First Solo Bike Ride: Chaul – Revdanda

             Rains this year had prolonged immensely. Almost till first week of November, it was raining  profusely and hence the thought of crossing western ghats to visit coastal paradise didn’t come to the mind. But as the December started thoughts of visiting Kokan again started coming to mind.

My friends were not able to come this time and hence I decided to make it a solo visit. I was fixed on having my own vehicle and not using public transport through the point of view of convenience and also my passion for driving. So I finalized on travelling by bike and hence chose a closer destination as it was my first bike trip. Chaul Revdanda was one of the destinations that I had never been to and was easily reachable on bike. As the weekends are often busy and entire Raigad district is packed with tourists from Pune and Mumbai, travelling on weekdays was the better option.

Day 1: I left home at 6:15AM and started by old Pune Mumbai highway. Had my first pit stop at Hotel Annapurna at Lonavla main road. It is a decently priced good quality pure veg restaurant and serves South Indian food. After having Mysore Masala Dosa and Pohe I left towards Khopoli. En route to Khopoli, at Rajmachi Point Khandala you can enjoy quaint view and fiery winds that push you off the valley that overlooks the expressway. 

Dukes Nose from Old Highway

Enjoying the view, I left again and then took the expressway for 5 km (which is legally allowed for two wheelers in that patch) after which I took the Khopoli exit. Once you reach the main crossroads of Khopoli you can keep moving straight for Pen and then you can reach Revdanda via Alibag. Another option is to go to Pali which is a religious place having the temple of Lord Ganesha (Ballaleshwar) which is one of the Ashtavinayakas (8 ganesha temples in Maharashtra). You reach Pali via Durshet. The road condition is poor with some road construction work going on. 

Somewhere on the Road

Amba river flows on your left with its banks offering you place for few minutes of comfort. The water is calm and clean.

Once you cross Pali, you reach a place called Wakan where you can connect NH 66 i.e. Mumbai Goa Highway. You can take left and reach Revdanda via Roha or take right and go there via Alibag. I chose to go via Alibag. Once you reach Chaul via Nagaon, you take right for Revdanda beach. One needs to pass through big market road which may give impression of commercialized town. But after the market road ends, greenery begins. 

Since I hadn’t booked any resort I started searching it there physically. I found a place called Vaishnavi Heritage resort, which had some coconut trees a hammock, a swimming pool. The resort whose compound was contiguous to the fortification of Fort Revdanda also has two big rooms with air conditioning facility. The place is more suitable for groups and families but a solo traveler can also enjoy as it is at piece from hustle of the main road. Even though resort is good, none of the caretakers was there at the resort at the night and I was alone at the resort. It might cause safety issues as we don't know the place thoroughly. They should take care of this particular point.

Vaishnavi Resort

Vaishnavi Resort

Being their only customer that day, the meal was not available and hence went to another domestically run food place called Shri Samarth Khanaval run my Mrs. Mayekar. The fish thali comprised of Surmai Fry, prawns curry, 2 chapatis and rice. Though the quantity is limited food quality and taste were awesome.  

Shri Samarth Khanaval

Post that I visited the remnants of Revdanda fort and came back to the resort.

Remains of Revdanda Fort

Korlai Fort while climbing up 

Lighthouse Parking

Temple on Korlai Fort

A farm on the way

Post that I went to the resort and had an hour of rest with book in hand (one of the perks of being in a solo trip: P). Next plan was to visit Birla Temple and Korlai Fort.

Once you touch the main road from resort, take the right turn and after crossing the bridge take left for the Birla temple or take right for Korlai fort.

Birla temple is the temple of Lord Ganesha with small idols of Shiva-Parvati, Maa Durga and Lord Sun surrounding the inner sanctum. At the entrance there are two beautiful statues of elephants carved in stone. At the end of stairs there are small idols of Lord Hanuman and Garuda. Main temple is constructed in white marble surrounding which there is lush greenery. Please note that mobile phone is not allowed at the Birla temple and for the same reason I could not visit it that day. 

Hence I went to visit Korlai fort and light house. After passing through maze of homes where all fishermen were preparing for their next trip, I saw a cement road leading to the entrance of the fort and the lighthouse. After paying nominal entry fees of Rs 20/-, I climbed up to the top of fort where you get magnificent view of the Arabian sea on one side and the creek on the other side. Much of the walls still intact there is a small temple as well as chapel on the fort as the fort was constructed by a Portuguese officer.

