If you've never seen roaring winds, a trek to Rohida, a fort near Pune, is a must. In the monsoon, waterfalls cascade upwards on the left side of the mountain, indicating how strong the wind is here. In addition, the bastions have breathtaking views of the fields and water dams. The fortification wall is surrounded by six bastions. All of these are strong.
Bajarwadi is the village at the foot of Rohida, about 62 kilometres from Pune. When you arrive in Bajarwadi, look for the village school. The trail starts directly across from the campus.
The trail starts off with a slow climb. You'll notice two overhead water tanks on your right after a few minutes. As you go, you will find that the track narrows. It is clearly labelled, so there is no risk of being lost. After 10 minutes of climb, you can hit a broad plateau. The fortifications and bastions of the fort can be seen plainly from here. This slope streams onto a ridge.
If you go trekking during the monsoon, you can see waterfalls that flood upwards due to the strong wind on the left side of the mountain! This roaring wind will follow you until you return. This trail is not densely forested. There are only meadows and small trees. Though the climb is relatively straightforward, the stormy wind will make it challenging at times. It takes about an hour of steady ascent from the plateau to reach the fort's first entrance.
The second gate is reached after around 15-20 stone steps. In front of this gate is a small underground water cistern. There are two trails here. The one on the left leads to Lord Ganesha's shrine. Near the shrine, there are two lakes. You should just sit beside them and unwind.The second trail, which continues straight ahead from the entrance, circles the fort's periphery.
On the fort, there are several bastion Shirvale bastion to the south-east, Patane and Damgude bastions to the south, and Waghjai bastion to the north. The bastions have breathtaking views of fields and dams. The wind is so powerful that when you throw grass from the fort, it comes straight at you. The fort can be explored for at least an hour.
On a clear day, other forts visible from Rohida include Purandar to the north-east, Rajgad and Torna to the north-west, and Raireshwar, Kamalgad, Kenjalgad, and Madhardevi to the south-west.
After you've finished exploring the fort, take the same route back to Bajarwadi.
