Ghangad is a fort situated near 30km from
Lonavla-
Khandala
Lonavala-Khandala is a hill station and a Municipal Council in the Pune district, Maharashtra, India. It is about west of Pune and to the east of Mumbai. It is known for its production of the hard candy '' chikki'' and is also a major stop on t ...
and 100 km from
Pune
Pune ( ; , ISO 15919, ISO: ), previously spelled in English as Poona (List of renamed Indian cities and states#Maharashtra, the official name until 1978), is a city in the state of Maharashtra in the Deccan Plateau, Deccan plateau in Western ...
in
Maharashtra
Maharashtra () is a state in the western peninsular region of India occupying a substantial portion of the Deccan Plateau. It is bordered by the Arabian Sea to the west, the Indian states of Karnataka and Goa to the south, Telangana to th ...
state,
India
India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...
. It is an important fort in the Pune district. The fort restoration is done by the Shivaji Trail group with the help of local villagers. Restoration work took place in 2011-12. The fort is at least 300 years old.
History
Very little information is available about the history of the fort. It was used for keeping prisoners and for keeping watch on the trade route from Pune to Konkan. Until 1818 the fort was under the Maratha empire. Ot was surrendered to British forces after the fall of
Korigad on 17 March 1818.
[https://gazetteers.maharashtra.gov. in/cultural.maharashtra.gov.in/english/gazetteer/Poona%20District/places_k.html#.]
How to reach
The fort can be reached by road via Tamhini ghat road or via
Lonavla. The nearest town is
Lonavla which is 30km from the base village of the fort i.e. Ekole. There are good hotels at Lonavla, now tea and snacks are also available in small hotels on the way at Peth Shahapur. The road becomes rugged in the Saltar pass. The trekking path starts from the hillock south of the Ekole village. The route is very safe and wide. There is a dense forest on the trekking route. It takes about half an hour to reach the entrance gate of the fort. The night stay on the fort can be made on the flat ground near the entrance or GarjaiDevi temple on the way to Fort. This fort is approachable in all seasons. The villagers from the Ekole make night stay and food arrangements at reasonable rates.
Places to see
There are two gates on the fort. The main entrance gate has the arch missing. The villagers have placed an iron ladder to climb to the Balekilla of the fort. There is a rock cut water cistern on the way to the second gate. The water is available round the year for drinking purpose. It takes about an hour to visit all places on the fort. There are remains of a few dilapidated buildings on the Balekilla. The top of the balekilla gives a scenic view of the TailBaila, Korigad, Mulshi dam and Sudhagad fort.
Gallery
File:Ghanagad_1.jpeg, Main gate of the fort
File:Ghanagad4.jpg, The cave on the fort
File:Ghanagad5.jpg, The ladder climb
File:Ghanagad2.jpg, Camping site on the fort
File:Ghanagad3.jpg, The scarp
File:Ghanagad6.jpeg, Rockcut water cistern
See also
*
List of forts in Maharashtra
The Forts of Maharashtra are often referred to as ''Green Canyon of India''.
This is a list of forts in Maharashtra, a state of India.(District)
* Harshal Fort (Nashik district, Nashik)
* Agashi Fort
* Ahmednagar Fort
* Mandar Fort
* Ajinky ...
*
List of forts in India
This is a list of forts in India.
Andhra Pradesh
Coastal Region
* Anvika Fort
* Addanki Fort - Prakasam district
* Bellamkonda Fort - Guntur district
* Bobbili Fort – Vizianagaram district
* Dharanikota Fort – Guntur district
* Du ...
References
{{MarathaEmpire
Buildings and structures of the Maratha Empire
Forts in Pune district
16th-century forts in India
Forts in Maharashtra