The plan was to trek from Khandas to Bhimashankar via Shidi Ghat. It had been a last minute decision and I wasn’t quite sure of the response. Moreover it was Valentine’s Day, so I thought we would hardly have 5 odd guys who would make it for the trek. I was however amazed to see a gang of 22 nature lovers who had joined in. It was nothing but sheer love for nature which had gotten these folks here on Valentine’s. We all wanted to celebrate this special day with our beloved ‘nature’.

We met at Pune station and with our tickets pre-booked, we all headed to board the ‘Sinhagad’ express. Everyone full of zest, there was chitchatting, card playing, leg pulling, and roars of laughter. Time flew and we covered the 2 ½ hour journey to reach Karjat. Here we had a scrumptious breakfast feasting on the famous Diwadkar’s Vadapao before we boarded the tamtams (six-seater rickshaws).

We reached Khandas to get a glimpse of the magnificent views here. All we could see were the mighty cliffs of Sahyadri wherever we could cast a glance. Mountains and mountains all round with a height of over 2500 feet. We were to climb these today! We could identify the lofty Siddhagad on the left and Tungi on the right with the inviting Padargad right in front of us as we started walking. The Nagphani was peeping through the plethora to say Bhimashankar was right behind it. What a sight it was!

We started walking admiring the beauty around. The 2 km tar road was left behind in no time and we entered the thick covert. It felt good. It had been a 25 minute walk in the heat. The greens and the shade had a soothing effect and had made the weariness disappear! With a new vigor we started to ascend. There was singing and merry making on the way which too added to the delight while walking. Half an hour later, a stream of water impeded our way. Though there wasn’t a constant flow, there were small pools still holding clear & cool water. We were thirsty by now & it was the time for our first break.

Folks with us thought this was it. But when we said this was just the beginning, the expressions on everyone’s face was worth a watch. With breath caught in their throats, everyone looked awestruck(?) as I pointed out to Nagphani and the path to demonstrate what was to be accomplished. We quenched our thirst & after loads of photography we got back on our track again. We clambered a little ahead and then there were loads of alleyways which branched out of the main trail. It was here that we were kind of lost, climbed on a wrong slope and I fell off while getting back. I was with nature on valentine & how could it have missed this golden chance to express its feelings for me! J

The climbing and un-climbing on a wrong trail had put us an hour behind our schedule. However the search was over and we were now tracing the right path. As we scaled up a little we saw the first iron ladder (and we knew we were right). Enthusiasm doubled and we quickly took the steps to reach a wee plateau which was at quite a height. There was barely some place to rest our feet and we were on a cliff around 500 feet high. It felt as if we were hanging in the air.  Most of them were afraid to look down, but then the valley offered lovely views. There was abundance of green all around. We could spot the stream where we had just taken a break and far off was the wee settlement of Khandas village from where we had begun. Padargad & Tungi ensured they are with us to give us moral support.

The path from here on got a tough. There are multiple pathways going up to Bhimashankar (Ganesh Ghat, Bail Ghat, Karondara Ghat, etc) but this (Shidi Ghat) was the toughest of all. It was almost a vertical rock face that we were to climb. But thanks to that someone who had installed three iron ladders en-route making things a little easy. As we climbed the first one we were on an exposed rock face. A small rock patch had to be scaled to reach the next ladder and most of them trembled. Slowly and safely we helped all of them & we were done! Celebrating this small success we clambered the next ladder and here we saw the 3^rd ladder at quite a height. Another rock patch to be done before we get there! But this was relatively simple. We got here in no time. The ladder was in a small gully and besides it was a natural cave like structure. While most of them were struggling to get on the ladder, we seasoned trekkers halted for a while in the cave for a quick break.

Needless to mention the views from here were splendid. We thought it would be an ideal place to halt for the night. (I have been thinking so and wanting to camp in the night here for quite some time now, but to no luck). But then we had a long way to go & camping plans were no way on our cards. So we involuntarily got up to scale the last ladder and another huge rock patch above this. Finally we again entered the woods and this was the end of rock climbing. Hush! There was a long silence and everyone heaved a sigh of relief. It was as though a new energy wave had struck everyone and we seemed to be walking fast. A short walk later we were on a huge plateau. There existed a wee settlement here inhibited by a few farmers who cultivated paddy as the means of their livelihood. This was a junction of the Ganesh ghat and Shidi Ghat routes. There were few hutments where we thought we should rest for a while and to quench our thirst the village boys sold us some buttermilk.

It was the mealtime and the plan was to have lunch at Bhimashankar. But we were running late so there was nothing much we could do. Everyone was hungry. So we gobbled some biscuits & dragged ourselves. The climb after this was a strenuous and sun over our head, it was difficult to walk. But then we were left with no choice. We walked and kept on walking – slowly and steadily till finally round the corner we saw some shade. The path was getting into thick woods again. Yippee! It was a moment to rejoice. It was a thick forest cover, densely populated with greens which left no room for sunlight. It was like entering a dark room. There was chill in the air here. The lovely breeze refreshed us. We almost forgot we were tired and kept walking. There was a new hope that Bhimashankar was just round the corner and we were going to be there soon. And how true! A 10 min walk in the jungle and the destination was right in front of us.

The walk in the greens was refreshing and within no time we were on the edge of a vale. On the left was Siddhagad standing tall inspiring us! “It is hardly 10 min from here”, I said and pushed everyone. It was surely the last climb, but not all that easy. Primarily because everyone was weary and hungry. But this too passed by and in no time were we at Bhimashankar!

As we reached here everyone “feasted” on the traditional chilled nimbu pani to quench the thirst. We had finally made it was the feeling evident on everyone’s faces. The lord had answered the prayers felt everyone who were now craving for the darshan of Lord Bhimashankar. Bhimashankar, said to have been carved by King Zanj in the 9^th century, is a jyotirlinga – one of the 12 most important shrines of Lord Shiva! So the trek actually would have been incomplete without the experience of the holiness here! Everyone almost immediately rushed to the temple and came out satiated like never before!  

There was still time for the 6 pm ST bus. None of us had had lunch. So we grabbed a stomach-full and came over to the ST stand to wait for the bus. Somehow Abhijit did not seem to be satiated by the lunch & had a strong craving to have cheeku and he got a few of them and some tamarinds. So the next half an hour flew by relishing the sweet tidbits.

The bus arrived. It was the last ST bus for Pune of the day, so it was going to be crammed. The moment it showed up, all the passengers flocked around making it impossible for us to get in. We were helpless but had strong determination of grabbing a set for all 23 of us. So we pushed some tiny tots amongst us through the window and they grabbed a seat for us. We then happily got in after all the crowd and proudly sat down. The expressions on the faces of the fellow passengers were worth a watch and the experience good enough to be remembered!

The journey began and we had settled quite well. The late lunch had given us good amount of energy to ensure no one dozes off. We sang aloud to play antakshari. At times we were so loud that eventually when we reached Manchar the conductor had to ask us to stop. A small nap thereafter and we reached our homes at around 2230 hrs.

Irrespective of the odds, it was a day well spent and definitely unique valentine celebration. I am sure it is difficult so forget such a wonderful experience!

Things were absolutely unplanned for all we knew was the source (Kanniyakumari) and the destination (Goa & back to Pune). The beaches, places of historical and tourist importance were what we intended to explore between the two. Varied people… mixed reactions… “Is it really essential to go biking?”… “Wow that’s really ambitious!”… “Hmm! I’m actually feeling jealous.” were some of the responses. And with blessings and good luck from all well wishers; Vishal and I set out to this exciting journey on Dec 24, 2008.

Day 1 to 3 : Dec 24 to Dec 26, 2008 : Pune to Kanniyakumari
Train journeys have always been mind-numbing especially when it was to be as long as 40 hours! But destiny did not give us options and we travelled over 2000 km to reach Kanniyakumari at 12:15 pm on Dec 26, 2008. Excited as never before; we got off the train and enquired about the parcel office to get the bike. The excitement however turned to be short lived as the bike hadn’t reached and was scheduled to get there by the next noon. It meant waste of a day and change of plans which disappointed us to the core; but again we didn’t have an option.

We stepped out of the station, checked-in in a small hotel, freshened up and set afoot to explore Kanniyakumari - a diminutive town nestled on the land’s end and surrounded by the sea on three sides. Arabian Sea, the Indian Ocean and the Bay of Bengal converge here to form what is called the Triveni sangam offering spectacular views of the sea. With the sea by our side we went on to see Gandhi Mandapam. Exhibiting Orissa style of architecture it is a memorial to Mahatma Gandhi it stands tall on the place where Gandhiji’s ashes were kept before immersion in the sea. It is said to have designed in such a way that on Oct 2^nd, the sunrays peep through a roof hole falling exactly on the place where his urn was kept. Besides the Mandapam was Kamaraj memorial – an accolade to K. Kamaraj the chief minister of Tamilnadu & a great freedom fighter.

Kanniyakumari boasts of the first ever wax museum in India located a couple of km away from Gandhi mandapam. An artist impressed by London Wax Museum has exhibited his work – a place definitely worth a visit. The museum houses wax statues of Amitabh Bacchan, Shahrukh Khan, Swami Vivekananda, Mother Teresa, Indira Gandhi, Mahatma Gandhi amongst many others. These seem so realistic that if they could move around and talk one would not have been able make out the difference.

Sunset
It was almost time for sunset and hence we turned to the sunset point. Besides this was a small secluded beach stretch surprisingly with not a single soul here! So we played with the sands… the ocean… and my camera as we watched the sun go off to sleep.

The Lost Identity
Kanniyakumari, as a first impression; to me, was that of a town with lost identity. You walk out of a miniature railway station to be greeted by more or less half a million tourists, a few dozen of hotel signboards and loads of small eateries serving Gujrati, Marwadi, Rajasthani, Marathi, Punjabi … all except South Indian food. And all of this nestled in a small stretch of land with a little over 1 km radius. The beauty and the identity definitely seemed to be lost in the over crowd of the tourists.

Day 4 : Dec 27, 2008 : Kanniyakumari to Kovalam (78 km)
Devi Kumari Temple
We were awake at 4 am for not wanting to miss the sunrise and set off for the shores. The Devi Kumari Temple – a shrine dedicated to virgin Godess Kanyakumari, stands right here overlooking the sea. The impressive idol of the goddess, made out of blue stone; stands as a charming young lady in Her atonement, with a rosary in Her right hand. She is said to be a reincarnation of Devi Bhagavathi, who remained virgin to end Banasura, the king of demons. The statue is said to have been installed here by Lord Parshurama. We had an auspicious early morning darshan of the Goddess and asked her to bless our journey.

Sunrise
Getting a glimpse of the sunrise, while in Kanniyakumari, looked like to be a ritual. Like Vishal, who woke me up in the wee hours of dawn; I was amazed to see a gang of several lakh aficionados who had gathered here to witness the sunrise. The sun probably would have been terrified seeing so many of them; as a result of which it took quite (7 am) a while before we could catch the first glance. J

Vivekananda Rocks
No sooner did the sun show up, than the gang had turned towards the jetty to get to the Vivekananda rocks. We made our way to the ferry through the crowd after a long wait. A quick 5 min ferry ride took us to the rock, which houses a cenotaph to Swamy Vivekananda mere 200 meters off the shore. There is a small rock projection here resembling a human foot revered as Sripaadam. Goddess Kanyakumari is said to have performed penance here, which might have prompted Vivekananda, a devotee of Kali to meditate here before he ventured to far off lands as India’s leading religious crusader.

The rocks offer spectacular views of the ocean around and one can notice the different shades of green waters. Rocks of varying size peep out of the clear waters from near and far; endowing photographers with abundant prospects to experiment with their camera.

Thiruvalluvar Statue
Adjacent to Vivekananda rock is another rock housing a statue of Saint Thiruvalluvar. The towering effigy stands 133 feet tall in the middle of the sea offering a sight worth a watch. A boat ride took us there so that we could bow to the great saint and the artists who crafted the statue.

Our Lady of Ransom Church
The towering apex of this church holding a hefty cross had caught my attention since we came here. This shrine dedicated to Lady of Ransom, I feel, is the most remarkable structure in Kanniyakumari. Built in Gothic Roman style the church has historic evidences of St. Thomas and St. Xavier visiting this place. It was a great feeling to enjoy the peace and silence inside the church.

It was nearing mealtime & we were hungry already. We relished on a good meal – the typical Kerala Parotta and Chicken Chettinad before we checked out and headed towards the station to pick out bike. Fortunately it had arrived … oh what a relief! We grabbed it and dragged it for a km to the petrol pump to contain a tank-full. Enthralled, I tried to start, but in vain. Then we had to drag it a km further to reach the mechanic. It took us 4:30 pm before we were ready to start. Excitement took over again and we were on the road. Kovalam was the destination we were heading to.

We hit NH47, which offered stunning views as we rode on. On one hand were the hills of the Western Ghats and numerous water bodies studded with coconut trees on their banks on the other. We enjoyed the ride for 40 km to get off NH and reach Kovalam by following the coastline. We came across Puvar and Vilinjam – two strikingly serene beaches before the hustle and bustle of Kovalam. It was already dark so we put ourselves in a hotel & had a walk on the beach before we were lost in dreams.

Kovalam – a commercialized beach :
While walking on the beach, all we saw was pure commercialization. Right on the beach were eating joints galore – big and small, serving delicious but overprized seafood. A buffet at ‘The Leela’ here was probably equivalent if not cheaper! There were houseboats charging 10K per night… cheapest of the hotels charging 2K as room rent… and the food so pricey! It definitely wasn’t a place for nature lovers like us!

Day 5 : Dec 28, 2008 : Kovalam to Karunagapalli
Kovalam Beach : Boating and Snorkeling
We wanted to take a dip in the sea and hence headed towards the beach early morning. The shores were quite and without a soul, except a few local fishermen. A bare feet walk over the fine soft sands was titillating. The waters were clear and the waves made a soft sound which was music to the ears. The sun was peeping from the hillock behind. It was a perfect morning!

A fisherman was able to convince us for a boat ride. He took us at quite a distance. The waters here were even clear and he showed us lovely corals. He then gave us an option of snorkeling. We readily agreed as we thought it was pilfer for mere 150 bucks. He got us back to the shore and then rowed back to the place we could see the corals. With the snorkel on, it was even better a sight. It was a perfect break for us to get intimate with the marine life.

Revitalized as never before we headed back to the hotel for a bath and almost immediately were on the road for the day’s ride! A 20 minute ride got us to Trivandrum. We wanted to go to Padmanabha temple but dropped the idea since we did not have a mund – a traditional white cotton wrap around worn by men. To enter any of the Keralite temples it was mandatory to wear it.

Enthralled by the beauty of the places we visited, by now Vishal had developed a strong urge to by a camera and we went on to get one for him. This really delayed our schedule by quite some time.

Veli
The locals recommended us to visit Veli – a very popular destination amongst the tourists. Since it was so strong a recommendation we thought we should and reached Veli. Veli is a small tourist village perched on the fine-looking shore near a small town of Kochuveli. It is equipped with cottages, eat-outs and water sports. A good picnic spot to be.

Varkala beach
The ride ahead of Veli was interesting with scenic views of the Arabian sea on the left. Enjoying the same a half an hour ride got us to Varkala beach. The beach is set adroitly between two cliffs. The cliffs have loads of resorts offering a good view of the beach from every angle. On the cliffs were two outsiders who were paragliding. With equipment of their own they were riding along with the wind high in the sky. I had always been jealous of the birds for their knack to fly; but today I was in fact I was jealous of these two.

Kappil beach
A few km ahead of Varkala is another very scerene beach of Kappil. With the shining silver sands and thick grove of palm trees the beach was a paradise for nature lovers. Photography hence was inevitable here. So a few snaps here and back on the road.

The ride after Kappil was truly a ride in paradise. A small thoroughfare lead us to backwaters and from there on the ride was along the beach on the left and the backwaters on the right. Picturesque vistas surrounded us on every side and we were confused what to look at. The waters of both the sea and the backwaters had the charm of their own leaving us perplexed as we were unable to decide which were better of the two. Beauty at its best! And yes, I must say that this small 25 km stretch was the best of the entire journey.

