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Introduction
The verdant hills, the terraced farms and the
omnipresent mist bestow Panhala with a unique allure, a mystic.
The aerial roots of the banyan trees that flank the road form a
beautiful archway, a prelude to the royal remains of the fort to
come. Situated at a magnificent height of 3177 feet above sea
level, Panhala commands a panoramic and awesome view of the valley
below.
Sight Seeing
While at Panhala you must visit Ambarkhana.
Ambarkhana was built by the Marathas and housed the administrative
section, the palace, the mint, and the granary. Titled Ganga,
Jamuna, and Saraswati, the granaries could store as much as 25,000
khandis of grain. Since the soil was not suitable for agriculture,
the provisions had to be stocked. Then there is the Teen Darwaja
i.e. the three important gates to gain access to the fort.
Another major attraction at Panhala is the Sajja Kothi that was
built by the Mohammedans in 1008 AD. There is a very interesting
anecdote attached to this monument. It is said that when Siddi
Johar, a formidable Bijapur General, attacked Panhala, Shivaji
tricked the general by escaping from the window of Sajja Kothi
while a brave stalwart Shiva Kashid disguised as Shivaji combated
the wrath of the general.
Shivaji, a religious devotee, did not undertake any perils without
paying obeisance to the goddess. The Ambabai temple stands vigil
to this, which is another, must visit at Panhala.
While at Panhala you may also visit the Sambhaji temple. The
Sambhaji temple was built in memory of Sambhaji, the first ruler
of Kolhapur.
The Someshwar tank of Panhala too is worth visiting. The tank came
into existence due to the quarrying of stones that were required
for the construction of the fort wall. There is a very well
camouflaged well with a three-storied structure on top, Andhar Bav.
This was cloistered to prevent any kind of water poisoning by the
enemy.
The Nayakini Sajja at Panhala manifests the intelligent warfare
strategy used by the Marathas to dupe the enemies. The Nayakini
Sajja has been very strategically located near one of the corners
of the fort to conceal a deep ravine in between. When the enemies
attacked from that corner, they would actually climb over the
make-believe corner of the fort to accede the Nayakini Sajja and
in the endeavor fall into the deep ravine.
Weather
The weather in Panhala is salubrious throughout the
year except July and August. The ideal weather to visit Panhala is
from October to December although tourists visit till May. The
temperature ranges from 25-32 degree C in summer to 20-24 degree C
in the rainy season.
Location
The small yet scenic hill resort, Panhala lies in
the lap of the Sahyadri mountain range. Panhala is located in the
Kolhapur district of Maharashtra. Panhala is situated about 22 km
to the northwest of Kolhapur on the Kolhapur-Ratnagiri road at a
height of 3177 feet above sea level.
Getting there
By
Air
The airport closest to Panhala is the airport at Kolhapur
airport at a distance of 35 km from Panhala. Panhala is 416 km from
Mumbai and about 200 km from Pune.
Road & Rail
State Transport buses ply between Kolhapur and Panhala every
2 hours during the day. The Kolhapur railway station is only 26 km
from Panhala.
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