Tikona

        We could see the fort from below through the trees but we had lost our way in the jungle! It seemed as if we had chosen a wrong path. We were waiting for Sarang, one of the leaders of our group, to give a green signal when he shouted, ‘Hey guys! It’s a wrong way. We have to go back’.

         We came on a plain area then, where we were directly facing a side of the fort. We had actually decided to climb through a pass which was on an edge of the pyramidal fort. But at one point, we were really puzzled as we weren’t able to find the exact path. We could see the pass but we were finding it difficult to go there. ‘There’s a land slide’ said Ojas, a member of the leaders of our group.

Tikona seen from Kashig village

          When Sarang went to find another route to make it out, we were waiting for him eating Karvanda from the plants nearby. Imagine 70 of us waiting on a small plain on a sunny day. We were expecting the rain to fall but we couldn’t see a single sign of it. While we were bored, sitting on the plains, Satish Marathe, the group leader, was looking at us through the pass, confused, about where we went wrong.

Waiting for further instructions

          He waved at us in desperation. Now we knew the route but where was Sarang? It was just the moment when Satish asked my younger brother and me to run and ask the participants to wait in the pass when he went searching for Sarang. We ran very fast as we had no idea about how many people have gone ahead as it could have led to losing the path again. We were quite exhausted when we reached the pass.

          In about next 5-10 minutes, Satish, Ojas and Sarang came with the last few participants and without wasting time, we started climbing the pyramidal fort, Tikona.

On the way

Oh still so much to climb..

While climbing up the fort

           Tikona which is also known as Vitandgad is a fort in the region of Maval in the Western India. It is about 60 kms away from Pune located near the village of Kamshet. The fort got its name because of its triangular or rather pyramidal shape as mentioned which is about 3500 feet high. The fort is famous for its big gates, water tanks, temple of Trimbakeshwar Mahadev and Satvahana Caves.

History of Tikona:

            Very little is known about this fort and its origin. Malik Ahmad Nizam Shah I of the Nizam Shahi dynasty conquered the fort in 1585 and annexed it to Nizam territory. In 1657, Chatrapati Shivaji Maharaj brought thwe whole of Kokan which had been under Nizam territory, under his control. He conquered Tikona at the same time along with other forts like Karnala, Lohagad, Visapur, etc. The fort was a centre of control of entire Pawana Maval region. Later, the fort was surrendered to a Moghal warrior, Kubadkhan, who attacked the region with Halal Khan and others according to the treaty of Purandar signed on 12 June 1665. 

                The fort was comparatively small, so we could have been on the top of the fort in just one and a half hour from Kashig village. It was sunny, we all were tired climbing up. It took more than one and a half hour to go up. 

Temple with the well in front

Chunyacha ghana

         On the way, we came across a gate named as Vetal Darwaja, a cave through which we have to pass, followed by a temple with a well in front of it. Here we filled up our water bottle as the water was potable. Next was an idol of Lord Hanuman carved on a rock which is coloured with vermillion and a Chunyacha Ghana (limestone grinder). After that is a well-built staircase of small width which made it difficult to climb. But it was a great fun climbing up the stairs.

Stairs

Stairs of the bastion

           On the top was a huge bastion just in front of the gate. There were some stairs going up on the top of the bastion which seemed to be destroyed. There was a temple and some caves beneath it. Then, Satish Marathe as well as Sarang gave us some information about the surrounding area of the fort. As the sky was very much clear, we could easily see nearby forts and places like Lohagad, Visapur, Tung, Pawana dam, Duke’s Nose peak, Torna and Sinhagad except Korigad which was behind the misty clouds. After enjoying the scenic beauty of nature, clicking some photographs of it, we sat and had our lunch. Everybody had brought their own tiffin and we all were busy enjoying and sharing our packed lunch. There was variety in the food including various kinds of parathas, puris, bread items, rice items in it. It was more than welcome as we were very hungry by then.
  

