Hike to Garbett Plateau

Garbett Plateau is located in the southwest direction of Matheran, offering a 360-degree view of one of our all-time favorite hill stations. Garbett Plateau is a less explode hiking spot in Sahyadri. as compared to other popular hiking spots but if you visit this area in the right season, it is a treat to your eyes as it offers a breathtaking view. It is one of the most beautiful hikes in Sahyadri. Therefore it has become famous for nature lovers from Pune and Mumbai. Infect Garbett Plateau is one of the hikes which enjoys the journey more than the destinations.

Region: Sahyadri Elevation:2625ft Distance from Diksal Village: 12KM

Duration: 1day Difficulty: Moderate Exposure: Low Base Village: Diklsal

Best season: Monsoon. Ideal season: September. Night trek: October to February

Garbett Plateau Trek route

There are two different trek route to approach Garbett plateau.: Either you start your hike from Dasturi Naka (Matheran Taxi drop station) and ends at Bhivpuri railway station. or you can start your hike from Diksal village to Garbett Plateau and ends at Dasturi Naka.

But the problem with the first trek route is If you go in Monsoon, Garbett plateau to Bhivpuri route is all steep descending, and routes are very slippery. There is a risk that you may slip and hurt yourself at the end. Especially when descending from Garbett's point to Garbett plateau requires steep descending and deep fall. You may likely have to face the thundershower and strong wind. This patch is a bit risky.

The majority of the hikers chose the trek route from Bhivpuri to Dasturi Naka. Which is a much better route. I strongly suggest choosing this route. Though the route is mostly ascending but trusts me it is a joy to hike through this route as it offers breathtaking views, beautiful landscape, many sparkling waterfalls, and have to cross the stream and walking across the rice field and the beautiful village called Sagachiwadi village and villagers are very friendly and helpful. The famous Bhivpuri waterfall is also located near the Dasturi waterfall.

When one of my trek leaders suggested to me about the Garbett Plateau trek. I did some research to collect the necessary details. I was mesmerized with a beautiful lush green landscape and waterfalls, etc. This is how I decided to hike the Garbett Plateau.

I checked with few known trek leaders whether they have any plans to organize the Garbett Plateau trek during the Weekend. But non of them have any plans. Then I check with few friends who may wish to join me. Finally, two of them have joined me and we decided to do this trek by ourselves. Hence we did good background research about the trek route, location, and other necessary details. We have decided to hike from Diksal village(Bhivpuri).

For Pune Hikers: Take a train from Pune to Karjat and get down at Karjat to take a local train up to Bhivpuri which is the next station to Karjat. Try to reach as early as possible. The trek route is a bit long and you need a lot of time to enjoy the Bhivpuri waterfalls and lush green landscape.

For Mumbai Hikers, Take a first karjat bound local train and get down at Bhivpuri station.

Base village: Diksal Village

The base village for Garbett Point trek is Diksal village which is very near to Bhivpuri Railway station on the Central Railway line just walk 5 minutes towards the right side of the trek and turn right to the base village. Here you can have your breakfast and buy water bottles and other necessary eatables. You can also make your queries regarding the guide and the trek route. Hence you are not descending back to this village because the best way to end the trek is at Dasturi Naka as I mentioned above. There is no food stall or water available on the way up to Sangachivadi Village(halfway). the village which falls on the way towards the Garbett plateau. Sometimes, villagers, they put a stall near Dhom dam. There are a couple of stalls selling bottled water, Maggi, corn, etc. besides the Dhom dam but it depends purely on the weather condition. They don't put up stall when there are heavy rainfall and strong wind. There is no food Dhabha or stalls beyond the dam.

If you do the Garbet plateau trek in monsoon season, you will be welcomed with a breathtaking lush green landscape which is the highlight of this trek. and can witness the true beauty of Sahyadri in Monsoon. The trek starts from Diksal village and has to climb a tiny ascent through the unmarked route after few minutes of walk from the village. You will come across a beautiful landscape of the Dhom dam. You can pause for pictures.

Dhom dam

From here you can take a left route of the dam and keep walking while enjoying the dam view and surrounding area.

Walking beside the dam.

After a long and beautiful walk alongside this water body and after crossing a few waterfalls and 3-4 streams, you will finally reach the first ascent of the trek. You can also see the famous Bhivpuri waterfalls on the left side.

Waterfall on the way

3rd River

After crossing this river, there is a steep ascent until you reach Sagachiwadi village. my suggestion is to take a dip or put your feet in this cool water for some time and you will feel better. and drink water to keep yourself hydrated. You have to start ascending slowly and the trail will lead you towards the village. There is a big Tree after 10 minutes of ascent is the first landmark. while ascending the view gets better and better.

Route marked by the arrow is the starting point of ascending after crossing the 3rd river

You will have to walk across the green rice field and the beautiful green patch which is absolutely a great motivation to any adventure lover or hiker.