Lighthouse from the top

Once I climbed down the attendant directed me to the lighthouse top where the concerned operator explained me the functionality of the light house. Post that I came back to room with food parcel and went to bed early as I was tired because of the longer route that I chose.

Day 2: I woke up leisurely next day and went to Birla Temple again this time without the phone. Upon returning I went to Revdanda beach and had a stroll over there. Later on visited Mrs. Mayekar’s food place again for breakfast where I had Poha and Omlet. At around 11AM I started my journey back.

Revdanda Bridge

Retracing the route to Korlai Fort, I started coming to Pune via Kashid Beach- Murud and Roha. There are two routes to Roha from Murud. One of them is a shorter one with Roha 35km sign on it. This route to Roha is very scenic with lush greenery on both sides and condition of the road is also good except at the end where the road work is yet going on. The road is relatively lonely with hardly any vehicles passing you. You can take occasional halts to behold the scenery.

Once you reach Roha you take exit from the town and join NH 66 (Mumbai Goa Highway). On NH 66 take left from Meghana City apartments to join the Tamhini Ghat road. Condition of the road in the first half is superb with no potholes, white belts on both sides and is lonelier than the Murud – Roha road. Roadside is adorned with green farms and grazing cattle with tall Sahyadri mountains standing magnificently on their backdrop.

In the later half road condition is really poor and one needs to be extra careful in riding. Once you cross the ghat and reach Mulshi, you will join familiar patch of Paud – Pirangut - Bhugaon eventually leading to Pune via Chandani Chowk.   

Vaishnavi Heritage Resort:

Rajesh Potdar: +91 77964 72755

Owner (Name Unknown): +91 99272 90901

PS: Ensure your vehicle to be fully serviced and your tyres should be in good condition as there are long stretches of lonely roads with not much facilities around. Also Please wear helmet for your own protection.

Tourist places near Dapoli

Hi Reader, since I had taken a break from blogging for sometime, I am writing this blog little late. This trip actually took place in the year of 2017.

The month of May was approaching and a group of us 4 friends again sat together to plan for another trip. Tired of daily chores, we planned to make a two night three day trip in the beloved konkan region. The region being unique and closer from Pune, it was accepted unanimously. After discussing various destinations we narrowed down on the Dapoli region. 

Considering the popularity of beaches, we chose weekdays for our trip so as to encounter minimum rush.

Day 1 (16^th May 2017):

Road to Mangaon from Tamhini Ghat

On Tuesday the 16^th we left early morning at 5:30AM. We took the Tamhini Ghat route and chose Panhale Kaji caves as our first destination. There are some spots like Mulshi lake that will evoke the photographer in you. Since we had a professional photographer with us, we had few photography sessions en route. Once you wind down the Tamhini Ghat, your take left to continue for konkan. There is a small food joint at the beginning where you can get decent breakfast items like Kanda poha and Vadapav. Later on we continued to our first destination of Panhale Kazi.

Breakfast

How to reach Panhale Kazi:

From Tamhini Ghat you reach to Mangaon which is first big town in Raigad district. Take left once you enter the town and the road leads you to NH 17 i.e. Mumbai – Goa highway. To reach Panhale - Kazi, continue straight till Khed. From Khed take right diversion (ask locals for directions) to continue on a road Dapoli. Take left at a place named Wakavali and you will start getting idea of how the further travel will be. There is a left turn before Wakavali too which is not advisable owing to poor road conditions. The road would suit a typical village route initially which will later turn into a lonely road without much travellers. Condition of the road is not so good since the spot is not yet a popular destination. Also, since the connectivity is poor your own vehicle is recommended. At the end the road goes literally roller coaster with beautiful towns at its side.

Information about Panhale Kazi:

These are a collection of 29 caves that are buddhist and hindu caves. Most of them are in dilapidated condition. There are some sculptures and idols present but not enough to deduce the history of caves.  These caves are cut through a single rock thereby emphasizing the skill of the sculptors in those times (approximately 1000 years). 

