2. Peth (Kothaligad)
History of Peth.
The history of Kotligad fort can be traced back to till 13th century. The cave and the
temple carvings at the entrance of the Kotligad fort date back to the 13th century. Not
much is known about the history until the 18th cent. In 1716, this cave was captured by
the British. Then later on, on November 2, 1817, it was taken by the Marathas under
the leadership of Bapurao who belonged to the second generation of Bajirao. It was
recaptured by the British, on December 30, 1817, the very next month, under one
Captain Brooks. The British had the fort till 1862; it served as an outpost for keeping
vigilance on the surrounding valley and the hills all around it. Basically it's the only big
peak in the middle of a big valley surrounded by many hills, which made it strategically
important as a watch post.
4. How to reach?
Taking public transport, board an early morning train for Karjat and board a bus for
Kaashele or hire a dug-duggi (Big Rickshaw) that takes you directly to Ambiwali
Village. The base village is Ambiwali, which is about 10km from Kaashele towards the
east. Ambiwali is not on the main Karjat-Khaandas route, and so there are not many
direct buses to Ambiwali from Karjat or Neral. So it is a good idea to take the 7:15am
Khaandas bus from Karjat, and alight at Kaashele. From Kaashele, there are many
tempos available to go to Ambiwali. It takes about 20min. to reach Ambiwali from
Kaashele by tempo. To come back to Kaashele from Ambiwali, there are buses till
4:30pm and tempos till 6:00pm; you may also find occasional dug-duggi.
Private transport, take to Mumbai – Pune Highway enter Express Highway and exit
the express highway from the first exit (Shetung Phata) take the chowk route after
crossing Karjat junction keep going straight; around 4 to 5 km before Kaashele keep
a lookout for mile stone that will direct you towards Ambiwali; take right turn to
head towards Ambiwali. Just as you enter Ambiwali you will find T-Junction as road
that turns right. Park you vehicle here.
