PREFACE
Riding our bikes has always been our passion. It was always our dream to ride on open roads with hills on one side and sea on the other. To realize and to accomplish his dreams man can go to any extent. We were thinking on the same lines to go on a journey where seldom man has gone before.
Last December we “THE GROUP OF FURJ’S” had been to these two beautiful locations, Srivardhan and Harihareshwar. Frankly speaking, we visited these places because we wanted to enjoy our weekend out of Mumbai and moreover Srivardhan was home to one of our colleagues, Manish Yadav. Srivardhan was one such experience where we realized part of our dream. After this ride we wanted to experience more of such exotic locales and we knew that Konkan region of Maharashtra has such attention-grabbing places in abundance.
One day while surfing the net, Nishad Deshmukh forwarded me a link of one Mr. Amit Chilka which detailed about the coastal route from Alibaug to Goa. At that very moment I made up mind that Group of Furj will, should and must embark on this journey. The coastal route from Alibaug to Goa was a dream which we were dreaming to go aboard. We were itching to go on this ride right away.
HOW WE PLANNED
I forwarded this link to all the members so that they can go through the blog and plan about the future course. I was ecstatic to get a positive reply from majority of the members. But as time flew, only six members were determined to go on this expedition. I was very keen to realize this long awaiting dream, even though I had Cervical Spondylosis and was advised against going on long rides. The two members Nitin Poojari & Vipul Mekhya were not keen to travel from Goa to Mumbai on bikes at a stretch. So, we decided to make the return journey by train. The dates were finalized. We would set our footprint on road on 3rd of January’2009 and return on 11th January. Everything was planned accordingly, where we would stay put, where we will eat and what important places we should visit. All the six people were excited about the journey. Accordingly, we applied for our leaves. As we drew closer to the D-Day three members Sameer Wagle, NItin Poojari and Vipul Mekhya backed out, for personal reasons. The surviving three members were not ready to sacrifice this dream and were geared up to convert this dream into reality and thus waited for the departure day eagerly.
Special Thanks: Nishad Deshmukh(for forwarding the link)
Amit Chilka (for the blog which guided us all the way up to Goa)
DAY 1
MUMBAI TO ALIBAUG
Finally, the D-Day dawned and the long wait was over. The three surviving members: I, Hiren Parmar and Pari Veeramani decided to meet at Kharghar at 6.30 a.m. Accordingly I left my place at 5.00 a.m and picked up Hiren from his office at Andheri to reach the rendezvous point. As we could not reach the meeting point on time due to some technical problem with my bike, we decided to meet Pari at Shree Dutt Snacks corner at Panvel at 7.00 a.m. We reached the designated point on time and exchanged warm greetings with Pari as we met him after a long time. We had our breakfast which comprised of the spicy Missal Pav and Batata Wadas. Hiren being a gujju relished those dishes.
After having our breakfast we rode towards our first milestone, Alibaug. We reached our first goal at around 11.00 a.m and immediately started hunting for a place to settle for that day. After a struggle we found a place at Kihim Beach, a room with a balcony and Kihim beach just a stone throw’s distance away. We had our lunch which was delicious to say the least. Pari and I decided to go to the Hero Honda Service station to fix my bike. We found one at Alibaug. After a test-ride the mechanic told us that the bikes clutch plate is worn out and needs to be changed. By then the bike had already guzzled 10 litres of petrol to cover just 130 kms. We kept the bike at the service station and went to the market to collect some important things required for the journey ahead. We returned back at the service station at 5.30 p.m to pick-up my bike, but to our surprise it was not ready and we had to wait for 1 more hour. But we utilized our time to the best. We slept for 1 hour at the service station. The attendant at the service station woke us from the slumber and informed us that the bike was ready. We took charge of our bike, paid our dues and reached our shelter. Now my bike was fully in shape to reach the ultimate destination Goa.
As we had been to Alibaug umpteen times and since the place has lost its charm due to the fact that lot of people from Mumbai in particular visit the place during the weekend, we decided not to see the different places in Alibaug and instead take rest as we had not slept the previous night. Later, that night we had a few drinks, enjoyed a movie on Pari’s Laptop and slept dreaming about our next milestone.
Special thanks: Mr. Ramesh More – Sunanda Niwas (who helped us to find shelter at Kihim-Alibaug)
Mrs. Priyanka Raut – Kashi Smruti (who provided us food and shelter at Kihim – Alibaug)
DAY 2
KORLAI – MURUD
We got up at 10.30 a.m., had our breakfast and checked out at 11.30 a.m., too late and not according to our schedule. We started our ride towards our second milestone, Korlai. The road from Alibaug to Revdanda is worth a ‘dekho’ since the covering of the trees on both sides of the roads is breathtaking. The sunlight on this road barely touches you. We crossed the magnificent Revdanda Bridge which is on the confluence of Kundalika River and the Arabian Sea and took a right turn towards Korlai. After about two kms we again took a right turn towards Korlai Village. The by lanes of Korlai took us to Korlai lighthouse which was a dead end. Since it was an isolated place and nobody to guide us, we turned back to the village for guidance. The villager again guided us to the same place. He informed us that there are steps behind the lighthouse which would lead us to the fort. After reaching the lighthouse we were disappointed to find it locked. We thought that we won’t be able to see the Portuguese ruins after coming so far. Just when we were about to leave, a few localites arrived at the lighthouse and took us to the fort through an alternate route. It was a small trek to the top. The view from the top was unbelievable. We thought to ourselves, “How unfortunate we would have been if we hadn’t met those localites?” The fort was surrounded by the Sea from two sides and by Kundalika River from the third side. We could see the Revdanda Bridge from atop the fort. The fort was in ruins. Nobody visits this fort as very few people know about it. So, we considered ourselves very fortunate that there were localites on the fort, who passed on the information about the fort to us. According to them, the fort was built by the Portuguese in the 17th century for stocking arms and ammunition which were supplied to the Murud Fort. Korlai fort along with Janjira fort remains unconquered till date due to its strategic location and planning. We stayed on the fort for some more time to enjoy the bliss and calm of the fort which one can only dream of.
We left Korlai at 3.30 p.m. and headed straight for Janjira fort. Enroute Janjira fort we came across Kashid beach, the best beach in the Mumbai-Alibaug-Murud belt. Unfortunately, we cannot spend time on the beach due to time constraints. At 4.15 p.m. we reached Murud where we parked our bikes near a beautiful mosque. While waiting for the boat which would ferry us to the Janjira fort we relished on the berries which I would have eaten after a very long time.
After reaching the fort we hired a guide who enlightened us with the history of the fort. Murud fort was built by the African King Siddhi Johar and not Chatrapati Shivaji. Majority of the people believes that most of the forts in Maharashtra are associated with the name of Chatrapati Shivaji. Several attempts were made by many empires to conquer this fort as winning this fort would have given them a strategic edge. This fort was built on an island near Murud on 22 acres of land. Miraculously, you will find two fresh water lakes in the midst of the sea. It has three long range cannons which use to fire up to the range of seven kilometers. There were 167 cannons on the fort which were made of Panchdhatu (mixture of five metals, special alloy) which could bear extreme temperatures. There were in all 367 cannons, out of which 200 were made of copper and bronze. Now, only 160 odd cannons are remaining on the fort.
Can you imagine a tunnel which was built under the sea 900 years ago? It was built in order to facilitate an escape in the event of an attack. The tunnel connected the fort to the mainland in Murud. But due to the poor maintenance and leakage the tunnel has been closed down for tourists at both the ends. The fort was divided into two storeys. Second floor was used to attack enemies with the help of cannons. First floor was used to monitor an entire area and the basement was used for stockpiling arms and ammunitions.
It’s generally understood that Siddhi Johar believed in secularism. You can still see the remains of a Ganesh temple for the Hindus, a Mosque for the Moslems and a Monastery for the Buddhists. It was a fabulous and enthralling experience to see a fort which was built 900 years ago with such detailed planning and architectural skill. We were in awe and dumbfounded by its history, architecture and its grandeur.
