Raigad
19/08/17,
Monday – Day 1
Started at
about 7am from Pune by car. It was a homgenous group of four – Vijaya, Abhay ,
Avi and me.
We drove
straight to Raigad Fort, taking short stop for breakfast midway. It was raining
intermittently making the travel a pleasant experience among green paddy
fields, hills carpeted with shining green grass with dark green trees and
bushes. Nature was in full glory of manifold shades of green.and torrential
rivers and sprightly rivulets and falls of all sizes.
We reached
Baneshwar Temple at around 8:30 am. Baneshwar is a temple of Shiva located in the village of Nasarapur about 36 km southwest
of Pune. It is a pleasant and calm place amidst a jungle. It was recently discovered and hence declared as a
small bird sanctuaryhosting a
decent amount of rare birds with many crowned
hornbills seen.
Baneshwar temple architecture is from
the medieval period.
The temple was constructed in 1749 by Peshwa
Nanasaheb, son of Peshwa Bajirao I.The total cost
of construction was 11,426 Rupees, 8 Aane, 6 Paise. The temple hosts an important bell which was captured by
Chimaji Appa after defeating the Portuguese in the battle of Bassien in 1739. The bell has the year
1683 and a Cross on
it, which depicts that the bell belonged to a church and was transported as a
token of victory. Same kind of Portuguese bells can be found at Bhimashankar Temple too.
The Nandi statue was
outside the main temple as usual. Just behind the Nandi there was holy pond
replete with fish and small turtles.
We entered the sanctum
sanctorum to pay obeisance to Lord Shiva. It was very unassuming. But in the
wall at the back there was a small shiv linga seems to be ancient. Abhay could
see the priest lifting up and underneath was a cavity and real SHIV Linga was
below. I missed the sight.
After darshan and prasad
we went out into a well manicured garden.
it was a feast to the eye. Variety of flowers
and vegetation was displayed in systematic manner. We were keen to visit the
falls but consensus was to give it a miss. It involved an hour of walk both way
and we had to keep the time at ropeway 0r Raigad Fort.
Falls which we missed:
We left the temple and
proceeded through Bhor town and traversed Bhor ghat.
Scenes around
the ghat was excellent interspersed with small and big falls.
Bhor
ghat in 1870 now
in 2017
The discovery of a route to make a
motorable pass in Bor Ghat came after information was provided by a local
Dhangar tribesman called Shigroba. Later, the Great Indian Peninsula Railway laid a railway line from Mumbaito Pune. The section through Bhor Ghat with 28 tunnels, and old
bridges was opened in 1863.[4] The Ghat opened Mumbai to the Deccan plains of Peninsular India
We took halt
at a roadside dhaba and had hot sabudana khichdi.
Shivthar
Ghal also
known as Sundarmath, is a cave, about 34 km from Mahad, near Barasgaon, Maharashtra.. Samarth Ramdas dictated Dasbodh to Kalyan Swami. Samarth Ramdas
lived here for about 22 years. It is believed that this is where the first
meeting between Shivaji Maharaj and Samarth
Ramdas took place.
The
cave was discovered by Shri Shankarrao Deo of Dhule in
1930. The cave and surrounding area was renovated after Samarth Seva Mandal was
formed in 1950. The campus includes the actual cave under the waterfall, Ramdas
Swami temple, dining hall and accommodation. Between 12:00 pm and 1:30 pm, the
visitors can have the prasad consisting of
Moong Dal Khichadi and Shira. Shivthar Ghal Sundarmath Seva Samiti organizes
various programs at this location. It was rediscovered by Shankar Shrikrishna
Deo.
Shivthar
Ghal is located in Varandha Ghat in the Sahyadris on the Bhor-Mahad road.
It was an
impromptu visit and I thank Vijaya who insisted that we must visit this place.
After this we hurried for Raigadh fort.2
It was
raining heavily and was impossible to look out as rain drops were piercing the
face. Rain gears could not help at all – quite an adventure it was. We waded
through the water to the restaurant at the foot of Raigad while the porter took
our luggage to the Resort. We were rain soaked and frantically wanted to get to
our suites.
