AHIVANTGAD FORT

OVERVIEW


District : Nashik
Height above sea level : 4024 ft (1230m) Approx.
Difficulty rating : Simple to Medium
Base village : Bilwadi, Daregaon
Transport : Nashik to Daregaon (road, 40 KM approx)
Approx. time to reach the top : About 2.5 hrs from Bilwadi and about 2 hrs from Daregaon
Best Season to visit : November to February 

How To Reach

There are mainly 2 ways to reach Ahivantgad

Via Nashik -> Daregaon : From Nashik one has to go to Vani. From Vani, along the Nanduri road you can have a good view of Ahivant fort. 1 k.m before Vani Nanduri road, there is a way to the left side which takes you to the foot holds of Ahivant Fort,within an hour. One can then easily climb over the valley and reach Dare village. And then it takes an hour to reach the fort.

Via Nashik -> Belwadi: This is a comparatively long route. One can reach to Vani in Nashik region. On Vani-Saputara road , get off to Pipmri-Achala village which is at 12Kms from Vani. Form there on can reach to Pimpri-Pada in half an hour. At north lies the forts Achala & Ahivant. From Pimpripada go to the temple, the way to the right of it will take you to the Belwadi village within half an hour and left side route will take you to the Achala Fort. From Belwadi you can reach Ahivant fort in two hours.

Place to Stay / Eat

Shelter: There are caves at the top of the forts. There is small hillock at the center of the fort where you can find some caves. Also there are caves at north-east side of the fort but no water is available nearby these caves. Locating a cave could be difficult on a big plateau and hence it's advisable to hire a guide from base village 

Food: arrangements have to be made by the trekkers themselves.

Water: Water from the tank near the Shiv-pind is poatable. Water is availabe till February. Potable water isn't available at the top in the summer and winter. Hence carry ample water from base village itself

Places to visit

Achala and Ahivant are neighbors, Ahivant has a broader plateau unlike Achala, which can take almost full day to explore it.

A cave at the edge is wonderfully situated. A stay in such a cave should be a great experiance. Cave in the north-east direction of the fort, but it is not suitable for a stay. Whereas a cave in the southern direction is suitable for a stay. Almost 10 min. away from this cave, is a water tank. If you come from Dare village, you will find devastated structures of two big entrances. In the nearby area you will find remnants of many old palaces, which shows that this fort was well equipped with a defense base. You will also find Shivling at many places. While coming on the fort from this side one can find many caves You can find two to three lakes while roaming on the fort. There is a temple with a statue which resembles Saptshrungi.

Fort has extended arms at east, west, north-west & north-east sides.

Hanuman Idol