I left the fort with my heart in my mouth as I realized that I had left my keys on the bike and wondered if I would ever get my bike again without which I won’t be able to complete my dream journey. Fortunately, the guys who manned the parking area had taken the keys off my bike and returned it to me. I was relieved and was grateful to the locals for keeping my bike safe. It was already 6.30 p.m. when we reached Murud from Janjira fort. We decided to stay put at Murud as we had missed the last boat to Dighi from Agardanda port.
It was an amazing second day. We were fortunate enough to see the two forts which were distant apart from each other in their construction, the material used for construction, their architecture, their strategic importance and their history. We went to bed dreaming about these two forts. The history and the view from these forts are unforgettable and have left an impression on our minds.
Special thanks: Hira Residency (our shelter at Murud)
Day 3
Agardanda-Dighi-Shekhadi-Bagmandla-Veshvi-Kolmandle-Bankot-Velas-Kelshi
We got up at 8.00 a.m. in the morning, finished our morning routines and got ready to reach our next high point, Kelshi. We took some snaps at Murud before checking out. While checking our rooms to see if we have not left anything accidently, Pari saw a man extracting Madi (a local drink) from a Coconut tree and instantly Pari and Hiren decided to have it. I advised them not to have it but was not able to win over their raging hormones. According to inexperienced Hiren who was drinking Tadi or Madi for the first time, nothing will go wrong if you have it fresh. So, in an excitement they filled one litre of Bisleri bottle with Madi. They drank it even before having the breakfast and gradually it began to show its effects (abey kick baith gayee). After a while the effect waned slowly and after having breakfast we rode towards Agardanda port. We had to cross the creek on a ferry from Agardanda port to reach Dighi port and recommence our road journey from there. I’ll always remember the last time I crossed this creek. It sent a chill through my spine because we had to cross the creek in darkness and it felt like it would take ages before we reach the other end. Please corroborate with other members who were with me on that trip. Kyon Sadiq bhai kaisi thi woh trip?
On our way to Agardanda which is six kms from Murud, we saw ruins of Shahi Maqbaras (royal tombs). We failed to find out the information regarding those tombs but as usual we did not miss the chance to take photographs and marched on. At 11.40 a.m. we reached Agardanda port. Unfortunately, we had to wait for one hour as our next boat was scheduled at 12.30 p.m. We befriended one of the localites, Aamir and tried to extract some information about Murud, the village and the fort. We also asked him about the tombs but he could not provide any kind of information about the tombs. Meanwhile, the boat arrived. The bikes were loaded on to the ferry. The ferry could accommodate six bikes at a time and around 40 people. Here is where Pari clicked ‘The best photograph’ of the entire trip, “A fisherman throwing his fishing net”. Amazing photograph, hats off to Pari.
We reached the Dighi port in just 15 minutes. We unloaded our bike and started our journey towards Bagmandla from where we would ferry our bikes to Kolmandla. With fresh air in our lungs we marched towards Bagmandla with all cylinders firing. We passed through Diveagar which is famous for its Golden Ganesh idol. As we had visited the place last time we decided to give it a skip. On our way to Srivardhan we saw ‘Shekhadi Beach’ which became infamous because the RDX used in the 1993 Mumbai blasts was offloaded here. We reached Srivardhan, the place which had inspired us to take this journey. I have some fond memories of this place as we had visited this place last year in December. Before this trip, we had decided to stay at Manish’s house in Srivardhan and revive those memories, but since Manish could not join this ride , sadly we had to write off this plan from our itinerary.
We reached Bagmandla port at around 2.20 p.m. and were informed that the Barge will arrive at 3.00 p.m. So, we decided to satisfy our appetite at the small dhaba adjacent to the port. We enjoyed the authentic Batatawadas and some cold drinks to keep away the hot and humid weather. We clicked some snaps wearing the traditional Maharashtrian cap which was borrowed from the guy who was serving us in the hotel. The Barge arrived at 2.45 p.m. We were happy that we didn’t have to do any loading work as we could just drive onto the Barge (Remember Kabhi Haan Kabhi Naa starring Shahrukh Khan where even two big luxury bus could be driven straight onto the Barge). Anyways, we crossed the creek and reached Kolmandle and rode towards Bankot fort. The climb to Bankot fort was very steep. It became very difficult to negotiate various twists and turns along with the steep climb and not to mention the potholes. But “Group of Furj” members are known to be tough and rugged souls. They proved it once again by successfully negotiating the difficult road. On our way we saw some palatial houses. Bankot is a small village with a large Moslem population. After reaching the fort, we were really sad to see the fort in ruins and also we could not find out any information about the fort. It housed a small temple with lots of bhagwa flags. But the view from the fort was captivating. You have to see it to believe it. Since, there was no point in gazing at the ruins we rode towards Velas.
To negotiate a steep climb is easier than the steep slope. Hiren was ready to walk down the slope with all the weight he was carrying on his shoulders, but I told him to relax and assured him that I’ll take him down the slope without a scratch. The road to Velas from Bankot is awesome. The road is akin to our own Marine Drive, but with no traffic and no crowd to bother you will feel like you’re in seventh heaven. Nobody has seen the road to paradise, but, if there is, then this is it. You will have to visit the place to experience the beauty of it. The beautifully clean saline water smashed the small barrier and splashed us with droplets of water. This emotion cannot be described in words alone. You could sit here for hours and still couldn’t get enough of this delight. But we had to move ahead and leave the spot with a heavy heart. But we vowed to visit this place again. We rode ahead towards Kelshi and were determined to reach there by our deadline, which was 6.00 p.m. We decided against riding at night as we were not familiar with the terrain. But to our surprise, the road to Kelshi was under construction and it was full of red soil. So we had to ride cautiously as riding full steam would have been dangerous. We kept on riding asking for directions every one km and we got the same answer, ‘Saral Ja’. We thought we were lost just when a messiah came along and he guided us to the creek from where we could cross over to Kelshi. We thought it would be a great idea as we would not be able to reach Kelshi before dark if we go by road. So we followed him to the creek and waited for the boat. The guy (Messiah) was working in the Bauxite mine which was adjacent to the creek. Pari wanted to take a glimpse of the Bauxite mine desperately, but was disappointed to know that he had to climb a hill to reach the mine. So he dropped the plan.
The boat was ferrying the local people and all the pleas to take us across fell on deaf ears. It was only after the intervention of the miners the boatman agreed to take us across and that too, after ferrying all the localites across. We waited there for 1 ½ hour. We utilized this time by doing what we do the best, clicking photographs. Subsequent to ferrying all the localites, he was there to pick us up. But to our astonishment, the boat did not have the infrastructure to hold two bikes. He was charging us 200 bucks for two bikes and on top of that he was asking us to load the bikes on to the boat. We somehow managed to load Pari’s bike on to the boat. But we were not sure whether it will hold itself till the end. Then we tried to load my bike but to no avail. The bike failed to hold itself and we decided wisely against sailing. We rode towards Kelshi dejected and disappointed and with fear in our minds. The sun had set and it was totally dark with no people around to help us if we lost our way. We had to cover 28 kms to reach Kelshi and it was getting really spooky as we rode through the jungle.
The ride through a jungle in the dark with various eerie noises behind it was no less than an adventure. We were enjoying this ride but somewhere deep down inside we were praying that we reach Kelshi before disaster strikes. By god’s grace no untoward incident happened and we reached Kelshi at around 8.00 p.m. The moment we entered Kelshi, we felt that we have entered God’s abode. It felt really divine to step on this sacred and pious land. Kelshi is a small village with 100% Brahmin population, and also home to owner of Camlin Ltd. People who are non-vegetarian and needs a drink before they sleep would be really disappointed. There are no meat and wine shops in this sleepy hamlet. Those who are deeply religious will find solace and happiness as there are four temples in this village. We found ourselves a place to stay which was really a steal, a big house with a space to accommodate at least 10 people for just 400 bucks. We gorged on simple home made vegetarian food and to be very honest, it was the best vegetarian food I’ve ever eaten. The owners of the house were also very simple minded people. But remove those pre-conceived notions about village people being illiterate. The owner of the place where we stayed spoke fluent English and was a graduate in electronics and was an agricultural consultant to many villages. The younger brother was a graduate in electricals.
