Rajmachi Fort Trek, adventurous one day trip near Mumbai and Pune (INR 350)

Introduction
All of us have work and sometimes we don’t get enough holidays that we can go for a proper trek or a trip with our friends and family which usually takes around 8 to 10 days at bare minimum, but no need to worry this article is especially for those people.
Rajmachi fort trek will only take a day of yours too with a bare minimum cost. But one thing that we can promise you is that the trek will be so beautiful and the nature will be so breath-taking you’d want to visit it again! So, beware of the addiction of this place, because it is going to show you what’s peaceful at its best.
The best time to go for this trek is usually in the monsoon that is during the months of June to November because the trek becomes a green heaven and raises the level of trek by a bit.
A little about the place
Rajmachi fort was built by Shivaji in the 17th century and is situated in the sahyadri mountains of the western ghat and is located in the karjat area.
The fort lies 2700 ft high on the basis of altitude which makes it a small and beautiful trek. It is one of the most sought out treks in the monsoon season.
Travels:
The Rajmachi fort is situated along the Mumbai to Pune route. One can reach there quite easily because both cities are well connected throughout India. Once you reach Mumbai you can opt for a train heading pune and get off at Karjat from where you can take a tum-tum also known as share auto to reach the kondhane village, which is know the start point of our trek which will take around 3-4 hours to cover one way and then more to reach back.
Another way which is shorter than the one mentioned above is through catching a local train from pune to lonavala from where you can take two route to reach udhewadi that is the base village of Rajmachi fort, either you can go for lonavala to kunhe village then to Della adventure park and finally reach udhewadi or else you can go for lonavala to tungarli to nandangao to udhewadi.
If you are travelling alone then take the della park route because it is a bit well established in comparison to the tungarli route.
There is also one other way to reach udhewadi. It is directly to drive upto there. But during the monsoon season it is quite difficult due to the road conditions. So one can drive upto fansari from where it is around 6.2 km for the base village udhewadi.
The trek
If you are a beginner and have no experience in trekking are not sure if you can walk for long then go for the lonavala to udhewadi from where you can start your trek but if you have some experience due try the one from kondhane village because the view is just magnificent.
Once you reach the base village from any route it is just a one hour trek to reach the top. There you can also get a few shelters along the way. Just a friendly reminder: the roads tend to get a bit slippery, do travel with caution.
On the way to the top you can notice the lush green surrounding. It makes you wonder about the beauty of nature and the power it has to just stop you and mek you mesmerised. There are also some food joints along the way, so grab those pakodas and head to the top.
What to do there?
- View the two peaks which are separated by a plateau known as Shrivardhan and Manoranjan
- Visit the temples, water reservoir, caves and ramparts and pretty much explore the beautiful place.
- Try to opt for the trek a bit late in the evening. You will get to look at the beautiful view of numerous fireflies in a small place. It seems like as if the whole world beside you lit up just for you. The beauty it represents can’t be measured. Sometimes these things make us wonder about our lives in this concrete jungle.
- If you have some time to spare then do visit a beautiful lake known as the shirota lake. It is just a few kilometres away from the base village udhewadi.
- If you still want to explore a bit then you can opt for another trek to Kataldhar Waterfall.