MTDC Resort :
It is spread in the form of group 0f 4 suites and there are about 10/12 such group of suites . It was built in
a style but the maintenance is very poor and hence the rooms have been
degenerated. We booked 2 adjoining
suites and somehow made ourselves comfortable by changing into dry clothes and
prepared hot tea. In the room. Thanks to Vijaya for getting tea making
facility. It was evening by the time we settled down. To use the fast fading
evening light we went out towards the fort, had a cursory glance at the fort.
Usual rest and dinner put an end to the eventful day. The dinner comprising of bhakri and pithle was served at a
restaurant of the resort.
20/08/2017, Tuesday - Day 2
We hired the
services of the guide and he came in the
morning to take us to the fort.
High up on the hill of Raigad where the
strong winds will buffet you and the valleys around will mesmerize you with
their scenic splendour is the fort of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj's, the great
king of the Maratha Empire. This was the capital during his rule, also
important for the fact that Chhat rapati Shivaji Maharaj's coronation took
place here on June 6, 1674. It was also here that he breathed his last. The
fort today is a favourite tourist destination, also high up on the popularity
chart with avid trekkers because of its difficult terrain.
The
fort rises 820 metres (2,700 ft) above the sea level and is located in
the Sahyadri mountain range.
There are approximately 1737 steps leading to the fort. The Raigad Ropeway, an aerial tramway exists to reach
the top of the fort in 10 minutes. The fort was looted and destroyed by the
British after it was captured in 1818.
Chhatrapati
Shivaji Maharaj seized the fort in 1656, then known as the fort of Rairi from Chandrarrao
More, a feudatory of the Sultan of Bijapur.
Shivaji Maharaj renovated and expanded the fort of Rairi and renamed it as
Raigad (King's Fort). It became the capital of Chattrapati Shivaji
Maharaja's maratha kingdom.
Front
The
villages of Pachad and Raigadwadi are located at the base of the Raigad fort.
These two villages were considered very important during the Maratha rule in
Raigad. The actual climb to the top of the Raigad fort starts from Pachad.
During Chhatrapati Shivaji's rule, A cavalry of 10,000 was always kept on
standby in Pachad village.
After
capturing Rairi from Chandrarao More, Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj also built
another fort Lingana around 2 miles away from Raigad. The
Lingana fort was used to keep prisoners.
In 1689, Zulfikhar Khan captured Raigad and Aurangzeb renamed it
as Islamgad. In 1707, Siddi Fathekan captured the fort and held it
until 1733.
In
1818, the fort was bombarded and destroyed by cannons from the hill of Kalkai.
And on 9 May 1818, as per the treaty, it was handed over to the British
East India Company.
The Raigad Fort was built by "Chandrarao More" of Jawali and the chief
architect/engineer was "Hiroji Indulkar". The main palace was
constructed using wood, of which only the base pillars remain. The main fort
ruins consist of the queen's quarters, six chambers, with each chamber having
its own private restroom. In addition, Ruins of three watch towers can be seen
directly in front of the palace grounds out of which only two remain as the
third one was destroyed during a bombarding. The Raigad Fort also has ruins of
a market which was accessible to riders sitting on horses. The fort also
overlooks an artificial lake known as the Ganga Sagar Lake.
The only main pathway to the Fort passes through the "Maha
Darwaja" (Huge Door). The Maha Darwaja has two huge bastions on both sides
of the door which are approximately 65–70 feet in height. The top of the fort
is 600 ft higher from the location of this door.
The fort has a famous wall called "Hirakani Buruj"
(Hirkani Bastion) constructed over a huge steep cliff. The legend goes
"that a woman by the name of Hirakani from a nearby village had come to
sell milk to the people living at the fort. She happened to be inside the fort
when the gates got closed and locked past sunset. Hearing the cries of her
infant son back at the village echo after nightfall, The anxious mother
couldn't wait till dawn and courageously climbed down the steep cliff in pitch
dark all due to the love for her little one. She later repeated this
extraordinary feat in front of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj and was bravely
rewarded for it." In appreciation of her courage and bravery, Shivaji
Maharaj built the Hirkani Bastion over this cliff.
