Bhawangad Fort

Tuesday, January 20, 2015

We took the instructions of the boys at Danda Fort  and headed off to see the Bhawangad Fort. 

Dried tree on the way to the fort

There was not a single person on the road, we walked and walked and finally we stopped as we wanted to confirm if we were on the right track. Finally from a distance we saw a biker heading towards us.We inquired with him and thank God we were on the right track. 

Entrance to Bhawani Shiv Mandir and Bhawangad Fort

Finally we reached a village a couple of meters away from the fort premises and they too confirmed that we were on the right track. They were surprised to know that we had walked it out all the way from Sitla Devi Temple till here.

A couple of hand pumps on the way helped us refresh ourselves. 

View from atop the Bhawangad Fort walls

Finally we located a signboard giving directions to Bhawangad Fort. On our way we met locals who informed us to watch out for a saffron flag atop the fort from the muddy path to the left of the tar road. They informed us about a temple at the entrance of the fort. 

Bhawangad fort is equidistant from Kelve Rd station and Safale station. ST buses ply between the two stops and the buses pass by from this route.  While we were walking we saw a ST bus going to Safale. Not sure as to what the bus timings are. 

Fortification of Bhawangad Fort

In a matter of minutes we located the muddy path and the saffron flag and started climbing the hill. In ten minutes we were at the entrance of the fort. The Bhawani Shiv Mandir is located here. The temple might be quite old but it was recently renovated. There was a family up here, who had come in a tum tum and were doing  a puja (offering prayers).

Bastion of Bhawangad Fort

A little ahead of the temple, one can see the fortification. We followed the fortification and crossed a bastion to enter the fort and reach atop of the fort. The fort offers a beautiful view of the coconut trees, hill ranges around. 

Have to admit, but the fort is very well protected with trees all around it, that it can't be seen from the road that leads to it. Nothing much to see up here, again a small fort which can be done in around 20 minutes time. Again I am guessing that it was a watchtower. 

Bhawani Shiv Mandir

Took rest here and then decided to have water at one of the houses of the locals as we had a long way back to Sitla Devi temple. The locals were very generous they offered us water to drink and even let us rest in their houses. Mike was hoping for food too. Now he was expecting a bit too much. Truly Atithi Devo Bhavah, I should say.

Bhawani Shiv Mandir

At 1:45 PM we were at Sitla Devi Temple, had veg thali at a cost of Rs. 80 per plate. The food was nice and tasty and filling. With our stomach's full we then asked around for a tum tum ride to Kelve Rd Station as there was a local to Dadar at 2:55 PM. Luckily at 2:25 PM we got a tum tum to Kelve Rd Station. The tum tum cost us Rs. 15 each and it runs houseful all the way till the station. Now I was not sure if he would drop us in time, matter of fact is he did drop us at the station at around 2:50 PM. 

The muddy road that leads to the fort

We boarded the local and off we were on our way to Mumbai. I told Mike that I have just two more forts to conquer in Palghar belt, being Kohoj and Asherigad, all the others being sea forts were conquered. 

Veg Thali

Danda Fort

Sunday, January 18, 2015

We then decided to walk it out to Danda Fort. The locals here are very helpful with directions to visit the fort. As both the forts are far away from the Temple premises they all inquired if we had a two wheeler to take us there, to which we declined. They had informed us that walking it would take us around 45 minutes to reach Danda Fort, as it is located on the other side of the Danda bridge which is built over the Danda creek.

View of Danda Creek, Kelve Fort and Arabian Sea from Danda Bridge

Now the sun was right over our heads but that didn't stop us, we kept marching forward towards Danda Fort. Though it was hot, wind was blowing like crazy and so we didn't feel the heat. The Danda bridge offers a wonderful view of the creek, the sea in a distance, Kelve Fort in the middle of the water and the sleeping villages around it, not to forget the mangroves and the hill ranges in a distance.

View of Danda creek from Danda Bridge

A couple of boats were anchored in the creek waters. The sun shinning on the waters was a amazing sight to see. 

Banyan Tree near the Danda Fort walls

All that remains of the fort walls

We reached the other side of the creek and inquired with a local kid and he said that its at the turning of this road. In a couple of minutes we were at the Danda Fort.   

Another view of the fort walls

We were shocked to see that a new house was being built just outside the fort walls, blocking the view of the fort from the road. Sad to say that just two walls of the fort stand tall, a big thanks to the banyan tree which has grown near the walls.  The place offers very good shade, again thanks to the banyan tree. The locals have built a series of toilets around the fort. I am shocked to see the state of this historic monument. 

Toilets near the fort premises

I believe the house near the fort was built illegally and hence some boys were guarding it. They were curious to know who we were and from where we had come. Though they did let us see the entire fort or should I say what remains of the fort. 

Structure covering the fort walls

We then inquired with them and started on to visit Bhawangad Fort, they informed us that it would take us around 30 minutes to reach it. 

That's me

Kelva Fort (Madhla Buruj)

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

Mahim Fort at Kelve

Friday, January 16, 2015

After visiting Kelva Fort (Madhla Buruj)  we headed back to Sitla Devi Temple to have lemon juice, thereafter we boarded a tum tum to visit the Mahim Fort. Mahim fort is located very close to Mahim beach, which is located around 6 KM away from Sitla Devi Temple.

