Konkan : Unlimited Maharashtra's Hidden Treasure

- December 30, 2013

In India when people talk about beaches , Goa , Kerala and Andamans ( Alibag or kashid for the urbaners )are first of the options or sometimes are the only options. With tourists flocking these places likes herds of wilder beasts , other options are worth exploring. So here are all the details of that other option… Konkan , Unlimited Maharashtra’s hidden treasure.

Konkan is a coastal part of Maharashtra starting from Mumbai and ending at the Goa border in south ( Goa is also considered as part of konkan ..atleast before independence) . The easiest way to identify konkan is its red soil unlike black soil dominant in rest of Maharashtra.

There are numerous ways you can reach konkan , you can drive , ride a bike or a cycle or if you are a trekker just choose one of the N number of routes available for descent into the konkan.

The weather here is like any other coastal state in India, hot and humid but its slightly cooler than others because of the guarding western ghat mountain ranges . unlike goa though its not yet polluted by scent of alcohol , nor its crowded like kerala , nor its inaccessible like andamans. In konkan you come to surrender yourself to the nature …just seat back , relax and enjoy the peace. But you would probably like to avoid harsh summers or never ending monsoon rains ( if you are not used to them ). I always enjoyed my monsoon trips to konkan.

Here is the list of destinations and some tips , but be courteous to konkan by not littering plastic and being polite towards nature.

Diveagar, Harihareshwar and Srivardhan

Diveagar is our alltime favorite weekend desination. Divegar is just 160kms from pune via scenic tamhini ghat. It offers a quiet surrounding , delicious food and almost always a brilliant sunset.

We believe Potnis family in diveagar cooks the best fish ( contact :- 02147224096), make sure you inform atleast 4 hrs before.

Almost every family in diveagar offers a homestay which is affordable and very neat. Town also has MTDC Exotica resort , but I always find it way too expensive.

Diveagar is famous for Ganesh temple , which has a ganesh idol made in pure gold by Peshwas. We in our numerous trips have always managed to skip its visit :)

Harishareshwar , about 15kms from diveagar has similar surroundings and a beach side Shiva Temple.

Srivardhan is 10kms from diveagar , place is a port but reason to visit this place is a beachside road connecting diveagar to srivardhan. This road should not be missed especially during the sunset.

While in diveagar.

1 Morning beach walk is not to be missed , seagulls will always pay a visit during this time.

2 Beach is one of the safest but has a black sand.

3. Tamhini ghat in monsoons is full of waterfalls , but drinking alcohol and leaving bottles as it is besides the fall is a bad idea.

4. Do try maharashtrian delicacy Modak.

Kelshi and Velas

If not in diveagar , Kelshi is a place I wouldn’t mind spending my weekend , especially in monsoons. Kelshi has never ending rice fields , a treat for photographers.

Beach is good and food even better.

Just 30kms from Kelshi is Harnai , Anjarle and Murud beach towns. Harnai has a very old port and a waterfort , entry to this fort is restricted but if a local sailor can take you there …nothing like that. Harnai also has a light house . standing near it while waves reaching your face is worth enjoying … be careful though.

Kelshi has only one hotel , New gulmohar , but murud has many resorts.

Velas is just 10kms from kelshi and is famous for breeding of Olive Ridlet turtles. Sometimes in February and March local NGOs release the turtles into the sea and it’s a must watch event for sure.

While in kelshi,

1. The food again ..dont miss the fish.

2. Monsoon trip and walk in the rain besides rice fields.

3.Take the Varadha ghat route from pune or even tamhini ghat , both are equally scenic.

4. Seagulls and Olive ridlet turtles.

Malvan and Vijaydurg

Malvan is probably the capital of konkan region , full of beautiful white sand beaches. Malvan is famous for food named after this region and Sindhdurg , the great Maratha waterfort.

Vijaydurg is 70kms from Malvan and is yet another waterfort . Few years back a team of navy divers foud a submerged wall surrounding the fort . British ships always used to sunk near this area and they believed it as act of evil …they could never solve the mystry of submeeged protective wall. Till this date construction of underwater wall remains a mystry. It’s a shame , ignorant government and archeological survey of india could make this a attraction nor could advertise it to the world.Take a boat ride at 100rs to have a glimpse of fort from the sea and one can spot dolphins as well.

Locals here believe that this wall is 150kms long and connects vijaydurg to sindhudurg,some even claim presence of underwater tunnel ..these arguments though are mostly baseless.

Devgad fort just 30kms from here is also a worth visit.

During our recent visit we stayed in a small village , Tondavali and enjoyed boating in backwaters of Gan river and sea. These backwaters have potential of being the best tourist destinations …alas government doesn’t this like that.

We stayed at the Kinara beach resort ( tata tikam - +919423302669), it was more like a homestay but neat and clean and its USP is beachside dinner table :)

The morning boat ride was a great experience , sand mining is still done here using the older method , using small boats and handheld nets. A small island full of shell and conchs offers a great macro photography opportunity.

The best way to find hotels is hotelsinkonkan.com , just submit your query and you will be flooded with phone calls .

While in Malvan,

1. Beaches here are better than ones in goa …undoubtedly.

2. Malvani food is delicious but spicy …do take antacid along but don’t miss it.

3. Snorkling , scuba diving is worth trying.

4.Morning boat ride.

5.Some of the beaches here are rocky and provide amzing opportunity for photography.

6. Sunet from vijaydurg or Devgad fort.

Well this is just some of the list …few other places are Guhagar, Kunkeshwar , Velneshwar , Vengurla , Shiroda ……..

But make sure you leave kokan as it is …untouched and unspoiled …no plastic please :)