Trek To Dukes Nose | How To Reach Here From Lonavala

TREK TO DUKES NOSE | HOW TO REACH HERE FROM LONAVALA

Height-3200 feet

Trek Level- Easy

     Time for Trek-2 hours

ABOUT DUKE’S NOSE

Lonavala and Khandala has some amazing range of Mountain. Duke’s nose is one of those. A Trek to Dukes Nose is well known view point focuses in Lonavala later known Duke’s Nose, It is cliff between Lonavala and Khandala. Meaning of Duke's nose is the cliff is pointed like a snake head portion (hood) and hence it is known as Nagphani.

(Nag means snake and phani means hood). This is marvelous trekking spot between Khandala and Lonavala. Adventurous trekking is highly essential to reach Duke’s nose via Khandala.  Climbing from Khandala is good gateway for unique experience that can be done in 4 hours and get down towards Kurvande village in just 45 minutes.

HOW TO REACH DUKE'S NOSE FROM LONAVALA

BY AIR

Nearest airport is Pune and Mumbai International airport. From there one can take self-drive car to Lonavala’s Kurvande village or can take direct bus to Lonavala and then auto-rickshaw to reach Kurvande village.

BY TRAIN

Lonavala station is nearest railway station which is well connected from major cities like Mumbai, Pune, Nashik and also Bangalore. There are some express trains which runs on this route that halt's at Lonavala station.

BY ROAD

Lonavala is 83 km from Mumbai and 66 km from Pune. One can also drive through express Highway from Mumbai which is so descent and more attractive. This road is accessible from other states of India. There are regular buses available from Mumbai and Pune towards Lonavala. Bus fare varies between 300 to 1000 INR.

Once you reach Lonavala, you can take auto-rickshaw to reach Khandala which is adventurous route for trekkers or can manage to reach Kurvande village for easy route. Self-drive vehicle is preferable to reach trek point.

Drive through Lonavala express highway is always attractive as you come across some glimpse of Dukes's mountain from way itself.

VIEW OF DUKES NOSE FROM LONAVALA HIGHWAY

 TREK TO DUKE’S NOSE

Coming to my experience trekking to Mountain is something which heals me from inside and keeps my stress away. One day my partner wanted to do short trek which is near to Lonavala, so I dragged the list on Google to search some shortest trail near to Mumbai. List appears with the name of Nagphani on top. This name itself had some curiosity in its own. We were so eager to know about, why it is Duke's Nose? And left to search the answer of my question. The journey was not less than 3 hours from Mumbai, so we decide to sponsor one of the weekend for Nagphani trek.

As decided we left from Mumbai and put the GPS on for map. The route goes through Khandala Ghat which is dangerous, but scenic. As you start entering in Khandala Ghat, there are lots of waterfalls on the way that can be seen in monsoon. Never miss a chance to take bike ride to Lonavala from Mumbai. This is one of the best route for riders. We managed to reach Kurvande village at 10 am which is base point of trek and parked our vehicle at base village. There is one direction board towards Nagphani temple near Leela valley resort which is situated near to base village. 

STARTING ROUTE TO TREK GOING THROUGH VAST TRAIL

Trek route is simple and clear from base village. After walk of around 30 minutes there is steep climbing. It is easy, but for beginners it may find bit difficult. There were so many other trekkers on this route. After crossing this vast path one will come across the route that passes through dense ropes and narrow trail between the ropes. Another 20 minutes and you reach to valley of Duke's. One should not miss opportunity of clicking valley pictures here.

ROCK CLIMBING PART AT DUKES NOSE

There are no hotels or stalls on the way to peak, so make sure to carry some snacks and water before starting the trek. You can keep some ORS powder or energy bar which will help you to regain energy. Some peoples do camping on this route. After trek of 2 hours you will reach at summit point where there is small temple of Lord Shiv with shape of Snake with head. If you want to climb duke’s pinnacle then you should come with proper safety gears of climbing, as the climb is 90 degree.

SMALL TEMPLE AT SUMMIT OF DUKES NOSE

SUMMIT VIEW OF DUKES NOSE

SNAKE HOOD AT PEAK

One can relax here for some-time on this peak as wind is faster at top. Best summit to do some photo shoot here. One can enjoy the view of mesmerizing sunset in the evening.

VIEW OF EXPRESS HIGHWAY ALONG WITH SURROUNDING MOUNTAIN

Duke’s nose is popular for Rappelling, Trekking, Camping, and Rock Climbing. If you want to experience this adventure activity then do come with professional trek organizers. After this wonderful trek we started descending towards base where we started. It took us 45 min to reach at base. This was one of the easy trek for us among all other treks done till now.

PLACS TO VISIT AROUND DUKE'S NOSE Lonavala itself is a hill station due to which there are lots of activity to do, some of these are:  Lohagad and Visapur fort trekking Camping at Pawna Lake Night trek to Rajmachi Visit to Wax museum Tiger point Bhushi Dam.  These all places are located in the radius of 20 km from Duke's nose. WHERE TO STAY NEAR DUKE'S NOSE Leela valley resort is available at base village of trek point that offers stay and food for tourist (cost per person varies between 1000 to 1500 INR). Being one of the famous hill station there are lots of resorts and hotels available on 10 km from base village. Hotel cost varies as per deluxe room to normal room. Lake camping is also an option which is 30 km from trek point. IDEAL TIME TO VISIT DUKE'S NOSE The best time to visit Duke’s nose is between October to February when weather is pleasant to view all the point. People also visit during monsoon to witness the waterfalls around the area. Monsoon in Lonavala is known for its trekking place. In summer heat rises at top which make trekkers uncomfortable to trek. THINGS TO REMEMBER ON DUKES NOSE TREK Carry proper trekking shoe which will give grip in monsoon and other season on slippery mud and soil. Keep bag-pack loaded with enough water and some energy bars as there are no source of water and snacks on route. Avoid visiting this place in heavy monsoon. You can carry own tent for camping. At last do not litter the area.  “Mountain is calling, and you must go”