We went to bed early that night as we were determined to get up early in the morning and reach Ratnagiri next day. Everybody was sound asleep the moment they closed their eyes as it was a very tiring journey especially the ‘kuccha road’ to Kelshi.
Special thanks: Uday Joshi (for providing us shelter and food at Kelshi)
Messiah (for helping us to find shorter route which did not materialize)
DAY 4
Anjarle-Suvarnadurg-Dapoli-Dabhol-Dhopave-Guhagar
We woke up early as we were way behind our schedule and we wanted to reach Ratnagiri by day end. As usual I was the one who got up first and woke these lazy bums. The owner of the property had arranged for the fire in his verandah so that we can heat up the water to have a bath as it was chilling outside. It was an exciting activity in itself. We don’t get this opportunity in Mumbai as we all have these automated modern bathroom fittings in our house which can provide us with hot water as well as cold water for our daily chores. So we enjoyed every bit of it.
After the bath we visited the Rama temple in the vicinity to seek his blessings for our voyage. The temple was really stunning with beautiful canvasses from the epic Ramayana. The air was engulfed in silence, with only the lilting voices of some women, singing hymns in praise of Lord Rama. It was a remarkable experience for us because we were so used to clatter and commotion, we felt really bizarre for a moment. We spent some time in the temple listening to the pious hymns. We reached Mr. Uday Joshi’s house where delicious and hot kandepohe was served to us as breakfast. While having our breakfast the senior Joshi was kind enough to give details about the entire coastal route to Goa with the help of a map. The map was eventually given to us for direction. The dish served to us was so tasty that we asked for another serving of the same. When we were satiated, we had Masala tea to warm ourselves for our journey ahead.
We thanked the Joshi’s wholeheartedly for their hospitality and their guidance and took their leave. We headed straight towards Anjarle and Suvarnadurg. After crossing the bridge just on the outskirts of Kelshi, we realized that we had missed the Dargah. So we turned back and asked for the directions to reach the Dargah. It was a narrow unconstructed road uphill to reach it. We reached the Dargah and found that the doors of the Dargah were closed. Luckily, we found an old man (chacha), roughly about 70 years of age who opened the doors for us and was gracious enough to share the information about the Dargah.
The Dargah was made in the memory of ‘Baba Yaqoub’. He came from Hyderabad and after seeing this place decided to make this place his dwelling. Legend has it that he was the 9th spiritual guide of Chatrapati Shivaji. When Chatrapati Shivaji decided to build a Dargah for him, Baba Yaqoub predicted that he won’t be able to complete it in the stipulated time. Chatrapati Shivaji retorted that, “if he doesn’t complete the Dargah in the set time then the entire village would belong to Baba and that he won’t set his foot on this ground. The Baba’s words came true and Chatrapati Shivaji kept his word and left the village. After Baba Yaqoub’s demise, Sambhaji completed the structure albeit without the dome. There is also a beautiful mosque besides the Dargah and the view from the place was breathtaking. The Kelshi beach from up there was a visual treat to our eyes. We took Chacha’s leave and headed straight to Suvarnadurg.
We crossed the Kelshi Bridge and took a left towards a bypass road to Dapoli. The road here was fantastic and the view of the Anjarle Beach and the village was just beyond imagination. There are various platforms made on top of the hill to enable the tourists to stop and see the beauty that India has hidden in its bosom. Forget Mauritius, Seychelles, Maldives, and Reunion Islands and come here to explore this beauty. The only difference between this place and other foreign locations is that their government has preserved and developed those places and is generating so much employment out of it for local people that both the government and the people are churning money out of it whereas our government is just making money for themselves. These corrupt politicians do not even care about these small hamlets and the people living in it. If the tourism is developed in Maharashtra it will be a boon to lots of unemployed youth and the state itself. But I feel I’m wasting my time writing about these imprudent and corrupt politicians.
Anyways we moved forward and reached the junction of Dapoli-Harne. We called up Mr.Bharat Chunekar (Mr Uday Joshi of Kelshi had given us his number) who would ferry us to Suvarnadurg in his speed boat. We reached the jetty and met Mr. Bharat Chunekar. Here we learnt from him that we had taken a longer route to reach Anjarle. It was just a minute ride from the Kelshi Bridge. We had taken a left turn towards the bypass road instead of the right turn. We wasted almost an hour and a half. But what the hell, I said to myself. There was no point in thinking about the past as it was dead. We thought about what we would have missed if we had not taken the bypass route. Anyways, Mr.Bharat Chunekar informed us that hiring a boat for just three of us would become a costly affair. He was charging us a hefty Rs.1000/- bucks while as per our budget we could afford only Rs.750/- for this trip. As we could not agree on the charges we decided to call off the trip. But he being a Good Samaritan agreed to take us to Harne port. He also arranged a fishing boat for us which would ferry us to Suvarnadurg.
We loaded our bags in the boat and started our sail towards Suvarnadurg along with the boatman and two 11 year old kids. It was a high tide and the sea was wild with huge waves. The boat was rollicking like a hammock. I had a worried look on my face. I was scared to death as the boat tilted towards one side, but the kids were supremely confident of their swimming skills. One of the boys even narrated his heroic deed of swimming in the sea and saving himself during the monsoons when his boat had crashed to pieces by a gigantic wave. I was happy that I had a chance of survival if at all we met with a mishap. We reached Suvarnadurg after 15 minutes and along with the two kids who were our guide and thought would enlighten us with the history of the fort headed straight towards the entrance. As soon as we entered the fort it was heartbreaking to see the sorry state of the fort. Jungle trekkers would have been proud to enter the fort as there was nothing worthwhile to see except a forest within the precincts of the fort. The fortifications were still strong. Since there was nothing to see we clicked some photographs of the island on which the fort was built and left the place. We gave the money to the boatman and some money to the kids and continued our journey towards our next halt, Dapoli which was 13 kms from Harne.
On the way, we lost Pari by mistake as I took an alternate route. We waited for him at a junction. Since he didn’t turn up, we decided to have ice-creams. We ordered for the Gulkand flavor. I enjoyed every morsel of it and so did Hiren. After a while Pari arrived. We bought some water from the shop and continued the journey. We reached Dapoli at 3.00 p.m. and immediately started looking out for some place to eat as our stomachs were making noises. After several inquiries we found a hotel, ‘Padmaja’ and hopped in to satisfy our appetites. We ordered for Wada Sambhar and Thalipeth, a traditional Maharashtrian dish and ate like we hadn’t eaten for ages. After satisfying our hunger we ordered for tea. As usual the two smokers went out for a fag along with their tea. I settled the dues. At 4.00 p.m. we left the hotel and continued our journey towards Dabhol. Dabhol is 27 kms from Dapoli. We would cross the creek at Dabhol jetty. I and Hiren arrived at Dabhol at 5.00 p.m. and to our astonishment didn’t find Pari following us. We were really concerned about him and tried to call him up but in vain. So we waited for him at the Creek. After a while Pari called up and we were relieved to hear his voice. We asked about his whereabouts. He was still at Padmaja hotel in Dapoli. He thought that we had gone to buy some cigarettes and was waiting for us. His cell’s battery was low and because of the unsupportive nature of the locals he was not able to contact us. Explaining his difficulties he assured us that he would reach Dabhol in 30 minutes. I said to myself that even today we won’t be able to reach our target for the day. It was already 6.00 p.m. and sun had already gone down. We will have to ride in the dark to reach our altered milestone, Guhagar.
