Maratha Empire. The district has a number of mountain forts and buildings from these eras, in addition to shrines revered by Marathi Hindus (including five of the eight Ashtavinayaka Ganesha temples). Samadhis of the two most revered Marathi Bhakti saints (Dnyaneshwar and Tukaram) are in Alandi and Dehu, respectively. The main temple of Khandoba, the family deity for most Marathi Hindus, is in Jejuri. The British designated Pune as the monsoon capital of the Bombay Presidency, and many buildings and parks from the era remain. Hill stations such as Lonavla and Khandala also date back to the Raj, and remain popular with residents of Pune and Mumbai for holidays. The district's mountains, forests and reservoirs are popular for hiking and birdwatching. Bhigwan, a catchment area of the Ujjani Dam, is about from Pune on NH-65, the Pune–Solapur highway. An area of about has been proposed as a sanctuary for migratory birds. Pilgrimage sites Alandi -The town attracts millions of devotees annually to the resting place or (Samadhi) of the 13th century Marathi Bhakti saint, Sant Dnyaneshwar Bhimashankar -Bhimashankar is one of the twelve Jyotirlinga Shiva temples in India. It is located high in the Sahyadri mountains, 127 km from Pune. Bhīmāshankar is also the source of the Bhima River, the main tributary of the Krishna river. Dehu - The town on the banks of the indrayani river is associated with Tukaram, the 17th-century poet-saint of the Bhakti movement in Maharashtra. The town is visited by hundreds of thousands of people for the annual Pandharpur Wari when the paduka (symbolic sandals) of the saint are carried to Pandharpur in a palkhi. Nira Narsingpur - The town has an historic temple dedicated to Lord Narasimha, an Avatar. The temple is located close to the ghat at the confluence of Bhima river and Nira river, at the south eastern tip of Pune district, in Indapur taluka. Shri Narsimha of Nira Narsingpur is the family deity of many families from Maharashtra and Karnataka Jejuri - The town is foremost center of worship of the regional deity of Khandoba It is situated 48 km from Pune, Maharashtra. Khandoba at Jejuri is the family deity of a large number of families from different MarathiHindu communities. There are two temples: the first is an ancient temple known as Kadepathar. Kadepathar is difficult to climb. The second one is the newer and more famous Gad-kot temple, which is