Kollam beach
We reached the Kollam to see a beach flooded with people which was a put off. Not wasting much time we decided to pack off. As we turned back we realized we had a flat tyre. Ohhh….! We dragged the bike for a km to the puncture shop & the shopkeeper with a broad smile on the face said that he did not have required tools. It meant dragging it a km further to get it done. The whole thing took us two hours before we got back to the road.

It was already getting dark and hence we couldn’t enjoy the thrill of good sights at Kollam backwaters. We rode along the same to reach Karunagpalli where we halted for the night.

Day 6 : Dec 29, 2008 : Karunagapalli to Guruvayur
Ambalpuzha Krishna Temple
We started early and enjoying a good ride with great sights on the way reached Ambalpuzha. Krishna Temples are found in abundance here as Lord Krishna is a pet deity of the Keralites and Ambalpuzha was no exception. The temple was an ornate structure built in the typical Kerala style. The temple housed a small statue of Lord Krishna. A series of tiny diyas surrounding the statue illuminated the garbhagruha. This early morning darshan delighted us and with the blessings of Lord Krishna we proceeded further.

Alleppy backwaters
Alleppy, our next destination, has been well-liked by the tourists for the breathtaking views of the backwaters and the houseboat rides. The houseboats made it a picture perfect with the backwaters in the background. We clicked some of the best pictures here which speak for themselves. Do I need to say anything more here?

Kochi
We then quickly grabbed our breakfast (the traditional Keralite Appam stew) before we could head for Kochi - the commercial capital and the IT hub of Kerala. It boasts of an electric mixture of the Malyalis, Jews, Christians… mainly engaged in some form of commerce or trade. Kochi is thus the most industrially developed town in Kerala. A quick 20 minute ride got us here. We knew we were at Kochi seeing the Chinese fishing nets which caught our immediate attention.

Model Tourist Village
As we entered Kochi, we saw a board directing to “Model Tourist Village” at a distance of 5 km. Curious, we followed the same to reach this place. On the banks of the Vembanad lake lay this wee township developed by KTDC for promoting tourism in Kochi. It had some tree huts, a crab center and a host of avenues offering a comfortable stay. Blessed with the shade of the palms and the tranquility of the clear waters of the placid lake the place has sheer ‘peace of mind’ and a great holiday on proffer.

Peace at Synagogue
In the heart of Kochi near Mattancherry rests a small Jew town. A Synagogue built here in 1568 is said to be the oldest not only in India but in the Commonwealth. It is said to have been destroyed by the Portuguese in 1962 and rebuilt by the Dutch a couple of years later.

The Synagogue hosts an exhibition of old paintings which are worth a watch. Later we entered the place of worship where the floor is made of hand-painted willow-patterned tiles from Canton in China. Each tile had a beautiful painting which was similar but not exactly the same. On close observation once can make out the subtle variation. We also found some inscriptions in Hebrew on stone slabs. There verses from the Old Testament were depicted on the great scrolls. It was a lovely place blessed with divine peace which could be felt even the crowd to the tourists.

Dutch Palace
With a feeling so celestial, we left the Synagogue, to visit the Dutch palace. The road leading to the palace is swamped with shops on either sides selling curios and antiques. Fabindia - the famous chain; had an outlet here with pretty impressive stuff. A gigantic yacht caught our attention and as we got in there were oodles of such antiques lying here. We did not want to buy any so we captured them in our camera and spent quite some time here. One of the salesgirls then said that we would be charged for any more photos taken (indirectly we should leave ); so we got out and walked our way to the palace.

The Mattanacherry palace built in traditional Kerala style architecture was originally built by the Portuguese in 1555 as an endowment for the Maharaja of Kochi. It was then renovated by the Dutch in 1663 and from here on; it came to be known as the Dutch palace. The palace houses an exhibition of old paintings and murals depicting scenes from Hindu epics. Also on display are various artifacts of the olden days, maps drawn by the Dutch and charts narrating the history of Kochi.

Chinese fishing nets at Fort Kochi Beach
After peeping into the history of Kochi it was now time to get back to the sea. We reached Fort Kochi to see a succession of odd looking Chinese nets along the coast. These large cantilever fishing nets are made up of teak and bamboo with lights to attract fish when lowered in water. These owe their origin to travelers from the court of Kubala Khan who came to the Malabar Coast in 1350 AD and added to the beauty of the waters at Fort Kochi beach.

Fort Kochi incorporated a beach, a port, hotels in abundance and more. There was everything here but hardly a trace that would vouch for the place being a fort. All we saw was the bastion bungalow – built besides a very small stone wall; which was somewhat like the remains of the fort. Amongst all the hotels here, The Malabar Junction served authentic Kerala food where we ate our full and also relished on the exclusive ginger ice-cream!

Vypin Islands & Cherai Beach
All of what we saw at Kochi did not give us a feeling of that being a metro. We had been wandering in the old town for so long; but as we reached the jetty at Fort Kochi to cross over to Vypin islands we saw tall buildings popping up from the other end of the shore. The landscape reminded us of Mumbai and the “Kochi being a non-metro” feeling faded away. The other side of the world was active – the world where we had not been!

A ferry service helped us (along with the bike) cross over the vast expanse of the waters. Vypin Island not knowing what should be done. So we asked a passerby and he guided us to Cherai beach which apparently was very popular among the foreign tourists. Clear waters of Vembanad lake and the Chinese fishing nets welcomed us at Cherai – a stretch of virgin silver sands. There weren’t many trees here and it was quite sunny. Umbrellas hung all over for the tourists to take shelter. The weather was pretty and we felt peace within.

Chavakkad beach
Riding the beach way with incredible sights en route; we reached Chavakkad. Another beach endowed with so much beauty that we had a strong feeling of camping here. We spent quite a while speculating on the same and also expressed our interest to the passersby. They opined that though it can be allowed we shouldn’t be trying this. We accepted. They also suggested us to visit the beach festival where they were heading themselves. Accepting the invitation we headed to the main beach 2 km away.

A series of fishermen boats lay still on the sands. We grabbed a seat in one of them and preferred to silently witness the eventful beach. The place was flooded with people and colorful stalls dotted the landscape. Horse carts offered joyrides… people enjoyed the varied amusement avenues… and the eateries did the maximum business as always. There were kids playing with the sand trying to build sand castles… and we were sitting still, chatting and watching the sun go down. It was one of the best sunsets of the trip!

Guruvayur
The huge red ball of fire had already disappeared but it was still bright. We traveled 8 km to reach Guruvayur, lodged ourselves in a hotel, freshened up and were off to sleep to wake up in the wee hours of dawn for an early darshan.

Day 7 : Dec 30, 2008 : Guruvayur to Kannur
Guruvayur Darshan
We were wide awake at 4 am for the auspicious darshan of Lord Guruvayurappa (Krishna). Dressed in the Keralite traditional best – the mund we reached the temple. There was a long queue but our devotion for the Lord and the yearning for His darshan bestowed us the patience to wait for an hour in the queue. During morning rituals at the temple, hymns were sung in the praise of Lord Krishna and they sounded like music – so soft and soothing to the ears. The hour long wait did not seem long enough thanks to the priests who sung those hymns. We felt really blessed.

Thirunavaya
Our next destination was the Markandeya Temple at Thirunavaya some 50 odd km away. Markandeya is the chief deity of our family and so I was keen on visiting this place. The temple is situated 4 km away from Thirunavaya amidst a remote miniature settlement of Malyalis. The residents here understood nothing except for Malayalam which turned to be the biggest hindrance in locating the place. I had been here a couple of years back but was accompanied with a Mallu friend and hence was easy. With a lot of hardships we finally found the temple. Om Namah Shivay!

In the village of Thirunavaya lived a very pious couple who did not have a child. They implored upon Lord Shiva, who pleased with their devotion; decided to bless them with a child. But He put forth a condition that they could choose to have a child who is a devout and lives shorter or a child who is non-god-fearing and lives longer. The couple chose the former and thus was born Markandeya – an ardent admirer and devout of Lord Shiva.

As Markandeya neared his death Yama started from abode to take him away. Markandeya absorbed in sacrament heard a call of Lord Shiva as Yama neared him and he ran in the direction of the sound. A banyan tree opened up to give way to Markandeya and delay Yama. Markandeya managed to reach Lord Shiva to become an integral part of Shiva and attain salvation.

The temple today stands at the place where Markandeya attained salvation. There are three small temples besides the main shrine which house a shivlingam each. One can see a footprint engraved on each of these which are said to be the footprints of Markandeya. The banyan tree which is said to have given way stands right outside the main shrine which houses a huge shivlingam. The place is serene and gives a feeling of being complete after the sacred darshan.

Bypore Port & beach
With the anecdote of Lord Markandeya still running fresh in our minds we reached Bypore – which is a blessed with a tranquil beach and a prominent port. Fishermen boats of varied colors were like an integral part of every beach in Kerala and to this Bypore was no exception. The shade of the palms, the air so fresh, and music of the ways made this beach a perfect hideaway. Seagulls flew over the waters recklessly making it a picture perfect. We had a stroll over the walkway built far into the sea and tried to capture every moment we could at this picturesque location.

Kozhikode
Bypore had raised our expectations and Kozhikode put us off… As we rode along the Kozhikode beach we found it to be untidy and not worth a visit. It was long ride along the beach but we found no room for a nature lover to be and we just rode on…!

Kappad beach
By now we were on the verge of dying of hunger. We were expecting to find a good eating joint along the Kozhikode beach but in vain. So we hit Kappad, another serene beach 19 km away. At first we located a restaurant and grabbed a meal. The traditional Meen moilee with Kerala Parotta here tasted amazingly delicious. After our stomachs were full and souls satisfied we turned towards the beach. Cool breeze blew here making the ambience very lousy. The sand was so soft and fine; it invited us to have a nap. Vishal dozed off for a while here while I was occupied with photography.

Payyambalam beach
The ride after Kappad was on NH17 along the sea on the left offering views which we kept on appreciating as we talked. The icing on the cake was the Payyambalam beach. Clear backwaters lined with palms on both sides… small boats being rowed by the fishermen… and the setting sun in the background! Another perfect hideaway… adorned with beauty at its best! Being here was like being in heaven… for it seemed like god had whole heartedly sanctified this place with the best of all that He could. This place was a delight not only for nature lovers but for photographers, bikers, vacationers and more. Here, the silhouettes I could confine in my camera were among the best I have ever had.

We spent time on the beach, experimenting with the camera. We watched the sun drown in the clear waters finally fade away leaving behind the shades of red and vermilion in the sky. It got dark and we dragged ourselves out of there. We left with a heavy heart as it was the place I would have loved to spend days together.

Kannur, 5 km away was our destination for the day. We reached Kannur, put up in a hotel and dozed off. Another day with a great ending and we were eager to welcome the last day of the year to be yet another day like today!

Day 8 : Dec 31, 2008 : Kannur to Mangalore
Pallayam beach
Today was the day we thought we should chill out and take things easy. We woke up rather late to go over to Pallayam beach for a morning walk. This was a long stretch of quite beach with a very few people here. Some kids were enjoying beach cricket where as a few foreigners were seen jogging here. Some came there to enjoy the calm and have an excellent start of their day. With the sun peeping out of the hills behind the ambience was just right. We took a bare-feet stroll on the soft sands here before we proceeded towards the fort.

Kannur fort
Fort St. Agnelo or the Kannur fort as it is popularly known is a small fortification right besides the sea and said to be the seat of Ali Rajas. The fort changed hands many times as the power which controlled the fort controlled the trade.

A canon at the door bestows a warm welcome to a very small number of tourists who visit here. You enter the fort to be delighted to find it being well maintained. It houses a small museum which is now closed for renovation. You see a number of canons lined up along the fortification. Standing at the periphery, the fort commands excellent views of the land and the sea. We spent some time admiring the beauty before we got back to start the day’s ride.

Bekal backwaters
We were almost at the northernmost tip of Kerala and the only thing that we have been missing in the exhilarating 5-day ride was the boat ride at the backwaters. The houseboat rides were too costly and we were in no frame of mind to spend such an exorbitant amount. But at Bekal we had hopes of fulfilling this desire too.

We reached Bekal to be greeted by it’s beauty. Bekal is the place where the often repeated clichés of Gods Own Country come true. The backwaters of the Nileswaram river give birth to a place so stunning that its beauty hurts the eye. No wonder this is the land of Mani Ratnam’s ‘Bombay’ fame. This place soulfully captured in the monsoon blue-grey, is the ultimate trysting place where Arvind Swamy met burqa-clad Manisha Koirala in the movie.

Bekal Resorts Development Corporation (BRDC) has recently set up a small resort and a boating centre. The strong desire made us negotiate with these guys and they agreed for an hour ride for mere 500 bucks! “Wow that was a steal” we thought to ourselves and set out for the boat ride. The vast expanse of the Nileswaram backwaters left us enchanted while the palm lined boulevard added to it. The boatman was an interesting person and he kept us entertained as we enjoyed the trip. Vishal also convinced him to try his hand on riding the boat, to which he readily agreed.

Azhithala Beach

The boatman took us to an unruffled beach of Azhithala near the sea-mouth. Remote… inaccessible… and nestled in the palm greens - it gave us a feeling of being in heaven. With not even a single soul on the beach was as virgin as it could have been. Stepping on the soft pristine sands here bestowed us with a feeling no different than what Neil Armstrong would have had when he first stepped on moon!

Dazzled by the boat ride and the Azhithala experience we returned. On the way back, we saw eagles seizing their prey in the backwaters. Another excellent sight! As we moved out of the resort a bridge over the Nileswaram caught our attention. It was a foot over bridge to cross over to the island on the other side and is said to be the longest foot over bridge! We took pride in clicking some snaps here and off were we for Bekal.

Bekal fort
The fort is a 300 year old structure of red laterite spread over sprawling 35-acre piece of land standing 130 feet above the sea level. Vijaynagar kings Tipu Sultan and the British are said to have had ruled the fort, which now seems to be controlled by elements. The waves lash against the fort cliff far below and the ramparts command a brilliant view of the sea. Surrounding the fort are coconut trees in seen abundance wherever you cast a glance. The pristine sands, deep blue sea, and the coconut grove all around made it a perfect holiday destination with the ramparts of the fort adding to the splendor.

Chandragiri fort
Enthralled by the beauty of Bekal were we; when we reached Chandragiri mere 10 km away. A place so stunning; we couldn’t handle so much beauty! Chandragiri is a 17^th century fort built by Sivappa Naik currently under repair. But as we scrambled up the steep laterite steps to get to the ramparts; we got to see a view that was ever compelling! Wow… Superb… Magnificent… we were falling short of words to express the beauty of this place. Dense forest of palm grove on one side… the serene Chandragiri on the other… and the clear shining waters of the Arabian Sea beyond… we were flabbergasted!

Mangalore
Having survived the beauty we were now excited about the celebrations tonight. We had planned to reach Mangalore and have a blast to bid adieu to the year gone by. Our excitement knew no bounds and got us to Mangalore around 5 pm without a halt since we left Chandragiri.

We checked in, freshened up and I preferred to laze around while Vishal went out for checking out the options. There weren’t too many good options, so we settled for a bash at the Taj. We chose to be at the pub where the DJ was playing some foot tapping music. It was just the two of us for long when a family of five joined in. Thus it turned out to be an exclusive party for just the seven of us; which eventually was a boon in disguise. Due to the small number, the probability of us winning the prizes at the party increased and by the end of it we had prizes which amounted to 4 times the cost we paid for the passes. Oh Boy… that was a good! Adieu 2008!

Day 9 : Jan 1, 2009 : Mangalore to Marvanthe
Good morning 2009! Well it wasn’t really morning when we were awake… it was almost about to be noon. Shocked looking at the watch, we were ready in no time and on the streets riding my machine.

Kaup beach
A 50 odd km ride got us to Kaup – a beach so serene one can’t imagine. Huge rocks housing a light house divided the beach into two. We clambered up the rock to the light house base to get an admirable view of the picturesque beach beyond. Pristine sands of silver… boulevard of palms… a few fishermen boats… this beach was Karnataka’s best kept secret! And a treat for the photographer in me!

