Article Published On - 19-11-2025
Trimbakeshwar draws devotees and adventurers alike. The place is crowded with devotees as it is a place of pilgrimage . Trimbakeshwar is among the ‘Jyotirlingas’ of twelve Jyotirlingas . In addition, there are many temples within this town such as Trimbakeshwar temple, Saint Nrivruttinath shrine, Swami Samarth Kendra, Gangadwar temple, which is the source of the river Godavari cave temples, and more. Rock climbers, trekkers and adventure enthusiasts too can’t resist this spot. Numerous forts like Trimbakgad,Durg Bhandar, Karvi Fort,Harihar Fort, Bhaskargad (Basgad), Utwad peak, Fanya peak etc makes this place attractive. The steep cliffs, with some with an inclined 80-degree angle, narrow passes as well as rock climbing, a small portion of which can be accomplished using ropes make this town an excellent trek destination. To that, Trimbakeshwar is a city that has a rich history with forts built by the Mughals followed by Marathas and then after a bloody battle, captured from the British.
The trek starts at MTDC guesthouse in Trimbakeshwar. The trail ascends and eventually leads you to two stone steps. Before the steps, there is an Devi temple as well as an old Wada. A magnificent Hanuman guards the entrance of Wada. The path to Trimbakgad begins from behind the Wada. The path is narrowand steep, and as you climb up, you’ll find clearly marked steps.
Beware of the monkeys that roam this path. To prevent the monkeys from stealing your belongings take all your possessions including water bottles into your bag. Along the way, you pass by an ancient underground temple dedicated to Brahma and farther up, you’ll be able to see the stunning entrance carved by Trimbakgad. After a while, check out for the Hanuman temple.Water tanks as well as a small lake an old Wada are some other signs throughout the route. The ascent gets cooler as you go up. Lemon juice that cools on the way provides an incentive to continue climbing. After a few minutes of climbing, you will come across the plateau. Make a left off of the plateau.
The trail climbs, in about 30 minutes, or so, you’ll arrive at the top of Trimbakgad – the Panchling Peak. Enjoy the breathtaking views and then take a quick break. The trail descends back to the plateau. To the right of the plateau, you will look out over at the Brahma Hill Harihar Fort and Utwad Peak. It is also possible to see the two Temples Jatashankar temple as well as Ganga Godawari temple on the fort. The Jatashankar temple located on one side is said to mark the location in which Lord Shiva utilized his Jataa to make an water source. A brief visit to the temple and the Ganga Godawari temple and nearby water sources will take around 30 minutes.
The path that runs that runs behind Ganga Godawari temple takes you to Hatti Darwaja which is the principal Darwaja from Trimbakgad. This path will lead you directly to Darwaja. Darwaja Darwaja is in ruin and is covered by landslides as well as large boulders. Take a descent to the Darwaja and then after a few minutes you will see a tiny Shiva temple. A ladder is set up here to assist you in your descent to Hatti Mate- a small town. The short ascent called ‘Nali’ breathtaking and leads to an Devi temple. A brief visit to the temple is enough and then it’s time to go towards Trimbakgad. Retrace your steps back to the start location of Darwaja and continue walking. As you continue to climb your trail will give the way to massive fortifications. Take the trail that is narrow and cautious as you walk through deep valleys below. The trail leads back to the trail, at the point where steps to climb Trimbakgad close. Retrace your steps back to Trimbakeshwar.
Although there is no importance in the past for Karvi Fort, which was merely an Brahmagiri watchtower, the trek along this path is difficult. A small portion of the route before the fort is required the use of ropes to traverse it. The trek again begins at the MTDC guesthouse at Trimbakeshwar. The trek ascends from up to a number of steps of stone. You can turn left just before the steps.
