Ahmedabad to Polo Forest trip with Friends

This post is about my trip to Polo Forest with college friends from Ahmedabad, this includes Travel plan, Places to visit, the Best time to visit, Trip cost & Tips if you are visiting Polo Forest.

There is a saying that:

'If you want to know someone, make a trip with him/her'

You will be able to know all the aspects of that person with whom you are traveling. So traveling can be a medium to get to know someone. 

And that is why, when I started my college journey of  MBA, the like-minded group of us decided to have a weekend trip to a nearby place of Ahmedabad. This trip not only helped us to explore a new destination which few of us knew about but also brought in new aspects from all of us. It was more of an ice-breaking trip for us!

The planning started a month before the journey. It was almost the end of monsoon and we wanted to explore a place where most of us haven't been yet. After listing and filtering, we finalize the destination for the weekend trip to be Polo Forest as it was neither too close nor too far from Ahmedabad.

We started collecting a list of interested students from our class. And as always, most of us showed our interest at first. But as we finalized the plan and finalized the date and place more than half of them backed-off and we were 24 on the night of departure. This is normal, isn't it?

We decided to plan our trip with Paramount Treks (which cost us 1200 Rupees per person only including everything!) as we did not want to plan anything and also, it is better to take a local guide/instructor on these trekking places(More on this later!). 

It was a weekend trip so we started our journey on late Friday night. A 2*2 bus was arranged for the trip. When everyone arrived at the departure place, we departed at 00:10 on Saturday.

If you want to go on a weekend trip outside of Gujarat, consider this 3-day weekend trip to Kumbhalgarh from Ahmedabad.

Day 1:

After driving for almost 5 hours, we reached our first spot for the day: Idar Gadh at 04:30. Idar gadh is a fort in Idar, Sabarkantha. The fort is built on the highest peak of a nearby mountain range overlooking beautiful sights of the city.

Once reaching the bottom of the hill, we started our trek to the fort in darkness before the dawn. The trek is simple and can take around 2 hours to get to the top of the hill (of course while clicking pictures!). 

The fort is situated at the intermediate level of the mountain. There is a special mini-palace on top of the hill where the Queen used to go if she got angry with the King. Then the king would climb on top of the hill and go to that mini palace where the queen used to wait for the king to make up for it.

The sunrise from the top is impeccable. In monsoon, you can not only enjoy the city view but also feel the clouds passing over your heads. You can spend hours appreciating the beautiful view from the top. 

On the other side of the city view, you can see Rani Lake. A Jain temple is built in the middle of the lake.

After enjoying the sunrise and splendid views from the top, we started our descend and reached the bottom of the hill in 1.5 hours.

The trek has made all of us hungry, and the breakfast charged us again for the day because this was just the beginning of the day!

After having breakfast, we left for our campsite in Polo Forest. Once reaching the campsite, we learned how to assemble the tent.

Once we were done with our tents, we got freshen up and started our sightseeing with Government Botanical Garden, it had numerous types of flora and fauna. But this was not the main point of this place, here comes the benefit of having a local guide with you. 

The guide who accompanied us showed us a place behind this garden which had amazing views of mountains and the gushing river flowing through. You cannot imagine such a place could exist here.  The water was so clear that you could watch everything underneath the water. The clouds and rain were cherries on the cake!

To have a break and prepare for the next trek, we came back to the campsite and had lunch. After resting for some time, we then proceed towards Vanaj Dam. This is a must-visit not only because of the dam but also for the path to the dam. You have to walk for a couple of kilometers and enjoy the road densely surrounded by trees before reaching the dam as heavy vehicles were not allowed near the dam. 

The has a picturesque water reservoir surrounded by lush green mountains. In monsoon, you are not allowed to go on the wall of the dam.

After visiting the dam, we then proceeded towards Polo Jain Temple Ruins, but as we were late the entry was closed and thus we postponed the place for the next day. But we did walk a bit towards the nearby river and found a calm and soothing place to just sit back and banter for some time. 

We collected some wood for the campfire from a local vendor from there and returned on the campsite to end the sightseeing for the day.

As we reached the campsite, the dinner was ready. More than the food, we enjoyed each other's company as we were getting to know each other better than earlier. And after spending the whole day walking and doing some activity, the food automatically tastes good.

When you are at the campsite with friends and done with the dinner, what can you expect other than a campfire! As it was monsoon, we struggled to start the fire but at last, we did it and the day ended with unforgettable memories of Antakshari and a lot of Gossips 😂

In the middle of the night, the rain started pouring. My tent was having a proper sealing so that water did not enter in our tent, but some of our friends had to move to a nearby house, which was of the owner of the campsite.

Day 2:

The next day when we woke up, we saw the below scene, what could be a better place to wake up in the morning?

After having breakfast and getting ready for the day, the first task for us was to undo the tents and get it packed into tent-bags. 

Once all tents were packed, we then went for a 3-hour long trek covering Mango, Bhim, and Kalal hills. This was a proper trekking experience as we were walking in a very dense jungle area. Since it was monsoon, the trees were bloomed to its peak and wherever you see, you will find three things: Trees, Mountains, and Water. The experience was indescribable in words. 

At the end of the track, we reached the Jain temple which we left on the previous day. It is great to see such architecture still preserved to date. And after exploring the Jain temple, we ended our trek.

Tired from the trek, we left for the campsite to have lunch and bid farewell to the wonderful place. After having lunch, we started our journey towards Ahmedabad and at night we reached Ahmedabad.

This was not just the end to a journey, this was a starting point of our friendship and lifelong memories which we will cherish for our lives!

There is also a saying that

'Travelling makes you humble' 

and I did experience that on this trip, you become more grateful for what you have.

I think Monsoon is the best season to visit Polo Forest as you will be able to witness everything it has to offer. If you are planning to have a weekend getaway from Ahmedabad, this could be the best choice for you with friends.

Some tips if you are planning to visit Polo Forest:

• Most of the area in Polo Forest does not have a strong network of all carriers, though Jio was available in 50% of cases
• There is a high chance that you will encounter mosquitoes at night, so it would be better to have mosquito repellent.
• You will not get charging points often, so carrying a power bank is highly recommended.
• While trekking, it is advisable to wear full-length clothes covering all parts of your arms and legs, as there are chances that you will get bitten by an insect.
• It is highly advised to have shoes with a proper grip so that you can walk on slippery and uneven surfaces with confidence.
• Do not choose a trekking path on your own in the jungle, having any local guide is necessary to explore a new place.
• If visiting in monsoon, carry waterproof bags or simply large plastic bags to store your luggage, in case of rain, you have something to store your valuable things.
• Keep a water bottle, first aid kit, and torch with you, it helps a lot.

Thank you for reading till here, please provide your feedback/ comments in the below comments sections. 😊