You will reach the Sangachiwadi village and interact with the locals about their livelihood and the culture etc. They also serve meals as well. You can refill your bottle from the village well but it seems that this well is completely dry during summers. You can also have quick snacks to energize yourself. This will help you to prepare for the remaining journey which is much harder.

These kids have welcome us their village

Once you passed the village, The last and the most challenging part of the trail which will directly lead to the Garbett plateau. Steep clamping and very challenging climb. This patch is very slippery during the monsoons and you have to be cautious and be mindful of your steps. The route is pretty narrow and one side is deep fall.

One of the steep climbing and slippery patch

However, while ascending, the views get better and better. You can stop sometimes to capture an awesome view in your camera and feel the beauty around you. Your tiredness will disappear when you see the breathtaking views. We normally see such beautiful locations in movies or foreign locations like Switzerland.

Elevated route

last and the final leg of the journey will be the narrow and slippery trail till the Garbett plateau. Your climb end at the plateau. The plateau is a flat surface area on the top which has a wide rea extended up to the Garbett point.

Near to the top

The plateau is amazingly beautiful in Monsoon and it offers a panoramic view on both the side and the closeup view of Matheran hills as well. If you are lucky, you can see a diverse waterfall. However, during the peak of the monsoon season, the plateau becomes very windy and receives heavy rainfall. If you are not lucky enough, You may not get the panoramic view due to dense fork. Just be careful with your mobiles and other electronic gadgets because there is no place to hide when there is heavy rainfall and the strong wind blows. You can spend half an hour here to enjoy the view, take pictures, and have your snacks if there is no rain. and proceed further towards Garbett's point.

Garbett Plateau

When you reach the Garbett Plateau, we have two options:

1. Climb up to the Garbett Point through a short narrow route which is a very narrow, steep, and highly exposed route with a drop of hundreds of feet down.

2. Take a left turn and pass through the tiny village in Matheran to reach Dasturi Naka

The first route is shorter and more adventurous but comes with risk. Most hikers take the first route. So we also took the first route because we wish to see the view from the Garbett point and offcourse the shorter route.

Garbett point as seen from Garbett Plateau

Choosing the Garbett point route involves high risk as mentioned. Climb up to the Garbett Point through a short narrow route which requires steep climbing and highly exposed route with a drop of hundreds of feet down. Water runs down through that route during heavy rainfall becomes more dangerous. The white arrow mark shows the climbing route towards the Garbett Point. We were stuck almost half at a particular patch due to heavy rainfall and the strong wind blowing opposite to us which is not safe to continue. In such a situation, just stay there where ever you are and stick towards the wall or Rockside and hold it tightly for any trees or rock or stone which can get you a good grip. I was literally hiding behind a big rock and my other two friends are hiding at my back. We waited till the wind subsided. It is a test of our patience. We could not sit and eat at plateau due to heavy rain. So we stop at the Garbett point and had a quick snack. You can see the awesome view of the whole plateau from the Garbett point. It is actually a viewpoint. They have put the fences at the edge for our safety.

. This is how it looks from the Garbett point. Garbett Plateau's view.

From Garbett's point, the trail is straight and walking across the Matheran forest. It is nearly half an hour's walk or 5 Kilometer. The trail from Garbett point to Dastur Naka is easy except at some point, we come across two routes that can cause some confusion but both the route will lead to the Dasturi Naka. However, you can take the straight route and that route connects to the main road to Matheran. After walking for half an hour, we finally made it to the Dasturi Naka.

We had a quick hot tea and snacks and took a cab to Neral. From Neral we took a local train to back the pavilion. Through this trek, we not only had interaction among three of us but had good interaction with many other hikers and adventure lovers. People with the same interests can always connect easily and better and we finally departed with promised to catch up again with some other interesting trek later. Garbett Plateau trek is indeed one of the most beautiful treks in Sahyadri.

Tips:

The best time to visit the Garbett plateau is in Monsoon/ September is an ideal time to visit because there are less rain and wind but lush green remains the same. October to February is good for a night trek. Camping is not possible during monsoon at Garbett Plateau.
Do not swim in Dhom dam especially during the Monsoon.
Smoking and drinking alcohol is strictly prohibited.
Respect culture. and religion and Do not litter, participants are requested to carry the waste back to the city and dispose of it in dustbins.
Respect nature by not playing loud blooth music and harming the plants and animals.

Local contact for Garbett Plateau trek:

Guide at Diksal Village

Nikesh Gaikar: +91 8237675228 / +91 7276623572

Food and Refreshments at Diksal Village

Nikesh Gaikar: +91 8237675228 / +91 7276623572

This short video will show you the beauty of the Garbett plateau in Monsoon yet it may be very windy as well.

Hike to Garbett Plateau (Garbett Point in Matheran Hills)