Walking through thick forests, the path leads you to an old wall of construction around an old tree. Make a right here and continue walking until you reach an unassuming hamlet known as Jambhalech wadi. You can take a left here. The road is kaccha with large boulders scattered on the sides of. It is possible to spot the Brahmagiri hill to your left. Follow the path until you arrive at the Devi temple in the middle of trees. You will pass by this temple. After about 15 minutes you’ll find a road in between the Karvi Fort and Brahmagiri. It is possible to see the fortification at the top of the cliffs in Brahmagiri at this point. Make a left here since the trail ahead takes you towards Hatti Mate. The trail will lead to the Nali that lies between Karvi Fort and the hill on the left. You can walk through the pass, and at the bottom of Nali turn left. The path leads to a few small steps that have been carved into the rock. Rope is required for climbing this part. The climb will take you to Karvi Fort. Spend just a few minutes here to enjoy the breathtaking view, then return to the same route you came to Trimbakeshwar.
The name “Bhandar” implies, this location was intended to be a storehouse for Brahmagiri. The Durg was under the command of Trimbak Suryaji Prabhu, a warrior from Peshwa camp in the year 1972. It was later seized by the British in the year 1818. The trek begins at MTDC guesthouse in Trimbakeshwar. The trail ascends and eventually leads you to the steps of a few stones. In the middle of the steps is an Devi temple and an ancient Wada.
A stunning Hanuman protects the front of the Wada. The path leading to Trimbakgad begins just in the back of the Wada. The trail is narrow and steep, and as you go higher, you will find clearly defined steps.Enroute the path, you’ll encounter an underground where you can see the temple that is the home of Brahma and further on you will find the doorway that was carved into Trimbakgad. After the steps are completed you will be on the high on Brahmagiri. Make a left here. The trail is quite narrow in some spots, with deep valleys on the right. Then at the end of the route, you can turn left, and the fortifications of Durg Bhandar is clearly visible. There is a image of Hanuman inscribed on the left part of the wall.
The path that leads to the right takes you along steps cut into rock surfaces. The tunnel is at the bottom of which is a rock cut entry. It is possible to bend your knees and walk through the tunnel. The path then leads to a bridge that connects Brahmagiri with Durg Bhandar. Be careful here, and you’ll soon find the entrance to the rock cut that is partially buried because of the mud. You can enter this door by gently bending. There are steps that lead towards the summit of Durg Bhandar Fort. Follow the steps until you find a carved half-circle bastion (Buruj) also known by the name of Kadelot Buruj. From here you can view Kachorli Dam, Supadichi wadi village. Gangadwar and Trimbakeshwar town. It is also possible to see water tanks in the fort. Return via the same way to the MTDC guesthouse in Trimbakeshwar.
The place to start the trek is Nirgudpada (Take Harsh) village. The village is accessible via Trimbakeshwar via a privately owned vehicle.Take Harsh, which is located in the state of Gujarat, is tiny village, so it’s advised to hire a car returning for the return travel also. When you Take Harsh all three hills such as Basgad-Fani-Harihar and Basgad-. The route is toward Harihar. The trail climbs up and passes through thick forest to arrive at an elevated high plateau i.e in between Fani as well as Harshgad. You can turn right on this plateau and continue on through the forest until you’ve reached the steps that have been carved.
These steps will take you to the main entrance of Harshgad and the gallery cut by rock of Harshgad. The views from Brahma valley from the gallery is breathtaking and should not be overlooked. After a brief stop at the gallery, follow the trail ahead to the top of Harshgad. Along the way, you’ll be faced with narrow steps cut from rock and then you will see the entrance carved into Harshgad. You can walk past the entrance. After a while, you will are able to see the top of Harshgad. There is a trail that has been marked through the valley. Take a walk along the marked trail. The trail will lead you to the Hanuman temple situated on the bank of an eddy. Along the way, you’ll find yourself in the granary structure. The views that is Brahma Hill Brahmagiri Side and Vaitarana backwater of the dam are visible from this point. As you walk on, you will get to the top of Harshgad.
The entire expanse of the fort can be observed. Take some time to explore the fort before heading back towards Hanuman temple. Return to the temple using the same route home the way you came from to Take Harsh. Stay the night with Take Harsh to trek to Bhaskargad (Basgad) the following day.
From Nirgurapada village, take a right turn towards the road called ‘Kaccha’ that will take you towards Jambhulpada village. The Kaccha road will take you to a pass that connects Fani Hill and Basgad. You can turn left here as the route ahead takes you towards Jambhulpada village. The trail to Basgad ascends, cutting through the dense forest. As you walk past the trail, you’ll soon come across the ridge. After climbing this ridge, you’ll arrive at the cliffs that is Basgad . Keeping the Basgad massif to your left, walk for about 30 minutes until you reach an array of built-in stone steps of a fort on the left.
