A narrow footpath slipped beneath a dense canopy of the Western Ghats, swallowed by thick foliage where sunlight struggled to reach the ground and GPS satellites were all but useless. Ahead lay no reassuring signboards. Behind him were only his own footprints. For the next 70 days, every decision Manvendr Singh Shekhawat made—whether to turn left into a forest, climb a forgotten stone staircase to a hill fort or descend into an unfamiliar village—would determine the shape of a trail that did not yet exist. By the time the 34-year-old speed hiker, trail mapper, and outdoor educator from Jaipur emerged in Maharashtra in December 2025, those solitary footsteps had become the Epic Sahyadri Trail—a 1,724-km hiking route stretching from near Nashik to south of Mahabaleshwar. The expedition gave birth to HikeX, India’s first trail-mapping organisation.
Painstakingly recording latitudes and longitudes before digitally plotting every metre walked, Shekhawat’s steps stitched together plateaus, forests, historic forts and more than 250 settlements into what is now India’s longest digitally mapped hiking trail. “Trails exceeding 1,000 km are rare in India, so instead of venturing on an already established long-distance trail abroad, I decided to consolidate all my hiking experiences and chart one in my own country,” says Shekhawat.
HikeX aims to do for hiking what navigation apps did for roads. “HikeX is like Google Maps for treks, with every metre walked and verified on ground,” says Shekhawat. Unlike conventional GPS tracks, the mapped routes remain accessible offline and record practical details that matter to trekkers—camping clearings, viewpoints, water springs, villages and emergency exit points.
For Shekhawat, however, mapping trails is as much about saving lives as documenting landscapes. “Through trail mapping, the gravest problem that HikeX solves is that of safety. It helps in rescue operations. If someone is stuck on the trail, the rescue team can access the location, find the shortest distance to reach, and save precious time. For solo trekkers, the mapped trail ensures less chances of getting lost. The SOS tool by HikeX takes safety to the next level—it requires hikers to write down their plan and if they don’t make it back on time, the app sends an alert to emergency contacts,” says Shekhawat.
Yet the trail deliberately resists the familiar grammar of Indian trekking. Instead, the journey unfolds slowly through changing landscapes and everyday encounters with people who have used these ancient pathways for generations. “The trail works best for trekkers who have outgrown the traditional style of hiking and now wish to enjoy the process, meet village families, witness their culture, learn Marathi, have farm-to-table meals, and experience homestays in the true sense,” says Shekhawat.
Its accessibility is equally intentional. Passing within reach of Mumbai and Pune at multiple points, the route includes an exit point at the end of every day’s walk, allowing hikers to attempt only sections rather than committing to the full expedition. “Every trekker may not do the entire 1,724-km hike—they can choose the chunks from the trail,” he says. For Shekhawat, the joy of hiking has always been less about arriving than figuring things out along the way.
Ironically, that journey began not in the mountains but in a Delhi classroom while preparing for the Civil Services Examination. A short holiday to the Himalayas altered the course of his life. “I soon quit UPSC, took up mountaineering courses, and started leading community hikes,” says Shekhawat. Years of trekking across the Himalayas followed, however, it did little to prepare him for the relentless rhythm of the Sahyadris.
His greatest challenge was not finding the route but sustaining his body through 70 consecutive days of walking. His gear was minimal—a 15-litre backpack carrying water, snacks, a power bank and a windcheater. A support vehicle carrying the documentation team met him only after each day’s hike ended. Despite creating the trail, Shekhawat is quick to point out that he is merely its latest traveller. “Hiking is a privilege. The locals have been using the trails not for the pristine view, but for daily needs—firewood collection, trade, marriage processions. They also have references in old Marathi books. With development and building of motorable roads, these trails may be lost in some time, and so it is even more important to map them,” says Shekhawat.
For him, the Epic Sahyadri Trail is only the beginning. By mapping India’s wilderness one footstep at a time, he hopes to give hikers a deeper understanding of the landscapes they traverse, democratise hiking beyond organised expeditions, and make long-distance trekking more accessible to everyone.