Some history I got from internet is as following:

Creation of these caves started approximately at the 3rd century AD, in time when influential merchants were spreading the teaching of Buddha in India. Many large temples appeared near ancient trade routes. Panhale Kaji was one of such temple complexes, located at busy route from inland to Dabhol - one of the most important port cities at Arabian Sea in these times. Dabhol has been marked even in maps of Ptolemy.

Later, around the 10th - 11th century AD caves became a stronghold of small group of followers to Vajrayana sect (Tantric Buddhism). Some of the earlier caves, for example Cave 10, were adjusted for the worship of deities like Akshobhya and Mahachandaroshana. Interesting monument of art is five Budha sculptures, possibly representing Vajrasana Buddha - showing relatedness to iconography of late Ellora Buddhist Caves.

On the Way To Panhale Kazi Caves

                Flowing parallel to caves is river. The name of the river remains unknown to us. Water levels were really low (lower than the knee) and once could easily walk to the rocks at the centre. The rocks and river overall offers a good food for your DSLR. 

Panhale Kazi Caves - 1

Panhale Kazi Caves - 2

           
































    We left from the caves at around 2:30pm and came to Dapoli for lunch. There is a famous restaurant named Jagadish Lunch Home at Dapoli. Renowned especially for sea food, the place was really crowded. Since we had to move to next destination we had a lunch at another hotel called Chhaya Prakash. The food was okay but the place is not highly recommended. 

Near Anjarle

                Post lunch, we left for Anjarle which is known for Kadyawarcha Ganpati temple (Lord Ganesha on the cliff). The road to Anjarle, a part of which passes parallel to sea, offers some good driving experience. On the way there are certain spots developed from where you can get bird’s eye view of the Arabian sea below. On one of the spots, you get a view of Harne village, Arabian sea and Suvarnadurga fort together. After the temple we visited the Harne port which is the trade centre for fishes. Fishermen return the port with the fish they trapped. There are buyers on the port who bargain with the fishermen and decide the price for the fish they want. The fish from the fishing boat is then loaded on small boats or bullock carts (during low tide only) and brought to the shore. There are cold storage facilities available on the shore for fishes. Tempos and bullock carts are used to transport material on the port. Cold storage Ice and drinking water are supplied to fishing boats for their further journey. Retail sell of fish also takes place. One can purchase a small basket of fish and ask the local residents to cook it for you at some charges.

View from Near Anjarl

                There is a light house at the port which is an inevitable part of the port. Area surrounding the lighthouse looks awesome with waves slashing against the rocks. 

View from accommodation at Karde

                From Harne port, we came to Karde where our accommodation was booked for the first night. We stayed at the New Swapna Sagar Niwas owned by Jadhav family. Unlike photographs shown on the website, the resort is not isolated and there is no privacy at all. There is a complete array of resorts one besides the other with many visitors using loud music and alcohol. So if you are looking for a serene location this is not the place. The room was okay but the food was utter disappointment. It is advised to arrange your dinner somewhere else if you are staying at this place. AC is available.

 Day 2 (17^th May 2017):

Entrance to accommodation at Karde

                      Second day we had breakfast at New Swpna Sagar and left for our next destination i.e. Velneshwar. From Karde we started for Dabhol to avail the ferry services there. It is really a time saving and economical option than encircling entire creek. To the other end ferry drops you at Dhopawe. From Dhopawe you can drive to Velneshwar via Guhagar. Located very close to the beach is a temple of Lord Shiva frequented by many tourists. Velneshwar still maintains cleanliness and has not yet become fully commercialized. One can find a few restaurants though you are recommended to have meal at the homes of residents.  You can find the meals are very delicious and full with Konkani style cooking. One of those is Chandrakant Gokhale’s  ‘Dwarkamai’.  We could not avail those because we reached there pretty late. It is necessary to prebook your meal as they cook it afresh for you. On the beach there is a restaurant named ‘Kalpataru’ which offers awesome vegetarian food. 

                   On the way back to Dhopawe, we visited a fort named Gopalgad where a famous Marathi film Killa was shot. The fort is a private property yet available for tourists. This place offers some good scenery for photography and it still maintains some of its rustic look. Approach road is very small and there are many twists and turns.  

