Rani Jhari view point

We were searching for a waterfall near Sunkasale. When enquired with a local person, he mentioned that we had to go back and take the diversion. But in the same breath, he suggested us to visit “Rani Jhari”, a viewpoint that was 3-4 km further. Though the rains had pounded the area for past few days, it was sunny at that particular point in time. It made sense to first look at the view and then go to waterfalls.

The area was not new to me. I had walked on the same road to climb Ballalarayana Durga a few years ago. It seemed that “Rani Jhari” was nothing but a viewpoint on the way to the fort. It would be a nice place for Chaya and Tanu to enjoy the scenery. While I was thinking about these things, we had already reached a place where few cars had parked. I found a place to park my car, and we started walking.

Shortly, we were near the viewpoint. The weather had changed as the mist covered the whole area. The wind was blowing and we waited for the mist to clear. When it cleared, it was astonishing to see that we were at the edge of the western ghats. Tanu was super excited to be at that place. 

There were a lot of places to walk and see the scenery. Each place provided a different view. I was wondering about the speed at which things were changed in that area for the past few years. Homestays had mushroomed, and the crowd was significant even during the peak of monsoon. It looked like the “Bhooth bungalow” was also converted into a resort!!  Ballalarayana Durga stood majestically irrespective of the changes happening at its base. 

Nature decided that it had given us enough time to savour the scenery and put the entire area under the blanket of mist. It was a signal for us to move down!!