12th July 2015
Vishramgadh. Resting fort! The fort is so called because
Shivaji Maharaj rested on the fort for more than a month due to some illness.
This is the only fort apart from Raigad and Rajgad where Shivaji Maharaj stayed
for such a long time. You can find more about the history of the fort on https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Patta_Fort.
Vishramgadh is at a 1 ½ hrs drive from Kasara en route to
Bhandardara and one can find private jeeps filling up travellers on a seat
basis going up to Nasik or Bhandardara, costing approximately INR100 per seat.
19 kms before Bhandardara, you need to take a left to reach Pattewadi, the base
village of the fort. Pattewadi is a small hamlet of a few huts housing around
200 people. The drive to Pattewadi is scenic as you come across the mammoth
blades of windmills swirling to the wind, the huge mountains in the backdrop,
cattle grazing lazily and goats being herded by the shepherd who gives you a
confused look as you pass him. The forts like Alang, Madan, Kulang, Trimbakgad
and Kalsubai are in the vicinity of Vishramgadh.
I had joined a group called Tattva for this trek and we
were around 21 people of various shapes, sizes and ages taking this trek. This
is a relatively easy trek and one can reach the top in about 1 – ½ hrs at
leisure after paying a nominal entry fee at the entrance gate. We, of course
took more time as the cameras went click click click after every 15 minutes or
so. The expanse of the surroundings is really breathtaking and one would only
want to take it all in, in sumptuous gulps. This is one of the forts that the
Government has tried to preserve and take under its wings and as you start the
trek you come across boards with maps, descriptions and history of the fort. A
small toilet is also available for the trekkers and travellers though not very
clean. A model elephant, a beautiful one with two small ornamented baby
elephants probably symbolizes the hugeness of the fort. There is a canon right
behind the elephant and into the distance the eyes feast on a dome shaped
structure on one of the cliffs at the far end.
A little ahead is a ‘Laxman Swami Maharaj’ cave and
further ahead, a temple of ‘Shri Pattai Ashtabhuja Devi’. Railings have been
put across at some of the edges around the temple and they actually spoil the
beauty of the mountain, but they are there for a reason. Our villager guide
Mr.Gulab informed us that there is a huge crowd visiting the temple and the
fort during Shiv Jayanti. People from neighbouring villages throng the place
and, the local politician; it seems flies in a helicopter to reach there. We
trek and they fly, with the tax payers’ money of course! Words of caution here;
there are many monkeys around the temple and they would not think twice to grab
your cameras or the bar of chocolate you planned to eat.
Another hour of a bit of huffing and puffing and you are
at the top of the plateau and come across a temple or ‘sabhagruh’ dedicated to
the great king Shivaji. The interiors are still under construction. To cover
the entire fort would probably take around 4 hrs and one needs to decide which
part he wants to cover. The fort is spread far and wide; in fact it is more of
a plateau than a fort as there are hardly any walls or ‘tattbandi’ barring a
few which usually defines a fort, but no one’s complaining; the scenery covers
for it all. There are a few doors or ‘darwazas’ and a couple of spacious caves
on the fort which can easily accommodate 20 people each. Also, there are many
water cisterns on the top and probably these cisterns along with a well are the
water source for the village below.
From the temple, we took a right to reach to the zenith
of the mountain and what a time we had. Though it was cloudy, the rain evaded
us, but the wind was blowing like crazy and it almost swept us off our feet,
literally! We had to consciously make some effort to keep grounded and a rock
perched at the best location had us pose like supermen and superwomen for many
pictures. There are scenes and places that are inexplicable and this was one of
them; one has to be there to experience it. The vastness of the fort, the
serenity except for the swooshing of the wind, the humble swaying of the grass,
a few colourful flowers which had sprouted in the rains, the various shades of intoxicating
green, the enticing paddy fields below, the command and strength you feel being
at such a height, the puny snaking roads below, all of these and more mesmerizes
you beyond words and a thankful feeling rises in your heart for mother Nature
and its beauty.
We had lunch at the top with the wind singing to us. Post
lunch, we embarked again to another plateau right in front of us, towards the
windmills. As I said, every edge of the mountain gives you a different view and
from here we could see a couple of lakes or reservoirs. Getting closer to the
windmills was another high and we sat there for some time gazing at the lazily
rotating blades against the lovely backdrop.
This place definitely is a camper’s delight. After a few
games and fun and laughter, we dejectedly decided to get back to the hullabaloo
of the city. We walked around the periphery of the mountain and were back in
almost an hour for the drive back to Kasara station. A Sunday well spent on a date with nature!
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| At Pattewadi, the base village |
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| Pattewadi |
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| Intro time |
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| Grazing to delight |
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| Soldier at the gates |
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