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Well I get to hear this type of Enthusiastic quotes, almost everywhere as every moto-bloggers, Youtuber and meme creator are using such, so do you also might be hearing too. It’s not because what they like or it’s the common trend. It’s because of the demand of the day, the infection that, this generation have & the mindset this generation carrying inside. It’s the demand of the ambitious & voracious generation to explore over, above & beyond the horizon. They are not at all at a frame of mind to accept the society as 90’s have the want to explore everything, they might gonna fail, the plan mayn’t gonna work or they might have to start over but they don’t care at all. They want to learn from their own mistakes. So much adventurous as too much upsurge of energy they have, I am pretty sure you might have too. Well if you are looking for some fun and adventure this weekend I have a place for you, full of life, adventure & escapade, the Lohagad Fort. The Place where you will find salvation & serenity, as fully unconnected from your hectic world and a feeling of being timeless.
Situated at the height of 3400 feet, Lohagad Fort is a UNESCO world heritage site and formidable fort about 52 kilometres away from Pune. Perched atop an impressive hill near Malavali, this destination is the perfect amalgam of ancient architecture and natural beauty. Lohagad Fort was built in the 18th century and is an ideal destination for trekking and nature lovers, especially from Pune and Mumbai. Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj used to keep his treasury in this fort.
The trek to the fort is an easy one and perfect for the first-timers, making it a favourite haunt of hiking enthusiasts. In addition to its thrilling trek route, Lohagad Fort in itself is a massive structure that was once under the control of the mighty Maratha Empire and is connected to its twin Visapur Fort as well. Until a few years back, the base of the fort was quite far from the last point connected via road, but now a proper road has been built to the base of the fort, due to which a lot of people visit Lohagad during monsoon weekends, making it quite crowded. Whether you visit this destination for its lush green beauty, adventurous trekking route, panoramic views or illustrious history, Lohagad Fort is certainly worthy of a visit.
Lohagad has a long history with several dynasties occupying it at different periods of time: Satavahanas, Chalukyas, Rashtrakutas, Yadavas, Bahamanis, Nizams, Mughals and Marathas. Shivaji Maharaj captured it in 1648 AD, but he was forced to surrender it to the Mughals in 1665 AD by the Treaty of Purandar. Shivaji Maharaj recaptured the fort in 1670 AD and used it for keeping his treasury. This fort was used to keep the loot from Surat. Later in Peshwa time Nana Phadnavis used this fort for living for some time and built several structures in the fort such as a big tank and a step-well.
The lohagad fort also has caves on its south side facing Lohgadwadi. In September 2019 an inscription in Brahmi script in Prakrit language dating back to the 2nd or 1st century BC was discovered by team of trekkers from Pune (Vivek Kale, Saiprakash Belsare, Abhinav Kurkute, Amey Joshi, Ninad Bartakke and Ajay Dhamdhere) in the cave on the cliff. The inscription was studied by Dr.Shreekant Pradhan, an ancient Indian paintings scholar working at Deccan College Post Graduate and Research Institute. The inscription was found on the outside wall of a rock-cut cave on the eastern side cliff of the Lohgad fort, close to Lohgadwadi village.
The inscription is written in the Brahmi script and the language is Prakrit influenced Sanskrit.
The inscription is similar to, but more descriptive than, an inscription discovered at Pale caves (Maval)by Mr. R.L.Bhide and studied by archaeologists HD Sankalia and Shobhana Gokhale in 1969. It starts with ‘Namo Arihantanam’ which is commonly used by Jains, pointing to the fact that the Lohgad cave is a Jain rock-cut cave. The inscription at Pale caves also begins in a similar manner and based on Sankalia and Gokhale’s study, it was assumed to be a Jain inscription.
The inscription mentions the name "Ida Rakhita", meaning Indra Rakshita, who donated water cisterns, rock-cut benches to settlements in the area. The inscription at Pale also mentions the same name. The newly discovered inscription is 50c m-wide and 40cm-long and is written in six lines.
The Lohagad Jain cave is near the fort.
The fort has been declared as a protected monument by the government.
Perched at 3400 Ft., Lohagad Fort is a vast fort spread far wide. It constitutes of four entrances namely Ganesh Darwaja, Narayan Darwaja, Hanuma Darwaja and Maha Darwaja from the nearby village. One can see some beautiful sculptures carved out on the Maha Darwaja. It's most famous spot is Vinchu Kata, a range of hills that looks like Capricorn.
The best way to reach Lohagad fort is by taxi until the base point (Lohagadwadi village) and then trek all the way up to the fort. The trek is actually very simple and hardly takes any time, since there are stone steps all the way up to the top of the fort. If walking at a moderate speed, you should be able to reach the top in about 45 minutes, excluding the time taken to stop and appreciate the view on the way. Please note that there is a steady flow of water on these steps during monsoon, so look out for moss on the stones and avoid stepping on them.
Nestled in the bosom of gently rolling hills, there is more than one route to reach the Lohagad Fort via trekking. The fastest and easiest route is driving up to the base village of Lohagadwadi, and then simply walk up the stone steps of the fort.
Another one is from the village of Bhaje, which is about 5 - 6 kilometres from Malavali. From the village of Bhaje, a walk will lead you to Gaumukh Khand. This is the place where one might get confused.
We need to take a right turn here as taking a left turn will direct us on the path of Visapur fort. After taking a left turn, we need to keep walking until the stairs to the fort come within your sight.
There are around 4 carved gates at the entrance of the fort while you are walking up, a few storage rooms which served as the treasure of the Maratha empire, and a few big ponds of water. The water is quite fresh during monsoons and you will find a lot of youngsters jumping into it. One of the more exciting parts of Lohagad fort is Vinchu Kata (or Scorpion's sting), which is a narrow part of the hill with a deep cliff - trekking to the endpoint is sort of a mini-adventure in itself.
Some other nearby attractions include
