[JoshMachine]

It was already couple of weekends since we went out in our beloved Vento. That's a very long time to be not travelling out of city, in our family records

And so yet another plan got hatched, when we came across an interesting visit offer by Firasti Maharashtrachi (site), who are one of the top guys when it comes to arranging travel experiences for historical and heritage tours in Maharashtra. We have already been with them few times on heritage walks, and every time their passion to relate to near-factual historical events in Maharashtra has amazed us.

This time round, the heritage tour venue was Sajjangad fort (wiki), a popular pilgrimage place and the final resting place of Shri Sant Ramdas.

Sajjangad is approx 130 km from my place, and is located near Satara city.

The original modus operandi of the heritage walk is that all registered folks would travel together in a mini-bus.
But, kiddo and wifey wouldn't have any of it and off we went in the Vento. We have been so spoilt by the comfort of travelling long distances (825+km is easy peasy in a single day) that this 130 km trip sounded literally like travelling to the local neighbourhood market. Such is the engineering marvel, the Vento's ride and handling!

The route chosen was pretty straightforward, GMaps indicating an approx time of 2 hrs 49 mins:-



We decided to stick to the NH48 route inspite of reading about some not-so-good road conditions from the other TBHP Mumbai - Kolhapur thread.

It had been raining in and around Pune about a week ago, and this helped clear and cleanse the atmosphere, literally. Suddenly, even inspite of the onset of winter, we could see clear blue sky everywhere and felt fortunate that it was perhaps just the right time to visit a fort, due to pleasant weather conditions.
And how right we were, when we witnessed some of the most amazing views near the fort!

The departure time was fixed early in the morning. Fastag recharged + Budhani wafers + Amul Masti buttermilk mini cartons bagged - we were all set!

[JoshMachine]

The journey on the NH-48 started amidst some varying degrees of foggy conditions, due to the heavy rains in the last few days and typically Pune winter temperatures.



Visibility was not that hampered, and we kept the pace initially within reasonable limits.

Could make it to the Khambatki ghat well before expected time, so took a stop somewhere on the ghat to catch the action around:-



And that's where, it dawned upon us - the sheer beauty of what it's like to step out of the city, and to just admire the landscapes!

Traffic was relatively on the lower side, even though it was a Sunday morning on the usually busy Mumbai - B'lore NH.

Stopped by further down the highway, for a quick fuel stop. The Vento shining away in full glory:-



The secret of the gloss - just a day before, got the car nicely done up!

Even though we had our bags full with various knick-knacks, still the thought of having a piping, hot breakfast was simply too difficult to resist.

Stopped by at a nice place called Hotel Virangula



The place was buzzing with customers, and we had to be conscious of social distancing norms.

Back on the road after a sumptuous breakfast, the erstwhile foggy conditions cleared out and we were greeted by some nice views on the NH48, signalling that we were in for a really good time ahead:-



Further, as we neared the Sajjangad fort, we were enthralled by these beautiful, picturesque landscapes along the roadside:-





When we saw the windmills, we realized that we were also close to another famous "touristy" place called Chalkewadi
.
Over the years, this location has been developed as a tourist spot due to its lush green hills, valleys, red soil, and the windmills that spread all across making this landscape a beautiful sight.







My DSLR and phone camera went into overdrive, tried capturing multiple shots from both devices!

Seeing me clicking away to delight, my wife casually remarked that maybe I should come back and do a photoshoot of the Vento near these lands
Well, well, well! How could I not think about this earlier?
So, the plans are already set in motion. Lets see how soon I can come back for a solo drive in the region.

The last leg of the journey towards the fort was via a two-laned road, not great as such, but devoid of the craters that we had witnessed on the NH:-

[JoshMachine]

Upon reaching the fort, the views got even more captivating and surreal.



Adequate parking space for 4-wheelers, there is a dedicated Pay & Park also available:-



The grand entrance of the fort, named after the great Shri Shivaji Maharaj, who captured this fort from Adilshah.



As per certain history sources, this fort was renamed to Sajjangad after this capture. Earlier, the fort was known as Parali (local village nearby).

