Mahipalgad Fort

Mahipalgad Fort sits on a ridge in dense evergreen forest in Chandgad taluka, Kolhapur district, close to the Maharashtra-Karnataka boundary. It is said to have been built by Shivaji Maharaj. The base village of Dewarwadi is 20 km from Belgaum, with regular buses, and a motorbike road runs up to the fort, about 45 minutes' drive in all.

The way up passes the Vaijanath temple, believed to date from the 11th century, in the Hemadpanti style, with a stone Nandi in front, carved pillars and a sacred cistern. The temple of Aarogya Bhavani stands beside it, and further on are the rock-cut Mahipalgad caves. Walls and an entrance gate encircle Mahipalgad village. Within is a one-storey citadel of 70 by 40 feet, with a cistern and Ambabai temple behind it, while the eastern bastion remains in good condition next to a Shiva temple.