Satara

After the superfun monsoon-trips to Koynanagar and Vikramgadh this year, the independence day weekend beckoned us to another trip out of Bombay. The incessant rains for the last month meant that the whole state had received a good dose of rainfall, and so we didn’t have to worry about things not being green enough. And when the turn came to pick a destination, without much deliberation, Satara emerged as the automatic choice.

Situated at about 110 km from Pune and about 262 km from Mumbai, Satara has been on our radars for sometime. Satara is famous for a lot of things – like the Kaas plateau. Sometimes referred to as poor man’s Valley of Flowers, Kaas plateau becomes covered with wild flowers of different hues and colours at the end of the rainy season. While this wasn’t the end of the rainy season yet, we figured we’d see at least some flowers, if not the entire plateau-full of them (didn’t quite see any flower actually).

Read More

Koyna Dam

The miserable months of summer were spent waiting for the first showers of rain to appear, so that we could get out into the greenery again. And since the first raindrops started falling in the first week of June, discussions began about possible weekend destinations. We have just two criteria - natural beauty and the minimum of creature comforts (clean bathrooms). Thankfully, hitherto unknown locations have started popping up on the tourist map, with newer resorts enticing travelers like us looking for the next new location

Koyna Dam was the destination of this weekend’s journey. A little over 300 km from Mumbai, the dam on Koyna river forms a 65 km long Shivsagar lake which is magnificent in its own right. The lake stretches all the way from the small town of Koynanagar, 50km away from Chiplun, to almost Mahabaleshwar apparently. Our drive till there was really good – the NH17 is in wonderful condition. We were fortunate to get underway by 0615 hrs and it took us 6 hours to reach Koynanagar. It included almost an hour long breakfast at Kamat’s and a couple of butt-breaks

Read More

Elephanta Caves

It is probably one of the most touristy destinations in or around Bombay, but as we discovered to our delight, Elephanta caves can be a very nice day outing. An early morning trip to Gateway of India on Saturday morning, followed by a nice ferry ride in the Mumbai Harbour, and finally the caves themselves (which seemed to be in much better condition than I remember them). Lunch at the delightful MTDC Chalukya restaurant near the caves themselves and then the ride back home.

Part of the Elephanta caves popularity is due to the ferry ride from Gateway of India to the island itself. In February, when the sun is not too hot and the sea winds are still somewhat chilly, it was nice to experience the clean air and the ever-present breeze, sitting on the top deck of the launch. The ferry charges Rs. 130 for a to-and-fro ticket to the island and you do not have to come back by the same boat – so you can spend as much time as you want on the island. It costs Rs. 10 more to sit on the upper deck once you are on the ferry (which I am sure is not an MTDC charge). But you get a great view of the Taj Palace hotel and Gateway of India from there.

Read More

Karde, Dapoli

Maharashtra's Konkan region is dotted with innumerable beautiful beaches - some are too small to be named, and others are more famous (like Alibaug & Kashid). Obviously, the more famous beaches lie closer to Bombay, but they are also the most crowded and commercial - Alibaug being the case in point. The beaches further south are cleaner, less commercial and more importantly, empty. In some of these places, you can have the entire beach to yourself for hours. It might not be everyone's idea of a beach holiday - most of our contemporaries seem to prefer the familiar comforts of Goa. But we like the idea of an untouched beach where there is nothing but the waves or seagulls to distract you. If that interests you too, then read on

This weekend, we found ourselves at the beach of Karde, 15 km from the town of Dapoli in Ratnagiri district. Many mistakenly believe that Dapoli is a beach destination itself - it is not. Dapoli is about 10km from the sea and from Dapoli, you have the option of visiting four beaches - Anjarle, Harnai, Murud & Karde (going north to south, within 25 km of each other). Murud is the largest among these, and the most 'touristy' - it gets quite crowded in the evenings and we thought the beach was the worst - more black mud than sand. Harnai has a nice beach stretched along a small bay. But, it is also adjacent to the fishing village of Harnai - and every evening the fleet comes in with the catch of the day. While it is supposed to be nice to watch, it makes the entire place reek of fish. Anjarle is a town more known for its Durga Devi temple and its beach was ok, nothing fabulous. Karde, seemed to the best beach among the four - it is more like an extension of Murud beach, but devoid of the crowds and the black sand. It extends a long way, more than what we could walk ...

Read More

Dabhosa

When the monsoons come to Bombay, it brings with it nonstop rain, waterlogged roads and general chaos all around. But it also gives us the reason to look towards our weekends afresh – because it is at this time that the surrounding Sahyadri range gets splashed in a brilliant bright green colour – a shade more vibrant than what you have seen before (if you aren’t from Bombay). Hence it is a common sight to see Mumbaikars get into overloaded Innovas & Taveras and driving out to Lonavala or Mahabaleshwar on weekends.

With our penchant for going to lesser crowded (and hence lesser known places), we found ourselves in Dabhosa this year. Dabhosa is a small village in Thane district in the northern part of Maharashtra, 160 km away from Bombay. The nearest town from Dabhosa is Jawhar, about 20km away. Jawhar lies in a forested hilly area at the edge of Sahyadris with comparatively sparse habitation. With the rains, the entire countryside is awash in green, which makes sights like these common along the road

Read More