And some really breathtaking views from atop 4000 feet above the sea level:-



You feel like you can stretch out your hands and almost reach out to the clouds, such lovely play of cloud shadows and sunlight on the valley beneath:-



To get to the top, there were approx 250 stairs to be climbed:-





The difficulty level of the climb was easy-medium, the stairs' height was not that much. They were spaced out comfortably.
Inspite of this, if anyone still wanted to avail of the "transport" services, there are options available:-



We could see some folks using this, albeit sparingly.

And we started the ascent, came across some more wonderful views:-



Information about the upkeep, and excellent work done at the fort for the past many years:-



A very detailed map of the fort with proper labeling near the base of the stairs:-



Upon reaching the top, local staff establishments around:-



A side view of the Shri Ram Mandir:-



Like all major pilgrimage places in India, this place too provides Mahaprasad to the devotees during lunch hours:-



Due to covid, they have not opened the boarding & accommodation facility to the general public but we were told that they were allowing people who to stay who had come from far off places:-



After having the Mahaprasad lunch, we explored the fort premises.
All along the boundaries, the local administration had installed these:-



Some more picture-perfect views:-



There was an interesting vantage point at the very end of the fort boundary, which looked over the nearby Urmodi dam backwaters:-







The backdrop of the clear blue pristine sky, the cool winds blowing across, the gentle warm sunlight around - I don't have more words to describe the moment! It was just so mesmerising that we tried to take in everything we could!

A photographer's paradise, I must say!

At the distant end of the fort premises, there was this Maruti temple, could be seen from a distance:-



Some more random shots of the scenery around:-





The Maruti temple was located or perched almost at the very end:-





After spending some more time in the serene surroundings, we made our way back to the fort entrance.

The usual small-gift items' shops that are seen at such places, serving as additional source of income for the villagers nearby:-



A dilapidated structure (rumored to be remains of the mosque built by the Mughals):-



And a final look upwards, a simple greens vs blues peppered with clouds:-

[JoshMachine]

On our way back to the fort entrance, we took a slightly roundabout route and could see this fantastic view of the snake-like long winding road down below:-



Back at the entrance, we checked out the fort administration office:-



A detailed listing of all the work carried out:-



Alongwith a time table of all the activities during the day:-



If someone is interested to donate, here are the options:-



We also did our humble bit, by contributing to the cause.

With that done, it was time to head back home.

Stopped by at the fort base, for a quick chai and managed to squeeze in couple of clicks:-



With the beautiful fading light in the background, reflecting on the car top:-



The return journey back to Pune was largely uneventful.
The road conditions on this return leg were comparatively better.

And yes, the beautiful scenes kept us company again, what with the sunset hues drawing colorful strokes like a paintbrush on the clouds:-



As we entered Pune city, were jolted back to reality with the worsening traffic woes.
Had to meander through bumper-to-bumper traffic for quite some time, which kind of diluted the wonderful energy that we had gained during the day.

Not only ours, but the Vento's fuel efficiency also got hit, resulting in a paltry 20.6 km/l when I glanced at the MID one last time before switching off the car:-



But to end this travelogue on this muted note would mean injustice to the absolutely smashing time we spent during the course of the day.

For anyone in/around Pune or Mumbai, Sajjangad fort is a must-visit place.
No doubt about it.
And winter is a good time to go, due to the pleasant weather atop the fort.

This is a place, where one can leave behind all the materialistic worries and just get to enjoy the moment, rather be in the moment for as long as you want to!

My personal takeaway after visiting this place - I got one step closer to understanding the difference between being religious and spiritual.
I think the latter is more about having a sense of peace and purpose, and this place just makes you aware of that much more closely.

[Aditya]

Thread moved out from the Assembly Line. Thanks for sharing!

[ashishk29]

Great thread! Sajjangad is very close to my heart. Have been going there since I was maybe 2yrs old.

The climb isn't much, so it's fairly accessible.

The view from "Dhabyacha Maruti" mandir is just heaven on earth. You can also see a pipeline there, which gets water from across the other half of the mountain dip through momentum alone.

On the same route, instead of climbing up towards sajjangad, going straight will take you to two interesting destinations.