Group photo on the top

         After spending some time on the top, some of us went near the caves with water tanks in it to fill up the bottles. Yes, it was too hot and the sun was beating our skin. We all were feeling thirsty again and again. We were expecting rain which for some reason did not show its face on that day. The top of the fort have very few trees. Isn’t it the responsibility of the people staying there or the visitors to plant some trees which are dense enough to give the shadow? We did our part by planting some Jamun and Mango seeds this time too. I know that not all but some of them will definitely grow up into big trees some day.

           We started climbing down after having the lunch, this time by a new route, towards Tikona-peth and to our surprise; we climbed down the fort in just 45 minutes or maybe one hour. It was exact 2:30 p.m. when we were in the parking spot of the village.

           When everybody came down, we sat into the bus who were waiting there since morning. The place where we had our tea seemed to be an ideal place for one day picnic spot. The hotel had an approach to the Hadshi lake which was almost dried up with some water. We had our snacks and tea and started with our return journey.

       We made our return journey memorable by singing and dancing merrily on the music played on the music system. We reached Pune at about 5:30 p.m. and actually were surprised to arrive so early in the city.

         We enjoyed the trek and I am eager to visit the fort again.


Photo credits:

Satish Marathe 
Shantanu Kanade

Visit to Jeevdhan- Naneghat

       We have visited Jeevdhan and Naneghat several times with our group but this time, we could experience something new.

About Jeevdhan fort:

         Jeevdhan is a well-known fort which is about 1 km away from the modern day town Ghatghar in Junnar Taluka of Pune district in the state of Maharashtra. The distance from Pune to Jeevdhan Fort is about 122 kms and the time taken to reach the fort is 2 hours and 25 minutes, depending on the traffic. The route for the same is Pune-Pimpri Chinchwad-Narayangaon and then from left of Junnar towards Ghatghar Village. From Junnar, S.T buses are also available for Ghatghar. Similarly, from Mumbai, the time taken to reach the fort is 3 hours and 18 mintues, again depending on the traffic. The distance from Mumbai and Jivdhan fort is 165 kms.

         The elevation of the fort is of 1,145 m above the sea level in Sahyadri range and it is one of the famous five trekking destinations among trekking enthusiasts including Chavand, Hadsar, Naneghat and Shivneri. The fort was looted and destroyed in 1815-1818 by the British upon the siege. The difficulty level of this trek is medium as it includes misleading jungle tracks and rock patches. The steps are beautifully carved which lead to the Kalyan gate and hooks are attached on to the walls near it to make it easy for a regular climber.

        This time, there were in all 32 members and we started from Pune at 11: 15 p.m on Saturday. Late in the night listening to the songs, talking, slowly we entered into the area near the fort. Besides the road were all grasslands and trees, waterways, and fields. While on the way, we saw something surprising. As we were passing through, I saw some yellowish white lights moving besides the road in the grasslands when one of us shouted, ‘Stop the bus, these are fireflies!’. We all came out of the bus and what we saw was completely astonishing. There were many fireflies flying here and there with their tiny sparkles. The number of the fireflies was so much that many trees were just lighting up and blowing off as if someone was switching on and switching off the light. As we were on the outskirts of Pune and as it was about 2:30a.m., we could experience the brightness of their light.

         After enjoying them, we again sat in the bus and within no time we reached the base village of the Fort Jeevdhan, Ghatghar. It was about 3 o’ clock in the morning and there was still time to start with the trek. So we decided to take some rest till about 6:30 in the morning. We spent that night resting in a temple of that village.

          The next morning, we all woke up because of the calls of the cock nearby, at 5:45 a.m. We got ready and were waiting for the breakfast which unfortunately was late because of some genuine reasons. We were all really very hungry and bored because of the breakfast getting late. We were actually going to leave the village at 7:30 a.m. but it was now 8 o’ clock. Some of us went to sleep waiting for the breakfast. We had ordered for breakfast before leaving Pune and we expected it on time. After sometime, a person from the nearby village arrived with our breakfast in his car. We were so happy to see him. We had our breakfast and then started with our trek at 8:30, one hour late. There was a plain area in between the fort and the village where we saw many crabs of various sizes and even a small snake. He went so swiftly beneath the rock that we couldn’t recognize it. 