Udupi Krishna Temple
We rode 14 km off Kaup and striking entrance to the Krishna Temple notified us that we have reached Udupi – the land well known for its food and of course the Lord Krishna temple! We turned right to visit the temple. We came across the Ananteshwar and Chandramoulishwar Temple; the age old temples of Udupi and every ceremony at Krishna Temple begins with an obligatory visit to these.

The temple houses an idol of child Krishna which Legends say; appeared to Madhavacharya - a 13^th century philosopher-saint, in his dream. After retrieving the idol; he appointed eight saints to govern the temple for a period of two years each. These saints represent the ashtamathas or eight maths.

The temple is huge and following a long queue we reached the main temple for darshan. Few old ladies sang hymns in praise of the lord. An auspicious darshan in an auspicious ambience crammed our senses with peace and harmony. Delighted with the darshan we moved on to our next destination – Malpe.

Malpe Beach & St. Mary’s Island
Not very far from Udupi is Malpe – a beach, a huge ship building yard, a harbor, an island and more; all nestled within. We reached Maple to see hundreds of thousands of ships of varied sizes and shapes on the shores. Then we passed some oversized ships being constructed as we rode on to reach the jetty. We wanted to go over to St. Mary’s Island but unfortunately the last boat had already left. L We had a ride along the beach and left for Maravanthe.

Marvanthe – The sea, the highway and the backwaters
We knew we were at Maravanthe when we reached the point where NH17 cuts between the Sowparnika River and the Arabian Sea – a view which for long will remain unmatched. Maravanthe was the place I fell in love at the first sight. Waves lashed against crags on the left while a few fishermen rowed their boats in the still waters on the right. Water water all over… but seen in mottled moods! I happened to see the odometer and it indicated we had completed a 1000 km ride by reaching here! It was a perfect welcome to the most unforgettable destination of the entire trip!

As we entered Maravanthe, we had seen a series of trucks on the road side halting for the night; and we knew the 5 kg tent that we have been carrying would be finally put to use. We enquired with the locals and they said there won’t be an issue. Yuppie! Rejoiced as never before we quickly hunted for a small hotel, had dinner, convinced a local hotel guy to park out bike at his parking and pitched the tent. This was the moment I have been waiting for since we started the trip. The sleep that night was the soundest sleep ever!

Day 10 : Jan 2, 2009 : Marvanthe to Palolem (Goa) – Go Goa!
I was awakened by the early morning chill and the sound of the waves. I got out of the tent pleased by the sound sleep; to saunter on the icy sands. The virgin beach and the music of the waves to accompany me made the morning walk pleasurable and invigorating.With a pleasant start of the day and enthusiasm crammed in us, we were back to our routine – riding!

Murudeshwar
We reached Murudeshwar to be awestruck! On a hillock named Kandukagiri, which arises from the sea rests an idol of Lord Shiva. Looking down from a height of 500 ft, the idol has a distinction of being the world’s tallest. Visible from miles around; the icon is bound to catch attention, the moment you turn off the highway for Murudeshwar.

The icons here are newly built by R N Shetty who is keen on Murudeshwar holding key importance on the world map. The modernity hides behind it an old story though! Folklores say that Ravana performed his penance at Kailash and pleased Shiva offered him atmalinga; with a condition that he should not place it on the ground before reaching his destination, else the atmalinga would establish itself. Since it could bestow invincibility, the other gods felt endangered and sought help of Lord Vishnu who formulated a plan with Ganesha’s help. They overtook Ravana at Gokarna and Lord Vishnu covered the sun with Sudarshanchakra. Ravana thought it was evening and wanted to perform his prayers, but did not know what to do with atmalinga. Ganesha then appeared in front of him in disguise of a boy and agreed to hold it for him till he could bear his weight. Before Ravana could return Ganesha had already placed the atmalinga which immediately established itself. Furious Ravana tried to pick it up again but in vain. It had eternally set up itself in the ground and came to be known as Mahabaleshwara. Raged Ravana flung the remains of the case carrying atmalinga away which rested 32 miles away at Murudeshwara where the supercilious idol stands today.

In front of the idol is the temple where Shiva is worshiped in form of Aghora – the austere form. A soaring gopurum with two lofty elephant idols at the entrance welcome you inside for the darshan. We entered the temple being awestruck for a darshan that packed our souls with sanctity… a sense of being complete… and a feeling so peaceful and pure!

Om beach
With the sense of purity in us, an hour’s ride got us to a place to be captivated by some more purity – this time not by the Lord himself, but by His creation – The Om Beach. Adroitly snuggled amidst the small hillocks which appear to emerge out of the sea, the beach is in the form of inverted Om and hence the name. It is serene, quite, pristine, peaceful… and more. Words fall short to describe its tranquil!

The beach is a popular destination amongst trekkers, as it is one of its kinds where one can indulge in beach trekking. There are a couple of other beaches (Paradise beach and a private beach) in the vicinity which are inaccessible and have to be walked up to. These beaches are separated by the hillocks and one has to clamber up these and cross over. The hill tops offer bird’s eye view of the surroundings which is breathtaking. The easy way to reach these beaches is to sail across; but at the cost of the exhilarating views and the thrill of trekking!

Karwar
After spending some time enjoying the beauty of the landscape at Om; the excitement of riding resumed once again as were on the highway bound for Karwar. The excitement was not solely because of the beautiful views en route; but also because we were to reach Goa in a short while!

As we neared Karwar, a marine industry greeted us with a board displaying “prohibited area”. A huge stretch was covered by this industry, blocking our views to the sea; and we thought the board meant restrictions on viewing too! So we just proceeded.

We reached Karwar to be saluted by huge vessels in the sea and an immaculate shoreline. NH17 ran parallel to this shore offering excellent views. We halted for a while to take some pictures here!

Palolem Beach
It probably took us half an hour to cross the borders to enter Goa! Go Goa! We had been awaiting this moment since we began this journey 9 days back! As we entered Goa, the landscape completely changed. NH17 got leaner and thick woods accompanied us on either side. The entire landscape had a cherry tinge as the soil here was red. This beautiful twist in the landscape made the entire journey till Canacona very exciting.

In my previous visits to Goa, I had always missed out on the Palolem beach as it was almost the southernmost tip of Goa. So we decided to hit Palolem and just chill out. We were also pretty tired of riding by now!

Of all the beaches we had been to so far; Palolem was different. We could spot foreign tourists in abundance and a vast flea market catering to their needs. Loads of shacks on the beach serving delicious fish varieties and some of them had cottages for a leisure stay too. We checked-in in one of the beach huts and made ourselves comfortable.

We spent the evening getting intimate with the sea! The waters were clear but it was flooded with people. We also spent some time in making sand castles like many others who indulged in it. And after being tired of all, took a walk along the beach to enjoy the varying moods of the setting sun.
The night at the beach was cheerful. It looked like the beach which never slept! The shacks served delicious varieties of fish and we had our heartful of it for dinner. And then a short walk on the beach before we were off to sleep.

Day 11 : Jan 3, 2009 : Palolem to Pune
We had yesterday; had our share of Goa at Palolem. Since every beach in Goa is almost the same with similar flea markets, loads of foreign tourists and the shacks galore on the beach, we thought Palolem was an adequate Goa experience. So instead of exploring Goa we decided to return back today itself! (We had planned to return on the 4^th of Jan though). Goa was anyways my second home and probably by now we were feeling home sick too!

So we headed towards Panjim, grabbed something to eat and started riding in the direction of Ponda on NH4A. Last year I had tried the Amboli ghat route and wanted to try something new! So, even though it was going cost us additional 50 km; we still decided to take the Ponda ghat route to Belgaum and then to Pune. The road was good except a few 12 odd km near Castle Rock and we reached Belgaum around 3:45 pm. We went to the petrol pump to fill petrol and looking at our bike the person was keen to know where we were heading to. As we said Pune and he started calculating something leaving us perplexed. He said you guys will reach in 5 hrs and it came to us as a shock! 341 km were we away from our destination and he was talking of covering it in 5 hours! We took it as a challenge and our excitement and vigor knew no bounds. We finally reached Pune in 4 hrs 40 min taking a small tea break at Karad.

The bike-riding journey was a thrill but what thrilled us more was the last 341 km ride on the NH4! I reached home, had a bath and shared the excitement with all my friends with an SMS… “Biking from Kanniyakumari to Goa to Pune… 1807 km… 10 days… over 50 mesmerizing beaches… a mission accomplished! Belgaum to Pune 341 km in 5 hours flat!”

Trek to Prachitgad and Chandoli sanctuary was being planned and re-planned a several times since I had read an article on Prachitgad in a local newspaper. Eventually I also had read some blogs on the internet and the experience shared by these trekkers had developed in us a strong craving to experience this wilderness. The craving had grown stronger when I had 2 failed attempts too. The plans finally materialized when Nikhil & I along with 4 others (Mahendra, Cyril, Yogesh and Rajendra) ventured out putting aside all other priorities!  

Day (? / night) 1 (Oct – Pune to Helwak

We had planned well. With all the necessary camping gear, raw food to cook for 4 days, clothes and all essentials we all met at Pune ST stand. Cyril had come over from Mumbai & I had a long day in office too. We were to take the 10 pm bus, for which we all had just made in time. Luckily the bus got delayed and we got a breather.

We boarded the Chiplun bound bus at around 10:30 pm (finally) to find a crowd of people yapping and yelling in typical Konkani style which I find rather funny and enjoyable. We managed to squeeze ourselves, somehow found place for our huge haversacks and had to stand for lack of vacant seats. Eventually came out my sleeping bag and we all were found resting down on it very comfortably.

It was a long journey to but the weird experiments we tried to make ourselves comfortable made time fly and we found ourselves in Helwak in the wee hours of night. It was from Helwak where we were to begin the trek. But it was around 3 am and it was pitch dark. So the bedding and blankets came out and it took no time for us to start snoring!

Day 2 (Oct 9) – Ramghal - Bhairavgad - Patharpunj

We woke up at 6 am as it is always advisable to start trekking early. Done with our morning rituals we feasted on vada pao at the local eatery beside the small ST shade of Helwak. We were now fully equipped to begin this exhilarating trek for which we have been eagerly waiting. Wasting no time we left Helwak and began our journey. We were climbing the hill behind the ST shade. After a short climb we could see the tiny settlement of Helwak left far behind and at the back drop was the colossal wall of Koyana dam. Some part of the backwaters was also visible adding charm to the entire landscape!

A tiring 20 min walk got us to a small plateau atop the hill and as we reached here, there was another splendid view to bequeath us a warm welcome. The morning mist had all gathered together and we were almost in it. It had comfortably established itself on the farmlands we were walking through and the views above it were absolutely clear making it a scene that was picturesque!

We continued our trek and reached Dhangarwada in no time. From here it was another 30 min walk to reach our first destination – Ramghal! We rested a while here before we got on track again. This year Karvi (the wild flower which is the pride of Sahydri & blooms only once in 7 years) was in full bloom and it offered spectacular views on our way. Another icing on the cake this was after a series of spectacular views and there was more to come.   

We reached Ramghal to catch the first glimpse of it, with a breath caught in the throat! Ramghal is a natural cave hiding behind a giant rumble. You enter the cave to see the water fall over you & this is an experience to die for! The location is so exquisite that the pictures taken here always remind the onlooker of some foreign location. One fails to believe that something like this can really exist in India!

We were here just after the monsoon and hence, there was good amount of water here.  Enticed we almost immediately ran into it, to enjoy the shower. The water was cold enough to make everyone shout as we got under the fall, but then it made friends with us almost immediately. And we really enjoyed this friendliness! None of us wanted to get out, but we had a long way to go and hence I forcefully pulled them out and no sooner did we do that than we were on our way to our next destination – Bhairvagad, around 4 hours away!

It was a little steep climb over the waterfall before we entered the wild woods, thickly forested and just a narrow path to follow. The sun’s rays made futile attempts to reach the ground & the walk was extremely pleasant. However after a small walk ahead I had an itchy feeling in my foot and I bent down to see a leech crawling over me to extract all the blood it could. I swung it away, but then I realized there were too many of them. And when I turned behind I saw all my trek mates being troubled by them. All this while we were happy about coming just after the rains but now we were getting to know the negatives - the damp soil is extremely favorable for the leeches to breed! All throughout the trek we were going to be troubled by them. L

However, our enthusiasm did not die down. Sometimes letting them suck the blood and sometimes swinging them away we kept going. Nikhil and others made attempts to keep them away by rubbing salt over the exposed area, pressing the infected area with turmeric and so on; but all in vain. The leeches kept on crawling over and doing their job. Someone then talked about leeches sucking the bad blood and it being good for health. These days leech therapy had been recommended for people troubled with pimples and similar problems. I had already stopped bothering about them and let them do what they wanted. Surprisingly, I seemed to be least troubled by these tiny creatures!

We walked our way with the woods playing hide and seek with us. We used to be walking in the woods and then suddenly they seem to disappear. And then they seem to appear from nowhere and this continued for quite some time before we reached the end of the plateau. Out here we were stunned by an absolutely spectacular view. The land came to an end and all we could see were bottomless valleys thickly populated with foliage of all kinds. It was an uneven lush carpet of varying shades of green with no scope of even the smallest part of brown (land) being seen. We could spot a stream of water flowing amongst the greens. The sun was right above our head and it made the water glitter, having a mesmerizing effect on us!

We now began to descend in this valley and reached a place where there were lots of plinths lying in ruins. Supposedly a village viz. Waghane is said to have existed here long ago. When Chandoli was declared a sanctuary the villagers were asked to move from here to a safer place & from then on no one has been staying here. The path beyond this led us to a stream. After following it for a while we were to cross over and clamber up the mountain. I had been here twice earlier, but even then we lost our way. The banks had widened as the river had swollen during the monsoon & hence the confusion. A lot of time was wasted in tracing the path, it just seemed to have disappeared somewhere rendering us helpless.  We were hungry by now and it anyways was time for lunch. Probably that was the reason why we were not able to find the way. So we relished on the pack lunch of puri and srikhand, relaxed for a while and then searched for the way. And to our surprise we found it in no time.

It took us around 2 hours before we could spot the temple at Bhairavgad. The temple is dedicated to lord Bhairoba and hence the name to the fort. Bhairoba is strongly worshipped here & is the main deity of most of the villagers around. The temple is huge and it used to have beautifully carved wooden pillars. Today the pillars have disappeared and what stands around the main deity as temple is a concrete structure. I was really disheartened to see this as I have, in my last 2 visits have stayed here in the original temple and the feeling was heavenly. The concrete structures can never give you such a sentiment.

We (I personally) were a little upset about this and hence decided to walk up to Patharpunj(The earlier plan was to halt at the temple and leave for Patharpuj the next day). Patharpunj was an hour’s walk from here – a beautiful hamlet & perhaps the only inhabited village existing in the Chandoli sanctuary as on date. We reached Patharpunj and it had been quite a walk since morning. We were tired and weary. We thus lodged ourselves at the village school.

It had been raining since we had reached the Bhairoba temple. The rains subsided a little when we had reached Patharpunj. The weather was just perfect – absolutely clear! There were lush fields around us and 2 simultaneous rainbows in the sky added to the magic! Wow what a way to refresh ourselves after a weary day! We chitchatted, talked to some village kids who had gathered around us & then went off to bed after dinner.

Day 3 (Oct 10) – Patharpunj – sada – halt in tent

We left Patharpunj around 8 am to continue our journey further. We asked for directions and crossed the bridge to enter thickly forested area. It was a bright sunny morning. The sun was peeping through the clouds. The sunrays were soft and tender. It was a good start!

We were walking through the extreme interiors of the Chandoli sanctuary. Lush all around and not a sound except the faint chirping of the birds. 30 minutes of this pleasant walk and we were bunged by clear waters of rivulet flowing gently. Then there was a splash … and then a series of them as we crossed over. The trail here was a little misleading, but we made it to the right one and which almost got us into obscurity. Oh well that was due to the woodlands so dense - sunrays couldn’t get through!

Finding our way was tough, for the pathways were narrow and there seemed to be so many of them. Some turned right and some left. Some climbed small hillocks while some others took us to small brooks. Some were straightforward while some others were confusing. Sometimes we relied on the directions we had, while many a times on commonsense. Thus continued our march towards Prachitgad!

