Hi,
We recently visited Morali Chincholi, village of dancing Peacocks. I am posting a travelogue written by my wife. The place is a must see.
A Travelogue by Jeet Gupta
My husband , an avid bird photographer, kept mentioning the village “Morachi Chincholi” , which he was keen to visit . However , I kept dithering till 08 Jul 2012,when we actually made the trip.
We went along the Ahmednagar road till Shikrapur about 34 kms from here. Then just after the village finishes, we turned left towards this small hamlet inhabited by 2500 people and the same number of peacocks.
We drove along the narrow rural road admiring the scenic countryside with scattered orchards of mangoes, guavas and pomegranates, fields of sugarcane, jowar and of course rose nurseries.
After about 10 kms we turned left again and the countryside became sparse with a desolate and barren beauty. The thirst for the much awaited rains could be seen in the tilled dry fields longing for the first drops of water. We reached ‘Morachi Chincholi’ which turned out to be a small, sleepy hamlet with a few scattered huts and a few pucca houses.Just as we were wondering whom to approach for information, about the peacocks, we were hailed by a young boy. He volunteered to be our guide for a paltry sum of R 50/- per head , which included a cup of tea at his house. Just as we moved ahead with him we saw an organised centre for agro – tourism called the ‘ Jai Malhar Krishi Paryattan Kendra’. We moved ahead leaving this and went to the other side of a wooded area.
The young boy took us to his house where he offered us a cup of tea. While sipping the hot tea I spotted a peacock sitting regally on the tin roof of a hut close by. I was so enamoured to see it at such close quarters that I started moving closer towards it . It felt as if he was posing for us. After a few minutes of showing off he suddenly flew down and started walking towards us.
A little apprehensive at his bold approach I moved backward but it started following me around. The boy warned me to keep a distance as they can peck pretty hard. Hearing this I turned to walk away but , before I could take a step it went for my face. Luckily- my reflexes not being too bad- I lifted my purse to protect myself and it could only get a peck at the leather. I made myself scarce from there while a villager came and shooed the bird away.
Moving forward we saw Peacocks entering a hut trying to forage for food. We then went into the fields and …….what a treat awaited our eyes! We saw peacocks and peahens- in all directions- coming out of the shrubs, quickly moving towards a grove of trees. My trigger happy spouse kept clicking away, trying to capture as many different poses of these regal birds as they could. So engrossed was he in his pursuit of them that he missed his footing – and had a fall, but, even this didn’t dissuade him. As for me, I was totally enthralled by the delicate way these big birds ran over the uneven, tilled fields balancing their long tails which were swaying with the strong breeze that was blowing.
After spending a couple of hours feasting our eyes on these beautiful creatures we decided to go round to the ‘Jai Malhaar Krishi Prayatan Kendra, as they have a ‘Mayur point’ where you can sit on benches and watch these birds feed.
We realised this Agri-tourist centre has a lot to offer. Their varied facilities include cottages, a plant nursery, a mini planetarium, orchards of mangoes and custard apples, a children’s park, a mini zoo and different rides like bullock cart and the tractor.
After spending an hour we decided to make our way homeward but the visual treat continued as we saw some peacocks right along the road. This day will remain in our memories for a long long time and we are already planning our next trip there, to share this feast, with our grandchildren.
You will have to venture out in the fields to spot the Peacocks. Ideal time to spot them is 6.00am to 9.00 am in the morning and 4.30pm to 7.00pm in the evening.
How to reach. Take Pune-Ahemadnagar highway and travel to Shikrapur, for a distance of 30 kms.Cross the bridge over Velu River. Ask for Malthan phata.Take left turn at Malthan phata and travel straight to Ganegaon for a distance of 8 kms.You need to take another left turn from Ganegaon and travel straight to Morachi Chincholi distance is 9 km.
Best wishes
Prashant Gupta