Start of the climb to Jeevdhan

            After the plains was a dense jungle. Slowly and steadily, we reached the middle of the trek. Now, it was the time for the rock patch. When we reached the base of the rock patch, we were surprised to see that there was a ladder fitted on the rock patch. It ruined all the fun and excitement of climbing the rock patch which we had done just last year. 

Ladder which spoiled the fun

           The ladders were not in a good condition actually because they were bent in some places and they were all rusted. But still, we could feel the steepness of the rock patch and we could see a beautiful scene with all mountains of different shapes around us, the Ghatghar village and there were many clouds flowing.

            We reached the top of the fort where there was a small stream of water flowing. The water was cool and hence many of us including me after climbing the rock patch were standing beneath the stream of water. It was so cooling as well as refreshing. There were caves besides this stream. The caves were beautiful but the water was really dirty, full of green weeds and algae.

Caves

Bastion on the top

          There was a bastion (buruj) nearby where we saw another snake. The name of the snake was Gunther’s racer. Its scientific name is Platyceps gracilis. This snake is found mostly in the western part of India from Maharashtra to Rajasthan. Its average length is 70 cm while its maximum length is 93 cm. People often get confused between this snake and Russell’s Kukri due to its similar head markings. It is a non-poisonous snake.

Gunther's Racer doing a peek-a-boo

   

        When the snake became aware of our existence, it went into a crack in the rock nearby of the bastion and hid, keeping an eye on us. We took a five-minute rest over there until everybody came up on the bastion and then went near the storehouse on the top. The storehouse is worth seeing with various beautiful carvings and architecture.

Store hose on the top

       There are many unexplored store houses on the top which can be explored by taking certain precautions. The main gate and the Kalyan gate are in good conditions. After exploring the beauty of that storehouse, we decided to climb higher on the fort from where we could actually see Naneghat and other forts in the vicinity. 

Naneghat seen from the fort

       Unfortunately, as the sky was unclear, we could hardly see the forts clearly. Despite this, we saw Fort Ajoba from there on our right and the Peak of Dhakoba on the left. We could see the village where we were next going to have our meal in the afternoon near Naneghat. It was somewhat 12:30 p.m. by now. So immediately we left the place and went towards the water tanks a little away. The water tank near the store house atop is not at all potable but the water near the Kalyan gate from the rock cistern is very much clear and potable as compared to that one. Still, one must take at most care while using the water for cooking purpose or even drinking.

 

Water tanks

 When we reached near the water tank, most of us were filling up their bottles from the tank. The water was really very cool. After sometime, while filling up the bottles, one moment came when everybody started playing with that water. It was so soothing and refreshing, just what we needed. Even the weather was changing continuously but was very pleasing indeed. After a while, we all were in a great trouble after playing with the water as cool breeze started blowing. This made us all shiver. We had some snacks there and then decided to visit Vanarlingi. 

          Vanarlingi is the name of a pinnacle near the fort. It is about 385 feet high. It seems to be small when seen from a distance or from the fort but when we go near it, one can actually see the height of the pinnacle. This pinnacle got its name because of the Langoors which are called as ‘Vaanar’ in Marathi. When seen from below, it looks like a Parsi man standing. Hence, it is also called as ‘Khada Parsi’. (‘Khada’- standing and ‘Parsi’- Parsi man). One can climb up on Vanarlingi in a day with the special climbing equipments. The re-bolting of this Pinnacle was done in 2010.

Vanarlingi

         There are four bolts on the fort edge which is in front of the pinnacle. Many people attempt rock climbing and rappelling of Vanarlingi and Valley crossing between the pinnacle and the fort as an adventure. We were all mesmerized to see the beauty of the pinnacle and the scene around.