We kept our baggages in our room and immediately dashed towards the market. Another reason to hurry was that the markets in the villages close by 9.00 p.m. latest. We bought ourselves some liquor, appetizers and other important things required for our journey ahead. Since it was Tuesday, the day of the most revered, endearing, affable god Ganesha, the localites hesitantly asked us to have vegetarian food. We agreed instantly but asked them to prepare Wal (a popular sprout in this part of India) which they agreed to. We headed to Guhagar Beach at night accompanied by the villagers. This is where we had one of the most memorable nights of the journey. We were sitting on the virgin beach of Guhagar on a partial full moon day, with a full view of the sky on a crystal clear night. We were having our Beer with the beautiful music playing in the background. The music was played by none other than our mother nature. The background music provided by the waves lashing the beach and the vocals provided by the insects together made a composition that was straight from the heaven. It felt as if Mozart, Beethoven, Bach, etc. have all come down in unison to render their composition. That moment is truly etched in my memory and it will be really difficult to put that night out of my mind.
We went straight to the dinner table, had our dinner and after spending some time with the villagers went straight to bed thinking about what delights were awaiting us the next day.
Special thanks: Baba Kalgutkar (Guhagar)
Chacha (at the dargah)
Bharat Chunekar (Suvarnadurg)
Day 5
Hedvi-Tavsal-Kudli-Jaigad-Ganpatipule-Ratnagiri
We woke up early in the morning and started our daily chores. We even took some photographs of a mongoose in the field right in front of our rooms. After having our morning tea minus the breakfast, we left Guhagar at about 9.00 a.m. We thanked all the localites for their help and courteousness and took their leave moving towards our next destination, Hedvi. We waited at the Guhagar market and bought some biscuits for the voyage.
We asked for directions to reach Velneshwar. Hedvi was on the way to Velneshwar. We reached Hedvi at about 11.30 a.m. Pari being an atheist stayed back to keep a watch on our belongings while we both visited the temple. The temple is very unique. It is the only temple to have a ten armed Ganesha idol in India. As we climbed the steps we felt this celestial aura surrounding us. The temple was built by a peshwa at the foothills of Kushi Mountains. The moment we entered the temple we felt positive energy flowing through our bodies. It was an amazing experience to be blessed by the most lovable God which Pari missed it.
We left Hedvi and asked for the directions to Velneshwar. But sadly Velneshwar was left behind and being behind schedule we decided not to visit it. We decided to reach Kudli jetty from where we would cross the creek to reach Jaigad. We reached Kudli at around 1.00 p.m. The boat arrived at the jetty after which the struggle began to load the two bikes on the boat. It was not a barge where we could just ride on to. It was a small diesel boat. We had to lift our bikes and put it on the boat. We were really concerned about our bikes but the people onboard the boat assured us that the bikes would not be damaged. We reached the other end and the struggle continued, this time to offload our bikes. The jetty had a slope with steps on it. The boat and the jetty were meant to ferry the people to the other side and not the vehicles. Between the steps there was a thin strip of ascend on which we had to scale the bike. It was a tough situation. Somehow we managed to take the bike up without doing any damage to the bike. We were huffing and puffing after the ordeal and took a good five minutes rest before leaving for Jaigad. On the way to Jaigad, JSW was coming up with a huge plant which would be a boon to the local people.
We reached Jaigad at 2.15 p.m. As we were entering the fort an old lady stumbled at the entrance of the fort and had injured herself badly. She had a deep cut on her upper lip and was bleeding profusely. We gave her some water to drink. Dr. Vinit Jain (M.B.B.S., M.S, FRCS. London) advised her to apply pressure on the wound to stop the bleeding and also gave her a piece of cotton. The ladies accompanying her expressed gratitude and left without paying my fees. Anyways, we entered the fort and as all other Maharashtra forts this iconic fort too was in bad shape. There was no point in being sad for the ruins of every monument and structure because nothing was going to change due to my unhappiness. After spending some time at the fort we rode towards Ganapatipule. Ganapatipule was more or less 25 kms from Jaigad. The ride to Ganapatipule was a biker’s dream with fantastic roads and beautiful surroundings greeting us. There was a beautiful virgin beach just a km before Ganapatipule (probably Bhandarpule) but we could not set our feet on the beach because we had to reach Ganapatipule and eventually Ratnagiri by day end.
We reached Ganapatipule at 4.00 p.m. and as usual Pari offered to stay with our belongings at the restaurant. We reached the temple which was a 2 minutes ride from the restaurant. As Ganapatipule is an important holy place for the Hindus, tourists keep flocking in from all over India especially Maharashtra. Apart from the temple, the beach is an added attraction. It’s a beautiful beach with white sands and crystal clear water reminiscent of all other beaches in Konkan region. The idol of Ganesha here naturally emerged from the ground and thereby it is considered a miracle. But the temple is not built around this idol. You can see this idol while doing a pradakshina (going round the temple which is exactly 1 km). The temple has been constructed recently with a new Ganesha idol placed inside it. We took the blessings of the Ganesha and went round the temple doing a pradakshina. There were lots of school children in the temple. Probably they were enjoying their annual picnic which reminded us of our school days. These children were not at all concerned of what’s going around them, careless and enjoying life to the fullest. I felt why we adults can’t be like them. Why can’t we just throw our worries, fears and qualms away and live for today rather than just concentrating on making money for our future, which is yet unborn. But in this dog eats dog world everybody is busy making a name for himself and in this process he loses touch with his life and by the time he realizes what he has lost it’s time to bid adieu.
We reached the restaurant where Pari was waiting for us impatiently. We ordered for some snacks, ate it hastily and left to reach our destination for the day, Ratnagiri. Ratnagiri is 20 kms away from Ganapatipule if we ride on MSH4 highway. By NH17 which is Mumbai-Goa highway it is 48 kms away. But we had already decided right from the start that we are not going to touch the NH17 highway. So we rode merrily on MSH4 highway and within 30 minutes or so we had reached the biggest city in the Konkan belt and to be honest I wasn’t happy to enter the city. I felt that the three c’s, the crowd, chaos and commotion followed us from Mumbai. But we were helpless and decided to stay put at Ratnagiri at Prabha Hotel. The long ride had taken a toll on me and I decided to take a bath to enliven myself. I immediately went into the shower and after a 15 minutes bath I felt that I’m rejuvenated and ready to go another 50 miles. I advised my buddies to have a bath which would recharge them. Pari agreed but Hiren (alsee sala) decided to watch TV and energize himself.
After the bath we decided to visit Ratnagiri market to repair Pari’s traveler bag and also to buy some important things from the market, not to mention batteries for the camera. We would have spent more than 5% of our budget on batteries (moral: Buy cameras which have Lithium batteries which can be charged and would last for 24 hrs). We got Pari’s bag stitched and came to the hotel where Hiren as usual was on the bed and watching TV. Before entering the room I said to Pari that as soon as we would enter the room, Hiren would talk about food. The moment we stepped inside the room we heard the magical words of Hiren “Abey phatte bhook laga hai”. Both I and Pari were in splits.
After our dinner which we had in the hotel itself we decided to take a stroll in the city. There was nothing to talk about the dinner as for us it was nothing new, the same old green and red gravy that we always have in Mumbai. We arrived at the room, set the alarm for 5.00 a.m. and without wasting a single second went to bed promising ourselves that we would get up early to cover maximum distance the next day as we were way, way behind our schedule.
Did they get up early the next day? Will they cover the distance they had promised to themselves? To know this and to know the exciting things and to experience the beautiful locations with them, keep on reading “The Coastal Expedition”.