It was almost chowtime when we got to a roaring stream of water. Clear waters hopping over life-sized rocks, with gorgeous greens in the backdrop – made it a picture perfect. The waters were inviting and we were tired enough to take a break. The sacks went off the shoulders voluntarily and so did we into the water. A dip here was incredibly refreshing. And then there was a delectable lunch followed by some rest.          

We crossed the stream to climb the cliff in front of us. The pathways were confusing. So there was a lot of climbing up to learn that the route was wrong and then coming down to look for the right one! This happened a couple of times when “gutkha” pouches lying on the soil showed us the way. (Since these were there we were assured that people have used this path in the past and that it was right!) We environmentalists and nature lovers have always been cursing people who throw plastic dump & spoil the natural beauty. But this was probably the first time we thought we shouldn’t be doing so!

We climbed up the cliff and found ourselves in bright sunlight. The thicket had suddenly transformed into barren land and we were on a plateau full off rocks of various shapes and sizes. This was a sight we had never seen before. This place was the famous sada – another attraction of this particular trek. It was a vast spread of volcanic rocks that lay over acres and acres of land almost forming a desert. And then there were series of such sadas spread all over. We crossed one to enter another and we kept on doing so for quite some time. There were prominent pathways which led us to the next one & we kept on wondering if we were being lead to the right destination. Our intention was to reach Prachitgad, but then we couldn’t get a slightest clue of where it was. All we could see around was shingle and plenty of woods far off. There visibility was good but we were still lost! 

We walked quite a distance trying to make sense with the directions we had but eventually found ourselves playing hide and seek with ourselves! It was 5 pm and almost getting dark – early because it was cloudy. And then suddenly it began to pour. We were least expecting it today – but then destiny had different plans for us! We decided to pitch our tents on the sada (away from the woods to keep away from wildlife if any in the night). Strong winds blew rendering the situation tough. With great efforts the tents were pitched we almost immediately got in.

The ambience was a dark, rainy and chilly. Most of us were almost shivering. So I quickly got in & within no time we were all relishing steaming hot poha and chai!  That served us our dinner along with some ready-to-eats.

It was raining till wee hours of the dark and this resulted in the base of the other tent (occupied by Nikhil, Mahendra and Raju) layered with few inches of water. Poor guys were awake throughout the night and so were we to give them company. Mahendra read and reread the directions we had & kept on deliberating on the way to Prachitgad and we kept on giving the inputs. It was definitely a night to remember!

Day 4 (Oct 11) – Prachitgad – Chandel

Good morning wilderness (I would have loved to say Prachit though!). Having survived the tantrums of the night, the tender sunrays gifted us with a fresh morning. The entire night we had deliberated enough on the route. It was now time to act and conquer. Thus, with full of vigor & zest, we were now on mission Prachit!

There is an incident worth a mention before I begin about the mission. As we were packing up, I happened to ask everyone to wind up quickly so that we don’t lose on time. To which spontaneously Yogesh answered “I am ready”. We all turned to look, to find him in his undies & cap still packing up. And then there was a roar of laughter, making it another episode to remember! 

We had to trace our way a little backwards to find the first arrow directing towards Prachitgad. Incidentally I had noticed this yesterday on our way, but then nobody seemed to listen to me. As we kept going we found a series of arrows which eventually were taking us close to the destination.

We were still walking through the sada. But the path was huge and pretty well defined. Thick woods seemed to like our company and they followed us at a short distance on the left. While we crossed probably the 4^th arrow, we came across huge water cistern on the way. This confirmed and gave us the confidence of being on the right track. We filled our bottles with the cool waters & quenched our thirst before we moved forward.

A short walk later the trail began to slide down & we were cutting our way through the thick woods. Eventually we found ourselves right atop the Western Ghats. We were overlooking the lofty Prachitgad which appeared to be a broken piece of the Sahyadri Mountains. Wow, Prachit looked simply stunning! We have had been waiting for this moment ever since we began this trek and finally we were there. Prachitgad – the king of the forts in this region was standing tall right before our eyes. It was a moment of rejoice! We couldn’t control our emotions. J  

Slowly and cautiously we continued to descend. A small ridge coupled Prachitgad with the Sahyadri Mountains. In no time did we reach this link and crossed over. From here on we had to hike a few meters to hit the iron ladder. The steps hewn out of rock were broken and hence the alternative arrangement. We climbed this to enter the fort.

The fort is spread over in the North-South direction. A fallen door welcomes you followed by a small square-like water cistern. It is followed by a bunch of house likes structures in ruins. There is a small Shiva temple atop with 4-5 small cannons lying in front of it.  There are also loads of water cisterns and a couple of bastions. Barring this the fort was in extreme dilapidated condition.

We had a quick visit to all the ruins and with the roars of “Jai Bhavani, Jai Shivaji” traced our footsteps back. We were to reach the place where we had tented last night. So we were walking on the same path again. Had we been to Prachit yesterday we would have saved an hour’s walk! But then destiny had plans of its own.

The path after this was pretty straightforward. It was a clear demarcated road for the forest officers to pay a visit in their vehicles. We however were to walk this route for quite a distance before could hit Chandel village. The walk was fun but at times a little boring too. There were twists and turns… highs and lows… shade and sunlight… and a lot more on offer on this path. We sometimes found ourselves walking over the edge of a vale & sometimes over grasslands. The edges offered dramatic views of the Konkan while the grasslands offered a beautiful carpet to walk over. The tweeting birds allured while the bisons made an effort scare us. There were dogs, wild hens and others who crossed our way. And well not to forget the tiny leaches which seemed to like our company so much that they followed us everywhere! 

It was a little over 4 hours we had been walking & the destination seemed to be nowhere close. Suddenly we came across a small rivulet. The waters were clear & gentle. There were trees around. The environs were scenic making it an ideal picnic spot. Our weary legs were yearning for a break and there could have been no better place! We munched, chitchatted and rested for a while to have our bit of picnic!

We crossed the watercourse to carry on with the never ending walk again.  This time a little more willingly of course! The short break had rejuvenated us enough to walk for another hour or so to cross another stream and reach Chandel. We had high expectations of getting to meet some villagers here but in vain. This settlement too like Waghane had been relocated elsewhere. There was not a single soul here except for a herd of bisons. They ogled at us. So did we and slowly moved away from their sight.

It was getting dark while we made futile attempts to find our way to Kundi. Eventually we realized it was inane to do so and returned back to Chandel. We got into a hut to be put up for the night. To our surprise it was clean and well kept. Some firewood lay in the corner. It wasn’t a 5 star but the comfort it provided to weary souls like us was simply out of the world. 

It got a little chilly in the night and we couldn’t resist burning some firewood. And while being besides it we also threw in some onions and potatoes. In a short while we had in front of us a delectable platter of starters. Every bite of it was from heaven which titillated our taste buds. We hogged as if we had never gotten to eat. These starters were followed by generous helpings of ready-to-eats heated in the same fire to serve as the main course. This scrumptious meal more than made up for the pain of walking since morning.

Day 5 (Oct 12) – Kundi Ghat – Kundi – Pune

The tickle of the sunrays at dawn woke us. After the sound sleep, none of us wanted to get up though. But the beauty of the morning sun was inviting enough! It was behind the clouds and not very keen to show up. It had painted the sky in various shades of vermilion. And there was very little blue which merged with it almost unknowingly. There was twittering all around and it strengthened as the crimson ball showed up.  It was such a dramatic sunrise!

We began early to conclude early. Today was the last day and we all intended to reach home early to catch up some rest. Kundi was the direction we were heading (?) The Sahyadri Companion said “Once you reach Chandel ask for the route to Kundi and start the easy descend”. But then who could we ask? There was no one around and the Kundi ghat has not been in use since long. So locating the approach to the ghat wasn’t as easy as it seemed to be.

We wandered for a while & looked around. Eventually we followed a sada-like diversion and walked over to the edge of a dale. We could somehow identify Mahimatgad and we knew the route had to be somewhere around. But what lay in front of us was a thick undergrowth making things difficult. We made our way somehow through it and phew, we had found it. (We were not very sure though!) We all continued to walk in the thick cover making way for ourselves as we descended.

A short walk of around 45 minutes got us out of the jungles and we were standing on the Sahyadri ranges overlooking the bottomless green valleys of Konkan. We could now clearly see Mahimatgad and Kundi village at the foothills far away (but at least now we could see it). And we also could see our path downwards. “This is a winning moment & let me capture it” exclaimed Cyril with joy & we joined in. We triumphed. We rejoiced. And Cyril captured the spice of this moment in his camera before we moved forward. Everyone was overwhelmed and the zest had doubled. The speed with which we started descending more than doubled with Raju leading and not wanting to stop at all even multiple requests, orders or shouts.

We got into shrubs and waded through thorny bushes. The path was sometimes easy while otherwise there was a sharp descend. We found ourselves walking on small plateaus at times and sometimes on the periphery of the high mountains. There was a huge variation in the landscape every 200 m or so. And the walking was fun. We knew we were to reach Kundi in no time, but then that no time seemed to be quite long. It had taken us around 3 hours before we could hit the farmlands of Kundi.

We entered Kundi to be welcomed a gushing river. (Every day we came across one and today was no exceptionJ). We had gotten into the bushes & dirtied ourselves in the soil. So we couldn’t have ever ignored this lovely chance to bathe here. We got in and enjoyed ourselves as if there is no tomorrow. And that was practically true. Then onwards we were going to be bathing in the showers at home. So we made the most of this opportunity. We had a dip… we bathed… & we swam. We stared at some fish while some village kids gathered on the opposite bank to stare at us. There probably would have been a better thing to do after that enervating walk.

We were in no mood to get done with the bath. But we had learnt from the kids that the ST bus was to leave at 1:30 pm. We were running to close and so we dragged ourselves out. As we got back to dress up we found loads of butterflies had gathered on our shoes. This was another unique site we saw during this trek to make it even more memorable.

The kids guided us to the village and we were welcomed by an extremely hospitable family. They offered us cool water to drink and also offered some cucumbers to eat. These were grown in the farms by themselves and were huge. Some were as huge as a sword which they offered us for taking back. Nikhil seemed to be extremely overwhelmed with all this & was saying kind words in their praise. To this we wanted him to settle down here and went to the extent of asking the lady, about her daughter to wed Nikhil. The honeymoon of course would have been on sada – Nikhil was madly in love with this place already!

Shortly after some rest and Nikhil’s leg pulling it was time to bid adieu to the lofty Sahyadri mountains standing tall all around us at Kundi.  We thanked them for the wonderful 4 days they gifted to us before we boarded the bus to Devrukh. We changed buses here & returned back to Pune.

It was a wonderful feeling to be back at home. But our mind wandered & stayed in Chandoli forever. Whenever we all meet, there is always at least mention about this trek. It is interesting to hear from Mahendra about his research on the leaches, about sada and more importantly the people who have visited there! 

Prachitgad

Situated on state highway # 2, Malshej ghat is a beautiful road connect between Kalyan and Ahmednagar. 125 km from Pune and almost at the same distance from Mumbai, this dreamland is accessible all round the year by the loads of ST buses that ply on the highway. But it is highly recommended you get a vehicle of your own. No! Not a car – but a bike, for it is the best way to get intimate with this cloud nine and experience the wilderness of the ghat!

The ride begins with the hustle and bustle of Nasik highway but as you turn left at Ale Phata to go towards Kalyan; you would be astonished to find yourself far away from the maddening crowd. Nature then begins to unfurl and the mountains allure you with their charm. The green hills and a clear blue sky at the backdrop makes it perfect wallpaper set on the windows of your gazing eye. And this is just the beginning… Hold your breath till you get to see many such landscapes when you reach Malshej!

Two mountain ranges have to be traversed before you actually reach here, one via Vel Khind (pass) and another through Ganesh Khind. The route through these passes is a boulevard dotted with cute yellow flowers of Sonki, if you are here post monsoon. And the air here is so fresh and pure – it refreshes you, as you ride on!

You finally reach Malshej to first catch a glimpse of the Pimpalgaon Joga Dam. The drive had been beautiful enough but when you cast a glance at the vast expanse of the dam’s backwaters and the lofty cliffs in the milieu - the picture holds the kind of ethereal excellence that makes your breath catch in your throat! Pimpalgaon Joga is a 5 km long bund obstructing the clear waters of the Pushpavati River, which springs out at the foothills of Harishchandragad fort. The dam is responsible for crafting a lake that inflates after downpour, soaking a stretch of land and plentiful trees with the taller ones peeping out!

Further down the highway is a short tunnel, after which the ghat begins to descend. You pierce into the tunnel, little expecting that the light at the end would fall on a series of waterfalls tumbling down a rock face. Enthralled by the sight you ride down the lane that runs beneath successive overhangs with the cold waters spilling all over you.

Malshej during cloudburst is a sheer paradise. It is the time when Mother Nature, dressed up with varying shades of green stands by to bestow you with her best. Bewitched by her beauty, the clouds go crazy and shower all their love in the form of drizzle. As the rains lash against the crags, the ghats come into their own. Wet roads make long curves along the cloud covered valleys towards the distant peaks. The haze in the environs sometimes impairs the visibility even up to 5 feet and your heart almost skips a beat when you turn along one of those long curves!

Having survived the charisma of the ride along the ghat, it is now the time to make friends with nature. So, park your bikes and get undressed to rest yourself under a cascade. The waters soon socialize with you and hit your bare body. Enjoy the rubdown and when waterlogged, drag yourself out to relish the hot bhajiyas, served at a lone eatery just near the tunnel.

From a mini cascade to a king-size rumble – the scores of waterfalls are a forte of Malshej. At times the cold breeze that blows, forces the falling water upwards creating a scene worth a watch – a waterrise!

Malshej is a splendid rendezvous with nature as you can never imagine. And the pink-legged European Flamingos had discovered it much before we could. Thousands of these arrive here every year in monsoon and their graceful mating dance – another specialty of Malshej, is a moment to be cherished for lifetime! But not every one is lucky enough. To experience this glorious jiffy, one has to wade far into the backwaters of the Pimpalgaon Joga Dam.

4 km ahead of the dam, hovering at the edge of the plateau is the comfy Flamingo Hill Resort. Endowed with the location excellence, it is a privately managed MTDC inn – the most remarkable place to lodge yourself. At the backyard of the resort is the land’s end. Stand at the periphery to feast your eyes with the panoramic view of an odd 2500 feet deep valley. In the monsoon it is typically dictated by the clouds, which descend so low and the miasma makes your wits fly like a free bird. And then you begin to envy those wee creatures for their knack to fly!

Having survived the splendor of the ghat, Malshej must have already triggered millions of expectations in you. So get geared for an intimate rendezvous with nature this cloudburst!

- Amit Chilka

40 km off Bhor as you drive down the state highway, nature allures you with all its charm. One is bound to be mesmerized by the Devdhar dam and the vast expanse of its backwaters. Encased by sierra, the colossal walls of the dam block the waters of the river Nira, which invite you to take a dip.

The journey then continues along a zigzag pathway, which has been constructed along the spurs of a lofty mountain. The turns are so indistinguishable that one might end up thinking he has been lingering around the same place. One might even recall the instances from the movie “In the mouth of madness” especially when driving here in the dark! The thought makes the breath catch in your throat, but no sooner does the crisscrossing end than you begin to feel better.

As you descend the road, the show begins to unfold. You do not need a signboard pointing out to heaven; you would know when you have reached the Varandha ghat. Skillfully set in the lap of the Sahyadri Range, Varandha has a charisma of its own. The towering apexes… bottomless valleys… soaring cliffs… gushing waterfalls… Varandha has it all and some more! It has, since long been a haven – a dream home for a variety of flora and fauna. Miles upon miles of verdant greens and the historic Kavlya fort hiding behind the grey clouds all contend for a glance. And mystified as never before, you don’t know where to rest your wondering gaze.

The ghat has forever been renowned for the overhanging cliffs of the Sahyadris which might want to pounce on to you anytime. You might skip a breath particularly when you turn speedily at one of the three sharp curves but the thrill is worth an experience.

