The constant grouse of Mumbai's troubled-by-concrete population is the abject lack of outlets to bond with nature. The options that you regularly see in the newspaper listings are ones that begin at odd hours on weekends and take you out of the city. But, what if you wanted to head out in the middle of the week? Or start at, say, 7.30 am and do just a quiet three-hour slow trek?

A pathway at the Sanjay Gandhi National Park; (right, inset) a little green bee-eater