The King's Durbar inside the Raigad
Fort has a replica of the original throne that faces the main doorway called
the Nagarkhana Darwaja. This enclosure had been acoustically
designed to aid hearing from the doorway to the throne. A secondary entrance,
called the Mena Darwaja, was supposedly the private entrance for
the royal ladies of the fort that lead to the queen's quarters. The convoy of
the king and the king himself used the Palkhi Darwaja. To the
right of Palkhi Darwaja, is a row of three dark and deep chambers. Historians
believe that these were the granaries for the fort.[4]
The Takmak Tok
From
the fort, one can view the execution point called Takmak Tok, a
cliff from which sentenced prisoners were thrown to their death. This area has
been fenced off.
The
statue of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj is erected in front of the ruins of the
main market avenue that leads to the Jagdishwar Mandir and his
own Samadhi and that of his loyal dog named Waghya.
The Samadhi of Jijabai Shahaji Bhosale, Shivaji's mother, can be seen at base
village of Pachad.
The Samadhi of Jijabai
Shiv temple in the fort
Additional famous attractions of the fort include the Khubladha
Buruj, Nane Darwaja and the Hatti Talav (Elephant Lake)
standing in front of Queens Quarters Monument of a dog who jumped off the
cliff on the death Of Shivaji
Fort Market
Bazarpeth step mentions the fort
– Hiroji Indulkar name of the architect of fort.
View from fort of
the artificial lake and takmak tok
23/08/2017,
Wedensday - Day 3
We checked out of the Resort and came down the
Ropeway and rode to Mahad. Avi had lots
of childhood memories associated with Mahad. He visited his old house and met
the family of his old family retainer, Gaza
who expired two years back . his son and hais family stayed there
now. We also passed through Ambedkar
monument
Mahad Satyagraha or Chavdar Tale Satyagraha
Bronze sculpture depicting Mahad movement by B
R Ambedkar
In 1927, Ambedkar decided to launch a
satyagraha to assert their rights to use water in the public places[3].[
His Bahishkrit Hitakarini Sabha arranged
a conference on Holi 19-20
March 1927 in Mahad, in which more than thousand people were gathered. At the
end of the conference, they marched to the Chavdar Tale (tasty water lake), the
main tank of the town and they drank water from the tank.
A riot broke out following a rumour that
Ambedkar and his followers were planning to enter a Hindu temple in the town.
And the caste Hindus purified the tank by performing puja,
argued that untouchables polluted the tank by taking water from it.
Dr.Ambedkar decided to hold the second
conference in Mahad on 26-27 December 1927. But caste Hindus filed a case
against him that tank as a private property. He was not able to continue
his satyagraha as the case was sub judice. On
25 December (Manusmriti Dahan Din), he burnt Manusmriti, a
Hindu law book, as a protes. In December 1937, the Bombay High Court ruled
that untouchables have the right to use water from the tank.
Thereon we took the road to another coast
town, Karde via Dapoli, It was road ride of a out ...kms. We took lunch at
Dapoli and moved on to Karde. It took some time to search it.
Whistling Palm Beach
Resort
With well furnished spacious rooms with balconies over looking the sea and
amenities to ensure a comfortable stay and an in-house restaurant to dish out the best Konkani sea food
prepared as per the traditional Konkani cuisine, the resort is well equipped to
cater to all the needs of its guests.’ – reads the brochure. To our dismay
except the location there wasn’t anything praiseworthy.
We enjoyed the beautiful views of the setting sun from
the comforts of our room or walk on the soft white sands of the endless Karde.
We
took a drive through the beach road. Looked for a spot and enjoyed playing in
the water.
Glorious Sunset
Reflection of sky on wet sands.
After the dip in sea we took dinner at the restaurant just behind
the sea where we were frolicking.
Bamboo roof on Gazebo
22/08/2017,
Thursday – Day 4
We checked out of the resort and proceeded to Guaghar
crossing the river through ferry. Ganapaty festival being close we saw many
Ganesh idols accompanying us on the ferry.
The ferry ride was refreshing and invigorating.
We crossed through ferry and on disembarking we could see
the chimneys of Enron in distance.
We took a ride around the establishment as it was a
prohibited area.
. .
Famous light house was
another spot suggested by the locals. Visiting time was long over but seeing
our credentials and keenness authorities allowed us to get into the facility.
