At about half hour's drive from Satara city is the beautiful Kas Lake. The landscape is arguably similar to what you would see in Mahabaleshwar or several other spots along the Sahyadris in Maharashtra. However, a special attraction and a totally unique one about the Kas plateau is its Valley of Flowers. Wild flowers blossom by the millions for a very short time very year - around August end to October on this 5 km stretch of flat land. And the sight is an absolute heaven on earth.
We left Pune early in the morning; a leisurely drive along with a brief breakfast halt on NH-4 took us some 3 hours. As we neared the Kas plateau, we could see plenty of beautiful spots and a whole lot of yellow (Sonaki) flowers. You need to continue along the road until about 5 kms before the actual Kas Lake. The flowers start rather abruptly along a turn and you behold the mesmerizing landscape agape.
The flowers are hosted on short bushes about 6-8 inches tall. They are of various shapes, sizes and also colours. The place is a haven for butterflies and bees of various kinds. I think there could also be some potential for bird watching if you hit it very early in the morning. Apart from enjoying the flowers, you can relax in the true European style under some shady tree with a sandwich lunch, or even go down to the lake if the weather is good. Be sure you don't litter around and spoil the sanctity of the place.
The valley is so far quite clean and a Forest department officer was seen doing the rounds, urging people to keep off the flower beds and park in the right lanes. Thankfully there are still no wada paav or bhutta vendors and therefore only true nature lovers seen along. Visit before that changes! A place not to be missed.
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