Some journeys are more interesting than the Destination and the journey to Kumbhalgarh is one of those fascinating journeys.
If you are looking for a perfect road trip with interesting break points and scenic views this is a MUST DO trip from Ahmedabad.
We started this trip on a Friday morning. It is better to start early by 6 am to reach Kumbhalgarh on time by 2 pm. There is a lot of digging work happening on the Ahmedabad Udaipur expressway as the work is going on to make it a 6 lane highway. This adds almost an hour more to your normal travel time from Ahmedabad to Udaipur. It takes around 5.5 hours to reach Udaipur. You can have a mid way CHAI break at Himmatnagar. We had started at 6 am in the morning and reached Udaipur by 11.30 am with a small 20 min Chai break at Himmatnagar.
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Udaipur is one of the favourite weekend places for AMDAVADIs and most of us have been to this place many times earlier. So we are as good as the LOCALS as far as our knowledge of local interesting food joints is concerned :). We had a hearty breakfast at the Parathe wali Galli near the Vintage Car Museum, gulab Bagh Road. The galli has many THELAs of Parathe walas and other local breakfast items like Kachoris, Samosa, etc. But the best thing to try is the different options of fresh parathas served with huge dollops of butter, Dal Makhani and Curd. I bet you will find the Delhi ki Parathewali galli an overrated place when you eat parathas over here :). They are open from early morning to around 4 pm or as long as their stock lasts.
This was my 3rd visit to Kumbhalgarh and one reason I keep revisiting this place is the road journey from Udaipur to kumbhalgarh. I love the small villages, farms, lakes, streams that come on the way with interesting views. The distance from Udaipur to Kumbhalgarh is just 85 kms but it takes around 2.5 hours to reach as the road conditions are very bad once you take the cut from Izwal to Kumbhalgarh, as it’s a single road. (Make sure you don’t miss the cut from the highway at IZWAL towards Kumbhalgarh, otherwise you will have to take a long U turn) The real fun starts once you start your drive on that single road. A bumpy ride with lots of interesting views of the local villages, traditional irrigation methods used by the farmers in their farms, small dams built over the local water bodies, flocks of cranes in those lakes, group of monkeys, herds of goats/ cows and buffaloes, etc. It’s a delight for people who love taking photographs and documenting their trips 🙂
We reached Kumbhalgarh around 2.30 Pm. After checking into the hotel and resting for a while, we proceeded to visit the Magnificient Fort Of Kumbhalgarh. This fort is often compared to the Great Wall of China. The wall covering the fort is spread across 36 kms and also called as the Great Wall of India by many. This fort has more than 360 temples inside the fort complex and is one of the most marvellous forts I have ever seen. Though I must confess that the maintenance has deteriorated over the years. (Compared to my first visit in 2011, this time around I was let down by the filth, the broken pavements and the serpantine queues of vehicles outside the fort) I still remember how awestruck I was when I saw this fort for the first time 8 years ago. The climb up the palace from the lower complex of the fort takes around an hour and is a bit tiring but the view from the top is worth all the pain. There is a light and sound show that happens at 6.30 pm and 7.30 pm (2 shows) and it is advisable to take the tickets at the time of entry as it gets full very quickly. The show is a mindblowing experience with some interesting facts about the Mewar history and how the fort was constructed by Rana Kumbha.
On the next day, we started early at around 8.30 am towards Ranakpur Jain Temples. Again the journey is very fascinating with roller coaster roads, dense jungle areas and beautiful scenic views. Enroute we visited a small temple called VEERO KA MATH. It is around 10 kms from the main Kumbhalgarh fort. This is a beautiful place with a small KUND which is formed by a fresh water spring which comes from the mountains above The place is not very popular and is very serene and peaceful. There are many fishes in the pond and if you have children with you, they will enjoy feeding these fishes.
After staying there for sometime we started our journey to Ranakpur and reached there by 12 noon. The distance between Kumbhalgarh and Ranakpur is around 50 kms and it takes around 2 hours to reach. The only place in between where you can expect some mobile connectivity and other facilities like petrol/ ATM is the village SAIRA, which is around 25 kms from Kumbhalgarh.
After passing through almost deserted villages, as you come near Ranakpur, you are suddenly intrigued by the number of foreigners you come across at the Ranakpur Jain Temples. Almost 80% of the visitors in the temple complex were foreigners. One reason for the same is the strategic location of the temple. It lies exactly between Jodhpur and Udaipur and both these places are important destinations that are always covered by tourists who visit the Rajasthan Tourist circuit. The temples are open for tourists from 12 noon to 5 pm. I must confess, the interior carvings of these temples are mesmerising. It is quite similar to the Delwara Jain temples of Mount Abu but I felt these are much better maintained. The temple complex is huge and houses dharamshala for Jain pilgrims, canteen, etc. The experience was really fulfilling.
We checked out of the temple complex at around 2.30 pm. There are lots of food joints and hotels / resorts between Ranakpur and a nearby village called SADARI. After a hearty meal at a road side Dhaba, we started our journey back to Kumbhalgarh at around 4 pm. It is advisable to reach Kumbhalgarh before sunsets as the roads are steep and risky for night driving. The way back was equally fascinating especially because of the views created by the setting sun.
Next day we started back for Ahmedabad. You may visit HALDIGHATI enroute to Udaipur (You need to travel around 18 kms interior from BALICHA). We missed the same owing to time constraints but it is possible to cover the same in the same trip. On the way back we again took a break at Udaipur for lunch. Our one more favourite haunt for food is KANKROLI wale PANDITJI ke Parathe in the Hiran Magri area of Udaipur. You will be amazed by the size of Parathas. I bet you cannot have more than half of the total paratha. Served with Dal Makhani, Rajma, Curd, Salad and pickle, this place leaves you craving for more. 🙂
Kumbhalgarh is a place which I have loved and adored. But this time around I was saddened by the commercial pollution that has happened at this beautiful place. Back in 2011, there were hardly 4 to 5 hotels and resorts and this time when we went, there were at least 50 to 60 hotels that were vying for our attention. The lakes and reservoirs that were once full with water were dry and dirty due to the increasing demand of water supply by the tourists. It is very important that India adopts the model of SUSTAINABLE TOURISM or else the beauty of Indian monuments and structures is at a big risk. I just hope that what I saw was mainly due the Diwali rush and a temperory situation. But as I mentioned, in the beginning, it is the JOURNEY to this DESTINATION which is more interesting 🙂
