Pachmarhi, The Verdant Jewel of Madhya Pradesh

Hoshangabad

Madhya Pradesh

India

Hindi, English

January To December

+91-7578

60

Nestled in the Satpura Mountain range in the centre of the state, Pachmarhi is just 200 kms away from Bhopal. This beautiful hill resort is the only one in this large state.

Pachmarhi is a tiny hill resort placed near the capital of the city Bhopal. It is a hill station, different from the norms that any other hill resorts carry. Neither does it have high views nor extreme lush greenery. But what it offers is far more. Pachmarhi is a longing away from the heat and dust of the state. It is serene, calm and clean. Inhabited by the tribal people such as Gonds, it is a virgin land which is not overdeveloped like the rest of the hill stations in the country. It is a place for walks, where you can come across surprises in abundance. Along with the natural charm, the local tribal life is also that attracts people to come here. The rock shelters of Mahadeo hill covered with paintings depicting warfare, food gathering and hunting, dating as far back as 1000 B.C. is one such example.
Pachmarhi takes its name from the legend that the five bothers, the Pandavas, of Mahabharata, resided here during their period of exile. Later it was the British officer Forsyth who fell in love with this place and started encouraging it as a hill station.
Standing at an altitude of 1067 meters, Pachmarhi has landscape of rugged hills, forests and deep ravines. The area is dotted with, milky white waterfalls, emerald blue pools and the whole area is full of thick impenetrable forests. One of its main attractions, is the splendid view it offers at dusk, when the red sandstone scarp takes on the colour of the sky, in various shades of purple and violet, as the glorious sun sets on Pachmarhi.
Being a hill station there are innumerous points of natural charm in this tiny little hill station. But specific points such as the Apsara Vihar or Fairy Pool, is not to be missed. The Rajat Parbat or the Big Falls, true to their name gush down from a height of over three hundred feet. Close to the Ramaya Kund, or Irene Pool, are the Duchess Falls, ideal for swimming.
There are innumerable shrines too at this resort. The people believe that due to the seclusion of the hill station it was the favoured spots of the Gods. The Jata Shankar cave is one such shrine. The cave is under the mass of loose boulders which resemble the locks of hair of Lord Shiva and therefore the cave attains the name of Jata Shankar. The Handi Khoh and the Chauragarh are also some places worth a visit on this tiny little hill resort. Also important are the Mahadeo hill Cave paintings.
Priyadarshini Point, from where Captain Forsyth had the first glimpse of Pachmarhi and the Pandava caves are also places not to be missed, though they are most crowded.