Special thanks: Hotel Prabha – Ratnagiri (where we stayed)
Day 6
Pawas-Adivare-Dhaulvalli-Jaitapur-Vijaydurg-Rameshwaram-Devgad-Malvan
At sharp 5.00 a.m. Pari’s cell phone played the most annoying sound which is hated by one and all around the world and we call it as ‘ALARM’. Being honest and true to his nature, Pari sets it on the snooze mode. No matter how many times it rang, it was stopped but eventually, the Furj’s gave up and woke at 5.30 a.m and by 6.30 a.m. after settling their dues left towards Ratnadurg (Bhagwati Killa).
The roads of Ratnagiri were awesome unlike the roads in Mumbai. Pari reached the fort ahead of us as always. As I was approaching the fort Pari returned from the gates of the fort, dejected and disappointed. He informed us that the fort would open at 9.00 a.m and that we would have to wait for good 2 hrs to see the fort. We consulted each other and decided to move ahead and vowed to be there next time. We contented ourselves with the view which was magnificent, clicked some snaps and left towards Pawas. I had heard a lot about the beauty of this small village. Unfortunately, we were not going to stop at Pawas as we were behind our schedule.
On our way to Pawas I realized that I had misplaced my cell phone. Hiren buzzed my number and it was picked up by the room service personnel at the hotel Prabha who informed us that the phone is safe with him. Hiren asked him to keep the phone at the lobby and that we would come and collect it. I reached the hotel, collected the phone and after thanking him left towards where Pari and Hiren were waiting for me. I decided to fuel up my tank before reaching the rendezvous point and started searching for a petrol pump. But bad luck follows me everywhere I go. I was caught by the police for flouting the traffic regulation as I took a wrong turn. He asked me for my licence and the papers. Unfortunately, the papers were with Pari in his bag and I had to call him for my rescue. He arrived within no time but he too committed the same folly of taking a wrong turn and were both asked to cough up a hefty fine. Since we were going on a long journey and also my papers were in order he left us but only after accepting a bribe of Rs.100/-.
We moved ahead looking for a petrol pump and found one. After filling up I checked my tyres for air and found it to be on the lower side. So for the first time in my life I decided to fill up the air myself. I inflated the rear tyre. The front tyre was deflated by me accidently. I asked for Pari’s help. He was furious and yelled at me “Abey buddhe tereko abhi tak tyre mein hawa bharne nahi aata hai” and I replied in affirmative. He stepped down from his bike and tried himself but in vain. His inference “Lagta hain puncture hain”, but I knew that it was not. After checking the machine we found out that there was a power failure because of which we could not fill up the air and instead of inflating it we were deflating it. So we went to another petrol pump adjacent to this petrol pump, filled up the air and left. Conclusion: My tyre was O.K. Hiren was waiting for us at the temple clicking photographs.
We picked him up and left towards Pawas. The road to Pawas was invigorating and was tempting us to traverse at high speeds. But we kept our raging hormones under check and rode at controlled speeds. We reached Pawas which was just 16 kms within no time. It was a beautiful small village camouflaged by greenery and surrounded by hills. The invitation to stay for awhile was very powerful but to achieve our objective of reaching the eventual destination triumphed over the temptation. We moved on towards Adivare. The lush green surroundings, blanket of suru trees, hilly terrain, bird’s eye view of the villages and whistling cool breeze had become a travel companion on this voyage.
We stopped at Adivare for breakfast at a small hotel. We ordered for Batatavadas and Missal Pav since we could not have enough of these Maharashtrian delicacies. We devoured it in no time. The tea was ordered along with the biscuits. I paid the required bills, asked for directions towards Ambolgad (since we thought that the Dhaulvalli Jetty was on the same road) and headed towards it. We reached Natey village and asked for Ambolgad and marched ahead. After riding for around 3 kms from Natey village we asked for directions to reach Dhaulvalli Jetty and Ambolgad. We were told to go straight to reach Ambolgad. To reach Dhaulvalli Jetty we were asked to go back towards Natey village and then take a right turn. We decided to ride towards the jetty as the villager told us that there is nothing to see at Ambolgad. It’s in ruins and even the fortifications are not intact.
We reached the jetty at 11.30 a.m. We had earlier decided to skip Vijaydurg as we were short on time. We had skipped Bhagwati Killa, Yeshwantgad and Ambolgad and since I could not see any of these icons, I decided to see Vijaydurg. We were eye to eye to visit Vijaydurg. We would reach Jaitapur after crossing the creek from Dhaulville and one of the locals agreed to help us to find our way to Vijaydurg. We crossed the creek with our machines and started towards Vijaydurg with the local boy leading us on his Bajaj Pulsar 150cc which was beautifully modified. We lost him on the way as by mistake we took a right turn. We were guided towards the right path and we were on our own now to find Vijaydurg. But we didn’t lose hope and rode towards Vijaydurg. We took a right turn towards Sagwe Village and to our dismay we found ourselves on a ‘kuccha road’ again which extended for approximately 12 kms. After riding for almost 30 minutes and covering only 4 kms we were really exhausted and decided to take a halt. We took shelter in a small shack. We clicked some photographs and the smokers grabbed the opportunity to wreck havoc on their lungs. After resting for 10 minutes we moved ahead with renewed vigour towards Sagwe and finally, Vijaydurg.
We reached Sagwe at 1.30 p.m. and stopped for some refreshments. We asked for the direction to Vijaydurg. Having lost our way umpteen times to reach Vijaydurg, we finally managed to reach it. We took a sigh of relief and were really amazed to see an imposing structure in front of our eyes, eighty percent intact. We were really eager to see a fort which would take us back in time and tell us more about the people of that era, their lives and their culture. Just as we were about to enter the fort six well built men surrounded us and fully scanned us with their distrustful eyes. They thought that we were terrorists and Pari undoubtedly looked like he is a member of LTTE. One of the guys introduced himself and said that he was from the Vijaydurg Police Station. He inquired about from where we were coming and asked us for some kind of proof of identity. After thoroughly cross examining us he welcomed us at Vijaydurg. We hired a guide who took us to a house where we drank the refreshing kokam sharbat. We rested for a while and left to take a glimpse of this grand heritage.
The fort was actually built by Raja Bhoj in the 13th century A.D. and conquered by Shivaji in the 17th century A.D. The fort was originally small but after the conquest, Chatrapati Shivaji increased the size of the fort and the fortifications of the fort were made stronger thereby making it more challenging for the enemies to conquer. He made this fort a force to reckon with. There were walls built under the water which during the high tide were not visible. The enemy ships would sail straight towards it and would break their navigation oar, thereby causing major damage to it. The fort was under the command of Chatrapati’s most trusted lieutenant ‘Kanhoji Angre’. He was the naval commander and was a great underwater swimmer. The fort still has the remains of cannonballs which you will seldom see in India. There are three walls protecting the fort and you can easily notice the marks of the attack on the walls of the fort by the enemies. The storeroom, the conference room, the hall, the lakes in the fort, a well, a secret passage under the sea and the place where soldiers would live are a testimony to the grandeur of this fort. Helium, a colorless, odorless inert gaseous element occurring in natural gas and used as a lifting gas for balloons was discovered here. The view from the fort was spellbinding.
We came down from the fort to the house where we had kept our luggage. We again asked for the ‘kokam sharbat’, paid our guide the decided amount and went towards Rameshwar temple. Rameshwar temple was hardly 1 km from the fort. This time Hiren willingly stayed back with the baggage while we both visited the temple. Now, don’t start assuming things because Pari went inside the temple to know its history and not because he had a change of heart and started believing in the Almighty. Hiren stayed back because he was exhausted and was not keen to descend and then climb the innumerable steps.
It was an ancient temple dedicated to Lord Rameshwaram built approximately 400 to 500 years ago. Lord Rameshwaram was the incarnation of Lord Shiva. There was a huge bell at the entrance of the temple. The pillars were made of wood beautifully engraved and sculpted. One of the lieutenants of Shivaji donated an idol of Lord Rameshwaram wholly made of Silver. Huge stones were used for the construction of temple and the mixture of Jaggery, Limestone, Sand, Glue and Lead was used as a joint. There was also a memorial built in the memory of Sambhaji Angre, son of Kanhoji Angre close to the temple. We took the blessings of the lord and commenced our journey towards Devgad.
