Camping under the Stars: Bhandardara

A perfect one-day getaway just 120 kms and two hours away from Navi Mumbai, Igatpuri is comparatively an untouched and less commercialised spot. Bhandardara is a quiet village on the outskirts of Igatpuri.

Its a different experience indeed to sleep under the sky, chill and feel the awesomeness.

There is a tree with plastic bottles filled with water dangling on it. It is weird and exciting in equal measures to see them dangling from the tree. There are stories of it being a haunted tree but these are just floated around. It is very safe. The bridge there adds to the overall scenic appeal of the place.

After spending the afternoon playing games and chatting here we moved to another spot with no trees around and just a patch of land to stay on. We hired tents here. These tents can be hired from locals in the area at nominal costs. We got two tents for Rs. 1200 with comfortable mattresses.

As the sun sets, the twinkling of the stars is all that we have. And beautiful indeed! Not only does the blanket of stars feel like magic but if you are lucky, you will also get to see shooting stars.

Make sure to light a campfire to make your food or else one can go and buy local stuff from the market. Do not expect any fancy fair as you will get typical Maharashtrian food option here. The wood for the campfire can be collected from around or if that is difficult, it can be brought at a cost. We paid Rs. 300 for a bunch that lasted us a whole night.