Gopalgad Wall

                   Just before Gopalgad, a diversion takes you to the ‘Talkeshwar Light House’. It is a lighthouse common to the coastal areas. Used as a signal to fisherman’s boats this lighthouse is available for common people to visit between 3:00pm to 5:00pm at nominal fees. You can go to the top of the lighthouse which offers an awesome panoramic view. 

Talkeshwar Light House Entrance

Talkeshwar Temple

Talkeshwar Temple

View from The Lighthouse

                   From Gopalgad we came back to Dhopawe and reached Dabhol via ferry boat. On Dabhol Dapoli road there is a diversion for a coastal village named Kolthare where our stay for day 2 was planned. At Kolthare we stayed at resort named Garwa Beach Resort. This resort was one pleasant experience. Owned by Bhave family, this resort has spacious rooms, ample empty space, coconut trees, hammocks, open shower and many more facilities. The beach was almost deserted except one more group apart from us. After beach we took stroll around the village. Kolthare still maintains the traditional konkan looks through its homes and backyards. Mobile networks are generally not available. The meal cooked by Garwa was really delicious. Three of my friends had Veg thali while I opted for poplet thali and a poplet fry. 

Dining Area at Garva Resort

Backyard at Garva

Day 3 (18^th May 2017):

                    Next morning, after having breakfast of Thalipith and Amboli (both recommended), we spent some time relaxing in the backyard of the resort. Fortunately there was nobody in the resort except us giving us the peaceful time. Being there on weekday can avail you this luxury. We checked out at 10:45am.

  

Parashuram Bhumi

              On the way to Dapoli from Kolthare, there is a spot named Parshuram Bhumi (Legend tells that it was Parshuram, a sage + warrior, who created the konkan land pushing the sea back). There is s statue of Lord Parshuram standing on the earth globe indicating that he had once conquered entire earth. Situated on the cliff, the spot offers some good view. From Parshuram Bhumi (land) we started towards Keshavraj which is the temple of Lord Vishnu. One has to take right turn on Dapoli Anjarle road near Asud village. After descending through a place called ‘Dabkewadi’, you reach the steps to Keshavraj temple situated at hilltop. If you want homemade lunch you can book it in advance at few of the houses below. 

Way to Keshavraj:

Way to Keshavraj from Dabkewadi is really beautiful and full of trees. Depicting the traditional konkan irrigation system, sakav (bridge on the river) and many trees on hill slope it is really a beautiful way. Number of visitors is not too high and hence the place has maintained some tranquility. At the top there is unique water flow system that runs on the 24*7 underground spring coming to surface. The flowing water comes from hilltop through this path made of stones and exits through ‘Gomukha’ at the temple. 

View from the top is just awesome.

                    

On the way to Keshavraj

On the way to Keshavraj

Keshavraj Temple

Keshavraj Temple

Water Arrangement at Keshavraj

Taking the stairs down, we again reached Dabkewadi and had delicious homemade meal. You can get modaks if you order in advance.

                     We left from there at around 3:00pm and started our journey back. We decided to take a different route passing through Mahad - Varandha Ghat – Bhor – NH4 Pune. Take left from Dapoli ST stand to take this route. On the way we visited Shivtharghal where 17^th Century sage Ramdas Swami wrote his famous scripture that is Dasbodh. Coming back through Varandha Ghat was an awesome experience. Winding down through the ghat we landed at Bhor. From there we took NH4 and reached home at 10:30pm.

View from Varandha Ghat

At Shivtharghal

View from Varandha Ghat

 

Contacts:

New Swapna Sagar Niwas, Karde: +91 92716 59020

Garwa Beach Resort, Kolthare: +91 2358 285 232

In the wilderness of Phansad

Taking out little time from your busy schedule to go on a trip always relaxes you. Excitement is more if you are a travellophile (:P) and always looking for opportunities. We a group of five people, Prasad, Hemant, Vineet, Sagar and myself Sunil, decided to spend a weekend at a relaxed place around 4-5 hours drive from Pune. We narrowed down on Nagaon, a place near Alibaug. Nagaon is located at around half an hour distance from Alibaug. Alibaug is also known for Late Kanhoji Angre, a Fleet Marshal in 17^th Century. Unlike Alibaug, Nagaon still retains the natural beauty and traditional Konkan lifestyle to a certain extent. A beach frequented by many tourists, it has a clean water and shallow bottom thereby assuring high level of safety. There are some basic water sports like parasailing and banana ride. Nagaon provides access to popular spots like Murud-Janjira and Kashid beach.

