Bhandardara Dam

The Bhandardara Dam also known as the 'Wilson dam Bhandardara' is one of the oldest dams in India and one of the oldest ones in Asia. The dam was built in 1910 across the Pravara river.

The stone-built dam, is said to have been named after Mr. Wilson, the person who was instrumental in building it. There is a circular garden located at the base of the Bhandardara dam, that is full of greenery, streams of water and huge trees. These trees are home to the harmless fruit bats that hang from its branches.

The Wilson dam at Bhandardara, has a height of about 150m above the water level. In the monsoon season, when the sluice gates of the dam are opened, a huge gush of water  plummets down to the rock below, thus creating artificial waterfalls, which are known as the Umbrella waterfalls of Bhandardara.

About 11 kms away from the Bhandardara dam is another famous natural waterfall of the area known as the Randha falls where you can see water falling down from a height of 45m.

Arthur Lake at Bhandardara

The dammed water of the Pravara river, also forms the beautiful Arthur Lake at Bhandardara, that is well known for its clean, clear and placid waters.

It is said that in ancient times, Agasti Rishi meditated at this place for a year, living only on water and air, and pleased with his devotion, the Lord descended to this place and blessed him with a stream of the Ganga river, which came to be known as the Pravara river.

About Bhandardara:

Bhandardara hill station. situated at an altitude of 750m above sea level, is located in the Ahmednagar district of Maharashtra in India. It is 70kms away from Nasik, 185 kms from Mumbai, and around 191 kms away from Pune. The nearest railway station is Igatpuri station. State transport buses are available to go from Igatpuri to Bhandardara.

Bhandardara is also home to the tallest mountain peak in Maharashtra, which is the Kalsubai peak (known as Kalsubai Shikar) which is at a height of 1646 m above sea level. It is possible to trek over to Kalsubai from Bhandardara.

Bhandardara hill station is very clean and beautiful, and not very commercialized yet, like some of the other hill stations of Maharashtra, such as Lonavala-Khandala, Matheran, or Mahabaleshwar-Panchgani. There are however some hotels and resorts available to stay here. The State Govt. run MTDC (Maharashtra Tourism Development Corporation) hotel is also available here. In case Bhandardara hotels and resorts are full, (as tourists rush here in the monsoon season), hotels can be availed at nearby Igatpuri, which is just about 45 kms away from Bhandardara.

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