Anjanvel Lighthouse
On
the other side of Dabhol creek in the small village of Anjanvel is the Anjanvel
light house. A nice place to visit specially in the evening this lighthouse was
rebuilt in 1960s. The lighthouse though not very tall (30ft) affords a
magnificent view as it is perched upon a steep hillock near the Gopalgad fort.
While waiting for the
permission for the light house we visited an old Anjanvel
temple near by.
On way back we saw the
sign board of Gopalgad and took detour
to visit it. There was nothing except the ancient broken wall that prompted us
to return without visiting it.
Gopalgad was built at the mouth of Dabhol (ancient
name Dalbheshwar) creek to keep a check on the trade route on the river
Vashishti, which runs till Chiplun. This was also known as the fort of Anjanvel
which was a significant port during Maratha regime. This great fort today
unfortunately is at the mercy of a privateer who is utilizing the fort for his
own gains, due to which one can see locked gates to the fort entrances and
private guards on the fort. A group of trekkers has been protesting against
this from past 7 years.
Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj won the fort of
Anjanvel from Adilshah in 1660 during the Dabhol campaign. There is no
information as who built this fort. A dock was built here and the fort was
named Gopalgad. In 1699, Siddi Khairatkhan captured the fort and it
remained with the Siddis for next 46 years. The Siddis strengthened the fort.
Tulaji Angre captured the fort in 1745; in 1756, it was captured by Ramji
Mahadev Bivalkar for the Peshwas. After the third battle of Panipat, the person
who faked as Sadashivrao Bhau stayed here for 6 months. The fort was with
Marathas till 1818 when the British colonel Kennedy captured it.
On return we
had fish based lunch at Guaghar and stayed in a lodge, We went for swim in the sea in the evening had dinner
and rested. It rained heavily though intermittently throughout our stay there.
23/08/2017, Friday - Day 5
Today was the
day which Vijaya planned for us visiting Sunita’s – Deven’s wife – relatives.
It was beautiful drive of 26 kms through green fields, coconut groves to reach
Veleneshwar.
Located in the Ratnagiri
district of Maharashtra, Velneshwar is a village south of the Guhagar town.
Velneshwar is well known for the temple of Lord Shiva and it also has a
beautiful crescent shaped beach which is clean and unspoilt and ideal for
swimming. Velneshwar gets much limelight during the month of March, when the
Maha Shivratri Festival is held here, as a tribute to the God Shankar or
ShivaVelneshwar is an incredible destination which lies in the north of the
Shastri River. The fresh green coconut trees and rock less sea water make the
beach very alluring. Velneshwar is the perfect place for a weekend getaway for
a quick escape into relaxation. But we had no time it being the last day to
return to Pune. We vivited the relatives had darshan of Lord Ganapaty which
they had at their house. Bidding goodbye we proceeded to the famed temple of
Lord Shiva.
The temple: .The name
'Velanesswar' has one interesting origin. This God (Ishwar) instantly fulfils
the wish expressed by his devotees. So the God who does not waste any time of
his devotee [Not wasting any time('vel' in Marathi)] is known as Vel-n-ishwar.
Velneshwar is family-deity (Kuldaivat) of Gokhales, Gadgils, Savarkars etc.
The temple's area
is 70 sq mtrs has 11mtrs high 'Deepmal" (lamps-post) in front. Two wells
built in laterite stones and temples of Shri Ganesh, Shri Kalbhairav(village
deity of Velneshwar village), Shri Rameshwar Nandi(sacerd bull of Shiva) are in
the same compound. The early temple was built by Gadgils which was later
renovated by Shri Trimbak Ravaji Gokhale.
On way back we alRaigad
19/08/17,
Monday – Day 1
Started at
about 7am from Pune by car. It was a homgenous group of four – Vijaya, Abhay ,
Avi and me.
We drove
straight to Raigad Fort, taking short stop for breakfast midway. It was raining
intermittently making the travel a pleasant experience among green paddy
fields, hills carpeted with shining green grass with dark green trees and
bushes. Nature was in full glory of manifold shades of green.and torrential
rivers and sprightly riveulets and falls of all sizes.
We reached
Baneshwar Temple at around 8:30 am. Baneshwar is a temple of Shiva located in the village of Nasarapur about 36 km southwest
of Pune. It is a pleasant and calm place amidst a jungle. It was recently discovered and hence declared as a
small bird sanctuaryhosting a
decent amount of rare birds with many crowned
hornbills seen.
