Stairway to heaven
Stairway to Heaven
Harihar Gad
Harshgad or Harihar Fort is situated in Nashik, Maharashtra. Being an important fort in Nashik District, Harihar Fort was basically built to overview the trade route over Gonda Ghat. The fort is visited by many travelers due to its extraordinary rock-cut steps.
Constructed during the Yadava period, Shahaji Raje Bhosale surrendered Harihar Fort to Khan Zamam along with Tryambak and also Poona forts in 1636. Captain Briggs captured Harihar Fort in 1818 alongside with other forts.
Due to panoramic views and easy terrain throughout the trekking route, Harihar Fort attracts various levels of trekkers from amateurs to experienced.
It was said that a legendary Himalayan mountaineer- Doug Scott has climbed this vertical steps of Nirgudpada in November 1986.
Vertical steps |
Things to look out from/on the fort
- The Rock cut entrance stairs
- The main entrance
- The rock cut path from the main entrance to the second door.
- The second door
- The secret door
- Hanuman Mandir & Shivling. The lake near it.
- The 3 rock cut cisterns near Hanuman mandir
- A palace which can accomodate 10-12 people
- 5 rock cut cisterns near the palace.One of them has potable water.
- Another lake at the other end
- View of Basgad fort, Utwad, Fani Hill, Brahma Hill, Kaapdya, Brahmagiri & Bhandardurg fort.
- And if one is luck he can see Snakes on fort.
How Difficult is Harihar fort ?
Its a small fort. If you are not acrophobic (fear of heights) then the steep stairs should not be an issue.
Just need a good stamina. It takes almost 90 minutes to reach the top from Nirgunpada (even lesser if you start from Harshewadi) & another 50 minutes to explore the top . More time would be required if are photographer. The rock cut stairs are really beautiful !
During monsoon due to the slippery stairs it becomes difficult to find a firm grip and it becomes quite risky. Club with it the overcrowded trails on monsoon weekends its an accident waiting to happen. Avoid on monsoon weekends. Here is a list of my adventures which you can choose to do otherwise.
My experience
What makes you travel to a particular destination? Sometimes it's a particular spot that you wish to see in person or sometimes it's about the overall experience, isn't it? All thos fascinating picture of the rock cut staircase of Harihar fort trek is what brought me to this interesting hill fort located in Nashik district. How difficult would it be to climb these stairs? Is climbing these stairs really scary ? I wanted an answer............
So, it was in June 2019 when me and my friends planned a trek to find answer to all thos questions!
In the morning at around 5:00 AM we left the city and we reached Trimbakeshwar then took blessings of Mahadev. And we made our way to "one of the best adventure till now". We took route of Harshewadi. Rakshewadi is around 13km from Trimbakeshwar. At 6:30 AM we reached the base village. And saw the fort, it was a cold morning and the fort was covered by clouds. The view of the surrounding hills from the village was fabulous. I was very eager to reach the steps section so without waiting any further, we began the trek. The initial trial begins by the side of a small lake. Few arrows are marked to assist you with the correct path. By following the trail one can see many small waterfalls, flowers, snakes, wild plants like Nagfani,etc.
The trail is mixture of jungle section and open plateaus which finally lead us to the stairs section. The views of Vaitarna reservoir from the trek route is marvelou.
WOW!! How would have one carved this out?
I was left stunned just imagining this as I got sat by and kept admiring the sheer brilliance of the people who actually carved it out on that giant structure.
After climbing the stairs, we reached the cave section. The near by views from the cave are splendid. But remember one small slip from here and we are history. Then there are few more steps which leads us to a flat land which possibly seems the top most point of fort. But it's not the top! We have to climb a small hill to reach the top of the fort. At the the there is small temple of Mahadev. Beside the temple there is a lake. And we can see nearby peaks like Bhandar Durg, Anjaneri, Basgud, Fani,etc. Then I saw the magnificent route leading to Bhandar durg, and found the secret door at the edge of the hill just after the second door. Then We returned to the base village.
Peaks from top |
Best time to visit Harihar Fort
It is a moderate difficulty level, one day trek which is open throughout the year. Some prefer it in monsoon as the experience is more thrilling and the fort is draped with fog and clouds. Some prefer winter to avoid the slippery rocks and strong winds during peak monsoon.
Attire and things to carry
Loose cloths and sports shoes especially joggers and trekking shoes.
Water bottle, a tiffin box, and some chocolates/chewing gums.
How to reach Harihar Fort
Harihar fort trek has two routes. Both the trails start from villages which are accessible by public transport as well as your vehicle.
The base villages are:
- Nirgudpada(Kotamwadi)
- Harshewadi
Reaching the starting point by your vehicle
Both the villages mentioned above have roads wide enough to allow cars. You can park your vehicle at the village and start the trek. There is enough space to park vehicles.
Reaching Nirgudpada:
It can be accessed from both Mumbai and Nashik.
Reaching Harshewadi:
This village is closer to Nashik. Hence, people who are coming from Nashik prefer to start the trek from here.
Do visit and if you find my blog useful then comment on it and share it.
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