[ashish2nd]

Anniversary-Konkan-Tata Nexon

Hello everyone, hope you all are doing well. This is my first attempt to write a travelogue for team-BHP. I will try to keep it short and crisp. Hope you will like it.


This pandemic driven work from home had changed dynamics of the life. For few of us, it’s a blessing since we are getting plenty of time to spend with our family members but for few of us, it’s a nightmare. Extended working hours, late night calls, weekend support activities has destroyed the work life balance. Even if I shut down office laptop to get disconnected from office, office follows me over WhatsApp through various office groups on WhatsApp. So, a break was needed for me. 3rd Dec is my wedding anniversary and in Feb my Tata Nexon’s 2nd Anniversary. What could have been a better reason for a family trip !! Since we bought the car, we never had any vacation due to pandemic restriction. So, we decided to go for it.

Planning – When it comes to vacation all my family members prefer beaches. We strongly believe that if you are going on vacation the place should provide you a geographical change. So Konkan was our default choice. I strongly believe in well planned trips. All pre-booked stays, pre-planned literary, timely arranged food and break (since both of my parents are diabetic). Planned vacation provides peace of mind during travel and provides structured approach toward stay, food and itinerary.
We started the planning for beaches in Konkan. So, Ratnagiri, Ganpati Pule and Dapoli were shortlisted places. Next step was to book accommodation and find out local/famous food joints/restaurants to taste local flavors. Below is the travel itinerary we finalized after discussion with family members.
Day 1) Start from Pune->Visit Nanjin via Karad, Malkapur and Amba ghat->Lunch at Ratnagiri->Bhatey beach ->Stay at Kohinoor Beach Resort Ratnagiri
Day 2) Pawas->Local sightseeing in Ratnagiri (Ratnadurga fort, Lokmanya Balgangadhar Tilak’s Birthplace, Thiba Palace, Lunch in Ratnagiri ->Aare Ware Beach -> Stay at MTDC GanpatiPule.
Day 3) Start from Ganpati Pule->Kavi Keshavsut Birthplace-> Velneshwar-> Guhagar->Dapoli->Palande Beach
Day 4) Palande Beach->Harnai->Anjarle beach->Back to Pune.

Pre-departure checklist
1) Vehicle documents (Insurance, Licenses, RC book and PUC)- Checked (I do keep all these documents in car’s glove box all the time but still I recheck them before start of any journey to avoid any issues later)
2) Recharge fast tag – Done
3) Load pen drive with your favorite soundtracks (Yes, Nexon do have Android auto and Bluetooth but I didn’t want to rely on mobile network during this journey)
4) Full fuel tank and check tyre pressure -Done
5) Most important - Wash the car and get her ready for a good vacation. I am not a person who clicks multiple photos but how can I miss to click my Nexon in Konkan. She must be ready for it and should look good.



6)Ordered a tripod for family photo and 12v charger for mobile
7)Removed car’s parcel tray -Nexon’s ~350 lt boot space is sufficient but still I prefer to remove parcel tray for 2 reasons a) It increases boot space vertically 2) If you family members want something during drive, they can easily take it out from the boot. You don’t need to pull your car out of the road.

Regarding this tour, My daughter was excited about beach, my wife was excited about resorts we booked. My parents were excited to visit temples (Pawas and Ganpatil Pule) which there visited few decades ago. Only thing I was excited about was D-R-I-V-I-N-G. I was waiting to take my Nexon to winding ghats of Konkan. Those hairpin turns, roads that run along with sea line were calling me 😊 . I wanted to have that red mud and dust on my car tyres. I wanted to click photographs of car in backdrop of coconut trees and Arabian sea. So, here we go…..



Day 1 –
With all preparation done, we were all set to start on 2nd December. Then there was a twist. Weather in Pune took a 180-degree turn. Bright and Sunny weather on 30th November, turned into thunderstorm. It started raining heavily on 30th Nov and 1st December. It was so densely clouded that visibility reduced and it was pouring like anything. We decided to take a wait and see approach. I called resort about reservation policies to see if we can postpone the trip. Since me and family were eagerly waiting for this trip in search of a desperate break from routine, we decided to go for it. I checked Ratnagiri’s weather forecast and it was sunny. So, I convinced my parents, who were initially worried about roads, ghats and ongoing heavy rains.

Following the thumb rule of long trips, we decided to reach out to last point of the itinerary then travel backwards. The route we decided to take was Pune->Karad->Malkapur and Ratnagiri. I was not worried about the route till Karad since its NH48 and we travelled multiple times on it. I was not sure about road condition from Karad onwards.



