Kamalgad

Kamalgad Fort, which literally means ‘Lotus Fort’ is situated near the town of Wai in Satara District. It is also known by the names of Bhelanja and Kattalgad. The fort lies at an elevation of 4.511 feet above sea level.

During the reign of the Maratha Empire, Kamalgad, alongside Pandavgad and other forts in the are were administered by a ‘mokassadar’ or manager from Bijapur. It is not known when or built this fort. However, early manuscripts in the now defunct Modi Script of Marathi refer to this fort as Kattalgad. In 1818, the fort was taken over by the British and was used for the execution of the prisoners of war.

The fort covers an area of about 3 to 4 acres. The base village of this fort is Tupewadi. The only way to, reach this fort is by scaling a steep rock. Earlier, the fort could be approached through an artificial tunnel which started at the base of the fort and lead to the top. However, this tunnel is now blocked by a huge rock. One of the most unusual things about this fort is that there are no walls or gateways on the top. It takes a 3 to 4 hours to reach the top and the route is quite safe. On reaching Kamal Machi it is possible to find shelter at the lone villagers’s hut. It takes 20 minutes to reach the Balekilla from the machi.

Kamalgad Fort is located close to both Wai and Bhor. Both the places have decent hotels and restaurants.