Devgad was approximately 20 kms from Vijaydurg. Here we would enter the district of Sindhudurg. Malvan is 40 kms from Devgad which was our final destination for the day. On reaching Devgad we bought some water to quench our thirst, rested for a while and started our quest to reach Malvan. It was already dark before we reached Malvan. We got ourselves a place to stay and after relaxing for 1 hour we decided to have dinner.
Malvani food originated from Malvan and not having Malvani food after coming to Malvan would have been like not meeting Amitabh Bacchan in his house. Fish is their speciality and that’s what we were going to have for dinner. I ordered for Surmai thali and Pari ordered for Prawns thali. Hiren as usual would have vegetarian thali. We also ordered for Crab Masala since I had not eaten it since time immemorial. The food was delectably mouth-watering and no amount of money would buy you this delicious food anywhere in the world except Malvan. I’ve grown up eating Malvani food and to tell you the truth no food in this whole wide world would match the taste of Malvani food. We felt that awesome taste in our mouth even while belching. We had ice-creams as dessert after dinner.
We reached our room. We transferred all the photographs to Pari’s Laptop and got all set for the next day. We talked about the thrilling and exciting moments of the day because there was not a single dull moment (in fact there was not a single dull moment in the entire expedition). Some wise man had said, “Early to bed early to rise, if you are late pay the price”. We followed the saying diligently and were off to bed dreaming about Goa because we were going to reach our dream destination the next day and make our voyage a thrilling success.
Special thanks: Room service attendant at Prabha Hotel at Ratnagiri who kept my cell phone safe
Mrs.Mamta M.Varadkar – Gajanan Caterers at Malvan where we stayed.
Day 7
Sindhudurg-Tarkarli-Vengurle-Sagareshwar-Terekhol (Goa)-Calangute
This was the first day in the entire journey where we slept peacefully. We slept for more than eight hours. We felt really fresh and were excited about the things we were going to do today and also very much thrilled as we were just 60 kms away from Goa border. We would go Snorkeling in Malvan, one of the most exhilarating adventures.
Let me just give you a brief idea about Snorkeling. Snorkeling is swimming in the shallow waters (about 20 feet), breathing through a snorkel held in the mouth. Snorkel is a breathing apparatus used by swimmers and skin divers, consisting of a long tube which is held above the surface of the water. Don’t confuse Snorkeling with Scuba diving as the latter is deep sea diving. As far as I know, Malvan is the only place in Maharashtra where you can indulge in this exciting activity.
We reached Malvan jetty from where we were going to take a boat which would ferry us to the Sindhudurg fort. Before taking a ferry we enquired about Snorkeling and its registration process. Initially, I thought that only swimmers can go for snorkeling but was elated after knowing that it can also be enjoyed by non-swimmers. My excitement was short-lived as apprehension about drowning in the water gripped me but the life-guards who would accompany us assured me that they will take care of me and bring me out safely in any eventuality.
We reached the fort and were stunned to see the huge fort build on an island near Malvan. We had hired a guide who would narrate us the history of the fort. According to him, this was the only fort which was built by Shivaji. All other forts associated with him were captured by him. The money he looted from capturing Surat was utilized to build this fort. The walls were constructed in a serpent formation so as to mislead the enemies. The formation was such that it was very difficult to spot the entrance from a distance. It housed the only temple dedicated to Shivraya. The guide told us that Shivaji was an eighth incarnation of Shiva but I was skeptical about this. It also had three fresh water lakes which used to be full 365 days a year. There was a palm tree which had a branch, quite unusual as Palm tree has a stem with no offshoots. Chatrapati Shivaji was so impressed by the construction of this fort that he granted a wish to the architect of the fort. The architect asked for an impression of Chatrapati’s hand and a foot. The imprints are still surprisingly very well preserved and we were the fortunate one’s to see the print of the hand and the foot of the great Maratha king.
We left the fort and after reaching the Malvan jetty we headed straight to MTDC office for Snorkeling. We were told that they needed minimum 4 persons to breakeven their costs. Meanwhile, we decided to consume the Konkani delicacies ‘Aampapdi’ and ‘Khaja’. We will have to find an apt word to describe these delicacies. ‘Delicious’ cannot be the appropriate word. I leave it upon you readers to innovate the new word.
The fourth person registered himself and we were on our way for Snorkeling. My heart was pounding as we moved towards the deep sea. Deep water terrorizes me. Until last year my dread of water had prevented me from venturing into the deep water. But after river rafting I was somewhat comfortable with water only in the presence of lifeguards. This was the first time I was about to dive into the deep sea. Although the life-guards assured me I was a little apprehensive. I was thinking to myself, “What on earth has compelled me to wade into the deep territories of the sea”? The boat which was taking us for snorkeling stopped in the midst of the sea and the lifeguards started preparing us for the dive. They gave us life jackets and a snorkel, while they dived into the water. We wore our life jackets and one by one went into the water. I hesitantly climbed down from the boat. As soon as I entered the water consternation gripped me. Everybody was holding a rubber tube which ensured that a person wouldn’t drown. There was a lifeguard for every one of us who would be our savior as well as our guide to under-water happenings. The instructions were clear and precise. We were asked to lean on the rubber tube and the lifeguard will pull us by the rope tied to the rubber tube. Swimmers were asked not to swim but lay still with the support of the tube. We were asked to wear our glasses which would close our nostrils and were asked to hold the snorkel in our mouth through which we would breathe. The instructions were followed carefully. The dreadful journey began and we were asked to put our heads in the water while keeping our snorkel above the surface. I began to feel confident after initial bout of panic. I inserted my head in the water and at first visibility in the water was poor as it was murky. But slowly my eyes adjusted to the light in the water and the paradise emerged from beneath the sea. We could see gorgeous sea bed which was full of multicolored corals. We were privileged to see the rich, vibrant and vivid fauna thriving under the sea.
Those twenty minutes were the second most magical moment of my life. First, of course it was the birth of my son. I would compare it to the thrill of White water rafting which I experienced it at Dandeli. The beauty and thrill of White river rafting and snorkeling is way beyond your imagination. We hadn’t had enough of Snorkeling, but everything has to end. This too was no different. We climbed on the boat again and sailed towards the shore. We were proud of ourselves. We had a feeling of accomplishment of an unimaginable feat. I suppose we would have been the only members in our family and among our friends to indulge in this unparalleled adventure.
After this unforgettable experience we departed towards Tarkarli known as the Jewel of the Konkan. Tarkarli is just 7kms away from Malvan. We reached Tarkarli within no time and as an inquisitive child we immediately set off to investigate the truth behind the title “The Jewel of the Konkan”. As we approached the beach the jewel began to reveal itself. We could see the sand from a distance which was pure white in color. The sand was unlike the sand in Mumbai which sticks to your body. The water was pristine, green in color and was clear as a glass. It is said that one can see the sea bed 20 feet below from the surface. MTDC has a resort right on the beach with luxurious boat houses among the suru trees. Pari and Hiren went to take a dip in this unspoiled sea but decided against it after noticing a number of Shell fishes. We spent some time on the beach and took some photographs but unfortunately the photographs were deleted unknowingly.
We left towards Malvan searching for a good place to have our lunch. We found one which would serve us homely made Malvani food. We ordered our food and started extracting information about Tarkarli. A localite told us that the only attraction here is the beach. He was a fisherman and told us that water here is very shallow and clear. The water is just waist high even if you wade a kilometer into the water. He also mentioned that swimming in the sea is far more dangerous than the river even though you maybe an expert swimmer. Though Tarkarli beach is considered one of the safest beaches in the region, there are times when one should not enter the sea especially when one is drunk. He told us that they always caution people venturing into the sea. But there are people who don’t follow their instructions and after getting drunk get into the sea and that’s when accidents happen. He also narrated the incident about 4 doctors who after getting drunk ventured into the sea. They did not heed their advice and lost their lives.