Thoseghar: a huge waterfall, especially viewable in late rainy season, or just after. It's a short walk from the parking, but the view is quite splendid.

Chalkewadi: Huge Suzlon wind energy farm. Windmills for miles and miles to go. The mountain-top is fun to drive around in rainy, late rainy, and winter seasons.

[JoshMachine]

Originally Posted by ashishk29

Great thread! Sajjangad is very close to my heart. Have been going there since I was maybe 2yrs old.
The climb isn't much, so it's fairly accessible.
The view from "Dhabyacha Maruti" mandir is just heaven on earth. You can also see a pipeline there, which gets water from across the other half of the mountain dip through momentum alone.
On the same route, instead of climbing up towards sajjangad, going straight will take you to two interesting destinations.

Thoseghar: a huge waterfall, especially viewable in late rainy season, or just after. It's a short walk from the parking, but the view is quite splendid.
Chalkewadi: Huge Suzlon wind energy farm. Windmills for miles and miles to go. The mountain-top is fun to drive around in rainy, late rainy, and winter seasons.

Thanks Ashish
I actually envy you when you say that you have been going there since so long! After this visit, I have decided to even go there and stay, as the covid situation stabilizes.

You rightly said that the view from Dhabhyacha Maruti is heaven on earth! And yes, I also saw the pipeline that you mentioned. Quite simple but innovative piece of engineering.

Regarding Thoseghar, we had planned that sometime back but had to cancel due to some reason.
For Chalkewadi, as you can see, I clicked some views of the huge windmills on our way to Sajjangad. I definitely plan to visit there soon.

Thanks for the suggestions, again.

[thirugata]

Thanks for sharing, wonderful photographs.
Best time to visit any mountain region is during or just after the monsoon. Watching the range of hills covered in green carpet can be very addictive.

[saumitra_joshi]

Hi,

Thank you for your lovely post. I was looking at visiting Sajjan Gadh for some time and your post was super useful. I visited the place recently with my family but prior to that, I got a dash cam installed in my car to record the roads.

I had got a made in India dashcam from Safe Cams installed on my Ford Freestyle at Carax, Baner. They did a pretty thorough job of installation and took about 30 mins. I got the model D201 installed for about INR 7800 and that includes both Front and Back cams as well as installation. The camera can take up to 32GB of SD card and connects to the Car Lighter Point. There is a more expensive option available which needs to be connected to the car battery and can do recording in Parking as well. I did not opt for that; instead I bought some additional 32GB SD cards for about 400 bucks each.

With the dashcam all set, we started the journey with the better half on wheels at around 830AM. Unfortunately, we were witness to the post accident chaos on Dehu Road bypass at Bhumkar bridge near Narhe. Mercifully, even though the dash cam recorded all the ghastly scene, those videos were overwritten subsequently.

We reached Sajjangadh by 12:30 with a 45 minutes break before the start of the Ghat at Vitthal Kamath. I took over the reins post that as we were pretty slow in getting to that point, thanks to being stuck in the accident.

As you have already described, Sajjangadh is an awesome place. There are fantastic views and if you are spiritually inclined, it is absolutely blissful out there. We skipped the food but managed to visit all the temples there. Given cranky kids, I could not explore the place as much as I would have liked to but I have managed to get a reasonable clip on the way up:

https://youtu.be/tqRbQ1c5XSw

We left the place by 2:30 PM and had to hunker down for the day at out hotel. The hotel (Treebo Sai Samrat) is actually a marriage hall with its attendant rooms converted into a hotel - basically nothing to write home about but was clean and cheap enough for one night stay.

We visited Ajinkya Tara the next day - it was completely free of crowd and an amazing place to visit, right next to the city. Maybe the fact that we went there on a week day helped. Here are some pics:







Also managed to record a decent clip on the way down. The road to Ajinkya tara can be considered a mini off road experience

https://youtu.be/jY8txnUFobA

Ajinkya tara is a great place to walk around. I plan to visit again in end August/September next year,and also do Thosegar and Chalkewadi along with Kaas plateau. We came back to Pune post this and the return trip was uneventful and fast (managed to be at home in 2 hours!!). Overall, it was super fun!!