A lil introduction to Pune
Pune
Pune is the second largest city in the state of Maharashtra in western India, around 160 kilometers southeast of the state capital, Mumbai. Pune is situated ~570 meters from sea level and ~150 km from Deccan sea shore. And hence it has nice weather round the year. Pune has nice places around where you can plan for a one day trip.
First Outing
This is the story of 4 of us in my company. We are together in a same group almost 3 years now. We daily meet in the office, we share good amount of time with each other, but working in a same group for so long we did not get time to go for an outing. Suddenly one fine morning in a plan stuck in our minds and we decided to go to Goa!! But due to time constraints we could not go to Goa. And finally we decided a place nearby where we can do a one day trip.
This is very known place near Pune and almost anyone from Pune can guess the place. Yes you are right, we went to Sinhagad (सिंहगड).
Sinhagad
Sinhagad fort, whose earlier name was Kondana or Kondhana, is ~30kms, south-west of Pune. Sinhagad is in Sahyadri Mountains (Sahyadri Range) and its height above sea-level is ~1400 metres. Sinhagad has a long history, in making of Shivaji Maharaj's Maratha empire.
Sinhagarh is also known for a famous quote by Shivaji Maharaj is"GAD AALA PAN SINHA GELAA" Which means that though he conquered the fort, he had lost the lion, who was none other than the brave warrior Tanaji Malusare. In the honor of this great warrior, who sacrificed his life for this fort, this fort was named 'SINHAGAD'.There are two ways to reach to the fort entrance. One is by road which will take 30 min to reach top of the mountain and 15 min walk from there and second is by rock climbing will take 45-50 min for a regular climber.
About Trip
We started at 8am from Pune city and reached at the bottom of the fort around 9am. From there we took rock climbing way. It is straight climb which is somewhat difficult for novice climber.
On the way there are many shades built up by local villagers where visitors can buy lime water, cucumber, buttermilk and such watery stuffs.And these things are required if you do not carry water with you to avoid dehydration.
Since we started this outing after a long break, it took us 2hr 30 min to reach at the top and finally we made it in the afternoon.
After reaching on the fort we visited many famous points such as "Kalyan Gate" (कल्याण दरवाजा), "Pune Gate" (पुणे दरवाजा) one of the gates facing towards Pune city, "Tanaji Malusare Samadhi" (a temple of Tanaji Malusare), "Dev Taka" (a fresh drinking water spring flowing all the seasons) a television tower for broadcasting local TV signals.There is a long list of points at the entrance.
Photo on the right is "Samadhi" of great warrior after which the fort is named as Sinhagad. This samadhi reminds Tanaji's dedication, sacrifice towards the empire.
Tanaji had arrived in the court to invite Shivaji Maharaj for wedding of his son Raiba. Shivaji was planning to conquer the fort which was in the hands of Mughal. Tanaji was assigned the job, and he accepted without any hesitation. He said "Aadhi Lagna Kondhnya che mag Raiba che" Which means Kondhana will be first to get married and then Raiba. He reached the base of the fort in the night. Strong people amongst them climbed the difficult rock-patch of the fort. It is said these people used an iguana or Ghorpad to locate suitable climbing sites in that dark night. The Marathas attacked with full vigour. After a fierce battle between Udebhan and Tanaji, Tanaji was killed and became a martyr. In such a situation, his brother Suryaji controlled the army and fought bravely to win the fort. This was the end of a great legend.
After visiting so many of places and so much of walking, no need to say we were very hungry.
Lunch
Zunla-Bhakari, Kanda Bhaji (Pakoda) and Pot Dahi are famous food items
on the fort.Apart from this a varity of Maharashtrian veg food is available. All the hotels has relaxed Indian seating and nearby villagers prepare and searve the food.
Non-Veg food is strictly not allowed on the fort.
After meal at around 3pm, we stayed back for an hour and then started return journey.
The same paths in the morning suddenly felt easier while returning and required less energy. We reached down in an hours time.
This is how we enjoyed our first trip and decided to continue such outings regularly. We planned to give a name to our club, and found a very resembling name to our activity, "Bhraman Mandal" (भ्रमण मंडल) which means a club for outings. We've decided to continue these activities at least once per quarter. Such activities will make you feel relaxed, refreshed and restores your energy.
Bhraman Mandal members, from left Kedar, Samir, Paresh and MayurSee you then till next Q!
Bye and Thanks for reading!
