Juss another blog...!: A weekend at Matheran.

Matheran It is a hill station in Karjat Tahsil and is also the smallest hill station in India. It is located on the Western Ghats range at an elevation of around 800 m (2,625 feet) above sea level. It is located around 90 km from Mumbai. Matheran's proximity to the three Metros makes it a popular weekend getaway for urban residents. The name Matheran means either "forest on top" or "mother forest".
Matheran is an eco-sensitive region, declared by the Ministry of Environment and Forest, Government of India. It is one of the few places in the world where vehicles are not allowed, which makes the place different from others. Matheran takes you over a hundred years back in time when there were no vehicles.
Because of vehicles being banned in Matheran, the place is quite peaceful despite the thousands of visitors coming to visit throughout the year.
There were lots of lookout points that provide spectacular views of the surrounding hills and valleys. Matheran has a reasonably dense forest cover.
There were around 38 designated look-out points in Matheran, including the Panorma Point that provides a 360 degree view of the surrounding area and also the Neral town. From this point, the view of sunset and sunrise is breathtaking. The Louisa Point offers crystal clear view of the Prabal Fort. The other points are the One Tree Hill Point, Hart Point, Monkey Point, Porcupine Point, Rambgh Point, and more.

We stayed there for two days as we could not cover all the points in a day. There are plenty of rooms available on the top. The only means of transport are to ride horses or travel by foot. Take my advice walking would be the best option as we will have the freedom to go anywhere we want and stay as long as we want at a point to enjoy its beauty.


View from the Panorama point

The British discovered Matheran and developed it as a famous tourist destination. The history dates back to the British era when Hugh Malet discovered the hill station in the year 1850. It is around 100 kms away from the industrial capital of India, Mumbai.

The place boasts of its panoramic views and breathtaking charm. The place can be explored on the horse back or by man-pulled rickshaws. If you are a trekker then there is nothing that can beat the charm of exploring this serene land on foot. One of the interesting facts about Matheran is that it still has preserved the old British style architecture which has now become the heritage buildings.