One Day Bike Trips from Pune: 12 Rides Worth an Early Alarm

Pune has an unfair advantage as a riding city. The Sahyadris start almost at the edge of town, so the first proper climb of your morning can be forty minutes from your front door. That is what makes day trips from Pune different from rides out of most Indian cities. You are in the hills within the hour, not grinding through a hundred kilometres of highway before anything gets interesting.

The flip side is that these hills change character completely with the season. Tamhini in July is a waterfall with a road running through it. Tamhini in April is a hot, dusty climb with nothing to look at. So this list gives you twelve bike trips from Pune sorted by distance, each with the months it is actually good in, the road you take out of the city, and the small local detail the reels never mention.

Two things before you plan anything. Two-wheelers are not allowed on the Mumbai-Pune Expressway, so anything toward Lonavala runs on the old highway. And the city's exits on a weekend morning, Chandni Chowk, Katraj, Nashik Phata, will happily eat an hour if you leave at eight. Leave at six.

Bike trip distances from Pune

Road distances for these trips from Pune are measured from Shivajinagar, one way. Ride times assume an early start, a normal pace and one chai stop.

Short trips, under 70 km

• Sinhagad Fort | about 35 km | 1 hour | the classic sunrise climb
• Mulshi Lake | about 45 km | 1.25 hours | backwaters and an easy dam road
• Pawna Lake | about 55 km | 1.5 hours | a quiet lake with forts all around it
• Tamhini Ghat | about 60 km | 1.5 hours | the monsoon ride Pune is known for
• Lonavala and Khandala | about 65 km | 1.75 hours | the old highway and its viewpoints

Full day, 70 to 130 km

• Varandha Ghat | about 85 km | 2.5 hours | the ghat almost nobody else rides
• Panchgani | about 100 km | 2.5 hours | Pasarni Ghat and Table Land
• Bhimashankar | about 110 km | 3 hours | a forest road to a jyotirlinga
• Mahabaleshwar | about 123 km | 3.5 hours | the big Sahyadri climb
• Malshej Ghat | about 125 km | 3 hours | cliffs, cloud and Shivneri nearby
• Kaas Plateau | about 130 km | 3.5 hours | wildflowers, for a few weeks a year

The long one

• Bhandardara | about 165 km | 4.5 hours | Arthur Lake and Randha Falls

Four roads do almost all the work. The Paud road heads west to Mulshi and Tamhini. NH48 goes south past Katraj toward Bhor, Varandha, Panchgani, Mahabaleshwar and Kaas. The old Mumbai highway runs northwest to Pawna and Lonavala. And the Nashik highway goes north to the turn for Bhimashankar at Rajgurunagar and on toward Malshej and Bhandardara.

Short bike trips from Pune

1. Sinhagad Fort

Distance: About 35 km one way | Ride time: 1 hour | Best for: Sunrise, and being home before the city wakes up

Almost every Pune rider does this one first, and it is still one of the best short trips from Pune years later. You leave on Sinhagad Road, pass Khadakwasla dam as the light comes up, and the last few kilometres climb in tight bends toward the fort. Kanda bhaji, pithla bhakri and matka dahi at the stalls near the top are part of the ritual.

The road is short but steep, and the upper hairpins collect gravel on the inside line. On a small bike with a pillion, first gear is nothing to be embarrassed about.

Rider tip: Bikes can ride up to the parking area near the top for a small fee, but it fills fast on weekends, and the road shuts whenever heavy rain brings down a landslide. Be climbing by 6 am.

2. Mulshi Lake

Distance: About 45 km one way | Ride time: 1.25 hours | Best for: Easy, flat riding with water beside you

Take the Paud road out and the traffic thins almost as soon as you clear the city. Mulshi is a long, winding backwater behind the dam, and the road along it has the kind of gentle curves that let a newer rider practise smooth lines without any pressure.

Mulshi is the most relaxed of the short trips from Pune, and there is not much to do there, which is the whole appeal. A cutting chai with the lake below you is the point of the ride, and Tamhini starts just beyond it if you want more.

Rider tip: The rebuilt Chandni Chowk junction is a maze of loops and flyovers, and taking the wrong exit is easy. Set the Paud road in your navigation before you leave home, not while circling the ramps.

3. Pawna Lake

Distance: About 55 km one way | Ride time: 1.5 hours | Best for: A quiet lake with forts on the horizon

Pawna is Lonavala's calmer neighbour. The lake sits in a bowl of hills with Tung and Tikona forts rising straight out of the landscape around it, and on a clear winter morning the whole scene looks painted. The ride takes the old Mumbai highway to Kamshet, then a narrow country road south that is more fun than it looks on the map.

Most people come to Pawna for the tent camps and stay the night. As a day ride it works best as an early out-and-back, with a detour to the base of Tikona if you fancy a short climb on foot.

