Kelva Fort (Madhla Buruj)

Sunday, January 18, 2015

I have been planning to visit the remaining forts of Palghar since a couple of months now. But none of my plans were getting actioned. 

The forts I have visited in Palghar so far are Kelva Fort,  Shirgaon Fort,  Tarapur Fort,  Kaldurg Fort, Kohoj

Train to board at Andheri Station, platform no.4

Finally Mike and I decided to visit Palghar to do the remaining forts.

Fisher folk with their fish

As decided we met at Andheri Railway Station at 5:50 AM to board the 5:55 AM fast local to Dahanu. The train was packed at that time. The train was filled with a mixed lot of people. Some sleeping and snooring, others chit chatting. We also had a few fisherfolk who were there with their fish, they were heading to Bhayandar to sell their fish.  

Kelve Rd station

Though the glass windows were shut and the fans switched off we were still feeling cold. I was wearing a camera vest which obstructed the cold to some extent, pity Mike.

Misal Pav and Tea

Finally at 7:05 the train was at Kelve Road Station, the train had arrived before schedule.  Now the weather was really cold here, everyone around was dressed in woolen, and the two of us in Tees and Shorts and Sandals. We were definitely the odd one's out there.

An old bell located on the way to Kelva Fort

Just outside the station we found a small store serving snacks and tea. We rushed to have breakfast in the form of spicy Misal Pav and hot Tea to gulp it down.  Hoping that it would relieve us from the cold. 

Mike and Me

The moment the breakfast was over, we started feeling the cold again. As SitlaDevi Temple was around 8 KM away and no ST bus in sight, we decided to walk it out. There are sharing Rickshaw's here. Rs. 15 for a seat. 

Road to Kelve Fort

We asked a couple of locals for direction, the only thing they told us that we need to go walking straight on the road, no left turns and no right turns, and that is what we did.

Sunrise at Kelve Rd Station

As the sun had now risen, it was getting warmer. We did notice that when we opened our mouths to talk we could see the smoke coming out of it. Now you can imagine how cold it was.

Salt pans on the way to Kelve Fort

Barren lands, salt pans, thick greenery, we saw it all on our way to SitlaDevi Temple. 

Tiny roads

Now why were we going to the SitlaDevi Temple, because we had Kelva Fort (Madhla Buruj), Mahim Fort, Danda Fort and Bhawangad Fort which were easily accessible from there. 

Kelve Beach

By the time we reached SitlaDevi Temple we were all charged up.  Asked a couple of locals in regards to the direction to visit the hidden Kelva Fort (Madhla Buruj). As I had done the Kelva fort, the one in the middle of the water in my passed trip here. 

Uprooted Cassurina Trees

From the SitlaDevi Temple located on the shore of the beach, start walking towards the north, at the end of the tree cover is located the fort. Due to the thick forestation the fort cannot be located even from a distance. 

Another view of Kelve Beach

The fort is small in size and had five bastions on it. The doors of the fort have been buried in the sand over the years. A small three foot entrance leads to the inside of the fort. The windows of the fort offer a very good view of the sea and the vessels in it.  Due to the thick forestation, this fort was camouflaged in the woods. Maybe it was used as a watchtower. 

Bastion of Kelve Fort (Madla Buruj)

What left me fuming here was the advertisement painted on the walls of the fort, the graffiti on it's inside walls and the plastic wrappers of food items. 

Fortification of  Kelva Fort (Madhla Buruj)

Not sure about the history of this place, but what we noticed is that different types of stone was used in the construction of this fort.

Fortification of  Kelva Fort (Madhla Buruj)

The fort hardly took us 20 minutes to explore, we then headed back to Sitla Devi Temple to board a tum tum to Mahim Fort. 

Me

We noticed the roots of most of the cassurina trees that are on the shore. Maybe soil erosion had taken place here. 

Bastion

After having refreshing lemon water we headed off to sea Mahim Fort.  

That's me