Varandha is a paradise, not only during the downpour but even otherwise. However the clouds perform magic on the hills here. Dressed in colorful outfits of varying shades of green, they are all set to bequeath you a warm welcome. The ghats bathe in showers to wear a fresh look and the drive at this time takes a stout heart to bear. The rolling mist adds to the magic, creating an ambiance so romantic - you wish you had a honeymoon here every weekend!

Having endured the beauty of the ghat, Varandha must have already triggered tons of expectations in you. Just chill, for there won’t be lots to do! It is here at Varandha that you are expected to forget yourself to get intimate with nature. Don’t worry for you will find here ample time to gape around. And once you are done, do not hesitate to bestow your loved one the attention she always wanted. Take her for a long drive or simply be seated conversing with her on the green carpet and she would always appreciate the best time you ever spent together!

If you are the unlucky - or rather lucky ones to not get your beloveds here you could simply continue to bask in this blessed state. The best way to enjoy here is to take off your clothes - to the point where ‘nature’ is still what people want to see, and get under a rumbling waterfall. You might shout out loud at the instant you step in, as the water would be ice-cold. But as you get acclimatized, you would enjoy the rejuvenating hydro-massage. Once contented, drag yourself out and savor on the hot bhajiyas and tea on offer in the local tapris. There is nothing like sipping the tea standing on the edge of the vale, with cold breeze striking your bare body and you gazing at the nature trails. Take pride in showing your pals the Madhe ghat, Supenaal, Gopya ghat, and the historic Kavlya fort.

Trekking enthusiasts can take pleasure in hiking the fort or descending one of the ghats to reach Shivtharghal, the cave where Ramdas Swami is said to have recited the legendry epic The Dasbodh.

A weekend at Varandha is thus full of frolic, excitement and adventure! Come here to make friends with nature and you will certainly cherish for lifetime the moments spent here!

- Amit Chilka

Day 1 : Dec 22, 2007
Pune – Borivali
We had been planning for this since long and as the D-day neared, the excitement was really building up. I had packed my things yesterday and was geared up for the expedition. Finally I was going to be with the Arabian sea … and this time for real long!

I started from my place around 4 pm with sack on my back, camera bag hanging on my shoulders and helmet over my head. With my cell phone hands-free plugged in my ears I was listening to music and merrily heading towards Mumbai.

Mahd Ganpati – The temple at Mahd is one of the ashtavinayakas and the home of my pet deity Lord Ganesha. How could I have missed the darshan especially when I was going to be on such a long awaited expedition? The blessings were definitely essential for the successful completion of the expedition. After being blessed by Lord Varadvinayaka, I proceeded towards Mumbai & reached Akshay’s place finally at 10 pm following Powai – Arey Colony route.

Day 2 : Dec 23, 2007
Borivali (Akshay’s Residence) – Unfortunately we ended up with a sleepless night because of the sheer excitement of the expedition which was to commence today. Awake at 5 am we stepped out of the house with blessings from Akshay’s parents and promising them that we would call them up everyday. Our exhilaration knew no bounds as it was hard to believe that we had actually off to conquer the forts on the coastal belt of Maharashtra.

We had our eyes on the road to Alibaug, that being the first destination. We were to follow the NH17 up to Vadkhal naka, take a diversion to Alibaug and post that chase the MSH 4 called the “Sagari Mahamarg” – the coastal highway which originates at Alibaug and runs almost parallel to the entire Konkan coast through the districts of Raigad, Ratnagiri and Sindhudurg and finally connects to Goa at Tiracol.

Alibaug – This was our first destination as this is where we were to touch the sea shore. We headed straight towards the beach. The beach has been ruined by the frequent visitors. But we still found many of them taking a dip in the filthy waters. Pitying them and taking a few snaps we spent few minutes here.

We could see Colaba and Sarjekot forts at a distance surrounded by the sea water. Due to the high tide we could not reach there so bid them good bye and headed towards the Kanhoji Angre’s Samadhi. A brave sardar of Shivaji’s troupe he had led many battles especially to conquer the sea forts. He was hence conferred the title “Darya Sarkhel”.

We then headed towards Hirakot. It is a small fort which now houses a prison. Hence we are not allowed inside to see the fort. Next to the fort is the Hirakot lake. Adorned with beautiful lotus flowers the lake was in full glory. The waters were clear and reflected the trees around making it a picture perfect.

Akshi – This is a small secluded beach right in the neighborhood of Alibaug. It used to be a quite getaway. But now you see a lot of people who are bored of Alibaug diverting here.

Nagaon – Yet another beach… nothing unusual about it as it is flooded with tourists.

Bairagi Ganpati Mandir – A beautiful temple enroute Revdanda.

Revdanda Fort – The Revdanda village is happily settled in the fort itself which is now in ruins. But for some fortification along the coast and a few canons there are no remains of the fort at all. The fortification has a couple of outlets to the sea shore which is calm quiet and an ultimate place to unwind oneself. The Korlai fort at the backdrop, the was expanse of the sea, the quite shore, the shade of the coconut trees and numerous seagulls… one cant believe such a beautiful world can exist when the hustle and bustle of the MSH4 is just half a km away.

Fort has an old tower which is in ruins. It reminded us of the location for “Kambakth Ishq”.

Revdanda has a beautiful creek. The bridge over it commands a superb sight of the confluence of the Kundalika river and the Arabian Sea. Once you have crossed the bridge a marine drive led us to the Korlai fort. The sea was so close to the road, it often felt as if the waves would hit us anytime. Enjoying the ride we reached a lousy hamlet of Korlai.

Korlai – The Korlai fort is on a hillock which is right in the middle of the sea. Behind the hillock is a lighthouse and a kuccha road along the coast led us there. The marine drive enroute Korlai had been good but this felt even better. At the light house we parked our bike and asked the person if we could leave the bag and helmets with him while we hike the fort. He agreed to do so if we paid him 10 bucks. A decent deal!

Steps from behind the lighthouse guest house led us to the fort which was barely a 10 min climb. The fort has a strong fortification and covered by sea on all sides. The waves hit the lofty mountain, creating a vista worth a watch. The fort houses water cistern, a diminutive temple of some unknown god, ruins of various constructions, lots of canons and a few Portuguese inscriptions. There are two canons at the light house too – well painted and kept as objects of beautification.

We spent half an hour here. It was getting really sunny and by now we had started feeling hungry. We left for Kashid hoping to have food and relaxing for a while.

Kashid – It has always been a beautiful and quite beach during my last few visits… Unfortunately today it was flooded with tourists and their vehicles. The woodlands of Kashid which are full of suru trees where today lost in the maddening crowd of the vehicles. A great disappointment, so we had a quick bite of ice-cream and headed to Nandgaon without going to the beach & without even having food.

Nandgaon – 7 km off Kashid is Nandgaon known for its famed Siddhivinayak Ganpati Temple. It is said that the Ashtavinayak yatra is never complete unless you visit Nandgaon for a darshan. Surprisingly not many seem to know about it!

We asked Ganesha to shower his blessings on us to have a successful trip, sat for a while to witness the holy silence and then headed towards the beach. Nandgaon is blessed with a lovely shoreline. Lined with shady coconut plantations the beach is as restful as it can be - all you hear is the alluring music of the waves. Stimulated as never before we left for Murud.

Murud – After about 18 km of ride we were greeted by the stunning view of the sea at Murud. We headed towards Rajapuri from where the boats set sail to Janjira fort. A 10 min boat ride got us here. It was a low tide and we had to walk bare feet on the slippery rocks to reach the entrance.

It was pretty sunny and we had started feeling tired. We hadn’t slept last night, we had not had our lunch and we had been riding whole day long. We thought we gonna break down. So we found a shady place and rested for a while. We sipped some water and it really helped. Refreshed we explored the fort and returned back to Rajpuri.

Rajapuri – We arrived on time to catch hold of the 5:15 pm ferry to take us across to Dighi. But due to low tide the boatman refused to take the bike on the boat. It meant a 50-60 km long ride to reach Diveagar. We were a little disappointed but suddenly people suggested we should try the Agardanda jetty which was 5 km away. If we hurry we could take up the 5:30 pm ferry from there.

Agardanda – We reached Agardanda on time but the ferry was full as it could carry only 6 bikes at a time. The boatman said there would be another ride at 6:15 pm. So we parked the bike, dropped our sack and got easy. It was a long day. We were tired after the long ride especially after the sleepless night. But our enthusiasm knew no bounds. We spent these 45 minutes gazing at the seagulls and capturing them in the camera. There were plenty of them there. Akshay mentioned they were his favorite among the birds. He also narrated me the gist of his favorite book on seagulls.

By the time we were ready to board the ferry, the jetty was crowded. There were lots of bikes too. But we managed to get ours on the ferry as we were the first ones in the queue. The sun had set and the moon was casting a reflection on the sea waters. It was a magnificent sight and was attempted to capture in camera by Akshay.

Dighi – A 15 minute ferry ride took us across to Dighi and it was pitch dark when we landed. Diveagar was 16 km away & we set off immediately. The road was bad, full of sharp curves and potholes making it difficult in the dark. We rode slowly and within an hour or so reached Diveagar to catch the glimpse of the Suvarna Ganpati – the golden Ganesha.

Diveagar – This was going to be our first halt on the trip and it was a fight to look up for the place to lodge ourselves. Tourism has become one of the primary source of income for the residents of Diveagar and most of the families here make typical gharguti (homely) arrangement for stay and food. But being the vacation season, it was a little difficult to find one instantaneously. We eventually managed to lodge ourselves at Adulkar’s Krushnai.

For dinner we decided to go over to Kelkar’s as I had heard a lot about the food there. Unfortunately it was overbooked and there was no way we could have been accommodated. He then directed us to Madhu Bhatkar whose eatery was popular for the fish preparation. And how true… we ate the best fish ever!

Day 3 : Dec 24, 2007
Diveagar – We were up early and went over to the beach to take a dip. We two were the only odd ones taking a dip in the sea at that hour else the beach was quiet and without a soul… except for a couple of fishermen. We thoroughly enjoyed the swim for over an hour before we got back to bathe and push off.

It was 9:30 am when we left and rode on till Srivardhan hugging the sands, as the road ran right next to the beach. The waters welcomed us with their arms wide open and the sights on the way were worth a watch.

Srivardhan – Thus enjoying the ride we reached Srivardhan in no time. Srivardhan is also the place of origin of the Peshwas and hence holds a lot of historic importance. But it is more popular for its calm and a peaceful beach. The road takes you right on the beach, so we enjoyed beach biking here and a lot of photography too!

Harihareshwar – Known as the Dakshin Kashi – the holiest shrine of the south; Harihareshwar is always flooded with aficionados of Lord Shiva and Lord Bhairava. There was a long queue here for the darshan and we ended up spending an hour for the same.

Harihareshwar houses a quite, secluded sea shore which invites one and all for a dip. There are steps behind the temple which led us atop a small hill. On the other side of the hill are steps that descend to the sea. The strong waves have hit the rock here to create various rock formations due to erosion. These are a sight and identifying various formations is a favorite pass time for many. So was for us!

We were damn hungry by now and found a place to hog, which we thought would be decent. All we got to eat here was Veg thali and that too was just OK.

Bagmandla – A few km from Harihareshwar is a lousy village of Bagmandla famed for its Jungle jetty which ferries people across the creek. We took the ferry to cross over to Bankot, entering the Ratnagiri district.

Bankot – 3 km off the jetty on the other end was the village called Bankot. Steep roads with sharp curves took us up to the fort, which was at quite a height. It was an undersized fort with strong fortification walls and bastions. It is in ruins but the fortification walls offer a superb view of the surroundings, as you climb on.

Velas – We descended the hillock and we were greeted a splendid marine drive. With the vast expanse of the Arabian sea on the right and the hillocks on the left we were riding on a small curvy road enjoying the fresh breeze. The scenery left us mesmerized as we continued our ride towards Velas. We had spent around 20 odd minutes to reach the sleepy hamlet of Velas.

There was nothing much to see as we had been riding along the shore itself and hence we decided to ride on to our next destination. As we moved forward we hit a dirt track which led to Kelshi. We had been instructed to take the long road as the road we were following was still under construction and most of that being muddy. But I had that extra dynamism and took pride in riding on the same.

It was a long ride and it took us almost an hour before we came across some civilization. The track so far had been very lonely, nature being the only companion. It was a miniature colony and we saw a school too. Also we were now on a tar road and it made us feel at ease. To further add to the comfort we were astonished to spot a local ice-cream parlor. What more could one wish for after such a long tiring ride amidst the clouds of dust?

We bought ourselves ice-cream from that local parlor named Shubham and really relished the local taste.

Kelshi – The sun was about to go down when we reached the Kelshi beach. Kelshi was a very quite and serene beach with verdant suru corridors and just a couple of souls around. I clicked astounding photos of the sunset here. We were so impressed with Kelshi we decided to park ourselves here itself for tonight. While looking for a place to lodge ourselves, the villagers advised us to put up at Punyaee that being the best place to stay when you are at Kelshi. So we headed for Punyaee.

Punyaee is run by an oldie who was a very interesting chap. When we enquired for a room for the night stay he asked us to sit down for a while and listen to some info he wanted to share with us. He talked about the rules and regulations of staying there and he mentioned “Danga karaycha nahi, jeven katakshane shakaharich milel, swachatela khup mahatvaa dile jate, pinaryana ithe jaga nahi” etc, etc. Finally he said he charged 250 bucks per person for the stay and food (dinner, breakfast and lunch). We expressed our intension of not staying back until Lunch and leaving by 7 am in the morning. He tried convincing us that it would be an injustice to Kelshi if we did not stay until lunch to explore Kelshi. He said there were lots of places worth a visit in Kelshi and there is a vast difference in just touching up and actually “seeing” a place. But we were clear on our plans. He then thought for quite sometime and finally agreed on 150 bucks per head for the stay and the dinner. All this took quite a while and though we enjoyed the conversation were also furious on him for wasting half an hour.

When he handed over the keys to us, we quickly changed to our beachwear and were off for bathing on the beach. It was already dark and only moonlight guided us to the beach and the water. We spent around 45 min in the enjoying the Jacuzzi of the sea water and headed back to Punyaee.

We had a refreshing bath and feeling damn hungry by now. It was 8:15 pm and we requested them to serve us early. The food was served in banana leaf and it was really exciting. It was served hot and had a very decent homely taste.

Day 4 : Dec 25, 2007
Kelshi – We started early and as suggested by the oldie yesterday we checked out the Ram Mandir, Siddhivinayak Temple, Mahalakshmi Temple, Masjid built by Shivaji Maharaj and the Bhairav Cave Temple. The Ram Mandir has beautiful paintings by some unknown artist depicting the scenes from Ramayana.

Anjarle – Anjarle is famous for its “Kadyavarcha Ganpati”. It is a beautifully carved temple built atop a small hillock which oversees the vast expanse of the Arabian Sea. The sanctified temple houses an eye-catching idol of Lord Ganesha – the pet deity of many a people all over. At the entrance were two small elephants. Beside it was a note written Baal Hatti, lahan mulana basnyasathi – young elephants meant for seating of children.

Locals told us to walk down a little to see the paaul – the pug mark of Lord Ganesha and the breathtaking view of the sea.

As we walked down towards the cliff, we were mesmerized by the striking view of Suvarnadurg fort and the blue waters of the sea. On a rock was a small foot imprint which is believed to be that of Lord Ganesha. We clicked some photos here and returned. Enroute was a small local tapri run by an old lady who offered us Haliv Laddu, saying it was the Prasad – the offering. It was actually her marketing gimmick. The laddu was incredibly yummy and we couldn’t resist buying a packet. She also successfully sold her aampapad and jackfruit chips. She claimed that the aampapad had no added sugar and we found it to be very appetizing. We had amla drink returned back to the temple and relished the tidbits bought – which served us as breakfast for the day!

Before leaving the place, the person who was cleaning the temple premises asked us to definitely stop by the Durga devi temple in the village. It was definitely worth a visit as it had wonderfully carved wooden pillars depicting very old architecture. There was no one here and it was really peaceful. Hanged out here for a while to have some good photos and we were off for Harne.