Rider tip: The lakeside road is narrow and fills with camp jeeps on Saturday afternoons. Ride it in the morning or on a weekday.

4. Tamhini Ghat

Distance: About 60 km one way | Ride time: 1.5 hours | Best for: Monsoon waterfalls and the greenest road near the city

If Pune has a signature rain ride, this is it, and easily the most photographed of the monsoon trips from Pune. Past Mulshi the road drops through Tamhini toward the Konkan, and between July and September waterfalls come off the cliffs almost onto the tarmac. The whole ghat turns into a tunnel of green and cloud.

It is also where monsoon rides go wrong most often. The surface is broken in patches, the edges grow moss, and cars stop anywhere for a photo. Ride slowly, stay off painted lines, and treat every sheet of water across the road as a patch of ice. If you are not sure which months the ghats are really worth it, the season calendar for riding in India breaks it down.

Rider tip: In peak monsoon the district administration has repeatedly banned stopping and bathing at waterfalls here after drownings. Enjoy the view from the saddle and check for restrictions before you go.

5. Lonavala and Khandala

Distance: About 65 km one way | Ride time: 1.75 hours | Best for: A classic ride with plenty to see at the end

This is the ride most people picture when they think of trips from Pune. The old Mumbai highway rises gently through Talegaon and Kamshet to Lonavala. The real ghat, Bhor Ghat, is the drop beyond Khandala toward Khopoli, and plenty of riders go down to the base and ride straight back up just for the bends.

Skip the chikki shops on the main road and take the Aamby Valley road instead. Tiger's Leap and Lion's Point sit along it with huge drops into the valley, and early in the morning you can have them almost to yourself.

Rider tip: Bhor Ghat is shared with heavy trucks crawling in low gear. Overtake them only where you can see the road ahead, never on the inside of a bend.

Route guide: Pune to Lonavala by bike

Full-day bike trips from Pune

6. Varandha Ghat

Distance: About 85 km to the top of the ghat | Ride time: 2.5 hours | Best for: A proper ghat with almost no traffic

Varandha is the ghat Pune riders tend to keep quiet about, and the least crowded of all the ghat trips from Pune. Take NH48 south, turn off for Bhor, and the road beyond Bhatghar dam climbs into the hills before plunging over the Sahyadri edge toward Mahad in the Konkan. The views over the valley are enormous and there are long stretches where you will not see another vehicle.

Most riders stop at the viewpoints near the top and turn back, which keeps the day comfortable. Riding all the way down to Mahad and back roughly doubles the ghat riding.

Rider tip: The road is narrow and landslide-prone, and it has been closed to traffic during heavy monsoon spells. In the rains, confirm it is open before you commit, and do not ride it after dark.

7. Panchgani

Distance: About 100 km one way | Ride time: 2.5 hours | Best for: Pasarni Ghat and a plateau at the top

Ride NH48 south through the Khambatki tunnel toward Satara, turn off at Surur for Wai, and the good part starts at Pasarni Ghat, a short, steep run of hairpins up to Panchgani. Table Land, a huge flat plateau above the town, is the classic stop, and from December the strawberry farms along the road start selling straight from the field.

Panchgani on its own makes a relaxed day. Add Mahabaleshwar, half an hour further on, and it becomes a full one.

Rider tip: Pasarni's hairpins are tight and buses swing wide on them. Stay well left on the right-handers, and expect cars parked in odd places around Wai on weekends.

8. Bhimashankar

Distance: About 110 km one way | Ride time: 3 hours | Best for: Forest roads, cooler air and a jyotirlinga

Of all the day trips from Pune, this is the one that feels furthest from the city. Head up the Nashik highway to Rajgurunagar, then turn west onto a road that gets narrower, greener and twistier until it enters the Bhimashankar Wildlife Sanctuary, home of the shekru, Maharashtra's giant squirrel. The temple at the end is one of the twelve jyotirlingas and the small town sits right inside the forest.

The last forty kilometres are the reason to come. Small villages, bends through thick forest, and in the monsoon, cloud so dense you will be riding with your headlight on at noon.

Rider tip: Avoid Mondays, Mahashivratri and the month of Shravan unless you want to share the final stretch with thousands of pilgrims. On an ordinary weekday the road is close to empty.

9. Mahabaleshwar

Distance: About 123 km one way | Ride time: 3.5 hours | Best for: The big climb, and strawberries in winter

Mahabaleshwar is the classic among full-day trips from Pune: Panchgani plus another climb and a lot more to see. Arthur's Seat, Elphinstone Point and the loop around Venna Lake make a good circuit, and the forest roads between the viewpoints are as enjoyable as the ghat that brought you up.

Pratapgad fort is roughly another 25 km down the Ambenali side if you still have daylight, but that is where a one day ride starts becoming a very long day.

Rider tip: Mahabaleshwar gets well over 5,000 mm of rain a year and many viewpoints and stays shut through the monsoon. Treat this as an October to May ride.

