A view of Kolvan valley and Tikona fort situated at an altitude of 3580 feet on a rainy day.(Sunday 28-6-2009). We members of the "B.N.H.S(Bombay Natural History Society)" had resided at the "Mulshi Bhushan" resort in Kolvan, a ancient bungalow made into a tourist lodge for the 2 days(Saturday 27-6-2009 to Sunday 28-6-2009) of our "Nature and trekking tour".The adjoining countryside and its vegetation are excellent during the monsoon season with a cool climate and small puddles of water.This year has been the one of the worst drought conditions in Maharashtra and hence the rainfall was not continuous as is experienced in this time of the year.It had rained partially on Saturday evening and hence we experienced a "Crab Catching" tour in the night ,something normal to the local adivasis during this season but a source of novelty to most "City-Dwellers" unused to village living.
4 of us which included 2 local adivasis and 2 "B.N.H.S tourists" made our way into the pitch black night of the forests into the loamy sinking soil and streams netting a good catch of crabs.Me and my co -B.N.H.S traveller , a adventurous lady,personally learnt the art of catching crabs from our local adivasi guides. Akin to snakes, care should be taken when catching crabs, for if bitten, the result would not be death as in snakes but a severely fractured finger as some of the land crabs we caught were real big specimens.It was one of the most memorable experiences and reminded me of my own "air-gun hunting" days during the 1970's with and fish catching with my relatives and local villagers in my parents ancestral village in Magalore.Times and era's have changed,and the rapid depletion of forests, wild-life and birds during my own life-time have made me a stauch conservationist since the last few decades and my idle air-gun is now used for "Target-practise" and not hunting birds.
Experiencing a typical village life makes a city-dweller understand the everyday working conditions of a typical villager, hence, the latest vogue has been of management schools sending their students to villages to understand "Village economics and living".
Later in the morning we trekked to the peak of "Tikona Fort" also know as Vitandgad Fort, not a very torturous trek amongst the treks i have done but beautiful in the pleasnt and cool "Monsoon Climate". The thick "Monsoon Mist clouds" that engulfs you when you reach the summit is something to be experienced as also the beautiful surrounding lush forested area and lake scenery.
The danger of this scenic "Village Life" and forests disappearing in the near future is real as "agricultural land" gives way to posh "Vacation Cottages", ultimately ,totally commercialising these locales ,as has happened to numerous hill-stations in India including nearby Lonavala.
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5:57Catching Crabsby waaaangtaaang4,604 views
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