“As long as I live, I’ll hear waterfalls and birds and winds sing”. Monsoon is at peak here in Pune; the countless waterfalls in the region are back to life and are roaring in full flow. Few of these waterfall like Devkund waterfall, Umbrella Waterfall, Thoseghar Waterfall, Madhe Ghat Waterfall are extremely popular and are brimming with tourists. But, there are still many waterfalls which are equally beautiful and yet to be explored or named. One I would love to add to the list of the unexplored waterfall is Valvand Waterfall!!
Rajmachi Valvand Route
Heavy rains on Rajmachi Route
Whenever I see a waterfall at a distance, I keep on wondering if I can actually make it to the base of that waterfall. Sometimes I am able to make it and sometimes I am not but I never regret😊. Trust me, I have been to dozens of secret waterfalls in and around Pune. I never wrote about them as I always wanted them to be hidden!! But I couldn’t resist myself from writing about this beautiful waterfall what I am calling as Valvand Waterfall.
(PS: Maybe it will help to grow some tourism at Valvand Village and help the locals to earn a bit)
Numerous waterfall on Valvand waterfall route
How to reach Valvand Waterfall
Valvand Village lies somewhere in the mid of Mumbai Pune route. It is on the same route of the popular Rajmachi Fort Trek. Mumbai and Pune are well connected to major Indian cities via railways and roadways.
From Pune/Mumbai, one can catch a local train to reach Lonavala. From Lonavala, you can take an auto up to Della Adventure Park or Fanasrai depending on road conditions. Also, shared jeeps are available for these locations from Lonavala station (mainly in monsoon season).
Note: The road routes are in very bad conditions especially in the monsoon season, so it’s better to trek after Della adventure Park rather than riding.
From Fanasrai, you walk or ride for 1.4 kms until you reach Valvand village road fork. The left one goes to Udhewadi (Rajmachi base village) and the right one goes to Valvand.
My journey to Valvand Waterfall
From the past few years, I was mostly doing one-day treks near Pune. I always wanted to test myself by doing tough range treks of 2 to 3 days in the Sahyadris region. My brother always insisted me to do the famous Lobhi trek (Lonavala to Bhimashankar trek). The Lobhi trek is one of the ancient trek routes in Sahyadris where one covers a total distance of approx. 75 kms in a span of 2 to 3 days depending on an individual’s fitness level.
Valvand Village region
Lush green Sahyadris
Finally, in the last monsoon (July 18), I along with a few of my friends decided to give it a go. I wasn’t aware of the trek path, I just knew the village names that we needed to pass by to make it to Bhimashankar from Lonavala. We took a local train from Pune and reached Lonavala around 6:30 am. From there we took an auto (INR 150), which dropped us to the Della adventure park, as the road ahead was in very bad condition. We decided to begin the trek from Della adventure itself.
Local train to reach Lonavala
The route from Della all the way up to Valvand village road fork is the same as that of Rajmachi Fort trek. It’s a muddy road, there are so many waterfalls all along the way and the views of lush green Sahyadris covered with clouds and fog is just stunning. It was raining quite heavily on that particular day and thus all the waterfalls were in full flow. I had a bath in one of them and absolutely loved every bit of it.
Muddy road to reach Valvand Village
After walking for 6.6 kms (1.5 hours), we reached the point (fork), where the road divides into two. Left goes to Rajmachi and the right one goes to Valvand Village. We followed the right side route and after walking for around half an hour or so, we made it to the Valvand village. It’s a small village with just a few houses. We asked an old lady there for the route for Kondeshwar temple which was our planned night stop and she guided us with the same.
Valvand Village
The old lady who guided as the route to Valvand Waterfall
We followed the route besides Bharat Electronics power plant going towards the hill. After climbing the small hill, you will see a water canal. Walk by the side of this canal until the point you reach a staircase and look at the opposite side. Woohoo!! Congratulations you have made it to one of the most beautiful, hidden and unexplored waterfalls in the Sahyadri region.