Baneshwar temple architecture is from
the medieval period.
The temple was constructed in 1749 by Peshwa
Nanasaheb, son of Peshwa Bajirao I.The total cost
of construction was 11,426 Rupees, 8 Aane, 6 Paise. The temple hosts an important bell which was captured by
Chimaji Appa after defeating the Portuguese in the battle of Bassien in 1739. The bell has the year
1683 and a Cross on
it, which depicts that the bell belonged to a church and was transported as a
token of victory. Same kind of Portuguese bells can be found at Bhimashankar Temple too.
The Nandi statue was
outside the main temple as usual. Just behind the Nandi there was holy pond
replete with fish and small turtles.
We entered the sanctum
sanctorum to pay obeisance to Lord Shiva. It was very unassuming. But in the
wall at the back there was a small shiv linga seems to be ancient. Abhay could
see the priest lifting up and underneath was a cavity and real SHIV Linga was
below. I missed the sight.
After darshan and prasad
we went out into a well manicured garden.
it was a feast to the eye. Variety of flowers
and vegetation was displayed in systematic manner. We were keen to visit the
falls but consensus was to give it a miss. It involved an hour of walk both way
and we had to keep the time at ropeway 0r Raigad Fort.
Falls which we missed:
We left the temple and
proceeded through Bhor town and traversed Bhor ghat.
Scenes around
the ghat was excellent interspersed with small and big falls.
Bhor
ghat in 1870 now
in 2017
The discovery of a route to make a
motorable pass in Bor Ghat came after information was provided by a local
Dhangar tribesman called Shigroba. Later, the Great Indian Peninsula Railway laid a railway line from Mumbaito Pune. The section through Bhor Ghat with 28 tunnels, and old
bridges was opened in 1863.[4] The Ghat opened Mumbai to the Deccan plains of Peninsular India
We took halt
at a roadside dhaba and had hot sabudana khichdi.
Shivthar
Ghal also
known as Sundarmath, is a cave, about 34 km from Mahad, near Barasgaon, Maharashtra.. Samarth Ramdas dictated Dasbodh to Kalyan Swami. Samarth Ramdas
lived here for about 22 years. It is believed that this is where the first
meeting between Shivaji Maharaj and Samarth
Ramdas took place.
The
cave was discovered by Shri Shankarrao Deo of Dhule in
1930. The cave and surrounding area was renovated after Samarth Seva Mandal was
formed in 1950. The campus includes the actual cave under the waterfall, Ramdas
Swami temple, dining hall and accommodation. Between 12:00 pm and 1:30 pm, the
visitors can have the prasad consisting of
Moong Dal Khichadi and Shira. Shivthar Ghal Sundarmath Seva Samiti organizes
various programs at this location. It was rediscovered by Shankar Shrikrishna
Deo.
Shivthar
Ghal is located in Varandha Ghat in the Sahyadris on the Bhor-Mahad road.
It was an
impromptu visit and I thank Vijaya who insisted that we must visit this place.
After this we hurried for Raigadh fort.2
It was
raining heavily and was impossible to look out as rain drops were piercing the
face. Rain gears could not help at all – quite an adventure it was. We waded
through the water to the restaurant at the foot of Raigad while the porter took
our luggage to the Resort. We were rain soaked and frantically wanted to get to
our suites.
MTDC Resort :
It is spread in the form of group 0f 4 suites and there are about 10/12 such group of suites . It was built in
a style but the maintenance is very poor and hence the rooms have been
degenerated. We booked 2 adjoining
suites and somehow made ourselves comfortable by changing into dry clothes and
prepared hot tea. In the room. Thanks to Vijaya for getting tea making
facility. It was evening by the time we settled down. To use the fast fading
evening light we went out towards the fort, had a cursory glance at the fort.
Usual rest and dinner put an end to the eventful day. The dinner comprising of bhakri and pithle was served at a
restaurant of the resort.
20/08/2017, Tuesday - Day 2
We hired the
services of the guide and he came in the
morning to take us to the fort.
