Vandan Fort

Vandan Fort stands on a spur that branches off the main Sahyadri ridge in Satara district, next to its twin, Chandan Fort. Copper-plate records credit both to the Shilahara king Bhoj II in 1191–92. Shivaji took them from the Adilshahi of Bijapur in 1673; they passed to the Mughals in 1689 and were won by Chhatrapati Shahu Maharaj in 1707.

The fort remains in good shape, with its main gate, a few guard rooms beside it, a bastion, a water cistern and a three-room structure called Sarkarwada. On the southern side is a stone dargah with an Arabic inscription over its gate. Trekkers and pilgrims both come here, climbing for about an hour from Kholvadi, Ibrahimpur (Banawadi, the easiest route) or Belmachi, past sugarcane fields and then scrub. The nearest town is Bhuinj on NH 4, 87 km from Pune, and both forts can be covered in one day. There is no good drinking water on top.