Our i10

Day 1: We left early on 6:45 AM from Pune. Travelling by old Pune-Mumbai highway (NH4), we took first stop at Lonavla. There is this simple place called Annapurna which offers a decent vegetarian breakfast items at reasonable price. From there we left for Nagaon and reached there at around 11:30 AM after covering around 145 km.

We had already booked a home stay named 'Dattasrushti' owned by Tarkar family at Nagaon . The accommodation was located in the midst of coconut and other coastal trees. The beautiful landscape was highly soothing especially while relaxing on the hammocks tied to the trees.

Entrance to the accommodation

Watering system in the backyard of Dattasrushti

A well in the backyard of Dattasrushti

A view from Dattasrushti

Ours was a big room on the upper floor with sloping roof. There was empty space in front of the room with a table. They served us a delicious meal with Konkani flavor. Post  lunch we left for Alibaug visit. The beach was very crowded and dirty and not much recommended. We spent the evening on the beach. We missed the sunset because of the cloudy weather.

A stroll on the beach at night is must. The combination of sea and night sky is beautiful (spare lights by coast guards).

Beach in the evening

Nagaon hosts few shops that specialize in typical konkan products like kokam, papad, kadve vaal and many other things.

Mr. Tarkar: +91 96570 61200

Day 2: On the second day, we traveled to nearby Akshi beach located at 10 min distance by car from Nagaon. Akshi village and beach is less developed compared to Nagaon. After returning we had a breakfast at Dattasrushti. Post that left for Phansad WildLife Sanctuary (PWLS) at around 10 AM. It is a sanctuary located at around 20-25km from famous Kashid beach and around 40 45 km from Nagaon. On the way to Phansad we saw blackened water of sea because of oil spill. However, the region is very good for photography.

On the way to Phansad

On the way to Phansad

Phansad Map

We arrived at Phansad at 12 noon. After completing entry formalities, we started walking into the sanctuary. Bullock carts are also available, but we could not avail the service since there were 5 of us and the capacity of the cart is 4 people. First we decided to go to a place called ‘Phansad Gaan’ where a road lead through the forest. However we lost the way after walking certain distance.

On the wat to Phansad Gaan

Hence, we changed the destination to ‘Dharnachi Gaan’ located at 3km from the entry point by a regular route. The sanctuary is full of beautiful trees with moderately dense forest on both sides of the road. At a junction after 500m mark, there is a watch tower which offers a beautiful view of the surrounding. Near the tower there are blueberry trees offering few ripped fruits to bite on. Turning left from the junction, we started walking towards ‘Dharnachi Gaan’. On the way, we were continuously being accompanied by various forest sounds.

The Watch Tower

View from the watch tower

Blueberry fruits

The spot at actual destination was very small though not disappointing. It was very relaxing since there was zero interference of the modern world. After spending sometime there, we returned to the entry point where a delicious meal was waiting for us. Unfortunately we could not sight a single bird or animal. Perhaps, one should try in the morning. The meal needs to  be pre ordered at ‘Gavdevi Mahila Bachat Gat’. Veg and nonveg options are available there.

Dharnachi Gaan

Important figures (In May 2015):

1.       Bullock cart (3 km): Rs 250/-

2.       Bullock cart (6 km): Rs 500/-

3.       Veg meal: Rs 100/- per person

4.       Chicken meal: Rs 150/- per person

5.       Fish meal: Rs 250/- per person

6.       Car parking: Rs 100/-

7.       Camera fees: Rs 100/-

8.       Per head entry fee: Rs 30/-
 Mahila Bachat Gat for meal: +91 92255 66024

The place can be enjoyed more in the winters owing to the coastal climate. Accommodation in the tents at reasonable prices is also available.

At 4 PM we started the return journey. Instead of traversing the same route via Kashid-Alibaug, there is alternate route via Roha-Mangaon-Tamhini which is the closer route.  We reached Pune from our small ‘Expedition’ at around 7 PM.