We headed towards our table where hot Malvani food was served after learning a lesson that one should always respect nature. No matter how skilled you are in tackling the disasters, nature always has the might to bring you down. The Doctor’s though highly educated forgot this and paid the price. The sole purpose of education is to gain knowledge and keeping yourself abreast of the things around you. Sadly, 99.9% of the people in India think that the only reason to be educated is to earn monetary success. What good is it to be highly educated when you cannot use it to your best in the time of crisis? The Doctor’s overconfidence, the poor judgement of the circumstances and not paying heed to the warning, spelled their doom. Life is of utmost importance to you, your family and your friends. Money is necessary and important to survive, but you can only earn money if you are alive. Use you education to uplift yourself and people around you and not just to earn money.
Anyways, we ate like hungry wolves because; one we were dying of hunger and second the food was even more luscious than what we had at Malvan. After having our lunch we went to our room, packed our bags and left towards our next destination Vengurla which was 40 km from Malvan. With Goa within our reach we rode like men possessed. We reached Vengurla within no time. We had heard a lot about the Sagareshwar Beach at Vengurla, so we decided to take a halt, refresh ourselves and take a glimpse of the beach. We had Kokam Sharbat at a local refreshment corner and requested the owner to take care of our luggage.
If Tarkarli beach is the Jewel of the Kokan region then Sagareshwar beach is no less than a Jewel. MTDC has a resort on this beach too. We left Sagareshwar after clicking some photographs. We saw a few foreigners on the beach. This was the first indication that we are close to Goa. Goa was approximately 15 kms from Vengurla. We moved towards Redi which is the last town in Sindhudurg district from where we would be reaching Tiracol in Goa.
We entered Tiracol in North Goa and asked for the direction to the jetty from where we will cross the creek to reach mainland Goa. The guy who helped us with the direction wanted us to take a look at Tiracol Fort which according to him was worth watching. We headed towards the Tiracol Fort without wasting a single second and reached the fort within no time. The fort is now converted into a beautiful hotel but the heritage is still intact. There’s a church inside and the ambience of the hotel was mind-blowing. You could view the Mediterranean architecture in full grandeur. Though it was a private hotel the tourists are allowed to view the fort which is beautifully preserved and maintained by the hotel management. The view of the Tiracol beach from the hotel is magnificent.
It was already dark before we left the fort. We reached the jetty and boarded the Barge along with our machines. The Barge was full of foreigners. In fact, we were the only Indians on board. The ride on the Barge was free of cost unlike the Barges in Maharashtra. Our destination was Calangute in Goa, one of the happening places in Goa which was 30 kms from the jetty. We reached Calangute at 8.00 p.m. and stayed put at Vailankanni Guest house close to Calangute beach. The roads in Goa are worth talking about. Fantastic roads with proper dividers and not a single pothole encountered. BMC should take a cue from the Goa PWD and develop such beautiful roads. But it being a corrupt and disgraced institution, the probability of having such roads in Mumbai is very low.
We were in Goa, our final destination. It gave us a feeling of accomplishment. We had reached our destination without a scratch. Our joy knew no bounds and so we decided to celebrate our triumph. Hiren was unlike himself full of vigour and in a jubiliant mood as his dream of reaching Goa was fulfilled. Hiren and Pari went to the local wine shop to procure liquor as it is considered an integral part of every celebration while I was at the guest house transferring the photographs from the camera to the laptop.
We decided to consume our Beer on the Beach. Rafael, the owner of the guest house who was very co-operative and accommodating asked us to visit Peter, his brother, who owned a shack on the beach. We reached the shack and to our astonishment we couldn’t find a single soul except the owner. We informed Peter that we were staying at Vailankanni’s guest house and his brother Rafael had directed us to this place. He asked us to place the order for food at the earliest as the shack had been closed down and he was entertaining us because of his brother. We were assured that we could wine and dine for as long as we want and no one would bother us.
All the hotels on the Beach had orders to shut down before 10.00 p.m. due to the security threat. We were the only people on the beach. The owner played some amazing reggae numbers on his audio system. After his dinner the owner dropped the shutter and left. The entire beach was engulfed in darkness with only full moon light to our rescue. The employees of the shack left a candle burning on our table which provided a dreamy effect to the night. The full moon had cast a spell on us. It looked enchantingly beautiful in its pure white color. The sea literally hypnotized us with its sparkling white color and gigantic waves. The rhythmic sound of the waves lashing at the beach transported us to a world full of dreams. Add a glass of chilled beer to this blissful vision and you are on cloud nine. It reminded me of the night we spent at Guhagar beach. We spent around 2 hrs on the beach sipping on our beer watching the beautiful night unfolding before our eyes. After a drinking binge we were possessed by the ghost of Kishore Kumar. I hoped that the night would never end.
The body began to wilt under the exhaustive day of riding and lack of sleep. We tried very hard to win over our body but honestly speaking we had bitten more than we can chew. We felt like our body is going to crumble to thousand pieces, so we decided unwillingly to wrap up our session and get into bed with our memories. As soon as we reached the guest house we laid our bodies on the bed and slept like a log.
Programme for the 8th day: We would be engaging ourselves in some nerve-wrecking adventures; the blood curdling Parasailing, adrenaline rushing Powerboat and the hair raising Banana ride. We would also be visiting the ‘Dil Chahta Hai’ fame Chapora fort before leaving for Madgaon from where we would be boarding the train to Mumbai.
Special thanks: MTDC and their lifeguards – for starting snorkeling at Malvan
Mr. Praful Manjrekar – Gajanan Caterers for providing us the authentic Malvani food
Mrs. Sampada Parulekar – Sagareshwar corner for serving us refreshing Kokam sharbat and taking care of our luggage at Sagareshwar Beach
Day 8
Chapora-Vagator-Margao-Colva
We got up at 10.30 a.m. and immediately left towards the Calangute Beach to experience the thrill of the water sports. The beach was full of firangs and for a moment we felt that we are not in India. When we were feasting our eyes on beautiful firang females a guy approached us for water sports. We bargained for about 15 minutes and after some dilly-dallying the guy agreed. We were adrenalized as we geared up for the sports.
Parasailing: We would be taken in the middle of the sea in a speed boat from where we would be transferred to another boat with all the infrastructure and equipment needed for Parasailing. It’s a sport wherein one or two persons are tied to a parachute and released in the sky with one end of the parachute attached to a machine which holds and releases the parachute. Once up in the air the motorman starts his speed boat and takes you for a ride of your life. Pari had Hiren for company but I was alone to enjoy the exhilarating sport.
Powerboat: It’s akin to our bike. The difference is that you can ride it on the water and the cost of it is upwards of Rs. 1 million. You are not allowed to ride it alone as only trained and experienced lifeguards can ride such a monster. It travels at enormous speeds and whenever it encounters a wave it takes off and comes down splashing water on you. It was pure adrenalin rush ride.
Bananaride: This was the scariest of all rides as far as I’m concerned. The ride involved a Banana shaped rubber tube attached to a speed boat. We had to sit on the rubber tube and the speed boat would carry us in the middle of the sea and would topple us from the Banana into the sea. You then had to swim towards the Banana, board it which was the difficult part and off you go again. I chickened out of the ride at the last moment as I was too scared to venture out into the deep sea. But in hindsight, I felt I should’ve experienced the thrill and joy of Bananaride.
If it wouldn’t have been for the cost we would have certainly taken the rides again because one attempt was not good enough to satiate us who just live to experience such moments. We had checked out of the room but Rafael, the owner of the guest house had arranged for a place to keep our luggage. The scorching sun had forced us to take a cold water bath. After rejuvenating ourselves we left for the ‘Dil Chahta Hain’ fame ‘Chapora Fort’. It took us a good thirty minutes ride to reach the Chapora Fort.
