Devkund - The Hidden Gem in Tamhini !

DEVKUND Waterfall is currently very much in talks amongst the trekker community near Pune and Mumbai and I heard about it a few months back. I was wondering how I missed this spot from Tamhini Ghat which is very much near to Pune and I was very keen to visit the place as soon as possible. As this was little risky in the monsoon season we decided to just hold our nerves for some more time and plan for this sometime in Oct-Nov.

Finally, in the first week of Nov. this topic came into the discussion during our lunch break and we decided to finalize the plan on the same weekend. Immediately people started googling and came up with few plans. After some discussion, we decided to leave on Friday evening and reach the base village BHIRA. Stay there and in the morning visit waterfall and come back home after having Lunch.

When you say Devkund only one name flashes everywhere on the internet that is the famous "Shelar Mama". He has his own homestay in Bhira village and also arranges for the guide to Devkund waterfall. We contacted him and confirmed our booking for 4 people and we were all set to start on Friday.

On Friday (10th Nov 2017), we started from our office at around 5.30 pm and headed towards Tamhini ghat. The road was horrible with some patches full of Potholes which were impossible to avoid. As we crossed Mulshi, it started getting dark and we had to lower our speed but still, it was fun Driving at night in Tamhini. At around 8 pm we crossed Tamhini ghat and took a road that goes to Tata Power Station towards Kolad. Next to power station is village Bhira which was our destination for the day. It is a small Village which we can say is a part of Tata power plant itself. It has a very small single lane concrete road that takes you to the last house of the village called "Shelar Mama Niwas".

Road in Bhira Village

We reached there at around 8.30. Pramod(younger son of Shelar Mama) was there to greet us and he welcomed us with refreshing Tea. He introduced us to his family members Prashant and "Shelar Mama" himself. we spent some time with them and heard about the history of Devkund and lot of stories of rescue operations done here in Monson season. In the meantime food was ready and we could not control ourselves from immediately start having the delicious homemade Chicken curry. It was definitely a Dinner to remember with very homely hospitality from Shelar Family. after having dinner we had a small walk around the village to just get the feel of the atmosphere and it was amazing with uncountable starts at the top. This view is really getting rare in city life nowadays.

Shelar mama also arranged a guide for morning trek to Devkund as the route is from Jungle and there are chances of getting lost in the jungle. We wanted to start early in the morning so that we will reach the waterfall early and get the virgin view of it. As it was Saturday, there were chances that the place get lot more crowdy and it can spoil the beauty n calmness of the waterfall. After all morning arrangements are confirmed we went to bed at around 10.30 so that we could get up at 6 am and start the trek at 7.30.

Sleeping Arrangements at Shelar Mama Niwas

Next day morning we woke up early as planned and were having our breakfast at 7.30. Surprisingly we saw one more group of around 100 people already ready to start the trek at the entry point. We were not at all expecting any group this early and we knew if they reach the waterfall before us then we won't be able to enjoy the waterfall as we expected. We did our breakfast and rushed to our guide and asked him to start the trek.

Our Guide "Pandhari Mama" was also an enthusiastic person and he wanted us to overtake the earlier group and reach the waterfall as early as possible. We started following him and hearing his experiences about the trek. He was guiding people from last 6-7 years so he was familiar with every smallest route and so he also took us through some shortcut routes as well. We were moving nonstop at a great speed so that we could catch the other group and overtake them.

Starting Point of the Trek

The initial route is alongside the backwaters of Bhira dam and passed through a grassy area where the camping could be done using tents. Soon we reached a spot where there was the amazing view of Dam and Huge fort like structure at our left. we saw few people from other group doing photography here. We decided to do all photography en route while coming back and so continued our walk at the same speed.  There were also some small "Tapries" seen en route that serve Water bottle, buttermilk, and some snacks as well.

Views en route

Nature Lovers always ready to explore !!!

