I wish I had gone to Kaas Plateau years ago with the kids. I think of this when I walk on the plateau, marvelling at the 800 different species of flowers. Kaas is 350 m high, and we are with nature photographers Sachin Rane and Ujjwal who tell us more about the orchids, the Mickey Mouse flower and the manjari that can be spotted here. They explain to the kids how, because Satara is made up of lava, there is low nitrogen in the soil and the flora here has to be insectivorous (the insects provide the much-needed nitrogen for the plant) to thrive. I've just learnt in one shining moment all of that boring geography that I never understood, and I now ram down the ears of my kids the difference between igneous, metamorphic and sedimentary rocks.

But the trip to Kaas is not just the miles and miles of brilliant bloom; it is also the waterfalls of Thoseghar and the majestic windmill farms of Chalkewadi. A mere five-hour drive away from Mumbai and we breathe mountain air, see a whole set of birds (a rare eagle, the shrike, the laughing dove, skylarks), palm-sized butterflies and foot-long moths.