The fort was on a small hillock but the climb was very steep. We reached the fort with great effort. The fort looked like a big football ground with walls surrounding it on all sides and honestly speaking it was nothing to sneeze at. It was not even looking like a fort. The only good thing about this place was that the view around it would bring a smile on everbody’s faces. The Vagator Beach which was featured in the Bollywood movie ‘Ek Duje Ke Liye’ was shining under the sun like a precious stone. The innumerable coconut trees were spread in an area as far as our eyes could see. They were swaying to the light breeze blowing from the sea as if singing an ode to entertain the onlookers. The slope on the back side of the fort would take us down towards the Vagator Beach. All you could see was the vast expanse of the sea, so calm and beautiful yet so ferocious and sordid just like Lord Shiva who has two different faces, preserver (Mahadev) and destroyer (Mahakal). We had a candid chat with a Russian female and left the fort to move to our final destination of the journey. We reached the room, packed our bags and left for Madgaon.
Madgaon was a good 40 odd kilometers from Calangute. We covered the distance within no time as the roads were fantastic and the traffic was disciplined. As soon as we reached Madgaon station, we headed straight to the cargo section of the railway station. We were going to load the bikes on the train to Mumbai. We had no inkling about booking goods on a train since we were doing it for the first time. The attendant at the cargo booking window explained us the procedures. He asked us to bring the bikes two hours in advance before the arrival of the train along with the Xerox copies of the vehicle insurance and the registration book. He also assured us that our bikes would be loaded on the same train which we would be boarding for Mumbai. The information was music to our ears and had eased some pressure on us. If the attendant had not given us the favourable reply then we had to ride our bikes for more than 700 kms to reach Mumbai and that too within 1 day. Not good for a person with Cervical Spondylosis.
We had our lunch unknowingly in a filthy Bar and Restaurant after which Pari started nauseating. We booked ourselves a room for the night near the Station and pondered over what to do next. Hiren’s eyes lit up as he saw the bed and did not waste a moment to get on to it. To add to his delight the room also had a television. We rested for a while and then we both (no marks for guessing it right) decided to have a look at Madgaon. We locked the room as Hiren decided to have a nap.
Madgaon is the largest city and the commercial centre of Goa. The market was huge and boasted of all the major brands of the world. We were riding through the market when I noticed this huge bakery and confectionary ‘Royal Foods’. I go bonkers when I see the pastries. I suggested to Pari about having pastries and we were eye to eye about gorging them. I ordered for Irish Cream and Pari ordered for Rum Punch. We were utterly disappointed after eating them as they were not tasty as compared to Monginis, Birdies etc. After satisfying our palate we rode towards Colva beach which was just 5 kms away from Madgaon.
We reached the beach and started our excursion. The market was bustling and the food joints were all full with the tourists. One particular food joint caught my attention. It was the same joint where we had our lunch 4 years ago when I was here with my Intelenet friends. It was my first trip to Goa and the memories of that trip are still fresh in my mind. After taking a leisurely walk in the market we decided to go to the hotel. While moving towards our bike we got a frantic call from Hiren and after listening to his story we could not stop laughing.
The conversation between me and Hiren:
Hiren: Kidhar Hai...?
Me: Colva Beach…
Hiren: Kabhi aa raha hai…?
Me: 10 minute mein pahunch rahe hai.Kya hua…?
Hiren: Abey tumlog tala laga ke gaya aur wo C@#$%#$ room service wale ne light bandh kar diya….
Me: Abey B#$%^%$## to 46 pe call kar ke bol na, light chalu karo, mein andar hoon karke….
Hiren: M@#$$%%%% idhar poora andhera hai, kuch dikh nahi raha hai…..
Me: Try kar phone tak pahunchneka, hum log aate hai….
Hiren: Jaldi aa mere L@#$# lag gaye hain.
I know it may not sound that funny but believe me it was the most hilarious moment of the journey. When we reached the hotel we had a hearty laugh after Hiren narrated us the entire incident. After recovering from that humorous moment we told him about the pastries we ate. His mood turned somber. We all know how gujju’s have a penchant for sweets. I told Hiren that one has to lose something to gain something. He opted for sleep and paid the price.
We decided to have one last drink at the hotel as we would be leaving the next day for Mumbai. Hiren decided to have a Beer while Pari and I decided to drink Whisky. We bought two miniatures of VAT 69 and Foster Beer for Hiren. The pegs of whisky and a glass of Beer were ready. We said ‘Cheers’ for the last time, which unlike the first day of the trip, changed from cheerfulness to melancholic.
We had our dinner and went to bed. We had to get up early as we had to board the train to Mumbai from Madgaon station which was going to depart at 9.40 a.m. Before boarding the train we had the most important job at hand. We had to book the cargo (bikes) so that we could carry them in train to Mumbai along with us.
Did they carry their bikes along with them to Mumbai or returned to Mumbai by road covering 700 kms? Keep on reading ‘The Coastal Expedition’ for the climax.
Day 9
Madgaon to Mumbai
We got up at six in the morning and left the hotel at 7.30 a.m. Though the station was just at a 2 minutes distance we had to take a longer route to reach the cargo terminal of Madgaon station. We kept our bike at the terminal and fortunately all the formalities were completed without any hassles. The bikes were properly packed so as to avoid any damages while loading.
I am crazy about bikes but my love for trains has not waned a bit after so many years. Moreover, travelling in an Air-Conditioned coach is like an icing on the cake. I would always prefer a Train to an Airplane if time is not a problem. So, I was impatiently waiting to board the Train. As we were waiting for the train a mixed gushy feeling enveloped me. Though I was homesick, my heart was not ready to give up on this travel so soon. I had a lump in my throat while bidding adieu to my wife and son before leaving for the trip. I wanted to get over with this trip as soon as possible so I could be with my family. Now I was sitting here at the station thinking to myself that this trip could have been extended a little further probably up to Mangalore.
The train arrived at 9.25 a.m. and departed according to the schedule. Hiren got down at Dadar as he had to meet his friends at Mahim and we carried on with our journey till Mumbai CST as we had to complete the formalities to release our cargo (bikes). After bribing the officials which has become a regular practice here in India we were again on our bikes, this time to reach our sweet home. Goodbye was never a customary practice in ‘THE GROUP OF FURJ’. It was always I’m coming, ‘Jaldi doosra picnic arrange kar’. So there were never sad goodbyes and picnics usually ended on a happy note. This was no different affair.
We had worked our fingers to the bones to realize this dream. I was discouraged to cancel this expedition by one and all but I was determined to follow my dream because I am a kind of person who believes in writing one’s own ticket. The final discouragement came when the other three members chickened out. I had a feeling that there excuses were all smoke and mirrors. They didn’t have the nerves of steel required for this treacherous journey. The final pleas and requests of the well wishers yielded no soap. The zeal, the enthusiasm and our resolve enabled us to wrap this ardent task successfully.
Though the expedition is over the mean machines on which we rode, the fantastic roads with green cover, winding by lanes, the steep ascend and descend of the hills, the virgin beaches with white sand and pristine water, the magnificent mountains with stunning flora and fauna, grandeur of forts with splendid architecture, majestic temples with their attractive engravings, traditional villages with helpful and accommodating people, delectable and luscious food, the stimulating adventures and the draining journey would remain with me till eternity.
This is not the end. It’s just the beginning. The members will change, the machines revolutionized and the locations would differ but the passion to carry on with the journey will never change. Another trip, journey or voyage is always in the works because GROUP OF FURJ never stops. Let me end this journey with some words of wisdom for the people who didn’t make it to this voyage especially who cancelled it at the last moment:
To love is to risk not being loved in return
To hope is to risk disappointment
But risks must be taken because the greatest risk in life is to risk nothing
The person, who risks nothing, does nothing, sees nothing, has nothing and is nothing.
He cannot learn feel, change grow, love and live.
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