About Rajmachi and Rajmachi forts with photos and map

Rajmachi is a village about 80 Kms from Pune and around 15 Kms from Lonavala. It is a famous place for trekking around Pune and mumbai and also boasts of an ancient fort built at the time of Shivaji.

How to reach Rajmachi from Pune:

Below is the map you can refer to reach Rajmachi from Pune

There are two ways through which you can trek to Rajmachi. The easier one is from Lonavala and it is around 15 kms of trek and the other one is from Karjat to kondivade village to Rajmachi. From Kondivade village which would be around 4 kms of trek.

How is the trek at Rajmachi going to be :

 

The trek from Kondivade to Rajmachi is more adventurous and fun. It would take you around 5-6 hours to reach Rajmachi from Kondivade. You can expect a lot of rain in case you are going there during monsoons. This can be the fun part but be careful to carry all your important belongings like money and gadgets in a sealed bag. Also carry a rain coat in case you have had enough of rain. There are numerous waterfalls which will make your trek even awesome. In monsoons these waterfalls can become pretty big. If you are trekking during summers make sure you leave Kondivade early in the morning so that you reach Rajmachi before it gets too hot. Also carry some supply of food and water from Kondivade village itself as you might not get anything during your trek.

Rajmachi forts :

The two main attractions of Rajmachi are the two forts – Shrivardhan and Manaranjan. Both these forts have a significant place in the history as they served as an excellent strategic location to guard to the bhor ghat during Sivaji’s rule. Although Sivaji had not build these forts but they were captured from the king of Bijapur and later by Aurangzeb from Sivaji.

Shrivardhan fort at Rajmachi :

Shrivardhan fort at Rajmachi is the taller one amongst the two forts. It is around 3000 feet above sea level and pretty easy to trek. There are two water tanks on the top and you would also notice a guard area for watchmen. The top of the fort offers one of the best views of the Shayadri ranges but it might be difficult to see due to heavy mist and rain especially during monsoons.

Manaranjan fort at Rajmachi

Manaranjan fort is even easier to trek to the top. The view is pretty much the same as you can see from the top of Shrivardhan fort. Manaranjan is around 2700 feet above sea level. The entrance is in ruins and only watchmen posts and 3 huge gates are to be seen in this fort. A temple of lord Bhairavnath is between these Shrivardhan and Manaranjan forts. Even today locals visit this temple.

What else to see at Rajmachi

Apart from the trek and the two forts you can also visit the Kondane caves which would be around an hour after you have started your trek from Kondivade village. To see this cave you would need to take a little diversion from your trek to Rajmachi. Once visited you can go back and continue your trek to Rajmachi. There will be arrows painted in white to guide you.

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