Harne – As we reached the village, we were directed to the beach to reach the Harne port. A wonderful ride on the silver sands led us to the port. Harne has been a very old port and has been in use even prior to the British rule. Hence it has a lot of historical importance.

The port is surrounded by 4 forts viz. Suvarnadurg, Kanakadurg, Harne – Goa and Harne – Fattegarh; Suvarnadurg being right in the middle of the sea. One needs to ferry across the deep blue sea and circle the fort to enter the fort. When in the ferry one is enthralled by the sight of numerous dolphins which pop up for a while to say Hi to the visiting tourists.

The ferry rider was an interesting chap and we had a lovely time listening to his conversation with the tourists he was ferrying across – of course we were amongst them too. He used to plead saying Baba re! Hey samudrache kaam aahe – nadi nahi ti when people refused to sit in the boat as per his instructions.

Keeping us entertained and showing the dolphins he took us to the fort entrance. He came along with us to show the fort too. He showed us the cannons, the entrance and the fortification, statue of Lord Hanuman, the water cisterns in the fort and the chor darwaja. It took us a short walk of 40 odd minutes to see the fort and get back to the boat. He then ferried us back to the port.

From here on we explored the other 3 forts. First the Harne – Goa, which is in ruins but it’s a good walk over the fortification with the sea ready to follow you. We also got a good view of the beach alongside. Then we went to Harne – Fattegarh just to ensure there is nothing there which could say there existed a fort some long long ago. Finally we just walked upto the light house atop Kanakdurg.

After Kanakdurg, my count of forts had gone upto 119 and with a sense of pride we left Harne. We were a little hungry by now, but then we could not locate a good place to hog. Hence we decided to have it in Dapoli.

Dapoli – We reached Dapoli in an hours time and first thing we enquired about was good eateries around. We were suggested to go to Jagdish – place known for its non veg delicacies. We relished on the fish thali, sumai fry, crab curry and we rated it the second best place we had our food after Madhu Bhatkar’s place at Diveagar.

We were told there is not much to see around and hence we decided to proceed to Dabhol which was again an hour’s ride from here.

Dabhol – Dabhol has been in the limelight in the very recent years because of the ill-famed Enron project. It is a massive project which has ruined the beauty of the quite village of Dabhol.

At Dabhol, the ruins of the very old “Anda Masjid” attracted our attention. It is an old stone structure and the designs carved in it are worth a watch.

At Dabhol another creek blocked our way and it was time again to take the boat to ferry across. Recently the government has started a new ferry service which has the capacity to ferry across a thousand people at a time. It also can ferry across cars and other vehicles. So we were saved of the pains of lifting the bike and putting it in. I proudly rode in the ferry, parked and climbed the stairs to reach the deck above. To our surprise this place had a small shop selling the typical Konkan meva – various Konkani products. Also beside this was a chap selling ice-cream! And the flavours were Mango, Gulkand and Jackfruit!! Jackfruit Ice-cream?- It was yum n very cheap too – mere 5 bucks a cup!!! In the next 10 minutes which the ferry took to cross the creek we had finished 4 cups each already.

With the taste lingering in the mouth, we set out in the direction of Anjenvel. Enroute we saw the Enron power plant which was as colossal as it could be. But because of this the roads were well made and riding here was a treat.

Anjenvel – Anjenvel was a small serene hamlet and on the small hillock nearby was the fort of Anjenvel, popularly known as Gopalgad. As we reached here the sturdy fortification spread over length of a little over half a km left us awestruck. We rode on till the end of the pathway, parked it under a shady tree and wondered how to get in. We then figured out a way that led to the door of the fort. It was small and the arch was broken. As we entered in, to our surprise the fort encase and Aamrai – mango plantations. It was a delight to witness the shady interiors of the fort. It took us half an hour to see the fort and we were on the road again – set for Guhaghar.

As we left Anjenvel, a SBI ATM caught our attention. It was in the middle of nowhere, surrounded by trees and we could hardly see people around. It then stuck us that it would have been there for the benefit of the employees of the power plant

Guhaghar – I had been longing to go to Guhaghar since long, as I had been hearing about the beauty of this beach from many a friends who had already been here. Also whenever I had planned to be here it never materialized. Finally I was here and it felt so good.

Guhaghar is a splendid and tranquil shore. A long coastline with verdant Suru trees at the periphery, soft silver sands and the cosmic stretch of the sea – all make it a picture perfect! A fantastic weekend destination!

We had reached here around 4 pm and the sun was showing signs of being tired after the day’s long work and all set to drown in the sea. This pre-sunset time helped us take some breathtaking snaps of the sun and the sea. Overwhelmed by the beauty, we thought we should stay back here; but then there was still some time for the sun to actually set and our next destination was mere 16 km away. We hence proceeded and reached Velneshwar.

Velneshwar – As we were nearing the beach, the sun seemed to be enchanting and the ambiance was getting romantic. It energized us to ride faster and we made it just before the sunset to capture the charming glory. The beach was quite and the waters were inviting to take a dip. Worn-out of the hectic ride, we slipped into our beach wear and off we were to play with the lashing waves. Wow, it was so very revitalizing!

After an hour’s play with the waves we ensured we were the last ones to get out of the water. We suddenly realized we had yet to search for a shelter for tonight. It wasn’t a tussle at all and we managed to settle down at Gokhale’s. For 300 bucks it was a steal indeed.

They asked us if we wanted anything specific in dinner but confined to veg. We asked them to cook bharli wangi – stuffed brinjal and we had a feast that night. To top it all we bought a packet of homemade ambawadi which served us our dessert!

Day 5 : Dec 26, 2007
Velneshwar – Up early we got ready and we set to ride off to the next destination. We paid off and visited the temple first to have the darshan. Sanctified by the blessings of Lord Velneshwar – we set off for Hedvi.

Hedvi – A pleasant ride took us to Hedvi which is famous for the magnificent Ganpati temple. It was a quite place on a small hillock with steps to reach there. The temple was a home for an attractive idol of Lord Ganesha. The surroundings were impressive and we took blessings from my pet deity to proceed forward.

The ride after this was even pleasing as it ran parallel to the shore until we reached Tavsal. This was again a wee hushed hamlet and a huge creek beside it. We enquired about Vijaygad and we were least expecting to be asked to go back the same road for a while. We hadn’t seen any structure which resembled a fort on our way! But we headed back.

Vijaygad – Following the instructions of the villagers, as we traced the same route back for over a km, we saw a small bastion on the left hand side. It was completely in ruins and one could never expect that to be the fort we were looking for. Akshay and I debated for a while whether it was actually the fort that we were looking for and finally another villager confirmed my gut feel. Vijaygad was completely in ruins and there were just 2 bastions and a very little fortification giving us the indications of the fort that would have existed long ago. It was tough for us to even climb over the bastion to peep over the other side as thorny plants blocked our way. We some how managed to get over it and got to have a breathtaking view of the sea and Jaigad fort opposite the creek.

Tavsal – We then headed back to Tavsal jetty to ferry across the creek. We were in time as it was only 9:40 am in our watch but to our surprise we saw the ferry had already left the jetty and was sailing across. It was supposed to be at 10 am and we were really upset to have it missed, as the next ferry was only in the afternoon at 3:30 pm.

There was a small boat at the jetty and they asked us if we wished to go to Jaigad. We said yes and they asked us to get the bike over the other jetty which was running parallel to the one we were on. It was difficult for just both of us to pick up the bike and come over and we requested one of the guys to help us out. But he turned a deaf ear to us and kept on doing his work. To our surprise he set sail and went away too! We were astonished by his deed and kept on wondering why he did so.

Another motorboat then came across and the boatman agreed to ferry us across. One of the guys was a little reluctant to take the bike along but then the other guy said yes and we heaved a sigh of relief. The boat man helped us lift the bike and put it inside the boat and we where off to Jaigad.

It was lovely backwaters we were passing through and the shores were lovely palm tree lined avenues. The scenes just went on getting better as we approached the Jaigad jetty. At the jetty it was again a tussle to get the bike off and on top of it the guy charged us 100 bucks. Surprised as never before, we still agreed to pay him off. It was much better than waiting there till 3:30 pm for the next ferry!

Jaigad – Jaigad fortification covered a huge area and it was strong enough to stand as is till now. The fort housed a Ganpati temple, a Shiva temple and ruins of various old structures. We had a quick walk over the fortification and reached back at the main entrance.

The unusual thing about the entrance was that the bastions beside it had a small guest house. A guest house!?!? We were really in a confused state of mind and we decided to check it out. It was no more there now but it was a well built one. It was probably the government guest house meant for the police officers who visited there. The Jaigad police station was right outside the fort!

As we walked out of the door we saw a vehicle with a message printed on it – “Govt. is great”. Dazzled as never before Akshay managed to capture the wonderful message in his camera.

Karahateshwar – I was telling Akshay that Jai and Vijay are the dwarpal – the door keepers of Lord Shiva and since we have seen the Jaigad and Vijaygad forts we should definitely have a Shiva Temple in the vicinity. A young chap we met at the fort had guided us to Karahateshwar Temple and had recommended it as one of the “must visits”. And this was the Shiva Temple we were looking for.

Karahateshwar is on a small hillock right beside the sea. We had to descend a few steps to reach the temple. It was a secluded temple amidst the tranquil of the coconut palms and the music of the sea water hitting the edges of the hillock. As we entered the temple we felt an aura of holiness and serenity. We had the holy darshan of the shivlingam and he pujari blessed us with the offerings. He also asked us to follow the steps to visit the Gomukh and we did. At the edge of the cliff was this Gomukh – pouring out cold fresh water. It was indeed astonishing to see the existence of fresh water when the sea was right beside it. We had some of this fresh water, and walked back to our bike. We were now set off for and all excited about Ganpati Pule.

Malgund – 2 km before Ganpatipule is a small settlement of Malgund. An emblematic small Konkani village has gained importance because of Kavi Keshavsut. He is said to be the father of poetic literature in Marathi. This famous poet was born here and his birthplace has now been converted into a memorial dedicated to Marathi literature. We definitely didn’t want to miss it and hence decided to halt for a while at Malgund.

As we entered Malgund there was a huge market set up. Probably it would have been the weekly market. A small tempo selling ber caught our attention and we decided to by a kg to keep munching on the way. We then asked the directions for the memorial and reached there within no time.

Keshavsut Smarak was indeed a wonderful place. The place where he was born is a petite hutment well maintained with his possessions on display. Behind the hutment are a library and a small museum. The museum houses extracts from writings of a few great authors of Marathi literature. It was a pleasure being here and reading a few of these.

Ganpati Pule – We hopped on our bikes and covered the 2 km distance in no time. As we entered Ganpatipule we were greeted by the hubbub of the tourists. Ganpatipule has a lovely beach and also a Ganpati temple which is said to be awfully sacred. So not only tourists galore but also a lot of devotees of Lord Ganesha frequent this place.

We went to the temple first to seek blessings from the lord. It took us quiet some time, the temple being crowded. We then set off for the 1 km pradikshina. It is said that after the darshan if one walks along the 1 km route encircling the hillock behind the temple, he is blessed by the lord and all his desires are fulfilled. Well we did it for the fun of it and it felt really good. We then spent some time on the beach.

We were very hungry by now and we enquired for a good hotel for lunch. We were suggested “Durvankur”– pure veg. We went with a lot of expectations but were disappointed in the end. The food was okay but not very tasty. Also we wanted to have modak but the waiter said it needs to be ordered at least an hour in advance. We were disappointed but developed a strong desire to eat them when we saw others eating the same. There was a Konkan festival going on nearby and I happened to read “Ukdiche Modak” out there and so we decided to try our luck there. We were lucky to have them there and really relished on the sumptuous modaks.

Bhandarpule – Very few people are aware that there exists a soothing and restful shore just a km or so away from Ganpatipule – identified as Bhandarpule. Glittering silver sands, shady coconut palms, unfathomable blue sea and a neat resort called Krushnai - Bhandarpule is a dream destination for a fervent vacationer.

We turned back to Ganpatipule and headed towards Ratnagiri. It took us about an hour and a half to reach there. Ride was good crossing various creeks and the beautiful backwaters. One of the creek had a bridge called “Arey Ware Bridge” built over it to cross the same.

Ratnagiri – Once in Ratnagiri we headed straight towards Ratnadurg. It was pretty sunny and we were really tired by now. So to quench our thirst we had cold drinks and couldn’t resist the temptation of having an ice-cream too.

Ratnadurg or the Bhagwati fort as it its popularly known is a vast fort and the fortification encloses a vast stretch of land. Within the fort there are 3 main hillocks – 1 has just some fortification, the 2nd has a light house and the 3rd is the balekilla – the castle or the main part of the fort which has the temple of Goddess Bhagwati. The temple has been newly rebuilt and regularly visited by the residents of Ratnagiri. The Goddess blesses thousands of devotees who visit during the auspicious occasion of Navratri.

The Balekilla has strong fortification and bastions overlooking the sea. The Bhagwati port can be seen from one of the windows in the bastion. It is an awesome view of the port and the stretch of the sea with silver sands.

There is also one very unique thing about the sea here. On one hand is the sea with white sand (Bhagwati port side) and on the other is the sea with black sand (Mandvi port side). We visited the beach with white sands and it was the place to be in the town. It was hard to believe that the main road was just a very few meters away from this beach. It was very quite and serene. Except for a few fishermen there was not a soul on the beach which rather surprised us. Also right beside the beach was a huge mansion – a real huge and pretty one. And to top it all it had its own private helipad!!! Probably must be one of the minister’s.

Athra bhuj Ganpati – 18 handed Ganpati was another object of attraction in Ratnagiri. It is rare to find Ganpati with 18 hands. And so was it rare for us to find it out. When we asked for directions we always got vague answers and after biking for around half an hour gave up. We had sugarcane juice at one of the hotels there and then enquired about the temple again. We learnt that the path was through a very narrow gully and finally we were there.

Bhatye – In a short while the vast sea would have gulped the sun and we were ready to be gulped too :D. So we went to the Bhatye beach. It seems to be the favorite beach of the people in Ranagiri. There were lots of people here unlike the White Sea – this really puzzled us. Since there were lot of people Akshay was unfortunately the only lucky one to enjoy the beach bath today. I preferred to stay back and take some photos and guard our belongings. I also relished on the ber that we had bought today at Malgund. Another reason I didn’t want to have a dip was we were to spend the night at the Pawas Baktaniwas and didn’t want to go there in wet clothes.

Pawas – Finally when Akshay was satisfied with the dip in the sea, we headed for Pawas. A half an hour ride brought us at the Bhaktaniwas which was full. We shared our room with 5 other people who were from various places in Maharastra. We had a quick bath to freshen ourselves and rushed to the temple for the Darshan and the Aarti, we missed half of it though. We then sat in the dhyanmandir and meditated for half an hour. It was a very sanctifying experience and with blessings of Shri Swarupananda we headed back to the bhaktaniwas for the delicious prasad. After savoring the prasad we headed towards the Desai’s outlet right opposite to satisfy our sweet tooth. Ambawadi was the only option there as it is available abundantly in Konkan. We finally settled for the same!

Day 6 : Day 27, 2007
Pawas – It was pretty cold and at the dawn it was misty outside. We were woken up early by the chill and the gadbad and badbad of the people around who were getting ready for the morning darshan and aarti. We too got ready and were all set for another day full of excitement and vigor!

Purnagad – This was our first destination. Purnagad is a wee settlement on the banks of a creek and on the small hillock overlooking the sea is the fort Purnagad. The small pathway leading up the fort is an interesting walk. It starts from behind a beautiful temple which is also worth a visit. The deepstambh in front of the temple are bound to catch one’s attention. We had darshan and headed towards the fort. Akshay as usual was trying his photography stunts on the way!

Purnagad is a pretty small fort with very strong fortification but not much to see inside. It houses a temple of the monkey god Hanuman at the entrance of the fort. The door of the fort is still in a very good condition and has lotus symbol carved on the top. Opposite this entrance there is another door which faces the sea. It commands an excellent view of the surrounding panorama.

Amazed with the landscape we walked back to our bike, this time from besides the beach. With fresh air filled in our lungs we headed for Adivare.

