Prepare a factfile for a hill station you have visited. Indicate the following in it:

(i)                  How to get there (ii)  Where to stay (iii) Time of the year to visit  (iv)  What to see  (v)  Things to enjoy.

Matheran: Mother Forest

(i)                  How to get there:

(a)    By train: From Mumbai or Pune to Neral Junction. From Neral to Matheran by narrow gauge trains that depart at 6.40 am, 7.30 am, 9.30 am, 10.30 am, and 5.05 pm daily and also 12.00 noon on Saturdays and Sundays.

(b)   By road: Shared taxis or minibuses from Neral to MTDC Holiday Camp

(ii)                Where to stay: Plenty of hotels offering full or half board. Quite expensive. One can eat at one of the many thalis joints around M.G. road.

(iii)               Time of the year to visit: All the year round except the rainy season

(iv)              What to see: Viewpoints such as Porcupine, Monkey and Echo; steep cliffs that plunge into ravines; monkeys and squirrels.

(v)                Things to enjoy: Greenery, scenic beauty of nature, trekking, horse riding; good for a day’s group picnic.