Water canal
We were left flabbergasted by the beauty of this waterfall. I just sat by the staircase and kept looking at this nature’s beauty. Also, I couldn’t resist myself from taking a bath at this waterfall. But be careful in the peak monsoon season as the water flow is tremendous. After admiring the beauty of this waterfall we decided to continue our journey ahead.
Beautiful Valvand Waterfall
We climbed a small hill and reached a vast plateau. The visibility was almost zero and it was raining buckets. We lost the trail further ahead and reached a point where there was deep valley beneath. Ohh!! We were lost in the jungles!! We tried our best to find the correct trail but heavy rains and foggy conditions didn’t allow us to. All the trails were hidden under newly grown bushes. Finally, we decided to return back.
Dense jungle ahead of Valvand Village
It was the first time in my life I decided to quit a trek in middle, but that is how it had to be. I didn’t want to risk my and others life. In the end, nature is the ultimate winner!! We returned back and again sat by the waterfall as we had enough time before we make it to Lonavala.
Food and stay options in Valvand village
Valvand is a very small village, but you can still ask the villagers to make food for you. Also, remember to carry a few eatables and enough of drinking water along with you.
For stay, you can set up your tent at the Valvand village. I highly doubt if they provide stay option at the village, you can stay at the nearby Udhewadi village which has a good number of accommodation options.
Best time to visit Valvand Waterfall
The waterfall is not a perennial waterfall hence the best time to visit the same is in the monsoon months of July and September. The waterfall is totally dependent on rainfall, so make sure you visit the same on rainy days.
Friends who joined me on this trek
Dense forest cover on Rajmachi Valvand route
Though I couldn’t complete the Lobhi Trek, I don’t regret it. The cold breeze, muddy trails, foggy weather, the beautiful song of a flowing waterfall, heavy rains, lush green Sahyadris and the plenty of species of all types of birds, butterflies, and flowers are enough to make memories that will last for a lifetime! I am surely coming back to do this trek!!
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Are you looking for some essential travel gear? Check out my blog post on What’s in my Backpack.
Looking for more weekend gateway options near Pune and Mumbai? Check out these blog posts:
- A cycle trip to Lavasa city from Pune (INR 100)
- Andharban jungle and Devkund Waterfall Trek – Time to get lost in the dense forest
- Satara – A road trip to the Maharashtra’s Valley of Flowers from Pune (INR 800)
- Tikona Fort Trek and Pawna Lake – One day trip near Pune (INR 250)
- A two-day trip to Torna Fort and Madhe Ghat Waterfall(INR 400)
- Matheran – Asia’s only automobile free hill station
- Daman – A Glimpse of Portugal Heritage
- A road trip to Harihareshwar, Shrivardhan and Diveagar Beach from Pune (INR 1200)
- Kalsubai Peak – Trek to the highest peak of Maharashtra (INR 600)
- Korigad Fort Trek – Exciting one day trek near Pune Mumbai (INR 300)
- Bendewadi, Laalwadi and Jagtap waterfalls – Go get lost in the land of waterfalls!! (INR 300)
- Experience the sunrise from Lohagad Fort near Pune/Mumbai (INR 150)
- Visapur Fort Trek – Thrilling one day trek near Pune Mumbai (INR 200)
- Rajmachi Fort Trek, adventurous one day trip near Mumbai and Pune (INR 350)
- 12-hours monsoon road trip exploring Tamhini Ghat (INR 300)
- An exciting road trip to Purandar Fort from Pune (INR 300)
- Tung Fort Trek – A journey through the clouds (INR 250)
- Nashik City – An exciting two day trip from Pune/Mumbai/Surat (INR 1500)
- Rajgad Fort Trek – An exciting one-day trek near Pune/Mumbai (INR 200)
- Katraj to Sinhagad night trek – An exciting trek near Pune (INR 250)
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