Dharur Fort

Marathwada Circuit- 1200 Kms, 7 forts, 2 Caves
Day 1: Pune-Madha-Paranda-Tuljapur (360 Kms)
Day 2: Dharshiv Caves
Day 3: Tuljapur-Ausa-Kharosa-Udgir-Nanded (280 Kms)
Day 4: Nanded-Kandhar-Dharur-Kunthaligiri (290 Kms)
Day 5: Kunthaligiri-Kharda-Bhadurgad AKA Dharmaveergad-Pune (265 Kms)

Type: Land Fort/Hill fort
Base Village: Dharur
Where: 306 Kms from Pune, 72 Kms from Beed
Route: Nanded-Loha-Kandhar-Parli Vaijnath- Ambajogai-Dharur
Time visited: August 2011
Time to see around: 1/1.5 hours
How to visit: The best way is to approach from Beed. Its on Tuljapur-Beed highway. Bust since I was approaching from Nanded, I chose Parli Vaijnath- Ambajogai-Dharur road. Theres a left turn while going towards beed. One or two more turns will take you to outskirts of the village where the depleted structure can be easily identified.
My Meter reading from Pune: 840 Kms

Dharur Fort is built on plain on Palghat hills and natural protection by valleys around three sides and a trench built to protect from the front. Unless you enter it the valleys are not seen and it appears as complete land fort.

Dharur is referred in the donation given by rashtrakuta king, Govina III as Dharur. Before Aurangzed captured, it changed many hands including kingdoms of Bijapur, Bidar and Ahmednagar. The village was called Abad during times of Aurangzeb.

The main door was filled with water from the recent rains and was unapproachable. We climbed by right side through the broken remains. But the main door has two massive bastions on either side. A small pathway through this gate leads to an open ground.

On the right side another watch tower and below seemed like trench filled with water but the boy whom we had taken as guide mentioned it as a water tank.

The magnitude of construction can be gauged as you walk across the remains of the buruj.

On the left once you climb down main buruj you can walk over the fortification wall which over looks the water tank. The fort also contains three big wells.

The fortification’s walls are so thick that you can easily drive a 4 wheeler over it!

We didnt venture deep inside where there broken reamins of few building and Rang Mahal and Jama Masjid.

As sun started spreading is orange on the west with wonderful memories we started towards Kunthalgiri.