Lemon Juice

We inquired with the tum tum driver of possible historic structures around it. He was not convinced that we were going to Mahim Fort. As per him, there is nothing there to see plus the mahim chowpatty or beach is deserted. There is no tourism activity there.

But we had Mahim Fort on our minds and so we went ahead with our plan.

Boys outside the school

He alighted us at Mahim bazaar in around 15 minutes , he then gave us directions to visit Mahim Fort. The school and the village dispensary were clues to locate the fort.

We went as per the clues provided and in a matter of 15 minutes we were at the fort.

Mahim Fort at Kelve

There is a old temple and a small garden near the fort. The village dispensary is located exactly opposite the  main entrance of the fort. It was afternoon and hence the garden was deserted.

But there were small children in the dispensary, so some commotion there.

Entrance to Mahim Fort at Kelve

From the look of it, this fort was square in shape and had a small entrance to enter it. The walls of the fort are not very tall. Also the walls of the fort looked plastered. Maybe this fort was built much later.

On the inside is located a staircase which leads to the upper bastion of the fort and also the walls of the fort. The staircase has got a very close resemblance to the staircase in the ship Titanic in the movie Titanic.

Fortification

The fort has got a couple of rooms in it, some built in the walls of the fort, others for which the foundation and walls stand tall and a well which still has dirt accumulated in it.

 A steep staircase leads to the top. The bastion and the walls offers a wonderful view of the sea and the land around. This fort is small is size and can be done in 30 minutes time.

Mahim fort premises

Not sure as to who had built this fort, but as per the tum tum driver it has switched hands from Portuguese to the Marathas and finally the British.

We then returned to Mahim Bazaar hoping to get a tum tum ride back to Sitla Devi Temple. but all the tum tum were house full. We waited and waited, still no luck. The roads of this place reminded us of Goa. Coconut and mango trees all around and a few houses amidst them.  The time was now 11:15 AM on my watch. We then decided to walk it out.

Well in the fort premises

Finally we decided to hitch-hike. Mike asked if he needs to show off his legs to get a ride. lol.

Finally our prayers were answered and we managed to get a ride from one of the locals here. Triple seat on a Honda Activa all the way to the Sitla Devi Temple. He rode as if he was driving a super bike on a circuit track and in less than 15 minutes we were at the Temple. Thank God, else we had to walk all the way back.

Bastion in Mahim Fort at Kelve

Again had a lemon juice here and inquired with the locals regarding tum tum to take us to Danda Fort and Bhawangad Fort. The locals informed that there are not many share rides here and that we had to book a tum tum to take us there. Sadly no one at the Temple was prepared to take us there.

View of Mahim Fort from the fort walls

We started on our walking trip to Danda fort and Bhawangad Fort.

That's me

Kelva Fort

Saturday, September 24, 2011

I decided to visit the forts of Palghar on a Saturday as Palghar is very close to Mumbai. Palghar district houses more than eight forts.

Palghar is located at a distance of 112 km from Mumbai. It is located near the Maharashtra–Gujarat border and can be approached by rail and road. Palghar is a quiet place with plenty of greenery. The roads are very narrow yet very scenic. Small and lovely houses dot both sides of the road.

I visited this sea fort along with my friend Nimish, who had earlier accompanied me to Kanheri Caves. We took the Virar Dahanu shuttle from Virar station. It took us approximately 45 minutes to reach Virar from Andheri. The shuttles are never on time. Ours was delayed by 15 minutes. In the end, it took us 40 minutes to reach Palghar station from Virar.

Kelva Fort

From Palghar, you can take ST (Stat Transport) buses and tum tum's to go to Kelva beach. We boarded the ST bus so that we could have a chat with locals regarding what we could look forward to seeing in Kelva as we were quite new to the place and there was not much information available online.

The driver of our bus turned out to be a very environmentally conscious guy. At one of the stops on the way, there were many people who wanted to alight. The driver actually shut down the engine. I was duly impressed. There aren’t many people who would remember to do that.

It took us around 30 minutes to reach Kelva beach. The beach houses a Sitladevi temple. This temple is a must-see on the itinerary of Hindus.

Fishing boats at Kelva Fort

To reach the fort we need to walk across the beach for at least an hour. The beach is covered by sur trees. We started walking towards the fort. However, as the sea was rough, it being the time of the high tide, we could not get close to the fort but were forced to see it from a distance. The fort was well fortified with the walls intact. This was indeed surprising, considering that it was built in the 16th century.

Disappointed at not being able to explore the interiors of the fort, we walked back to Kelva beach. On the way back, we saw that the fisherfolk had laid out their dried fish on thin bamboo sticks. The dry fish business in Kelva is a very lucrative one.

We had some snacks at a dhaba on Kelva beach. We asked the locals about the history of the fort. They told us that it was built by the Portuguese in the 16th century and that it was later conquered by Shivaji. The fort is rectangular in shape and it can be visited only by climbing the walls. They also informed us that there is nothing much to see in the fort.

Kelva Fort

Maybe they had read our disappointment on our faces and were trying to console us.

After having our snacks we decided to head for Shirgaon Fort located in Palghar.