Polo Forest & the Abhapur Temples

Polo Forest lies in Sabarkantha District at the foot of the Aravalli range, roughly 160 km north-east of Ahmedabad and reached in about three to three and a half hours through Himatnagar, Idar and Vijaynagar. The name comes from the Marwari word pol, meaning gateway, a reference to the valley's role as a pass between Gujarat and Mewar in Rajasthan. Some 400 square kilometres of dry mixed deciduous forest run along the Harnav river, and hidden among the trees is a remarkable group of fifteenth-century temples now maintained by the state archaeology department. The Sharaneshwar Shiva temple is the most impressive: three storeys within fortified walls, its carving in a late post-Chaulukya idiom that feels both provincial and confident. Lakhena's Dera is a cluster of Jain temples with finely cut stone screens and Tirthankara imagery, while the east-facing Trayatan Shiva temple has its own kund, and the west-facing Shiva-Shakti temple carries sculptures of an unusually wide range of deities. They are scattered over several kilometres of rough track near Abhapur village, so a high-clearance vehicle and a willingness to walk both help. The forest itself is the other half of the appeal. After the monsoon the ridges turn green, seasonal waterfalls come alive along the Harnav, and the Vanaj reservoir fills; the birding is good, leopard and sloth bear are present though rarely seen, and the night skies are dark enough to be a draw in themselves. Visiting hours run roughly 06:00 to 18:00, entry is nominal or free, and facilities are minimal - food, water and fuel are best picked up in Vijaynagar or Idar. Because the round trip from Ahmedabad is long, many people camp overnight at one of the forest department or private campsites instead of squeezing it into a day. July to February is the season, with the weeks just after the rains the most spectacular.