Things to do in and around Purushwadi Village, Maharashtra
Purushwadi, a small village near Nasik, Maharashtra is famous for 'The Fireflies Festival'. From last few years, it has gained tourists' attention and is counted under the category of 'rural tourism'. The villagers of Purushwadi provide homestays and food to the tourists. We visited Purushwadi village at the beginning of the rainy season to witness the Fireflies Festival. Read our earlier blog on Purushwadi Fireflies Festival to know more about the fireflies and the festival. You can also go through our photo blog on Purushwadi village to get a real picture of what's ahead in Purushwadi for you.
At Purushwadi village, it wasn't just the fireflies that amazed us, but we were pleasantly surprised with the village lifestyle, the people and the other places of visit in and around Purushwadi. In this article, we will take you through the things to do in and around Purushwadi village.
Read our other articles on Purushwadi village, the Fireflies Festival & Harishchandragad Fort Trek done from Purushwadi by clicking on the images below
11 things to do in and around Purushwadi village:
So if you are planning to visit Purushwadi, here is a compilation of 11 things you can do over a 3-4 day period in and around Purushwadi.
1. Witness the firefly festival
One cannot miss out on watching the fireflies glow during the night in Purushwadi village. The village is not contaminated by artificial light and the glow of fireflies is more prominent in absolute darkness. The number of fireflies that we saw glowing kept on increasing with every blink of our eye. The flickering fireflies decorated our entire path including the trees and the houses. We were left speechless with this beauty of nature. Ask your guide to take you into the fields to spot plenty of fireflies. However fireflies can only be seen in May - June right after first rains and before full monsoon.
2. Help the villagers in farming
Residents of Purushwadi village mainly live on farm produce. If you visit Purushwadi village just before monsoon, the farmers will be busy sowing the seeds and preparing the field for next cultivation. You can help them loosen the soil. They do this with the help of a wooden plough which is pulled by a pair of bulls. The plough is very heavy and the farmers work really hard manoeuvring it with bull's help. It can be easy to forget how hard the farmers work to put food on everyone's table. Taking part in this activity made us learn not to ever waste a grain of food on our plate.
3. Hike to nearby hills
Sunil, our host and guide at Purushwadi village took us on a small hike to a nearby hill from where the entire village of Purushwadi was visible. The first few showers of rain were already down and the land had started turning green with grasses and flowering plants. We saw a wonderful sunset from the hill.
4. Take a walk in Purushwadi village
Walking in the narrow lanes of Purushwadi village is a must-do. This way you can speak with locals, understand their culture, take photographs, play with children and witness their unique way of living.
5. Visit the temple and the school in Purushwadi village
We visited both the school and the temple; they are beside each other. We were even lucky to speak with the headmaster of the school and know his future plans regarding the growth of the children and the education system in Purushwadi village. We were glad to know that all the parents in the village are mandated to send their children to school each day without fail - hence the girls are not devoid of education as opposed to certain other villages in India where they are only made to do household work. The school in Purushwadi also provides healthy food to all the students - which is another initiative to ensure that no child skips school. It was also interesting to know that the school has a digital classroom where the students are taught computer.
6. Take a trip to the dam and swim in the lake
We walked to another end of the Purushwadi village where there was a small check dam. The dam is built over a small tributary coming from the Mula River. A large lake is formed near the dam where one can dive in and swim in the water to relieve the summer heat. The water from the dam is mainly used for irrigation purposes.
7. Indulge in stargazing
Due to no light pollution in Purushwadi village, the night sky is perfectly clear. You can click star trails and spot constellations. If you are lucky and the sky is not cloudy, you may even be able to spot The Milky Way. The village houses are also great subjects for night photography. However if you are visiting Purushwadi for fireflies, it would most likely be cloudy and stars would not be visible. If you are in Purushwadi during any other season, do take your tripods for star trails and milky way.
8. Learn to cook Maharashtrian recipes
The women in the village houses will be happy to give out their secret recipes of authentic Maharashtrian dishes. You can lend a hand in the kitchen and learn to cook some local dishes.
9. Trek to Harishchandragad Fort
Harishchandragad fort is only 35 kilometres away from Purushwadi village. It is the second highest fort of Maharashtra state. Being so near to the fort, we asked Sunil if he could guide us for the trek and he happily agreed. It took us 5 hours in total for the trip to Harishchandragad fort from Purushwadi village. And we were so grateful to our host to have prepared tiffin box for us to carry during the trip. We felt like we went for a picnic just like old school days. You can read more about trek to Harishchandragad fort here.
10. Trek to Kalsubai peak
Kalsubai peak is the highest peak of Maharashtra state. The starting point of the trek to Kalsubai peak lies right on the road near a village named Wasali. You can plan to trek Kalsubai peak while going or while coming back from Purushwadi village. However note that one would need 3-4 hrs to trek one way. Though the original trek is a difficult one, there are now ladders and stairs setup in trickier portions making the trek an easy one. One can do a day trek or plan on camping on the peak overnight.
11. Visit Bhandardara
Bhandardara is a hill village in the Western Ghat range and is located very near to Purushwadi village (approximately 33 kilometres). Bhandardara is a famous camping site and youngsters stock here to visit the magnificent Arthur Lake. Like other places in the Western Ghats, Bhandardara is absolutely stunning during and after the rainy season.
All the above-mentioned places to visit and things to do in and around Purushwadi village are wonderful beyond imagination. We would highly recommend everyone to spare at least 3 full days and preferably 4 days to visit and experience all of these 11 places.
The village lifestyle always comes as a good break from city life. So, after our trips to villages like Velas and Purushwadi, we have made it mandatory to visit a rural village annually and participate in rural tourism in our own way. Are you aware of any other such village where we can visit next for our next year's village experience? Do let us know.
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