Route guide: Pune to Mahabaleshwar by bike

10. Malshej Ghat

Distance: About 125 km one way | Ride time: 3 hours | Best for: Cliffs, cloud and a fort on the way

Take the Nashik highway north to Alephata, turn west onto the Kalyan road, and the Deccan plateau simply ends at a cliff edge. In the monsoon Malshej vanishes into cloud and waterfalls pour off the black basalt walls on both sides of the road. Shivneri Fort at Junnar, where Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj was born, is a short detour off the route and worth the climb.

Outside the rains it becomes one of the calmer trips from Pune, quieter and clearer, and the reservoir views at the top are better without the fog.

Rider tip: This road has seen landslides and temporary closures in heavy rain, and July fog can cut visibility to a few metres. Lights on, speed down, and never overtake on the ghat in cloud.

11. Kaas Plateau

Distance: About 130 km one way | Ride time: 3.5 hours | Best for: Wildflowers, for a few weeks after the monsoon

Past Satara a steep road climbs through Yavateshwar to Kaas, a laterite plateau that turns purple, pink and yellow with wildflowers after the rains. It is part of the Western Ghats UNESCO World Heritage site, and in bloom it is one of the strangest and most beautiful sights in Maharashtra.

It is also the most seasonal of the trips from Pune on this list. Outside bloom season the plateau is a pleasant, empty ride with Kaas Lake and the Vajrai waterfall area nearby, but it is not worth 260 km on its own.

Rider tip: The bloom usually runs from mid-September to mid-October. Weekend and holiday visits need an online booking with a daily cap, and you leave the bike at a designated parking area and take the shuttle bus up. Book well ahead, or go on a weekday.

The long one

12. Bhandardara

Distance: About 165 km one way | Ride time: 4.5 hours | Best for: A lake, waterfalls and a very early start

Bhandardara sits below Kalsubai, the highest peak in Maharashtra, with Arthur Lake held back by the Wilson Dam, which is more than a hundred years old. Randha Falls, Umbrella Falls below the dam in the monsoon, and the road around the lake make it one of the prettiest places within reach of the city. At roughly 330 km there and back, it is also the longest of the day trips from Pune here.

If you have the stamina, leave at 5 am, eat lunch by the lake and be back on the highway by 2 pm. Otherwise make it an overnight and walk up Kalsubai or Sandhan Valley the next morning.

Rider tip: The lake roads are narrow and pumps are few once you leave the bigger towns. Fill up at Sangamner or Akole on the way in.

Route guide: Pune to Bhandardara by bike

The best time for bike trips from Pune

The Sahyadris give Pune three very different riding seasons.

• June to September, monsoon. The ghats are at their most beautiful and their most dangerous. Tamhini, Malshej, Varandha and Bhimashankar are the classic rain rides. Ride in daylight, go slowly, and skip anything with a landslide warning.
• October to February, the best of the year. Clear views, cool mornings, Kaas in bloom right at the start, and Mahabaleshwar and Panchgani at their finest, with strawberries from December.
• March to May, the hot months. Pune itself touches 40°C in April and the plateau roads bake. Ride at dawn, finish by eleven, and pick routes with height and shade like Bhimashankar or Mahabaleshwar.

Which ride should you pick?

• Your first ride out of the city: Mulshi Lake, or Sinhagad if you want a short climb.
• A monsoon ride: Tamhini, ridden slowly on a weekday.
• The best ghat: Varandha, with Pasarni a close second for pure hairpins.
• A full day with lots to see: Panchgani and Mahabaleshwar together.
• Something your friends have not done: Bhimashankar on an ordinary Tuesday.

If you are still new to highway riding, read the mistakes new riders make on their first highway ride before you attempt anything past 100 km, and run through the pre-ride checklist the night before.

Things Pune riders learn the hard way

• Leave before six. Traffic on the city's exits is the biggest time thief on weekend trips from Pune, and every hour you save in the morning is an hour you are not riding home in the heat or the dark.
• Forget the Expressway. Two-wheelers are not permitted on it, and there are checks at the entry points.
• Fuel up before the ghats. Pumps thin out on roads like Varandha, Tamhini and the Bhimashankar forest stretch.
• Expect a bus in every hairpin. Stay left, sound your horn before blind bends, and give state transport buses the whole road if they need it.
• Pack real rain gear. A proper two-piece rain suit, not a raincoat that flaps at 40 km/h, and a dry pair of gloves sealed in a plastic bag.

Ride it with the right people

The monsoon ghats in particular are better with company, because a second rider turns a puncture in the middle of Tamhini from a crisis into a twenty minute delay. On RydrLoop you can post a ride, find riders near you heading the same way, and turn a Sunday plan into an actual group on the road.

Heading somewhere else? The same one day approach works out of Mumbai, Bangalore, Chennai, Delhi and Kolkata.

Pick one, set the alarm for 5 am, and go before the city does.