Rohida (Vichitragad)

Place: Rohida Fort
Route from Pune: Pune > Katraj > kapurhol > Bhor > Bajarwadi > Rohida.
Distance from Pune: 65 kms (Approx).
Places to eat: Plenty of places between Pune- Bhor.
Places to stay: Hotels at Bhor
Best time to Visit: Monsoon.
Experience: Rohida (Vichitragad) is at a distance of 5 kms from Bhor. We started early in the morning and reached Rohida base at around 9:00 am. Had a break in between for a misal pav at khed shivapur. Also spent some time at Bhatghar dam. It is the longest dam that I have seen in my life.

At the very first glance of Rohida, we knew that the trek is going to be difficult. There is not even a single tree on the entire Hill. The sun was killing us by the time we reached near the fort. Vaishali was very tired and so we had to quit before we could reach the fort. Sushil continued. He then told us that the view from the top is very good though there is not much to see on the fort except one temple which is also in a bad shape.

Rohida

Sinhgad (Kondhana)

Place: Sinhgad fort
Route from Pune: Pune > Khadakvasla > Donje > Sinhgad
Distance from Pune: 30 kms (Approx)
Places to eat: Lot of hotels on the fort that offer Maharashtrian food (especially Pitla Bhakri).
Places to stay: Lot of options available in and around Donje village.
Best time to Visit: Anytime
Experience: Always pleasant and rejuvenating.

Tikona Fort

Place: Tikona Fort
Route from Pune: Pune > Chandni chowk > Paud > Hotle > Tikona
Distance from Pune: 35 Kms (Approx)
Places to eat: Hotels between Pune - Paud. No Food or water on the fort.
Places to stay: Nil
Best time to Visit: Anytime except summer.
Experience: One can go to Tikona either from the Khandoba temple at the base or from Tikona maval. The later route is preffered by many because it takes you very close to the fort and is suitable for vehicles as well. We took the route from the temple. The path is long but very scenic. Finding the way to the fort is a little difficult. We took some help from locals.

Tikona

Tikona is in ruins but has some good spots at the top. It offers a splendid view of the Tung fort. Some parts of the fort are very steep, so extreme care is required. Few Sadhu's live in a temple on the fort. There is a Gurudwara near the fort which can also be visited.

View of Tung from Tikona

Baneshwar

Place: Baneshwar
Route from Pune: Pune > Katraj > khed shivapur > Nasrapur > Baneshwar.

Alternate route: Pune > khadakwasla> Donje phata > khalapur >Baneshwar.
Distance from Pune: 35 Kms (Approx), Khadakvasla route: 60 kms (Approx)
Places to eat: Small hotels at Baneshwar. Lot of places enroute if you take forst route (Pune - Satara highway)
Places to stay: Nil
Best time to Visit: Monsoon.
Experience: First route (Pune – Satara Highway) is the easiest way to reach Baneshwar but the alternate route is much more scenic. The lush green rice fields and the water flowing through them make the place very beautiful. After around 45 kms from Pune comes a point where you can take a right to Rajgad & Torna or a left to Baneshwar.

The place has an old shiva temple. The place is also well known for the garden and waterfall in the temple vicinity. Though not a very clean place, people come to this place mainly due to its proximity to Pune. The stones near the waterfall are slippery and one should be extremely careful.

Pavana Dam

Place: Pavana Dam
Route from Pune: Pune > Pirangut > Paud > Kolvan > Hotle > Pavana dam. Alternate route : Pune > Nigdi > Kamshet > Bedsa >Pavana nagar > Pavana Dam
Distance from Pune: 45 kms (Approx). 65 kms (Approx) by kamshet route.
Places to eat: No place to eat between Paud – Kamshet.
Places to stay: Girivan at Hotle village.
Best time to Visit: Monsoon.

Experience: Pavana dam is is not too famous among tourists. Nice place to just sit for some time and enjoy the view along with the breeze. The route to pavana via Paud is very beautiful, especially in monsoon. Tikona fort is close to the road, while Tung can be seen on the other side of the Pavana backwaters. Backwaters of Pavana provide a wonderful view. There are no places after paud where one can have some food so carrying food and water is necessary.

Pavana Dam

Tikona Fort

Bedsa caves

Place: Bedsa caves
Route from Pune: Pune > Nigdi > Kamshet > Bedsa. Alternate route: Pune > Pirangut > Paud > Kolvan > Hotle > Pavana nagar >Bedsa
Distance from Pune: 50 kms (Approx). 65 kms (Approx) via Paud route.
Places to eat: Lot of hotels on the way till kamshet. Rajdhani at the HP petrol pump just before kamshet is an excellent place to eat.
Places to stay: MTDC resort, karla.
Best time to Visit: Monsoon.

Experience: After a relaxing day at karla MTDC resort, we started towards pune via the pavana dam route. Enroute we had a visit to Bedsa caves which are situated at a distance of 8 kms from Kamshet. These caves are much similar to the karla and bhaja caves but are much smaller in size. After spending an hour at this place we left for Pavana dam. It is a very nice place to visit in monsoon.

Bedsa Caves

Sinhgad

Place: Sinhgad fort

Route from Pune: Pune > Khadakvasla > Donje > Sinhgad

Distance from Pune: 30 kms (Approx)

Places to eat: Lot of hotels on the fort that offer Maharashtrian food (especially Pitla Bhakri).

Places to stay: Lot of options available in and around Donje village.

Best time to Visit: Anytime.
Experience: Sinhgad has always been one of my favourite excursion spot. I visited the place in the year 2000 for the first time and I have been there at least 30 – 40 times after that. The place is most beautiful in monsoon. The road has never been very great. But Sinhgad has always been a place where you can go at any time of the day, roam around, eat, enjoy and get back rejuvenated (all in 4 - 6 Hours).