Champaner – Pavagarh (45Km from Vadodra)
• Many great cities of antiquity around the world, were the centre of their civilization for centuries, only to be lost to the ages, and then rediscovered centuries or millennia later, reduced to rubble and ruins, with only the largest structures still standing, and the rest mere shadows.
Champaner is such a place. Here you can find an old palace, fort, several mosques, but also walk the ancient streets just as its inhabitants did five centuries ago. Champaner was an out-of-the-way pilgrimage site for hundreds of years, became the capital of Gujarat, and was then abandoned to be overtaken by the jungle. The city rose and fell almost as fast as the modern stock market, but left behind far more aesthetic remains. The city is remarkably well-preserved, with thousand years old Hindu & Jain temples; and mosques from the times of Gujarat Sultanate. The workings of a well-planned capital city is still in evidence, from granaries and fortifications to step wells and cemeteries. Champaner became a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2004
Jambughoda Wildlife Sanctuary (70 Km from Vadodra, 20Km from Kalidevi Ropeway)
• An easy destination to combine with a visit to Champaner is the Jambughoda Wildlife Sanctuary, which is a mere 20 km away. Full of forests of teak and mahuda trees, bamboo, and other lush vegetation, Jambughoda is home to large populations of many kinds of wildlife. The leopard at the top of the food chain is the primary predator, and its numbers have been increasing recently. Other large wildlife include the wild boar, nilgai (blue bull, the largest antelope in Asia), jackal, hyena, barking deer, sloth bear, and chausingha (four-horned antelope).
Before independence, the region belonged to the princely state of Jambughoda. The valleys that have nestled in the well-forested hills, have always been home to many tribal settlements. There are many places to hike through the forests in the sanctuary, thus making it is a marvelous camping site. For those inexperienced at camping, a forest rest house is available beside the Kada reservoir, one of the two reservoirs in the sanctuary.
Pavagarh Fort and Early Temples (2 Km from Kalidevi Ropeway)
The earliest part of the Champaner compound, the Pavagarh fort was an important fortress of the Solanki kingdom. The walls of the fort are still standing in parts, as are parts of the earliest known Hindu temple, a Lakulisa temple dating back to the 10th or 11th century. Other Hindu and Jain temples dating back to the 13th-15th centuries, are of the Nagara style.
Nearby hotels / accommodation
• Hotel Chapaner, Manchi – 0281-2473466, 09824030645; 09574855500
• Hotel Heritage – 02676 320955, 081280 68252
• Hotel Sarvottam – 02676 247223 / 224, 08511099223 / 224
