A Night in Sinhagad fort - Reminiscence of the Last Monsoons!

In about two weeks time monsoons should be here, and i am eagerly waiting for the rains to be here. This summer has been particularly hot..every year we seem to say the same thing that it was so much better last year..anyways the point is that i am eagerly waiting for the rains. Pune has a different aura altogether once it starts raining. Though the incessant drizzle is now something like a folklore monsoons still bring the best out of Pune.

Monsoons last year was fun and while i wait for the rains i thought it would be a great idea to blog a few of our trips last year.

If i remember correct it was a weekend  and we were not quite sure what to do and in the spur of the moment we decided to pack our bags, and so we did! We decided to go to Sinhagad. 
This is something quite nice about Pune. There is no dearth of weekend destinations around Pune and one really doesn't have to travel for hours to reach somewhere to feel the chill of fresh air. In Sinhagad there are a few options to stay like the Thilak smarak, the Gaikwad's and also the PWD guest houses but we decided to camp on this fortress. 
We left in the afternoon and we reached Sinhagad in about 1 1/2 hours. It doesnt require that kinda time to reach the place but we stopped at khadakvasla dam where next to the reservoir there are umpteen number of stalls selling 'chat' and corn different kinds of desi snacks. We also stopped at the base of the fort to have our omelet, which is more of a ritual for us than anything else!

We reached the fort in the early evening and being a weekend the fort was quite crowded. Sinhagad is quite the favorite spot for a weekend drive for a punekar who likes outdoors and if you happen to visit the fort on a weekend you wouldn't need any further testimony for that. Its in fact slightly difficult to find a parking space if you go in the evenings!


Anyways the fort was a glistening green with the rains and blanketed by mist. The romance of the place could bring out a poet in even a stone heart, and i was just a mere mortal! The tea stalls make good business here and to have a sweet tea sitting in one of the shacks here is quite fun and how can one miss the 'kanda bhajji'. Sometimes i wonder whether its the taste that makes these things so amazing or is it the setting in which its served. Let me add that you would have to understandably pay double the cost here.

The initiatives to renovate the fort is quite visible. If you happen to go to this place for the first time you might feel that nothing is being done here to preserve this place but if you have been here a few years back then you would quite surprised to see the paved walkways, the railings and the steps, which i would have to say is a good thing, though initially i had my reservations. 
Once you enter the fort after climbing, i don't know how many steps the view is quite nice. By the time we reached which by then was late evening the weekend crowd was heading back. We walked around the fort. If you have been here i am sure you would have one favorite spot on this fort which you would end up going again and again. Mine is near the buland darwaza and i don't really recount the number of time i have camped here alone and with friends!

This time however we decided to camp near the wind point for a change which turned out to be a grave mistake. I didn't expect the wind to be so fierce that in the night it was difficult to sleep with wind howling away and the force of the wind practically changed the shape of our tent. Its very cold in the night and the mornings are chilly. We got up with the wind still howling away and the early hikers were already there on the fort enjoying a nice walk in the chilly morning.
For the record the distance from Pune to Sinhagad fort is about 50 Kms from Pune. There are two routes to reach the Sinhagad from Pune, one from Warje => road behind the NDA => Khadakvasla => Sinhagad and the other one which is more frequented which is Swargate => Sinhagad Road => Khadakvasla => Sinhagad