Raigarh Fort, Pune

Raigad is a hill fort situated  in the Mahad near to Pune, Paigad district of Maharastra India, this is must visit for sure.The Maharatha King Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj built this fort and made his capital in 1674 and he was crowned King of Maratha Kingdom which was later developed into the Maratha Empire eventually covering a majority of Mordern Day, India.




Whether you are a history love or not, trekking enthusiast or simplylove the hills, this is a must visit for sure.Climbing for about 1800 add old steps, where once the great king Shivaji Maharaj and his soldiers walked, and then exproring and marveling atthe structure that has a 350years timeline, is quite an exprience.

If you are aged or weak, no problem at all, take a ropeway, but prepared for a long wait.

The guide is must , don't forget to take guide with you.Guide only going to tell you abut the things and a lot of interesting things info will bring the ruins of the fort alive.Do findtime to exprience the 'Sound Of Silence'.Some people trek up to the Awesome Bhavani Tok point.I wish Government restores the Maratha Capital to its former glory.

Better infrastructure and stricker fines need to be imposed.All said and done ,don't let anything deter you from visiting Raigarh Fort. And plan at least 2 days.






History and information:

The fort which rises 820 meters above sea level, is located in the Sahayadri mountain range.There are approx. 1737 steps leading to the fort, through today Raigad ropeway, an arial tramway, exits to reach the topof the fort in 20 minutes.The fortwas looted and destroyed by the British after it capture in 1818.

After capturing Rairi from Chandrarao More, Shivaji also built another fort Lingana which is around 2 miles away from Raigad, where he used to keep prisoners.A statue of Shivaji is erected in front of the ruins of the main market avenue that eventually leads to the Jagdishwar Mandir and his Samadhi(tomb) and that of his loyal dog Waghya.

The fort has ruins of the market, and it has such structure that one can shop evenwhile riding on a horse.


Maha Darwaja having two very huge bastion on both sides of the door which are approx. 65-70 feet in height.The top of the fort is approx. 600 ft higher from the location of the door.Fort was having only one access route which goes through the Maha Darwaja.

Khubladha Buruj, Nane Darwaja, hatti Talav(Elephant Lake) , Gangasagar are the famous attraction of the fort.






Story:

The fort has a famous was called " Hira Buruj" constructed over a huge cliff.Its a story of a waman by the name Hirakani from a near by village at the foothills of Raigarh has come to sell milk to the people living in the fort.She was inside the fort when the gates were locked by sunset.The love for her infant son back at her village gave her courage to climb down the cliff in the dark.She repeated the feat in front of the King Shivaji and rewarded for it.In the appreciation of her courage, Shivaji arranged for a wall built at this location. Even today we can see it standing.

My Experience: 

If you want to thrill ,joy, bravery feeling,time travel to past then Fort Raigarh is a perfect destination.It is 27 km from Mahad. There are two ways to go to the fort, by trekking which will take around 2 hrs or an rope way.Many adventure loving loves to trek but rope way also have a different thrill.



 But for ropeway you have to wait 1 hr so its best way to trek.But by ropeway you can reach the peak in only 6 min.You can hier guides wearing orange t-shirts.While waiting for returning rope wat=y you can enjoy ice-cream,. There's only one restaurant on the fort.Many local villagers sell buttermilk on the fort, which is really freshning for the trekkers.A must visit to feel proud of Maratha history.