           We started to descend as everybody were hungry. It was too hot and we all were feeling uneasy because of this. We were going to climb down through Kalyan gate. 

         This is a beautifully carved gate on which there is a crescent moon, a kalash and a sun carved on it. The gate is chamber like from where when we pass through, we come across a V- shaped gorge leading downwards. The Naneghat comes exactly in front of the person standing in that pass. After the rocky area, there are some steps which are somewhat destroyed. There were big boulders on the entire path which made moving down difficult. Two of us were sitting on the rock, helping and guiding the participants to get down. It was a great fun climbing down the rocky path. 

         It was about 2:45 p.m then. Unfortunately, due to the lack of time, we were not able to go near Vanarlingi, or even below it according to the earlier plan. We climbed down the rock steps until we reached the middle of the mountain where the forest started.

        My brother and I had brought some mango seeds. As we entered the forest we were busy throwing the seeds far into the forest. One or two of the group showed special interest in the activity and helped us in completing this task. We actually planted the last few remaining seeds on the way. It was Environment day the next day. So I think we celebrated the day in advance indirectly by contributing something special like this which made us all happy.

         In another hour, we were down on the plains near the fort. Now we had to reach the house where we were going to have our meal as fast as possible as the hunger was now really unbearable. We started walking, finding the way towards the house when I looked back up and this totally caught my attention. The heads of the fort and the pinnacle were totally covered by dark rainy clouds. We were expecting the rain to fall as it was too hot and we all were quite exhausted. But we kept on walking. We could see the top of Naneghat straight in front of us but I think, we had lost our way. I think we all were trying to find the way towards the village. Gap was formed in between the group. Half of us were far away, beyond our eye sight. We were in the last batch and I think we took a long route finding the village.

         And then, it happened for which we were waiting from such a long time - the rain started. Oh what a pleasure! But the force of the rain increased after some time. There was thunder and lightning. Finally we saw the first batch people of our group some distance away. It seemed as if the rain was not going to stop. The force of the rain was so much that it became uneasy even to keep our eyes open.

        Somehow, we managed to reach the house in the village. We all were wet, from top to bottom. After reaching the village, we all changed our clothes and were waiting for the lunch when the rain came to halt. There was greenery all around, the trees seemed to be refreshed and the weather became cool and pleasant. We had proper meal that day, bhakri, batatyachi bhaji, harbaryachi usal, dal-rice and amrakhanda. It was really filling. As the house was small, we had our lunch in two batches. After the meal, we visited Naneghat which was close to that village.

Naneghat

Ranjhan near Naneghat

Inscriptions in the cave

   

           Naneghat is a mountain pass in the Western Ghats near the Junnar in Pune district of Maharashtra. ‘Nane’ in Marathi means coins and ‘Ghat’ in Marathi means pass. Hence the name ‘Naneghat’. This pass was used as a trade route by traders during the reign of Satvahana between Kalyan and Junnar. The name was given as the pass was used as a toll-booth to collect the money from the traders crossing the hills. There are some caves having inscriptions which indicate that they are the work of the consorts of the Satvahana ruler Satkarni dated between 60 and 70 BC. On the entrance of the pass, there is a huge ‘Ranjhan’, a pot in which the money was collected from the traders. There is a water tank containing potable water in it.

  

           We all were tired. The caves are a little away from the parking area and even the rocks in the pass had become slippery because of the rain. So only few of us visited the caves in the pass. It was 6:30p.m. when we left the place. On the way, we saw the birth place of Chhatrapati Shivaji, the well-known fort of Shivneri from it’s base. We reached Pune at about 9:30- 9:45 p.m.

          We enjoyed the trek very much. My brother and I have visited this fort three times now and every time, we could experience something new. This time, it was really something special, the fireflies, the rain, the mango plantation, etc.

        I hope to experience something new again when we visit the place in future and I hope the ladder is removed.