High up on the hill of Raigad where the
strong winds will buffet you and the valleys around will mesmerize you with
their scenic splendour is the fort of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj's, the great
king of the Maratha Empire. This was the capital during his rule, also
important for the fact that Chhat rapati Shivaji Maharaj's coronation took
place here on June 6, 1674. It was also here that he breathed his last. The
fort today is a favourite tourist destination, also high up on the popularity
chart with avid trekkers because of its difficult terrain.
The
fort rises 820 metres (2,700 ft) above the sea level and is located in
the Sahyadri mountain range.
There are approximately 1737 steps leading to the fort. The Raigad Ropeway, an aerial tramway exists to reach
the top of the fort in 10 minutes. The fort was looted and destroyed by the
British after it was captured in 1818.
Chhatrapati
Shivaji Maharaj seized the fort in 1656, then known as the fort of Rairi from Chandrarrao
More, a feudatory of the Sultan of Bijapur.
Shivaji Maharaj renovated and expanded the fort of Rairi and renamed it as
Raigad (King's Fort). It became the capital of Chattrapati Shivaji
Maharaja's maratha kingdom.
Front
The
villages of Pachad and Raigadwadi are located at the base of the Raigad fort.
These two villages were considered very important during the Maratha rule in
Raigad. The actual climb to the top of the Raigad fort starts from Pachad.
During Chhatrapati Shivaji's rule, A cavalry of 10,000 was always kept on
standby in Pachad village.
After
capturing Rairi from Chandrarao More, Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj also built
another fort Lingana around 2 miles away from Raigad. The
Lingana fort was used to keep prisoners.
In 1689, Zulfikhar Khan captured Raigad and Aurangzeb renamed it
as Islamgad. In 1707, Siddi Fathekan captured the fort and held it
until 1733.
In
1818, the fort was bombarded and destroyed by cannons from the hill of Kalkai.
And on 9 May 1818, as per the treaty, it was handed over to the British
East India Company.
The Raigad Fort was built by "Chandrarao More" of Jawali and the chief
architect/engineer was "Hiroji Indulkar". The main palace was
constructed using wood, of which only the base pillars remain. The main fort
ruins consist of the queen's quarters, six chambers, with each chamber having
its own private restroom. In addition, Ruins of three watch towers can be seen
directly in front of the palace grounds out of which only two remain as the
third one was destroyed during a bombarding. The Raigad Fort also has ruins of
a market which was accessible to riders sitting on horses. The fort also
overlooks an artificial lake known as the Ganga Sagar Lake.
The only main pathway to the Fort passes through the "Maha
Darwaja" (Huge Door). The Maha Darwaja has two huge bastions on both sides
of the door which are approximately 65–70 feet in height. The top of the fort
is 600 ft higher from the location of this door.
The fort has a famous wall called "Hirakani Buruj"
(Hirkani Bastion) constructed over a huge steep cliff. The legend goes
"that a woman by the name of Hirakani from a nearby village had come to
sell milk to the people living at the fort. She happened to be inside the fort
when the gates got closed and locked past sunset. Hearing the cries of her
infant son back at the village echo after nightfall, The anxious mother
couldn't wait till dawn and courageously climbed down the steep cliff in pitch
dark all due to the love for her little one. She later repeated this
extraordinary feat in front of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj and was bravely
rewarded for it." In appreciation of her courage and bravery, Shivaji
Maharaj built the Hirkani Bastion over this cliff.
The King's Durbar inside the Raigad
Fort has a replica of the original throne that faces the main doorway called
the Nagarkhana Darwaja. This enclosure had been acoustically
designed to aid hearing from the doorway to the throne. A secondary entrance,
called the Mena Darwaja, was supposedly the private entrance for
the royal ladies of the fort that lead to the queen's quarters. The convoy of
the king and the king himself used the Palkhi Darwaja. To the
right of Palkhi Darwaja, is a row of three dark and deep chambers. Historians
believe that these were the granaries for the fort.[4]
The Takmak Tok
From
the fort, one can view the execution point called Takmak Tok, a
cliff from which sentenced prisoners were thrown to their death. This area has
been fenced off.
The
statue of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj is erected in front of the ruins of the
main market avenue that leads to the Jagdishwar Mandir and his
own Samadhi and that of his loyal dog named Waghya.
The Samadhi of Jijabai Shahaji Bhosale, Shivaji's mother, can be seen at base
village of Pachad.
