Before we hit travel mode, a bit of mythology. Legend has it that Rishi Valmiki stayed atop the mountain here. A pregnant Sita, forsaken by Ram, had trekked up this mountain to seek refuge in a hermitage. Valmiki took paternal care of her till she delivered her twin sons: Luv and Kush. The villagers, as a tribute to his infinite hospitality, call this mountain Ajobagad, or the Fortress of the Grandfather.

You don’t have to undertake a three-hour trek to the hermitage to partake of the excellent hospitality of this region. Its present right at the foothills of this mountain: in the twin villages of Kondicha Pada and Dehna in Satara.

Inir Pinheiro, the founder of Grassroutes, who has taken up village tourism as his mission led the motley group from Mumbai. We have gone ahead and separated the group into four distinct categories, and there was enough and more for each one of usu00a0to cherish.u00a0

Dehna slow Indulge in idyllic pastimes like watching villagers separate the chaff from the grains. PICS/ C Gangadharan Menon