Overview:
| Type: | Hill Fort |
| Location: | In Sudhagad taluka of Raigad district, Maharashtra |
| District: | Raigad |
Local people call Mrugagad fort as Bhelivcha killa as the village at the foothills is Bheliv. The fort can be accessed via a narrow col and then a beautifully carved steps takes you to the top.
Mrugagad fort is a hill fort in Sudhagad taluka of Raigad district, Maharashtra, India. At a height of 1750 meters, the fort lies near falyan village, and is made of stone. The fort is very small in size and is in a form of spur radiating from the Western ghats. The fort is very close to the Lonavala, Khandala and Khopoli.
History:
History of the Fort is not much is known. This Fort was used more as a watchtower. If you see the Fort pic above, the shape of the Rock itself is such that there is no need of Fortifications (a natural Fort), and this Fort actually does not have any fortifications, probably because of this shape.
Places to Visit on Fort:
Mrugagad is a small fort, and it takes around one hour to see it. There are some water tanks and a small pond on the fort. There are some water tanks on the summit. We can find some remnants of old houses. Since Umbarkhind and Waghdari can be seen from the top, it was used to keep a watch on these areas and the surrounding villages.
There is a small empty rock cut cave on the northern edge of the fort, but the steps are very short.
How to reach:
The base village Bheliv is connected by Road to nearest town Jambhulpada. The distance between bheliv and Khopoli is 30 km. Regular buses and private vehicles are available from Khopoli and Pali to reach Jambhulpada. The trek to the fort starts from the Bheliv village. It takes about 1 hr from the base village to reach the top of the fort. The route passes through dense forest with large Mango trees. The rock cut steps on the eastern ridge of the hill, leads to the top of the fort.
Related Video (Mrugagad Fort):
Best time to visit:
Mrugagad Fort can be visited anytime during a year.