After a few steps at the beginning, you will notice that the steps leading to the top are in ruins. The climb will eventually be able to see the gorgeous half-buried Darwaja in Basgad. By bending through the Darwaja it will take you to the highest point of Basgad. A further 10 minutes of climbing will lead the visitor to an open lake. There are empty water tanks and a stone idol of Hanuman and a deteriorated Wada. A fortification is visible on the outskirts. A stunning view from Fani Peak, Brahma Hill and Harshgad can be seen from this point. Utwad peak is also accessible from here. To hike to Utwad peak, turn back until you are at the steps made of stone and make a turn to the left. The trail follows the part of the Basgad the rock walls. Follow this path until you get to the pass that connects Basgad Utwad and Basgad. Utwad.
From here onwards, you can hike toward Utwad peak. For a return trip towards Take Harsh turn left and staying on the wall left. Continue to descend until you reach the road made of tar that leads to Khodala before heading to take Harsh.Return to Trimbakeshwar. Note Take a large supply of water on hand because there isn’t a drinking water source at Basgad hill.
This trek’s basecamp is Harshwadi. Fani peak is accessible via Nirgudpada (Take Harsh) or from Harshwadi. Hire a car starting from Trimbakeshwar up to Harshwadi village. Since Harshwadi is an isolated destination it is essential that the vehicle be hired in a specific way for the travel to and from Trimbakeshwar. When you get to Harshwadi Harshgad can be seen as well. Fani peak isn’t accessible from this location.
To begin the trek, begin the climb from Harshwadi village to Harshgad. After some time, you will see the Devi Temple, Shiv temple and ‘Kund’ (Water tank). The way to reach the point is well-trodden. There is an Maruti temple close by, which is which is surrounded by thick forest. Its Harshgad Gallery cut from rock is visible from here. As you walk further, you’ll encounter thick forests.
Explore this cover which will lead you to a huge hill known as Brahma Hill. The route is clearly marked. The route is well-marked until you reach the pass that connects Harshgad in the north and Brahma Hill. Make a left here and continue ahead until you see an ‘Nali’ to climb up Brahma Hill. Take the Nali slowly and make it to the top of the plateau. Once you have climbed further, an Devi temple at the edge of the plateau can be seen. From here, you can take in the stunning panorama of Harshgad as well as the thick forest that lies at its base, Basgad and Utwad range and Fani peak. Panchaling the peak from Brahmagiri, Anjaneri range and Vaitarana backwater are as well evident. Retrace your steps carefully, and once you reach the pass you can choose to follow the same path until you reach the temple, which is in dense forest, as well as descend towards Harshwadi via the path that goes towards the right. To reach Fani Peak you have to get to the plateau that lies that lies between Harshgad as well as Fani peak.
From this point, the summit appears like a small ridge with the shape of a pyramid. From all sides. From the plateau, start walking towards Fani the peak. Be aware of the hill to the right. It is referred to as small Fani. The climb up to the Peak begins at the west-facing of the Hill. The route is zigzag and narrow. Make sure you are taking the proper precautions when climbing, as the path upwards can be very slippery and there isn’t much support for climbing. As you climb higher, the summit appears larger. It’s about 60-70 feet high and the it is extremely small.
The summit can be climbed by using a rope and safety equipment. When you reach the top, the view can be stunning. For a return trip, start down from the opposite side of the summit. There isn’t any support for going down. Therefore, take all precautions when climbing down. When you are on the plateau, make a right turn and then by walking around the Fani top and the smaller Fani you can get to Harshwadi village. Return back to Trimbakeshwar.
Operations Manager
Nanda Rawat holds a Master’s degree in Tourism & Hospitality and brings over 16 years of experience in adventure and leisure travel. He has led multiple Himalayan expeditions, contributed to ATOAI, and is trained in first aid by the Indian Mountaineering Foundation. A strong supporter of sustainable and ethical tourism, he plays a key role at Trekup India. Write to him at: nanda@trekupindia.com