Adivare – It again is a very small settlement but very famous for its Mahakali temple. It is a small well maintained temple which is a home for 3 goddesses viz. Mahalakshmi, Mahakali and Durga. After being blessed by all the three, our attention was caught by the well in the premises. A well is a well, but the unusual thing about the well was the way the water was drawn out of it. It had a different arrangement altogether. To a bark of a tree was tied a horizontal bamboo bar like a pulley and at the other end of this was another vertical bamboo with a vessel at the other end, lengthy enough to reach the water table. It was fun watching the women here drawing the water and admiring the unique concept.

Besides the temple was a small eatery and we decided to have something for breakfast. Though not very tasty we relished the Misal pav, Batatawada and Dink Laddu. We then asked for the directions and set off to Ambolgad.

Yashwantgad – Enroute Ambolgad we were struck by the signboard which indicated Kille Yashwantgad being on the left. The fort walls of Yashwantgad were very prominently seen. So we halted to check it out. The fort was but in a very sorry state. Inside the fort there was thick vegetation of thorny plants thus we couldn’t explore the fort much. All we could see was the fortification outside and we had to be satisfied by that alone.

Ambolgad – It was a pretty long ride from Yashwantgad to Ambolgad and we had least expected it. But the ride was amazing as we were traversing the scenic landscape. Finally when we reached the Ambolgad village we were really unable to find the fort. I knew it was right in the heart of the settlement with not many remains; but all our efforts to locate it were in vain. Finally a villager pointed out to us that this is Ambolgad, and we were surprised! We had passed it twice but we couldn’t make out – well how could we, there were no signs which showed it was a fort.

Very little or no fortification remains, a huge tree, a dry water cistern and a broken canon – all encased in a very small area, which was called a fort. We had a quick look at all these and headed back.

Nevre – People told us that we could ferry across to Jaitapur from the Nevre jetty and hence we asked for the directions of the same. We then descended to the jetty – it was a tough ask as the road to the jetty was very narrow with zero margin for errors. I got off the bike and let Akshay take it on the narrow path. He managed it well but when we reached the jetty we were told that there were no motor boats there and hence the bike could not be ferried across. We would have to go to the Dhaulwalli jetty to do so. Pretty unwillingly we set off in the direction pointed out.

Dhaulwalli – As we reached Dhaulwalli jetty we didn’t have to wait for long. But it ferried us across to Jaitapur. I was under the impression it would take us to Vijaydurg as I had seen a jetty there and mistakenly gathered from the locals that we would head straight to Vijaydurg. But I was wrong.

Jaitapur – As we were getting off at Jaitapur jetty, we enquired about the route to Vijaydurg and we got 10 different routes with 10 different confusing names of villages from 10 different people we asked. We wanted the shortest route without touching the NH17 is what we said and finally we were told some more confusing names of the villages (which I fail to remember at this point) and we decided to take that.

The odometer was now showing a dropping arrow and I thought it was wise to have the petrol filled. But it was a small town with no petrol pumps. We were lucky enough though to get it from the local vendors for 55 bucks a liter. We filled in 2 liters and set off repeating the names of the villages so that we don’t forget. We were to reach a place called Dongartitta & then turn right to reach some place.

We remembered the names for quite some time but we completely forgot when were about to reach the place. Finally we enquired about the jetty to ferry us across to Vijaydurg and people directed to village called Sagwe.

Sagwe – At Sagwe there was a very small jetty and we met a person who claimed to have been waiting for more than an hour for the boat to arrive. We thought we might end up spending some time here but to our surprise the old boatman saw us from opposite the bank and came over immediately. We loaded the bike in the boat and sailed across.

Vijaydurg was still far off from this place, guess around 45 odd km. Crossing the district border to enter Sindhudurg district wasn’t so easy.

We started off and hit the highway to take us to Vijaydurg. We filled in petrol at the gas station and set off. The entertainment on this highway were the various sign boards put up to warn people to avoid speeding. They were rather funny and one of them read “Control Yaar” – sweetly captured by Akshay in one of his pics.

Vijaydurg – We finally were at Vijaydurg tired and weary. It was noon and pretty sunny. We had started feeling hungry but preferred to see the fort first and then do the petpuja. So we went over exploring the fort and since I had been here earlier I took pride in showing the various parts of the fort and the private secluded beach which would not have been easily noticed by others.

We were really hungry now and it was essential to have our lunch before we proceeded further. We caught hold of the eatery nearby and relished on fish thali with generous helpings of Solkadhi. The fish preparation was typical household and out of the world. With our stomachs full and hearts satisfied we were mentally prepared to move on.

Rameshwar – Probably a km’s ride and we halted at the unique Rameshwar temple. It was unique because it was much below the ground level and it was only one of it’s kind. Almost half a km of descend took us to the entrance and we were greeted by huge deepmalas. The temple resembled a typical Konkani hamlet and on its walls were old paintings depicting the scenes from the legendry epics of Ramayana and the Mahabharata.

Devgad – We took of from Rameshwar to hit the Devgad fort and it took us about 45 min to be there. Devgad is a small fort on a small hillock by the sea. It has a decent fortification and houses a Ganpati temple and a light house. The fortification offers a good view of the sea. We had a quick glance and went over to the beach.

Devgad is blessed with a lovely virgin beach which is enclosed within two small hillocks. On one of the hillocks are windmills galore which look so pretty. The beach also has a verdant suru corridor and the sand very fine and soft. Not may people visit this beautiful place and we knew it because we were the first ones to leave our footprints in the sand.

Kunkeshwar -

Day 7 : Dec 28, 2007
Early morning full of vigor and zest we started for Sindhudurg. The excitement was building up since the exhilarating destination of Goa was near and we targeted to reach there today. We wanted to have more of Goa!

Sindhudurg – We reached the shores of Sindhudurg around 9 am and parked the bike on the sands. We were all set for Shivaji’s very own Sindhudurg fort. As we were approaching the jetty we learnt MTDC has recently started snorkeling for the tourists who visit Sindhudurg. Our excitement knew no bounds and we decided to try out the same. But the registration took quite long and we decided to go over to Sindhudurg first.

The strong colossal walls of the fort had been inviting us since long. We got into the boat and sailed across. A 10 min boat ride and we were dropped at the entrance of the fort. It is a huge fort built by Shivaji on an island near Malvan. It houses the only temple of Shivaji Maharaj, a Bhavani temple, 3 wells containing portable water viz. Dudhbav, Dahibav and Sakharbav and a Shiva temple from which is a secret route to the shore of Malvan. The fortification is strong and stands intact till date. One gets to see the beauty of the vast sea from the fortified walls. The foot and palm imprints of Shivaji can be seen on one of the bastion walls. Another unique thing about the fort is that it has a palm tree with branches.

When we came back at the jetty the excitement for snorkeling superseded all thoughts. We registered ourselves and the boat left immediately. We were taken to the other side of the fort near the rocks in the sea. With snorkel on our eyes we got into the water. Each one had a guide along with who helped us wade far into the sea and witness the aquatic life. This was our first hand experience and it cannot be really described in words. We saw lovely giant sized corals and a variety of colorful fish. One must experience this when he is here and for just 250 bucks it’s a steal.

Sarjekot – After the mouthwatering lunch, we were to visit Sarjekot fort. It was just a few km away on the road which we used to approach Sindhudurg. So we headed back to check out the same.

Sarjekot is completely in ruins and all we can see of the fort are a few fortification remains here and there. The entrance is somewhat intact & inside the fort are fields yielding various crops. There are a few hutments too which serve as the dwelling place for the farmers. The most beautiful thing about the fort is the sea. Once can get a magnificent view of the sea which touches the fort walls at one end.

Tarkarli – A mere 7 km ride from Malvan and we reached the paradise called Tarkarli. Soft sands of silver, verdant suru corridors, clear waters of the vast sea and a glorious view of the Sindhudurg fort – Tarkarli indubitably deserves to be called the jewel of the Konkan. To top it all MTDC has a comfy beach resort here and now a few boat houses too. That adds to the delight and makes it a perfect getaway.

Tarkarli has beautiful back waters too – undeniably comparable to the ones in Kerala. The clear waters with coconut palms on both banks definitely invite you for a ride. MTDC recently has started with the boat houses similar to the ones you see in Kerala to wade far into the interiors of these backwaters.

We were to now reach Bhogwe beach and we were told that we could ferry across the bike from where we could easily reach Bhogwe in no time. Unfortunately the boat was late and it had loads of passengers. So the boatman denied to ferry the bike across and unfortunately we had to take the longer route. We enquired about the route and one of the guys suggested a dirt track for a few km before we hit the highway. We were a little skeptical but we followed the same and enjoyed another dirt track ride. With fields on the left, the waters on the right and sand below it certainly turned out to be a joyride and we were happy not to take the longer route.

Bhogwe – A 45 minute ride took us to another jewel of the Konkan – the Bhogwe beach. It resembled Tarkarli in all respects except that there was no beach resort and it was quite and secluded. With nature showering all its blessings on Bhogwe this proves to be the ideal destination for those who seek solitude.

There was a small shop here and we grabbed a few tidbits from here. We also ask for the Kokam juice which he got over to the beach. It was an overwhelming experience to sip on the luscious Kokam juice in the company of nature.

Kille Nivti – We reached Kille Nivti around 6 pm when the sun was about to go down. We parked our bike, kept our bag pack at a store and started to climb the fort. But as we began we thought it was it was wise to not be over ambitious and stay back here. So we got back promising the fort that we would return back tomorrow morning and headed back to the store to enquire about a place to stay. He said we could lodge ourselves in the verandah if we did not mind. We happily agreed and hurried to the beach not to miss the daily dose of salt water bath.

Nivti was a serene beach with soft silver sands. It was enclosed by rock structures wading deep into the sea at both sides making it a private beach for just the two of us. When we came here the sun was about to set and its light had spread a golden stratum over the clear waters of the sea. We were able to capture a few romantic moments between the sun and the sea.

We then got into the sea and drenched ourselves in the saline waters which dissolved our fatigue. We enjoyed the dip for an hour or so and unwillingly got out of the waters. It was dark and we headed for a bath at the place where we were put up.

We were delighted by the hospitality extended by Mr. Sawant (the shop owner where we were put up) and his family. They served us a delicious meal for dinner. The Bangda fry we had here was one of the best fried fish we had ever had. After having the lip smacking delicacies we spent a while talking to Sawant. Then we were off to sleep with Goa on our mind.

Day 8 : Dec 29, 2007
Kille Nivti – Early as usual, we went up to the Nivti fort. The fort is completely in ruins and there is a dense shrubbery of wild plants. Most of the fortification ruins are covered by these shrubs and what is visible is a group of a couple of bastions. This leaves nothing much to see on the fort but we can catch up some impressive views of the Bhogwe beach on the right and the Nivti beach on the left. The virgin beauty of both the beaches left us absolutely mesmerized and we fell in love with the topography of the place.

With glimpse of natural beauty still in mind and a promise to visit here again we left Nivti to head for the next destination – Vengurle.

Vengurle – An hour’s ride got us at Vengurle and we headed to check out an old monument in the city called Vakhar. I presume it had been a trade center to monitor the trade at the historically important harbor of Vengurle. This monument is completely in ruins and one can see nothing but dense foliage inside. It was very disheartening to see the sorry state of such an important monument.

Bhagyat & Sagareshwar beaches - A little ahead in Vengurle are these 2 small beaches. Very clean and serene and most importantly they are not frequented by people.  Sagareshwar has a neatly maintained temple of lord Shiva which is worth a watch. MTDC has a beautiful resort here right next to the beach, thus promising a comfortable stay.

Yashwantgad – This was the last fort we saw before we crossed the state borders to enter Goa. It is a huge fort overlooking the gigantic spread of the sea and offering breathtaking views. This historic monument too was in complete ruins but whatever existed was an evidence for the grandeur of the past. We spent enough time exploring the wreck and wondering how beautiful it would have been in those days.

We also feasted our eyes with the breathtaking view of the sea. The beach was one of the best beaches I had seen and could not resist capturing it.

Redi – Apart from Yashwatgad, Redi is famous for it Ganpati temple. It is around 2 km from the fort & attracts a lot of tourists and devotees from all over. The idol of lord Ganesh is very pretty and there is feeling of devoutness in the temple. We had a quick darshan and we were geared up and excited about Goa. Go Goa!

Terekhol – 4 km from Redi is Terekhol which is the first destination in Goa and we reached in no time. Wow! It gave us a feeling of satisfaction that finally we have reached where we were destined for and our excitement knew no bounds.

We reached fort Tiracol which is now converted into a heritage hotel. It is a very small fort and I really liked the fact that it has been maintained in a unique way and the best part was that it was still open for tourists. The fort housed a small church and an idol of St. Anthony. The fort walls were strong and over looked the sea and the Tiracol beach. It has the fame of being the nude beach of Goa, but unfortunately we could not see any.

We then crossed the creek by ferrying across at Kery and reached the opposite end of Tiracol and set off for Harmal beach.

Harmal Beach – A half an hour ride on the streets of Goa took us to the Harmal Beach. It is popularly known as Arambol beach. Loud English numbers, fancy shops, shady shacks and plenty of foreign tourists - we could now feel the spirit of Goa. We hanged around here for a while gazing at the liveliness of the beach, grabbed an ice-cream and headed to our next destination.

Chapora Fort – The ‘Dil Chahta Hai’ fame Chapora fort was around 45-min drive from Harmal. The fortified stone walls of Chapora resided on a small hillock adjoining the Vagator beach. We parked our bikes at the end of the road which was almost half way up the hill. From here it was a mere 5 min climb to the fort.

The fort walls are in good condition but all they enclosed was open space with absolutely no monuments or ruins. But one can get a fantastic view of the shoreline from here. To the left is the ‘Ek Duje Ke Liye’ fame Vagator beach, a small private beach right below and the Harmal stretch on the right. A few good snaps here and a short rest before we thought of moving ahead.

Panji – It had been a long day and pretty sunny too. We were almost exhausted by now and hence we decided to head straight to the guest house. We called up Varun for directions and off we headed in the direction of Panjim. We met up Lakshmikant (Akshay’s friend) at Kala Academy which was on the way to our guest house. We had a short chat and he directed us to the guest house. We took his leave promising him to visit his place the next morning.

Day 9 : Dec 30, 2007
Vasco – Lakshmikant stays at Vasco and hence early morning we went to visit him. It was a good 35 km ride from where we were put up. He stayed in one corner of the world and one couldn’t imagine staying there. But we enjoyed the ride and visited the church and Sateri temple enroute. We spent some time with him and his family and also relisehd the delicious Ghavane chutney cooked by his mom.

We left early from Lakshmikant’s place as we intended to explore South Goa today. He suggested us a few places and the Casavlim beach was one of the must visits. It was beyond the airport.

Naval Aviation Museum – As we were riding on to reach the beach after crossing the airport, the naval aviation museum caught our attention and we decided to pay a visit. It displays a good collection of various aircrafts and also had good pieces on the history and facts of Naval aviation. This is a must visit when in Goa.

Majorda Beach – I had been hearing about Majorda being one of the good beaches of Goa and since it was very close we decided to go over. It was just a few minutes ride from the museum and we were there. But when we were at the beach we felt it was just another beach in Goa which has really lost its charm. Probably we realized that Goa was just hyped up and beaches were definitely incomparable to the ones on the Konkan coast of Maharashtra. 

Cabo De Rama – After the turn off at Majorda beach we probably didn’t really want to explore the beaches any more! So we decided to go over to Cabo De Rama fort which was almost the extreme end of Southern Goa. So we followed the NH17 to Canacona and then diverted to reach Cabo De Rama. It was a long ride and took almost an hour and a half to get there. But the ride was enjoyable due to the pretty landscape and we could witness the almost virgin untouched Goa.

Cabo De Rama is a strong fortification atop a small hill and accessible by road right upto the entrance of the fort. We parked our biked outside the entrance and quickly tiptoed inside. The fort walls still guard the ruins and the church inside. We got over the fortification and started walking over to check out the fort. We couldn’t much on the fort but the views of the sea were enthralling. There was a lovely quiet shore on both the sides of the fort and the hills around were majestic. It was a perfect landscaped and we were happy to see something so nice and secluded after the hustle and bustle of the tourists on the beaches we were before this.

