

Bhimashankar is a wildlife sanctuary. In the heart of this is Bhimashankar temple (Bhimashankar Shiv Mandir) which is one of the 12 Jyotirlings of India. This temple is very famous in Pune and people from all around the world come to visit this temple. Many devotees visit this place almost every year. This was my second visit here and the serenity and spirituality remained intact. It is overcrowded on weekends and Mondays of Shravan month. My last visit was during weekend, however couldn't visit the main temple due to long queue. Still with an awesome weather, we enjoyed the place with Meenal, Anmol and Anshul. 

This time, i.e. during my second visit, we visited on Tuesday to get sometime inside the temple and ample time to visit the main Jyotirling place. The condition of the road is good and best time to visit is during monsoon (July - Sep). Though any time of the year is good to visit Bhimashankar. With clouds touching your feet and scenic views all over, it's a delight to visit this place. Bhimashankar Temple, located in the village of Bhorgiri. It is approx 3-4 hours drive from pune (130 KM) and 4-5 hours from Kalyan, Mumbai (180 KM) and 5-6 hours from Nashik (210 KM). 

Don't forget to carry an umbrella and also some good anti-skid footwear. It really gets very slippery while climbing up and down the steps. Ghats are really good for trekking and road-trip. You will also get colorful bodycover polysheets in monsoon (20-30 INR per sheet). One drawback is the temple is overcrowded and a lot of mismanagement happens for parking on weekend and Sravan month Mondays. You may also have to walk 1-2 km on the roads from parking during peak timings. Once you reach main entry point named and tagged as 'Shree Kshetra Jai Bhimashankar', you'll have to step down nearly 300+ steps to reach main temple. But steps are well built so that nobody have any difficulty in walking through the steps. For the old age and sick peoples there are some arrangements of palki with reasonable rates.  

The temple has the Nagara style architecture, however one cant capture it in lens as Photography is strictly prohibited inside the temple. Don't forget to see a giant 17th Century bell inside the temple. We were also happy to see two Nandi closely. You can also have waterproof cam specially if visiting during monsoon. It is also the origin place of river Bhima. At times during monsoon, visibility becomes almost zero with fog all around. It is the beauty of the place, which makes you feel so heavenly. We enjoyed rain and fog the whole time during both our visits.  

Three worship services are offered every day. Mahashivratri is a season of great festivity here. Temple schedule is as follows:

04:30 AM Kakada Aarti

05:00 AM Nijarup Darshan

05:30 AM Regular Pooja,Abhishek starts

12:00 PM Naivedya Pooja (No Abhishek inside)

12:30 PM Regular Pooja,Abhishek starts

03:00 PM Madhyan Aarti (No Darshan for 45min)

04:00 PM to 9.30 PM Shringar darshan (No Abhishek inside)

07:30 PM Aarti

09:30 PM Mandir Closed

Note: Except Monday, Pradosh, Shravan Mass, Mahashivratri - Present Abhisheka (Abhishek inside temple ) till 2.00 PM.

On Monday, Pradosh, Shravan Mass, Mahashivratri - Present Abhisheka (Abhishek inside temple ) till 6.00 PM

Once you are out of the temple after visit the jyotirling, you can also hike towards the hills behind the temple, where we took a short trip during our first visit. We found streams of natural falls that wipe away journey's fatigue. Places that can be visited in are Hanuman Lake, Gupt Bhimashankar, Origin of River Bhima, Nag Phani, Bombay Point, Sakshi Vinayak and a lot more. The picturesque beauty of the place cannot be captured with mix of rain, fog & mist weather, and done justice using a camera for sure. During stair-way, there are many vendors selling yummy crispy hot vada pav, corns, fresh sweets and other snacks. We had lunch at Natraj Restaurant, which had good quality food with decent price. (The place is 10 KM away from Bhimashankar temple)

The other Jyotirlinga shrines in Maharashtra are Vaidyanath near Parli Dist Beed, Trimbakeshwara near Nashik, Grishneshwar near Aurangabad and Aundha Nagnath Temple in Hingoli. One day visit to Bhimashankar clubbing one of the places nearby and during monsoon to explore nature at it's best. 

Recommendation: You can also visit Lenyadri caves at Junnar or Ozar Astivinayak temples or Shivneri fort and come back by Narayangaon Nasik Pune highway.

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