Pack Up Your Bags And Head For An Adventrous Trek At Tikona Hill Fort
Tikona is a quite popular hill fort in Maval, Maharashtra. Its closest city is Pune, 60kms away and the closest village is Tikona Peth. The unique aspect of the place is that the pyramidal Tikona hill, has the fort at its summit. The fort has its own special history. It is believed to have been conquered my Malik Ahmed Nizamshah, from the Nizam dynasty, way back in 1585. After several such acquisitions, the fort was surrendered to the Mughal leader Kubadkhan, after the Treaty of Purandhar in 1665, but later was captured by the Marathas. As of now, the place is a very popular trekking spot. People prefer various routes to reach the place but the most popular is from Lonavala to Kamshet. The place stands at roughly 3500 feet above sea level.
TIKONA FORT
The trekking difficulty is considered to be relatively simple and on an average people reach the top of the fort within two hours. The latter half of the year is the best time one can consider the trekking adventure.
It is not just the trekking journey that appeals to the people. The place also provides the trekkers with wonderful scenery of the entire hill region. The place also plays host to the religious fervour of the people. One can find a wonderfully carved sculpture of Lord Hanuman and also a temple named Tuljadevi Mandir. Much like any normal fort, the tourists are welcomed by the entrance gate called Vetal Darwaza. There are several caves and water tanks attracting several tourists. There is also a Triambakeshwar temple inside the fort. Other forts such as the Tung and Lohagad can be clearly seen at the heigher portions of the fort. There is also a beautiful lake surrounding the fort. This made the fort more secure as compared to other forts nearby. The place has now been a very popular tourist spot and adequate network coverage is present.
TUNG FORT
The Tikona fort has its popular twin fort nearby called the Tung fort. It is also present by the Tikona Peth. The fort was made by Adil Shahi dynasty in the 17th century. Like the Tikona fort, it was also finally captured by the Marathas. The fort's base village, Tungi, can only be reached if the tourists are ferried across the Pawna Dam. Adequate arrangements are made for the same. The Tung fort is also a trekking spot but is generally difficult and more suitable for experts. The roads are narrow and the climb is quite steep as compared to Tikono fort.
The nearby village also guides people to the Pawna Dam and the Jambhuli hill. The rainy season allows the surrounding areas to be really vibrant and green and is thus more preferred around that time by one and all. It is advised that one must carry food and water before the trek. Very few people consider camping and it is generally a one day destination for anyone to visit.