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Category : Forts | Total Views
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| Type : Hill Fort | Fort Range : Bhimashankar | | | District : Raigad | | Height above sea level : 3300 ft | | Difficulty rating : Difficult | | Base village : Khandas | | Appx. time to reach the top : 4-5 hrs from the base village | | Visit duration (min.) : 2 days | | Water availability : Water is available in Bhimashankar village | | Food : There are hotels in Bhimashankar, which provide food facility. | | Shelter : There is a MTDC accommodation facility outside the Bhimashankar village. The villagers also accommodate tourists and trekkers, though it is a bit expensive. Accommodation is a bit of a problem during the monsoons. | How to reach :
To reach Bhimashankar, you have to reach Karjat from Mumbai. Those from Pune can reach Karjat either from Swargate or by train. The base village Khandas is around 34 km from Karjat. One can reach Khandas by either the S.T. Bus or the jeeps / rickshaws that ply in this route. The most frequented routes to Bhimashankar from Khandas are the Shidi Ghat and Ganesh Ghat.
Ganesh Ghat :
There is a bridge around 2 km from Khandas. The track going to the right from this bridge is the Ganesh Ghat route. This is the easiest route to Bhimashankar. Along this route one reaches a Ganesh temple within an hour of trekking. The route ahead consumes more time and takes 3 more hours to reach the top.
Notes : Ganesh Ghat: Easy but long. 6-7 hours trek.
Shidi Ghat :
The route going to the left from the bridge goes to the village. The route to the left of the well in the village leads to the Shidi Ghat. This is one of the difficult routes to Bhimashankar. This route becomes very treacherous and slippery during the monsoon. There are three ladders in this route within the first two hours of climbing. We reach a settlement after half an hour of the third ladder. Pundlik Hande has his house in this settlement. Further ahead when we climb on, we come across a thatch. At this junction, the routes from the Ganesh Ghat and Shidi Ghat merge. Those yearning for a cup of tea can get their wish fulfilled here. A further 1 ½ hour trek takes us besides a pond. The road, which goes to the left from this pond, takes us to the temple.
Vehicular Route :
To reach Bhimashankar, there is a tar road up to the village on top. This road is through the Pune – Talegaon – Chakan route to reach Bhimashankar.
| | Best time to visit : Except summer, any time. | About :
Bhimashankar is one of the 12 Jyotirlings of India, a pilgrimage place approximately 3500 feet high up in the hills. The area around Bhimashankar is covered with thick dense jungle. The Maharashtra Government has also declared it a Sanctuary. Bhimashankar is a good paradise for nature lovers, trekkers, jungle lovers and bird watchers. Lord Shankara after getting angry, killed Rakshas Tripurasura. The heat generated from their war caused the origin of river Bhima. That is why it is called Bhimashankar.
There are Buddha style carvings of Amba-Ambika, Bhootling and Bhimashankar in the hills of Manmod near Bhimashankar. This is at the height of 1034 mtrs. A big size bell in Hemadpanthi structure built by Nana Phadanavis is also a feature of Bhimashankar. Various places that could be visited in Bhimashankar are Hanuman Lake, Gupt Bhimashankar, Origin of River Bhima, Nag Phani, Bombay Point, Sakshi Vinayak and lot more. Bhimashankar is conserve red forest area and wildlife sanctuary where a variety of birds, animals, flowers, plants can be seen. A rare animal "Shekru" can be found in deep woods. Bhimashankar is worth visited for jungle lovers and trekkers as well as for pilgrims.
| Sightseeing :
The Temple :
The temple of Bhimashankar is around 1200 – 1400 years old and is built on the Hemad Panthi style. There are very beautiful sculptures and paintings on the roof and pillars of the temple. In the outer corridor of the temple we can see a sculpture of the god seated on a throne accompanied by his pallbearers holding an umbrella over his head. At the front of the temple hangs a huge metal bell cast in 1729. There is also a 15-20 feet high "Deepmala" or lamppost in the outer corridor of the temple. There is also an inscription on stone on this lamppost. It is to be noted that the original name of the river Chandrabhaga at Pandharpur is Bhima. This Bhima River originates at Bhimashankar.
Gupt Bhimashankar :
There is a water stream route going down from the left of the Ram temple. Taking that route, we enter a thick jungle. We reach a temple around 25 minutes through this route. A route going toward the waterfall, left of this temple, leads to the "water sculpted" "Shiva Linga" under this waterfall. This is called the Gupt Bhimashankar. There is a huge waterfall at this place during the monsoons.
Nagphani Peak :
We reach a pond when we climb towards Bhimashankar from the Ghat. The route going towards the right, from this pond, takes us to the Hanuman temple. The route going up through this route leads to the Nagphani. We can have a view of the forts of Peth and Padhar and the plateaus of Peth and Matheran. We can remember the poem composed by the famous "Samarth" Ramdas, the lover of natural beauty, when we see such beauty around.
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 Visitor's Comments ! |
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 Posted by amit on August 18, 2007 |
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could you please display other vehicular routes
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| Posted by Madhu Nair on June 05, 2007 |
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One of the most difficult route is the Shidi ghat...and guys...beware the second ladder is all gone....u will not find it...it has perhaps been thrown away buy some miscreants. The routes can get really slippery during monsoon so think twice before you plan a trek to Bhimashankar during rains. But i must say this place is a must visit for amateur trekkers.
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Random Pick |
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