We spent quite some time exploring the fort and gaping at the beauty of the landscape here. We also experimented with our cameras and oh yes – not to forget the constant blabber because of which we really enjoy each others’ company.

Day 10 : Dec 31, 2007
We had planned to chill out today and not get fatigued as we had a long way to go tomorrow. So we took it easy and slept tight almost until noon. We did not want to be lazing around for the whole day though, and hence we thought its now time to get out of the guest house to explore something new.

Old Goa – We set off for old Goa following the HN4A and reached there in around half an hour. We visited Basilica of Bom Jesus, Santa Monica and the ruins of St. Augustine Tower. All these have been preserved as the World Heritage sites. What fascinated us most were the ruins of St. Augustine Tower and the efforts to preserve the same.

We then quickly grabbed our lunch and then visited St. Cajaten Church, built on the lines of a chapel in Rome. This too was the part of World Heritage site and the interiors were well preserved. The silence inside gave the feeling of sanctity and the experience was wonderful.

We also visited the viceroy arch and the gate to Adil Shah’s royal palace. Unfortunately the gate was the only thing remaining of the entire palace.

Aguada Fort – Though both of us had been here a couple of times earlier, I was still keen on getting here for getting some good snaps. Aguada is split into 2 – the small upper Aguada which served as the main castle and the lower fortification of which we see just a bastion these days. The lower Aguada has been taken up by the Taj and a beautiful beach resort stands here with pride sheltering a number of tourists.

Next to the lower Aguada is a small beach with loads of options for water sports. The banana ride was an attraction here. It was a huge inflated balloon in the shape of a banana. It was tied to a boat which was to pull it in the sea for a joy ride. Unfortunately the currents were so strong that the banana balloon could not withstand itself and the riders fell off into the sea a several times. It was fun to see the plight of these riders.

Reis Margos fort – The map we carried had a mention about Reis Margos pretty close to Aguada. We were under the impression that the Upper Aguada is Reis Margos, but we were proved to be wrong by the locals. They instructed us to go over to Coco beach and Reis Margos would have been very close. We followed their instructions and went over to Coco beach. It was the most secluded beach with not a single soul around and we were highly flabbergasted to find such a beach on the night of Dec 31st. We quickly took some snaps, enjoyed the virginity of the beach and headed to check out the fort.

Reis Margos was a strong fortification atop a small hillock which overlooked the quite shore of Coco. There was a church at the foothills from where the road lead right up to the fort entrance. The fortification was still very strong and the canons guarded the bastions. The remains were a mute witness of the golden era that might have existed long ago.

Bambolim Beach – It was quite some time before it would have gotten dark and we decided to go over to the Bambolim beach to have the saline bath. We had not had it since we were in Goa and I thought it would have been an injustice to Bambolim Beach if we did not go there even after being put up in the guesthouse that overlooked the Bambolim Beach. So we got to our rooms, changed and rode to the beach which was a km away. There was no one at the beach and we had the whole beach for ourselves. It was surprising to find such a secluded place in Goa on the New Year’s Eve. We were there for an hour before we got back to the guest house.

Review – It was mere 7 pm in our watch and we thought it was too early to step out as most of the parties would begin late. Since we had quite some time in had he wanted to review all the places we visited in the trip. So we reviewed the entire list of places all over while Akshay jotted it down. We were so engrossed in the same that by the time we finished it was already 9 pm. We realized it was high time we needed to move out as we had no intensions of spending the New Year’s Eve in the four walls of the guest room!

As we were put up near Dona Paula we thought we should check out if there were any parties happening on Dona Paula & Miramar. But to our surprise both the places were actually dead and we never felt that it was the New Year’s Eve and that too in a place like Goa.

Calangute Beach – We checked out at Cida – de – Goa, Sun ‘n Sand, Fidalgo and some of the cruise liners at the Panjim port. Things were very costly and every place was overbooked. So finally as suggested by most of the guys we asked; we headed towards Calangute.

Half an hour to the beach and a huge crowd greeted us. The place was over crowded and we took another half an hour to reach the parking place. Finally we were at the beach and oh! It was a nightmare to be here! The crowd was really cheap with drunkards lying all over and a few dancing on silly songs. It was a big time turnoff & I desperately wanted to get out of there. We did so in no time and were off to find a good eating joint enroute Candolim Beach.

Candolim Beach – After considering plenty of available options we finally settled for a small restaurant known as ‘Bending Bamboos’. This place really made our New Year. Good ambience, just a handful people around and neatly cooked authentic Goan food were the attractions. To top it all there was a one man band. ‘Rudy’ as he called himself played some wonderful numbers to make it a sweet end to the year gone by and welcome the New Year ahead.

We were out until wee hours of dawn and reached the guest house only at 3 am. The care taker was fast asleep and there was a huge lock to the main entrance. We tried hard to wake him up but all our efforts were in vain. Tired, Akshay finally thought we should sleep outside on the benches. I was not quite comfy but reluctantly agreed as we were out of options. We would have barely slept for 5 minutes when mosquitoes started biting and it was getting unbearable. We then woke up and decided to sleep in between the glass door and the iron gate. As we were about to do so we realized that we could slip in through the small gap between the gates. We did so successfully and went over to our rooms and were off to sleep.

Day 11 : Jan 1, 2008
Panjim - I was awake at 6 am and intended to leave early as it was going to be a real long day. 450 km from Panjim to Pune. We had calculated 10 hours to complete the journey and be back to our home sweet home. By the time we packed up and were ready to begin the journey back it was 7:30 am. We paid off the care taker & wondering how he did not come to know that we had sneaked in, set off from Panjim to get back to the routine.

Sawantwadi – 57 km of ride and we were at Sawantwadi. From here we were to take a diversion to NH4 and leave behind NH17. It was around 8:30 am and we thought it was the right time for breakfast. We hogged on the delicious poha, idli, sheera & much more. It seemed like we had not eaten since ages.

Amboli – After the heavy breakfast we were energized to take up the journey further. I was riding enjoying the beauty of the Sahyadris at Amboli Ghat and narrating the various thing that we did in our last visit to Amboli.

It had been joy ride for quite a distance; until we slipped off at one of the turns near the village enroute. I was really excited and not realizing the sharpness of the curve I was to take kept riding on. The bike was about to go off the road and hence I braked hard. The bike instantly fell off and we were flat on ground with the bike on us; not knowing what exactly happened.  Luckily we were not hurt much and we were in a position to ride back the next minute. But a huge mob of villagers gathered around us to know what happened. I said it was a minor slip because of my mistake but they were of the view that we slipped because of the water which was being spilled by the lorry carrying fish. We had a long conversation and they did not leave us until we promised them to complain against the fish carrying lorry in the Amboli police station.

We rode on and without wasting our time in police complaint and stuff headed towards Kolhapur. Enroute Kolhapur we had to cross the small villages of Ajra, Gadhinglaj and Nipani. The road was not good and it really slowed down our speed. But we enjoyed the ride and the landscape around and I made Akshay listen to my favorite Marathi numbers explaining him the meaning. This served a good means of entertainment for us and the road to Nipani was covered in no time. At Nipani we hit NH4 and it was an awesome ride since then. We cruised at an average speed of 90kmph on this road and really enjoyed the ride.

Karad – We had planned to have lunch at Kolhapur but when we reached near Kolhapur we realized it was around 15km off the NH4. Thinking it would be a sheer waste of time we decided to ride on and halt at a decent dhaba on the way. A few km before Karad, we came across a good restaurant viz. Sai Palace and we decided to take a lunch break. It was around 2:30 pm then.

We treated ourselves royally out here relishing on the Kolhapuri Chicken with some accompaniments and ice-creams for dessert which made our day. Akshay called up his parents to inform that he would be put up at my place that night and come over next morning and I called up mom to prepare some good food for the night. We started with vigor and with the contentment that we would be home in just a couple of hours more.

Pune – We were at the Katraj tunnel around 7 and it was really getting on to our nerves to ride on. It was just half an hour more to go but we just wanted to end it off. But the end could not have been so sad – with the pain in the back and fatigue riding over us. So we decided to end it up with the famous and my all time favorite Kondhalkar Mastani.

Kondhalkar’s Mastani – When we landed at Kondhalkar’s our faces were worth a watch and Akshay did try to capture the same. But it was an unsuccessful attempt as the photos really did not depict our condition. With the helmets, our huge sack and our weary faces we attracted strange looks from the people around. We ordered for a Kesar dry fruit and Khus mastani and it was over in no time. Then we asked for Chocolate mastani as Aksahy was really fond of it.

We reached home around 9 pm tired and weary. We desperately needed a bath now. We had a hot water bath, had food, talked about our experiences and slept off to get back to the routine life the next day!

This trek had been on cards since long but materialized only on Dec 17, when Saket – the so called busy bee, finally agreed to get free from office earlier than routine. He came over to my place around 5ish and we set off almost immediately. Bhandardara was the direction we were riding in, following the route Narayangaon – Ale phata – Bramhanwada – Kotul – Rajur and finally Shendi.

We hit the Nasik highway and enjoyed the smooth joyride. The thoroughfare being finer it took us merely an hour to cross the 65 km distance to reach Narayangaon. We decided to break for dinner and hunted down a restaurant called “Hotel Anand” which served dinner in a typical thali system. The food was nice and scrumptious and for 60 bucks a thali it was a steal!

We rode on another 12 km upto Ale Phata and realized that the excitement of riding on the highway was pretty short lived! We diverted from the highway to hit Brahmanwada, a wee settlement around 8 km from the highway. The road after this was fiddly. It was pitch dark and 9 pm would mean midnight for the villages enroute. We found not a single soul on the streets after we crossed Brahmanwada thus making it even difficult to know we were on the right track. We ensured we checked every milestone on the way to be doubly assured we would surely reach our destination!

We finally reached Bhandardara around midnight. Initially the plan was to reach Ratanwadi – the village at the foothills of Ratangad and lodge ourselves at the Amruteshwar temple. It was mere 14 km from here and we were well equipped with camping gear! But a villager seemed to appear from no where and suggested us not to be over adventurous to bike up to Ratanwadi at that weird hour. He also suggested to head towards the government rest house to be put up for the night. We managed to get a room for 200 bucks, which was actually a pilfer for a decent room like that! We settled down, freshened up and hit the bed. The 5 hour long ride had been tiring and it took us no time to start snoring!

It was 7 am when we woke up. We were quickly done with our morning rituals and breakfast and started off for Ratanwadi. It was an hour’s ride before we reached here and the beautiful carvings of Amruteshwar temple caught our attention. We were tempted to check it out first, but some how resisted and started walking towards Ratangad – the jewel of the Sahyadri.

They were farmlands we were walking on. Neatly defined … confined by shrubs … with some plantations seen on few of them. After traversing these, our path was blocked by the still waters of river Pravra. On careful observation, we saw a small pathway which took us across. We had to cross the waters a several times before we actually started the ascend towards the fort. A 45 min pleasant hike through the woods it was before we reached the fort entrance. We had to clamber a couple of iron ladders, placed at the rock patches climbing which was no common man’s task.

We set of for site seeing on the fort. Ranicha huda, Katrabai cliffs, water cisterns, Nedha, Trimbak darwja, Khutta pinnacle, rock cut caves – on offer were all these and more. The breath taking views of the cliffs of Katrabai peak and the others left us spellbound. Nedha – a needle hole formed in the lofty rock due to wind erosion; a wonderful place it was to chitchat and spend time forgetting oneself. Calm breeze blew here soothing the senses and we raised a toast with a glass of fresh lime juice. Cheers!

We then walked over to the Trimbak darwaja, another entrance to the fort if one wants to crawl over to the fort through the ghats. It would definitely mean more time and a stressful walk but the experience is worth the effort. The darwaja is skillfully hewn out of a lofty rock face, with every step leading to it a feet and a half high. We descended these steps carefully to follow the pathway leading to Khutta pinnacle. The pinnacle was an impressive piece of projection standing 4000 ft tall. We took some photographs here and started our descend to explore a new route this time. It was a less traveled boulevard so thickly populated that sunrays failed to reach the ground despite all attempts! Because of this it took us no time to walk over to Ratanwadi.

No sooner did we reach Ratanwadi than we found ourselves gazing at the beautiful carvings at the Amruteshwar temple. It is a temple dedicated to lord Shiva with the sacred sanctum housing a huge Shivlingam. The temple is decked with intricate statuettes all over itself. These carvings take us back to the era of King Zanj who is said to have built this temple in the early 9^th century.

We were lost in admiring the craftsmanship, when our clock struck 12 and we realized we had a long way to go. Our minds still in Ratanwadi, my bike transported us to Shendi. We then visited the Wilson dam and the park developed in its vicinity. The colossal walls of the dam and cascade besides it viz. Umbrella falls left us awestruck. When the gates of dam are opened the water falls over a dome shaped rock. The milky waters seem to spill over umbrella and hence the name. We spent some time here capturing the magnificence and headed off to Bari – at the foothills of Kalsubai, after lunch.

Enroute Bari our observant eyes read a milestone written “Kalsubai 17 km”. Astonished our thoughts started running errands; but it wasn’t too late before we realized it had been a typo. It was 1.7 km to Bari which we covered in no time. The locals directed us and off we were to trudge the highest peak in Maharashtra.

It was 2 pm when we started to ascend. The scramble after a heavy lunch made things a little difficult. But we had already prayed to Goddess Kalsubai at the temple located at a small elevation near the settlement of Bari. Our prayers were answered in the form of mental and physical strength to scale the towering apex. It was a steep ascend. A couple of iron ladders we clambered to reach a small plateau just before the final summit. Here there was a well full of chilled water to quench the trekkers’ thirst. As the water ran down our thirsty gullets we could sense the fatigue fade away. Kalsubai prasanna! We were just a few meters away from the summit. A long iron ladder just next to the well helped us climb the same.

A pleasant breeze blew atop. It was soothing to be here whilst the magnificent views of the bottomless valleys and lofty mountains surrounded us. We took pride in identifying the peaks of Pabargad, Ratangad, Khutta, Patta, Alang, Kulang and Madan. We could also very faintly identify Harishchandragad though it was pretty far off. In the valley were the colossal wall of the Wilson dam and the vast expanse of its backwaters. The glittery waters of river Pravra were spread across until quite a distance.

The summit housed a small shrine of the goddess. Kalsubai, according to a local legend, was a tormented daughter-in-law. She ran away to escape the harassment of her in-laws to seek solace atop this hill. She is said to have performed her tapasya here to attain nirvana. In her memory the locals built a temple here and name the hill Kalsubai after her. With the legend superseding our thoughts, we bowed in front of the goddess. Blessed by Her we were now geared to get back.

An hour’s descend got us back to Bari with a sense of accomplishment. We looked back at Mt. Kalsubai with a jumble of emotions – a sense of triumph, our hearts swollen with pride and enormous respect for the legendary mountain.

At Bari my bike was awaiting to bequeath a warm welcome. It was already 6 pm when we got here and we thought it was unwise to delay any further. We immediately hopped on; kick started the tandem and disappeared from Bari. It was going to be a long way back and hence when we reached the guesthouse we quickly refreshed and headed back. It was the same tiring 5-hour long ride back and it was midnight when we were back to our home sweet home!

- Amit Chilka

]]> http://www.amitchilka.com/travelogues/2003/12/trekathon-%e2%80%93-trek-to-ratangad-kalsubai-in-31-hours/feed/ http://www.amitchilka.com/articles/2003/12/%e0%a4%ae%e0%a5%8b%e0%a4%b0%e0%a4%af%e0%a4%be-%e0%a4%97%e0%a5%8b%e0%a4%b8%e0%a4%be%e0%a4%b5%e0%a5%80/ http://www.amitchilka.com/articles/2003/12/%e0%a4%ae%e0%a5%8b%e0%a4%b0%e0%a4%af%e0%a4%be-%e0%a4%97%e0%a5%8b%e0%a4%b8%e0%a4%be%e0%a4%b5%e0%a5%80/#comments Sat, 13 Dec 2003 11:32:41 +0000 amit http://www.amitchilka.com/?p=43 My article on Morya Gosavi Mandir in Maharashtra Times dated Dec 13

, 2003