Soon we reached a big water stream en route (there are few more here in monsoon). As there was less water we could easily cross it without any equipment. In monsoon, this water stream is in full flow and one would need safety ropes to cross this. It becomes little risky and slippery in monsoon. There is also a wooden ladder that helps trekkers to cross the stream during monsoons. We found the whole group doing photography here and we crossed them and went ahead with a great feeling. Now we are the first on the route and we were going to get what we wanted. After this water stream, there is a steep patch for 15-20 mins that might drain you a little bit. Fortunately, this route is covered with dense forest and also has few boards showing the road to  Devkund Waterfall.

Boards of Devkund en route

Route from Dense Forest

We covered that steep patch also at a decent speed and then reached the place from where we had the first glimpse of the waterfall. This view was not that impressive as the flow of water was not big but the height from which it was falling was good. But very soon as we approached the waterfall, we realized the earlier was just the trailer and the actual picture was in front of us. It looked truly amazing when we saw the complete waterfall and the waterhole (Kund) below it. The water in the waterhole was crystal clear and blue and the waterfall was complete White with a background of Lush Green grass. This combination of colors made the view look like heaven. And as a cherry on Top, we were only 4 people at the place to enjoy this beautiful creation of nature. We were very pleased with this and we thanked Pandhari mama to bring us here before anyone else to enjoy the virginity of the place.

Devkund Waterfall from different angles

Now all the cameras were out after a long time and we all were busy capturing this scenic views from different angles. We also could not resist ourselves from taking selfies and also some candid photographs with the amazing background of the waterfall. The waterhole was surrounded by the rocks and one could get a very nice top view of the waterfall by climbing one of the rocks. You will feel like on top of the world there. After doing photography for almost 15-20 mins, we decided to just enter into the waterhole and have some fun. The water was too cold and also it was too deep in most of the part, Pandhari mama suggested us not to go too deep into it. We just went into the area with water reaching our knee level.There are lots of incidents happened here in monsoon when few people died in the Kund so locals always keep everyone alert.

At top of the World

After 10 -15 mins the other group arrived at the waterfall and they also entered waterhole and started having fun. Soon the water got muddy and the place started losing its virginity. We decided to just sit back and spend some more time on the top of the rocks.It was 10.30 and few sun rays starting falling on the waterfall. This gave a completely different view and we got to capture few more unique shots.

After spending around half an hour there we decided to start the return journey before it gets too hot. We climbed down the rock, spent few minutes again near the waterhole and started the return journey by saying goodbye to this Hidden Gem from Tamhini. While going back we saw a lot many people coming to the waterfall and as Shelar Mama said, the count should have gone to around 500-600 throughout the day. We captured few photographs of dam backwaters while return journey and in about 1.5 hrs we reached the Village.

Few More Glimpse of the Trek

The starting point of the trek was now full of people and vehicles and we again felt fortunate to be the first one at the waterfall. We would not have enjoyed at the waterfall when there are 100 or more people around. Soon we reached Shelar Mama Niwas and had a lunch there. Shelar Mama n his family was busy attending the guests as Saturday/Sunday are busiest days for them. We did not disturb them much and just thanked them for all their help and hospitality. We started the return journey to Pune at around 2 PM and were only discussing the beauty of the place throughout the journey.

Lovely host Shelar Mama n Family

Overall it was a memorable trek and we enjoyed every moment after reaching Bhira village. My suggestion here would be, Go for this trek on Weekdays if possible Or if you are planning for a weekend then reach Bhira on Friday night and start trek early Saturday morning to reach the waterfall as early as possible. Shelar Mama and his family will always be there to help you and do all the necessary arrangements for you at a reasonable cost.

Enjoy and Happy Trekking !!!

Trek Details:
Contact for Devkund (Shelar Mama) - 7276283442
Time to reach Bhira village from Pune - Around 3 Hrs
Actual trek time - 1.5 - 2 Hrs
Approximate Trek Cost - 1000/- Per Person 
Best time to Visit - October, November, December (Avoid Monsoon)