Ratangad Trek and Camping

“Ratan” means Jewel in Hindi. This hill fort is indeed a jewel in all the hill forts here in Sahyadri. Geographically Ratangad is on the banks of Bhandardara lake in Ahmednagar district at a height of 4255 feet above sea level. With views of the lake and the highest mountains in Sahyadri looks very much lost in time. A 1000 years old temple of Lord Shiva, the Amruteshwar Temple at Ratanwadi, is an absolute paragon of the high-class architecture of our ancestors, is at the base of this fort. Ratangad has still the remains of a fortress with bastions and stone walls. The caves on the top are cut from the rock face and can easily accommodate 25 people at a time. Water cisterns are usually filled with water throughout the year and trekkers use them as a water source. The Eastern side of the fort has some fortification left; one can see Rani Mahal here. From the southern side, one can see Katrabai and Ajoba fort very close. This site has also some fortification left, but most of it is damaged. Climbing up on the northern side, one can see a natural orifice (hole in rock, locally called nedhe) in the rock face, mostly made by wind. Strong winds can be experienced at this orifice. Descend to the western end of the fort leads closest to the Khutta Pinnacle via Trimbak Darwaja.

Ratangad fort has an excellent cave on the top big enough to accommodate about 30-40 people at a time. Apart from this big cave, there are several small caves too. Very few forts have a geological feature called "Neha" or "needle hole" which means a natural hole in the mountain where you can actually sit in and enjoy the high-speed wind.
Amruteshwar temple which is located at the base of Ratangad fort in the Ratanwadi is one of the old "Hemadpanthi" temples with fascinating stone carvings.                                                             

Summary:-
Type: Hill Fort
Height: 4255 ft.