Dasgaon Fort Trek
The Dasgaon Fort trek is a hill fort located in Raigad district of Maharashtra. It is situated on a hill between the Savitri river and the Dasgaon village.
History
Dasgaon Fort overlooks the Mahad Port which was a port for trading since ancient times. It was important to keep a watch on the water and land trading routes, and that is why this fort was built. Formerly known as Bhopalgad, after the reign of Chatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, Dasgaon Fort became vital to his kingdom when Raigad was made the capital. The fort was restored and the name Bhopalgad was changed to Dasgaon once the British came into power.
Geography
The Dasgaon Fort trek’s highest point is at a height of 450 m having Dasgaon village as its base. The Mahad Port is clearly visible from the summit.
One can see water tanks carved in stones, the Savitri river and the Konkan Railways from the fort. The confluence of Kalu and Savitri rivers is a sight to watch.
Not much far from the Dasgaon Fort, one can even visit the Raigad Fort, Gandhapale caves and the hot water springs near Savitri river.Since there are not many remnants on the fort, it takes just an hour to explore the entire fort.
The trail
The Dasgoan Fort trek is an easy trail is takes about half an hour to reach from the base village, Dasgaon. The fort trail starts from the entrance of a nearby school as the passage takes us onto the mountain. The passage ascends with valley on one side of the path.
You come across two ways, one leading you to the top of the fort from the front side and the other going to the rear side of the fort. The first path is covered with dense vegetation and going through this trail, one can see the remnants of the fortified wall of the fort.
How to reach
The base village of Dasgaon is 162 km from Mumbai and 11 km before Mahad if travelling via Mumbai-Goa highway.
If planning to travel by public transport, almost all ST buses going to Konkan stop at the Dasgaon.
By train, you can get down at Veer station which is the nearest station to Dasgaon village. From there auto rickshaws are available to take you to the base village.
