Counting Down to 90 - Week 1553 - The Old Shoe and the New Trail

The Concept Explained

Counting Down to 90 - Week 1579

Why 1579

Bhavin's WritingsBhavin Jankharia

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As kids living in Matunga, once in a few years, we would go to Kamala Nehru Park and Hanging Gardens for a picnic. Typically, this would be a Sunday evening trip and I am sure we have some old photos somewhere of my sister and me in the Old Woman’s Shoe towards the eastern end of the park. I haven’t been back for decades and don’t remember ever bringing my twins to these gardens.

Last Saturday, a few of us friends went to see the Malabar Hill Nature Trail, a wooden walkway that weaves its way through the trees of Malabar Hill. As you can see in this walk map, it parallels Kamala Nehru Park and then goes a little beyond. 

It is a fun experience and a good place to bring visitors from outside Mumbai when they ask to see something new, apart from the Coastal Road, Atal Setu, the Sealink and NMACC.

It is a 485 metre walk one way and since only 200 people are allowed in per hour, it is usually not crowded, unless all 200 people were to turn up and go in at the same time. When we went at 8AM on a Saturday morning, just around 20-30 went in initially and then another 20-30 came in later and with 20 minutes left, a school group came in…that was it.

The view of the sea is marred by the buildings at the foot of the hill, but that is unavoidable. 

The idea is to enjoy the walk itself and soak in the bird songs and the surroundings and not bother too much about the view. Before entering the trail, for old time’s sake, I walked along the perimeter of Kamala Nehru Park, which offers a better vantage point to see Marine Drive and Chowpatty and the sea and perhaps it is a good idea to combine the two…the Nature Trail and Kamala Nehru Park together especially, if you come in the morning or in the evening when it isn’t too hot.

Rahul Kadri and his team have designed and executed the walkway and it is so nice…aesthetically pleasing and except for the bird shit, which I guess gets cleared at regular intervals, clean and well-maintained…and this will hopefully continue. 

The walkway circles a tall Indian almond tree, which is a natural focal point to halt, chat, take pictures and generally hang around among the trees, halfway down the hill. We spent almost 20 minutes doing just that.

Kamala Nehru Park was commissioned in 1952, the Old Woman’s Shoe designed by Mr. Soli Arceivala. Seventy-three years later, we have a new addition to the Hanging Gardens complex, the Nature Trail complimenting the Gardens.

The tickets are just Rs 25 for Indians and available here. The booking is seamless. The QR codes however did not work when we tried to enter, but that was fine…the guards let us in after checking the email. And Kamala Nehru Park is free, as I had to tell a young couple taking pictures of the viewing points of the Park from the Nature Trail and wondering how to get up there. 

If you haven’t been to the Trail, perhaps it is an activity worth planning for. We don’t get such additions to Mumbai’s attractions too often.