Tuesday, March 17, 2015

Weekend getaways - Pawna Lake (Lonavala)

Mumbai is known for its weekend getaways and this one is a sheer 100km drive and the most visited mini-hill station. While I feel there isnt much to do at Lonavala due to the huge crowd on weekends, Pawna Lake and Dam is a nice getaway from the maddening Lonavala crowd.

Pawana is located on the way to Tikona Peth and Tikona Fort, leaving Lohgad on the left.


The lake is huge by my standards. I mean, I kept driving for over five kilometers at least along the lake and it didnt leave my sight even once. What surprised me however, during this visit was the number of vehicles (read people) who had just come over to spend the day. Several resorts have come up along the road that follows the length of the dam and sometimes it become too crowded to find a good parking place to click pictures.

I have my favourite spot here however; a small pumping station going several meters into the dam like a jetty. It is very strategically located, given the fact that from here a panorama will give you the view of entire length of the Lake. There is an nice camping place below this pumping station. (18688107, 73.473600)


Here is what it looks like from this point.

Pawna Lake Panorama

It is a nice place to click some great pictures with several rocks, the lake and the hills in the background. If you choose a clear day for the visit, be prepared for some dark photos due the sun in the background and blinding light due to the added reflection from the lake. However, clear day also means blue waters of the lake. During the Monsoons the lake waters appear dark and murky but everything is lush green around.



Not many places to eat around this due to the hygiene and quality (unless you are booked in a resort). Also the road is pretty narrow to always park and stop over for a snack. So I would recommend a small packet of dry food and definitely a lot of water for this trip.

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