5 Mumbai teens pick their favourite natural escape in and around the city

Need for open spacesThere are few open spaces in the city so the choice is limited Most of my nature trails happen during vacations In Mumbai my friends and I always prefer Juhu beach The other spot I love is Priyadarshini Park I like the openair grounds since they are not claustrophobic They are a getaway for me The Mahalaxmi Racecourse is another lovely open ground Even in the summers it gets a cross breeze Taking that away to make a theme park I think it will hamper the few open spaces in the middle of the cityAnsh Suri 15 ParelBreathing clean airThe Sanjay Gandhi National Park is one of my favourite getaways They are the lungs of Mumbai They have hiking trails I like visiting the Tulsi and Vihar lakes in the park My mom introduced me to this park and we always make a visit when we need a break The other discovery was the Ovalekar Wadi in Thane We recently visited the garden it has such a diverse variety of butterfly species Not only was it fun but it was also educational It reminds me that we can do so much with water conservation We must protect our rivers and lakes especially in the cityAkriti Raj 13 AndheriGrow more treesI always have so much fun at parks I usually go to Juhu beach where I like going for a walk and seeing the sunset I also enjoy visiting the Kaifi Azmi park in the mornings It is nice to walk on the grass and soak in the greeneryA family at Juhu BeachThere are trees and it is quieter in the mornings I think we need to be more mindful and avoid littering I always notice people throwing things around in the city Also the rise of pollution means we need to plant more treesAahana Chheda 13 AndheriA glow of pinkI went on a flamingo safari in Airoli last year I always used to go on treks or safaris out of town but this was my first time inside the city We went early in the morning and we saw so many pink flamingosA gathering of flamingos in NerulThis is my new favourite nature spot in the city I also love trekking so we often head for small treks through Sanjay Gandhi National Park It is fun to get away from the city It becomes so quiet inside the park sometimes that you can hear birdcallsAgastya Urankar 15 KalamboliCall of the hillsI love trekking So one of the dream treks I am planning on is Kalsubai But my more recent trip was up Yogi Hills in Mulund It was a great experience as I went with my friends It was very exciting We had so much fun being so connected to nature The weather was really good it nearly felt like winter We went there in the morning so it was much cooler Everything changes when you go up the hills Unlike the roads in the city these trails are very clean That is why I feel that we need to work better on keeping the city cleanDeetya Tanna 13 MulundGreen up with these eventsgtgt Flash dance by Nature WarriorsA flash mob of students from the JBCN International School Parel will portray the risks of climate changeON Today 430 pmAT Juhu Beachgtgt The Climate ChroniclesPerformers will read a series of short stories that explore our connection with the changing ecosystemON April 26 6 pmAT Coomaraswamy Hall CSMVS Fortgtgt Climate City ChallengeSign up with the Naturalist Explorers to document the biodiversity of MumbaiFROM April 26 to 29LOG ON TO naturalistexgtgt Dadar CleanUp DriveJoin the students of Kirti College as they set out to clean up the Dadar Chowpatty aboveON April 28 830 amAT Dadar Chowpatty Kirti College Road Dadar WestLOG ON TO alleventsin