Kavlya 24th September 2013

Kavlya is a fort situated on the border of the Pune & Raigad districts in Maharashtra. Looming over the picturesque Varandha Ghat, Kavlya stands sentry over all those who pass through its domain. At a height of 2124 feet, this fort is located at a distance of approximately 100 Kms. from Pune. An interesting fact about this fort is that, in 1857 this fort was divided in two by the British, to facilitate the widening of the Varandha Ghat road.

The decision to go to Kavlya was a spontaneous one. After days of gathering companions for a trek, everyone cancelled at the last minute leaving me and Nikhil the only participants. Thus, in a fit of exasperation we decided to go by ourselves. Nikhil met me at my home on the 22nd at 7 am and we left immediately afterwards. We took the Pune-Bengaluru Highway up till the Bhor exit. It was from this point onwards that the condition of the roads worsened! Filled with potholes and remnants of minor landslides, we had to navigate through what seemed more of a dirt track than a road (Ok..maybe I'm exaggerating a bit!).

We had breakfast at a small hotel about an hour's ride from the fort; and reached the base at around quarter past ten. We started walking towards the fort, keeping a wary eye on the multitude of monkeys roaming near the roadside stalls. A few hundred metres from these stalls, the road turns between two mountains; the one in the front of you is the Kavlya fort. The monsoon had provided a tremendous boost to the flora in the region. This had caused the path that was previously crystal clear, to be obscured by overgrown foliage. This slowed down our progress quite a bit. However, the route is quite simple with a very gradual incline. I estimate that we reached the top in about half an hour or so.

Blue Oakleaf

If we ignore the view there is not much to be seen on this fort, but if we look closely some ruins can be seen. The paths on the top are quite obscure, especially in the monsoon. I would recommend that if you are new to trekking, you should mark the route you are taking beforehand to avoid getting lost. The route going towards the sole bastion on the fort can be confusing as its descends for quite some time before resurfacing. There are a number of forts to be seen from this one; Rajgad and Torna to name a few, provided you are blessed with clear weather.

After saluting the Saffron flag of the Maratha Dynasty, we started our descent and thanks to the bad roads, reached Pune at around 6 pm. The main highlights of this trek for me were the photographs  of a Nector Orchid (Habenaria Longicorniculata) and some amazing snaps of a Sap Surali and a Blue Oakleaf butterfly.

For more pics click here!