Life is either a Great Adventure or Nothing.
About Rajgad
Home of the great Maratha King, Chhatrapati Shivaji’s for nearly 25 years till he became Chhatrapati; post coronation his capital shifted to Raigad although lot of his administration continued to be controlled from Rajgad.
The fort is located at the end of spur, surrounded on three sides by fortified plains – the Padmavati Machee, the Sanjivani Machee, and the Suvela Machee.
Destination: Rajgad
Date: 2 Day and 2 Nights
Altitude: 4514 feet high.
Located: 40 km southwest of Pune
Who can come?
Any body with basic fitness, sporty and ready to rough it out; minimum age 12 years
Camp Contribution: Rs.3000/- for non-member and Rs.150/- discount for members.
(Includes – Travel Private Bus, Food and stay for two days (Stay in tents) and two night; and event management charges overheads, Recky charges included, loaders for common luggage, local cook etc)
Minimum Group size 15 Maximum Group size 30
For Registration click here
Cancellation Terms click here
Check list of what to carry click here
Both Pictures are courtesy Amit Kulkarni
Team:
Adventure Category: Moderate to Tough (Kindly go thru schedule and checklist)
Parameter for Categorization:
Season – November (Early winter); temperatures at night could get below 20 degrees)
Terrain – Hilly Terrain; Non-technical mountain climbing & trekking through rough terrain
Accommodation at Raj Gad (Second Night), rough it out in temple,
Activities – Hectic, will comprise of:
Trek Duration – four hours one-way
Fort Exploration – 4 to 5 hours
Chill out with friends (Old and New)
Scheduled Time Table + - One Hour approximately
Start Date and Time: August 14, 2009. (Friday Night)
22.00 hrs Start From Andheri Stn. (Exact location to be finalised)
22.30 hrs Sion - Sion Lunch Home Click here for wikimap of this point
22.45 hrs Chembur- Akbarally junction Click here for wikimap of this point
23 hrs Vashi - Under Vashi flyover Click here for wikimap of this point
November 26, 2008
01:00 hrs arrival at Lonavala or Pune
Hit the sack
Date: August 15, 2009 (Saturday)
05:00 hours start for Rajgad base village from Lonavala
Break fast on the way.
08:30 hours Start Trek for Raj Gad
12:00 hours Expected to reach Raj Gad fort –
Lunch and rest
15:00 hours to 19 hours (FortExploration and enjoy the sunset)
Dinner at dinner-time
Post dinner settle down at camp site
Date: November 23, 2008 (Sunday)
06:30 hours – Early Breakfast
07:30 hours – Start Fort Exploration
10:00 hours (Sharp) - Start trek Back from Raj Gad
14:00 hours – Expected to be back at Base village of Rajgad
Lunch at base village of Rajgad
18:00 hours – Tea Snack around Lonavala Region
22:00 hours – Back in Mumbai
Keep buffer of 1 hour due to traffic, bad weather, etc.
About Rajgad
Rajgad - The King’s Fort; The King of Forts; The King of all Adventure treks to a Fort
Home of the great Maratha King, Chhatrapati Shivaji’s for nearly 25 years till he became Chhatrapati; post coronation his capital shifted to Raigad although lot of his administration continued to be controlled from Rajgad.
The fort is located at the end of spur, surrounded on three sides by fortified plains – the Padmavati Machee, the Sanjivani Machee, and the Suvela Machee.
The Padmavati Machee is the largest of the three plains, perhaps this was where most people stayed at that time. Three main darwaja of the fort that open onto Padmavati Machee: the Chor darwaja, the Pali Darwaja and the Gunjawane Darwaja. The ruins of the Padmavati temple, the Padmavati lake, the Maharaja residential palace, the havaldar’s wada (constable’s residence) can all be seen here. The only place which can be used by trekkers for an overnight stay here is the Padmavati temple.
Of the three Plains, the narrowest is the Suvela Machee. Stone steps, ramparts and a bastion can be seen here. On this plain is a 15 foot-diameter opening called Waghacha Doda (tiger’s eye). Several of Shivaji’s officers including Tanaji, Yesaji and Shembar Built houses here. The view of the sunrise from this point is really beautiful.
The third plain, Sanjivani machee is about two Kilometer in length. Double fortification and a bastion can be seen here. There is a direct route from this point, through the Alu Darwaja, to the Budhala Machee on Torna.
The stronghold of Rajgad is said to be its finest point and can be reached with some effort. Once you enter the main gate you can see the palace ruins, the Janani Mandir and the Bramhrisi temple and a water tank. There is quite wonderful view from the top, you can see various mountain ranges and spot several forts from here including the Mahabaleshwar Raireshwar Plateau, Raigad, Makarandgad, Lingana, Torna, Visapur, Tung, Sinhgad and Purandar.
Rajagad is built on a hill named Murambdev which was not captured for a long time. In 1702 Aurangzeb laid siege on Rajgad and changed its name to Najibgad.
Around Rajgad are the rivers Velwandi, Kanadi and Gujavani, so that all routes to the routes to the fort are across rivers. The main gates to the fort are Alu Darwaja, Gunjavane Darwaja, Pali Darwaja and Chor Darwaja.
The gateways to the “king of Fort” - Rajgad
1) To enter the fort from the Alu Darwaja from Pune you have to go to Bhor. Near Bhor you board a lauch at Basrapur at the Bhatgar dam. A five-hour ride will take you to Bhutonde, which is at the foothill of Rajgad. From Bhor take a bus for village Bhutonde. From Bhutonde, it is a three hour climb to the Alu Darwaja.
2) To get to Gunjavane Darwaja you take the Pune-Velha bus to MargasaniVillage and from there you go via Sakhargaon to Gunjavane village. From here, it is a two hour climb to the Gunajvane Darwaja.
3) The easiest route is from Vazeghar or from Pali and then to the Pali Darwaja. This takes about 3 hours to reach the top. The grandeur of this gate is well worth seeing.
4) Another favourite route is through the Chor Darwaja. To reach here you take the Velhe bus to Vinzar village, cross the KanandiRiver and climb up via Sakhargaon. This takes about 4 hours trek, the last part of this path being quite rocky. When you enter from there you reach the Padmavati Machee. Here it is possible to spend the night at the Padmavati temple. Some trekkers have drawn a map of the fort within the temple. It is necessary to carry all requirements like food and water with you. If you leave Pune in the morning you can climb to the top by the afternoon, spend the night there, returning the next day.
For basic Check List for treks and etiquettes
C U Soon... on King of Adventures
Cheers.
| 
