Best cycling routes of Pune

---

Pawana parikrama is a very popular route among cyclists. Cyclists most often start at chandni chowk and return via somatane phata. The total distance will be around 100 km. Only small climb you will encounter is near Tikona fort. After village Peth there is steep downhill towards pawana dam. the view from top is amazing in monsoons. The trail can be completed within a day or if you have time you can plan to visit Tikona fort and stay at one of many camping facilities available near the dam.

Route : Chandni chowk - Paud - Chhale - Tikona peth - Pawananagar - somatane phata - dehuroad - Mumbai pune old highway

If you are more of local traveller and love riding through narrow village roads rather than highways, then this is one of the best trails you will find. There is a similar trek that is organised in monsoons popularly known as LOBHI which starts at Lonavala and ends at Bhimashankar. I had a similar thought of doing this on a bicycle. This will be a 2 day trail which will also include some portion of hiking. You can cycle starting from Vadgaon and end at Bhorgiri. From here, the very interesting and scenic hike starts till Bhimashankar. Plan a stay somewhere near the temple and return the next day.

Route : Vadgaon - talegaon MIDC - Kude Bk - Bhorgiri - hike to bhimashankar 

Really looking for a long distance ride, then this is it! Get on your saddle and pedal to the strawberry farms located in the hill station close to pune - Mahabaleshwar. This is a long ride of approx 150km one way, out of which almost 90 km is highway. Once you cross Wai, the pasarni ghat is unendable. Make sure you have stomachfull calories before you even try to ascend the ghat. Visit to Mapro garden to have sandwiches, strawberry with cream and brownies is a must. A slight detour from Wai, will take you to Nana fadanvis wada. Best time to visit is in the strawberry season starting from March to May end.

Route : Pune - Wai phata - Wai - Pasarni - Mahabaleshwar temple 

It is best to start and end this ride in Mahabaleshwar. For that you need to travel till Mahabaleshwar either in car or bus. Shivneri bus can be a better option, in which you can also carry your bicycle. This ride can be completed in a day if planned properly. Total distance you cover is 98km. It is better to ride as per the route below to get a lot of downhill as compared to uphill. It is complete ghat section and may get hectic if you are a naive cyclist.

Route : Mahabaleshwar parking - Mettale - Goroshi - Tapola - Taldeo - Manghar - Mahabaleshwar

Varandha ghat is one of the toughest climbs in Pune.  It is a beautiful mountain pass which proceeds through the majestic Sahyadri mountain range. This mountain pass joins Pune and Konkan region. Lush green mountains, valleys & waterfalls attract many tourists. The Waghjai Mata temple is among main attractions at Varandha ghat road. From this point, you can witness magnificent views of valleys & waterfalls. Its a never ending ascend. But the view you get from the topmost point is jaw dropping. Best part is there are many places you can visit if you are in Bhor. Kenjalgad, Mandhardevi, Shivthar ghal, necklace point, Nira deoghar dam are few of those. 

Route : Pune - kapurhol - kasurdi - bhor - shivthar ghal

If you are an offbeat traveller and like to ride places less crowded and untouched, then this is it. Sorrounded by mountains on one side and panshet dam on the other this trail provides a wild ride. Scarcely populated, no hotels or tea shops, no moving vehicles, You are all on your own. Not much away from Pune, it can be easily covered in 2 days. It is better to keep the dam to your right while you complete the parikrama so that you get a continous 2-3 km downhill at the end of the ride.

Route : Khadakwasla - shirkoli - kasedi - kambegi - Panshet - khadakwasla (120 km)

If you are a beginner, and wanted to get into long distance bikepacking then, this one is a perfect trail. It can be said as a shorter version of Panshet. Not much of steep slopes but more of rolling terrain, it is a great daily workout ride for many cyclists of the city.  Khadakwasla chowpaty has become popular for street food.

Route : Khadakwasla - Khanapur - sonapur - Varasgaon dam view - nilkantheshwar - katawadi - kudje - khadakwasla(~65 km)

Tamhini Ghat is a mountain passage located between Mulshi and Tamhini in Maharashtra. Situated on the crest of the Western Ghat mountain ranges, Tamhini Ghat is noted for its surroundings comprising scenic waterfalls, curvy roads, lakes and dense woods.

Gear yourself with a helmet, knee guard, sunglasses and set off for this trail to cover the mighty hills of Tamhini Ghat and the mesmerizing beauty in its own. 

If you want to test your leg muscles and also have some super downhill thrill, then Bhor ghat is a must do. 9 km of total ascend starting at khopoli and ending at Lonavala, is rich of uphills and one of the practise rides to do if planning for something big. We did some practise here before going for Manali to Leh cycling. Beware of the traffic here because this is the old Mumbai pune highway and lot of trucks will be using the same route. If you are from Pune you can also opt to get your bike in Local train till Lonavala. Same is the case to get your bike till karjat if you are from Mumbai.

Pune is rich in forts and Sinhagad can be one of the closest to the city. Just 25 km from city center sinhagad is a popular trekking destination as well. There are pmc run buses after every hour from swargate to the base village. Cycling to the top could be a great adventure all together. A continous hard climb of 9 km will have enough lactic acid produced in your thighs. A traditional jhunka bakri pittla and matka yogurt will be a delicacy to have at the fort.

 An offbeat adventure trail to Torana via Pabe ghat is a must do for cyclists in monsoon. There are two routes to reach Torana from Pune, one through nasrapur and the other through Pabe ghat. The latter being more offbeat as we have a steep incline of around 3km and a decline of almost 4 km to reach Pabe.  

Route : Khadakwasla - Pabe - Torana base - Nasrapur - Chandni chowk