Visiting the Khandala Tunnel tops

Our day starts on being dropped at Khandala (KAD) by the 1010 Up Sinhagad Express. The train has a pantry car with the top level windows to ventilate the coach. These windows seem to be a modification during a recent POH – I have done lots of railfannin

Our 1010 Up arrives on road 2, while the road 3 has a pair of light bankers returning to Karjat. The hardworking noisy beasts are Kalyan WCG 2 # 20121 with 20157.

We start our climb on the central catch siding and get views of this WCG 2 banker pair 20145 and 20120.

As is customary on the friendly Indian Railways, the crew always wave back. WCG 2s # 20145 and 20120.

The WCG 2s 20145 and 20120 about to enter the tunnel 26 – note Ashish in the right hand corner of the tunnel portal.

A view of the Khandala from the top of the tunnel 25C. This is the longest tunnel in the Bhore ghats and carries the down track from the point where the highway crosses over the tracks till this place – a distance excess of 2 kms.

There are two feeders that feed electricity to the traction substations along the railway line. These are the SE 1 and SE 2 (SE = South East, the line that heads in the SE direction out of Kalyan). One ownership signs still mention the GIPR and is in a su

A few wrong paths later, we arrive on the top of the tunnel – nothing gives the indication of the special location except these “T” pillars marking the width of the tunnel.

Edge of the mountain – the tunnel top has these steel anchors – perhaps to ease the lowering of the “boulder gang” – these are special crew whose job is to inspect strategic locations and identify the boulders that could loosen during monsoons.

A view of the valley – the track curves along the mountain. The end with the towers is Rajmachi point. The long white structure below the towers is a new concrete retaining wall built along the railway line. The line parallel to the tracks is the Tata p

Train time ! The WCAM 3 hauling the 2126 Pragati Express on the bi-directional mid line emerges from the portal of the tunnel 25.

The 2126 Pragati Express curves over the Tata Bridge carrying the Walvan dam pipelines below them. Note the new retaining wall ahead of the train.

A view towards Monkey Hill – one can see the tunnels 24 and the 24C – the bankers pushing the 1007 Deccan Express can be seen leaving the tunnel 24C and entering the tunnel 25C whose other exit is more than 2 Kms away at Khandala yard ! One can also s

We found it ! Anyone who has seen or heard of the service tunnel to the 25 C is familiar with the enigmatic ventilation shaft bored through the solid rock. The lower end of the ventilation shaft is located almost at the point the service tunnel meets the

The railway has made every effort in ensuring that nothing falls into the hole. This grill prevents all but the smallest stones from getting through.

Finally, the view you are all waiting for – cannot see much, but the depth is obvious.

We walk further on the mountain towards the Rajmachi point – the dilapidated building in this picture is probably the Convalescent home (near tunnel 2 i.e tunnel 25 of today) seen in this map of 1929. http://tinyurl.com/ybwuqg

We wait for a long time for a train to come from the portals of the tunnel 25 – finally a pair of WCG 2 bankers emerge on the mid-line.

It is raining bankers ! Two more beasts arrive on the Up line chasing the mid-liners.

In case you do not know, the majestic peak in the background is the Duke’s Nose.

The bankers on the bi-directional mid-line arrive at the Tata bridge, the up-liners maintain similar speed.

Mid-line traffic at the Tata bridge.

The Up-line bankers at the Tata bridge – this was the only descending traffic we saw after we settled down on this hill at this spot. Soon it was time to go back and get a ride on the 1029 Koyna Express which is one of the few trains that stop at Khanda

The Up-line bankers entering the Tunnel 24 showing the usual janata hanging on the rear buffer beam for a free ride in the ghats.

On the trek back to the Khandala station, we walk along the Walvan dam water pipes to reach the top of the KAD catch sidings. Ashish talks to Gowrisankar of the IRFCA Chennai chapter.

The catch sidings have a lot of population pressure to deal with – it is visible at places, else it is buried under roads and other constructions. The gauge looks too wide to be 5’6”, so these might be the check rails outside the regular tracks.

Khandala is the preferred resort getaway for the affluent Mumbaikars – the catch siding visible at some places near the top.