The Samadhi of Jijabai
Shiv temple in the fort
Additional famous attractions of the fort include the Khubladha
Buruj, Nane Darwaja and the Hatti Talav (Elephant Lake)
standing in front of Queens Quarters Monument of a dog who jumped off the
cliff on the death Of Shivaji
Fort Market
Bazarpeth step mentions the fort
– Hiroji Indulkar name of the architect of fort.
View from fort of
the artificial lake and takmak tok
23/08/2017,
Wedensday - Day 3
We checked out of the Resort and came down the
Ropeway and rode to Mahad. Avi had lots
of childhood memories associated with Mahad. He visited his old house and met
the family of his old family retainer, Gaza
who expired two years back . his son and hais family stayed there
now. We also passed through Ambedkar
monument
Mahad Satyagraha or Chavdar Tale Satyagraha
Bronze sculpture depicting Mahad movement by B
R Ambedkar
In 1927, Ambedkar decided to launch a
satyagraha to assert their rights to use water in the public places[3].[
His Bahishkrit Hitakarini Sabha arranged
a conference on Holi 19-20
March 1927 in Mahad, in which more than thousand people were gathered. At the
end of the conference, they marched to the Chavdar Tale (tasty water lake), the
main tank of the town and they drank water from the tank.
A riot broke out following a rumour that
Ambedkar and his followers were planning to enter a Hindu temple in the town.
And the caste Hindus purified the tank by performing puja,
argued that untouchables polluted the tank by taking water from it.
Dr.Ambedkar decided to hold the second
conference in Mahad on 26-27 December 1927. But caste Hindus filed a case
against him that tank as a private property. He was not able to continue
his satyagraha as the case was sub judice. On
25 December (Manusmriti Dahan Din), he burnt Manusmriti, a
Hindu law book, as a protes. In December 1937, the Bombay High Court ruled
that untouchables have the right to use water from the tank.
Thereon we took the road to another coast
town, Karde via Dapoli, It was road ride of a out ...kms. We took lunch at
Dapoli and moved on to Karde. It took some time to search it.
Whistling Palm Beach
Resort
With well furnished spacious rooms with balconies over looking the sea and
amenities to ensure a comfortable stay and an in-house restaurant to dish out the best Konkani sea food
prepared as per the traditional Konkani cuisine, the resort is well equipped to
cater to all the needs of its guests.’ – reads the brochure. To our dismay
except the location there wasn’t anything praiseworthy.
We enjoyed the beautiful views of the setting sun from
the comforts of our room or walk on the soft white sands of the endless Karde.
We
took a drive through the beach road. Looked for a spot and enjoyed playing in
the water.
Glorious Sunset
Reflection of sky on wet sands.
After the dip in sea we took dinner at the restaurant just behind
the sea where we were frolicking.
Bamboo roof on Gazebo
22/08/2017,
Thursday – Day 4
We checked out of the resort and proceeded to Guaghar
crossing the river through ferry. Ganapaty festival being close we saw many
Ganesh idols accompanying us on the ferry.
The ferry ride was refreshing and invigorating.
We crossed through ferry and on disembarking we could see
the chimneys of Enron in distance.
We took a ride around the establishment as it was a
prohibited area.
. .
Famous light house was
another spot suggested by the locals. Visiting time was long over but seeing
our credentials and keenness authorities allowed us to get into the facility.
Anjanvel Lighthouse
On
the other side of Dabhol creek in the small village of Anjanvel is the Anjanvel
light house. A nice place to visit specially in the evening this lighthouse was
rebuilt in 1960s. The lighthouse though not very tall (30ft) affords a
magnificent view as it is perched upon a steep hillock near the Gopalgad fort.
While waiting for the
permission for the light house we visited an old Anjanvel
temple near by.
On way back we saw the
sign board of Gopalgad and took detour
to visit it. There was nothing except the ancient broken wall that prompted us
to return without visiting it.
Gopalgad was built at the mouth of Dabhol (ancient
name Dalbheshwar) creek to keep a check on the trade route on the river
Vashishti, which runs till Chiplun. This was also known as the fort of Anjanvel
which was a significant port during Maratha regime. This great fort today
unfortunately is at the mercy of a privateer who is utilizing the fort for his
own gains, due to which one can see locked gates to the fort entrances and
private guards on the fort. A group of trekkers has been protesting against
this from past 7 years.
Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj won the fort of
Anjanvel from Adilshah in 1660 during the Dabhol campaign. There is no
information as who built this fort. A dock was built here and the fort was
named Gopalgad. In 1699, Siddi Khairatkhan captured the fort and it
remained with the Siddis for next 46 years. The Siddis strengthened the fort.
Tulaji Angre captured the fort in 1745; in 1756, it was captured by Ramji
Mahadev Bivalkar for the Peshwas. After the third battle of Panipat, the person
who faked as Sadashivrao Bhau stayed here for 6 months. The fort was with
Marathas till 1818 when the British colonel Kennedy captured it.
On return we
had fish based lunch at Guaghar and stayed in a lodge, We went for swim in the sea in the evening had dinner
and rested. It rained heavily though intermittently throughout our stay there.
23/08/2017, Friday - Day 5
Today was the
day which Vijaya planned for us visiting Sunita’s – Deven’s wife – relatives.
It was beautiful drive of 26 kms through green fields, coconut groves to reach
Veleneshwar.
Located in the Ratnagiri
district of Maharashtra, Velneshwar is a village south of the Guhagar town.
Velneshwar is well known for the temple of Lord Shiva and it also has a
beautiful crescent shaped beach which is clean and unspoilt and ideal for
swimming. Velneshwar gets much limelight during the month of March, when the
Maha Shivratri Festival is held here, as a tribute to the God Shankar or
ShivaVelneshwar is an incredible destination which lies in the north of the
Shastri River. The fresh green coconut trees and rock less sea water make the
beach very alluring. Velneshwar is the perfect place for a weekend getaway for
a quick escape into relaxation. But we had no time it being the last day to
return to Pune. We vivited the relatives had darshan of Lord Ganapaty which
they had at their house. Bidding goodbye we proceeded to the famed temple of
Lord Shiva.
The temple: .The name
'Velanesswar' has one interesting origin. This God (Ishwar) instantly fulfils
the wish expressed by his devotees. So the God who does not waste any time of
his devotee [Not wasting any time('vel' in Marathi)] is known as Vel-n-ishwar.
Velneshwar is family-deity (Kuldaivat) of Gokhales, Gadgils, Savarkars etc.
The temple's area
is 70 sq mtrs has 11mtrs high 'Deepmal" (lamps-post) in front. Two wells
built in laterite stones and temples of Shri Ganesh, Shri Kalbhairav(village
deity of Velneshwar village), Shri Rameshwar Nandi(sacerd bull of Shiva) are in
the same compound. The early temple was built by Gadgils which was later
renovated by Shri Trimbak Ravaji Gokhale.
On way back we also
visited Hedvi Ganapaty Dashbhuja
(ten arms) ganapaty, the only one deity of this kind in Maharashtra. This
is an excellent temple. Name of this Ganesh is 'Dashbhuja Ganapati'. This
'Laxmi – Ganesh Temple' is not only ancient but also rare. This temple may have
been erected in the period of Peshwas. The deity has been founded on the top of
Mountain. The Ganesh idol has been carved in white stone. Such stones are found
in Kashmir region. The specialty of the idol is that this is 3 feet high and it
has 10 hands. This majestic idol is on a seat of 2 feet.
Rocky Beach at Hedvi,
Guaghar
Bamanghal
Hedvi blowhole at Guaghar
We drove back to Pune after a very satisfying
5 days outing to Konkan coast,
nvovnojso
visited Hedvi Ganapaty Dashbhuja
(ten arms) ganapaty, the only one deity of this kind in Maharashtra. This
is an excellent temple. Name of this Ganesh is 'Dashbhuja Ganapati'. This
'Laxmi – Ganesh Temple' is not only ancient but also rare. This temple may have
been erected in the period of Peshwas. The deity has been founded on the top of
Mountain. The Ganesh idol has been carved in white stone. Such stones are found
in Kashmir region. The specialty of the idol is that this is 3 feet high and it
has 10 hands. This majestic idol is on a seat of 2 feet.
Rocky Beach at Hedvi,
Guaghar
Bamanghal
Hedvi blowhole at Guaghar
We drove back to Pune after a very satisfying
5 days outing to Konkan coast,