Considering the distance between Pune and Ratnagiri, we decided to start early. I am anyhow an early morning driver. I like to start any of my journey as early as possible in a day. It provides all proven benefits like.. less/no city traffic, it maintains mindset fresh since you witness fresh start of day.
My early morning driving thoughts are like… let your family member complete their remaining sleep, put your favorite tracks, maintain a cruising speed and by the time rest of the word wakes-up, you are done with 50% of your journey 😊. When you take a pit stop for a hot sip of tea or a breakfast, you get a surprising comment by your family member “Oh! We reached so early”.
To have this experience, I convinced my family to start at 4 AM IST (sounds crazy but we started at 03:55 AM itself). Obviously roads were empty.



Katraj tunnel was having only truck along with our car.Can you imagine !!



Visibility was poor but I am being a safe driver maintained a speed of 70-75 KMPH. We reached Karad at around 07:30 AM. It was still raining heavily. Since we left NH48 and joined State Highway 144 towards Amba, I was not sure about road conditions. But it turned in to a pleasant surprise. Road between Karad and Amba is absolute heaven for drivers. It seems to be newly constructed road. The car literally glided on the road. Small ghat sections, road patch covered with trees makes it more enjoyable. We left Sate Highway 144, it was time for our first pit-stop. Since visibility was poor due to rains and being early stage of the day, we couldn’t find a good restaurant. We had Maharashtra’s favorite breakfast items ‘Misal Pav’. It was very good.



Post breakfast we headed towards Nanij via Amba Ghat. I heard too many good things about Amba ghat but it didn’t excite me at all. The ghat section was too easy to concur. No hair pin bends, no high elevation. It was a flat and smooth drive. We couldn’t enjoy the scenic view due to heavy clouds. But ‘Amga ghat’ from my driving checklist was ticked. My parents wanted to visit Nanij but it was closed due to Pandemic restrictions. So, there wasn’t any other option rather than proceeding towards Ratnagiri.

Ratnagiri - We entered Ratnagiri after coving 300+ KM of distance in one of the extreme driving conditions. I was visiting this city after year 1995. City has grown up to a large extend. Ratnagiri is maintaining it’s Konkani charm in modern day growth as well. I could spot malls and many brand outlets in city ,at the same time, there were traditional vegetable market which were connecting this city to it’s history.

It was time for Lunch. During my pre-departure online research, we had identified ‘Amantran’ restaurant for our lunch. This restaurant serves authentic Konkani food and is famous for its seafood. When I am travelling with family, I am a forceful vegetarian. It was a sad part that even if we were travelling through seafood lover’s paradise, I couldn’t taste non-veg food. But its OK. ‘Amantran’ serves authentic veg food too. We ordered a veg thali consisting of ‘Rice Roti’ (Marathi:Tandlachi Bhakri) and ‘Fresh Kaju kari’ (Marathi:Olya kaju chi usual). Food was good so as the ambience and service.



It was hard to believe that we covered 303 KM of distance since morning, and we reached Ratnagiri so early. Thanks to early morning start, pleasant weather and comfortable drive in Tata Nexon.
It was time to head towards hotel. The hotel we had booked named Kohinoor Beach resort it was situated at five kilometres from the restaurant. We travelled through Ratnagiri city and headed towards Pawas road via Bhatey Beach. We couldn't resist ourselves from taking a quick break at Bhatey beach. The beach was clean and less crowded since we had already travelled for a long time, we decided to move from this beach very quickly and headed towards hotel.

Kohinoor beach resort (https://www.kohinoorhotels.com/kohin...dra-ratnagiri/) is not actually a beach resort since it doesn't have any approach to the beach. However, it provides a great scenic view of Arabian Sea. This resort has all see view rooms. Rooms are huge and well equipped. If you look from window of your room, to right hand side you can see Ratnagiri city and to left hand side it's a great view of Arabian Sea.



After completing checking formalities, we took a quick nap, freshened up and decided to visit sunset point which is in the same resort premise. This sunset point provides mesmerising view of Arabian Sea, a panoramic view of Bhatey Beach.That was a perfect time and place for family pic. PC-My brother in law




Had a good dinner and that’s was a wrap.




Day 2 - Day two of this trip was going to revolve around Ratnagiri city.
1)Pawas - After having a good breakfast at resort, we completed the checkout formalities and decided to visit Pawas temple. This temple is located at 18 kilometres from Ratnagiri. Pawas is well known for ‘Swami Swarupananda’ temple. This is a small village located in a great scenic location of Konkan. I visited this temple in year 1995, even after visiting this location after so many years it gave me similar sense of belonging and the temple premises provided great peace of Mind. Pawas was one of the major attractions of this trip for my parents. Later it was time to head back to Ratnagiri City and explore the city along with attractions around it. PC-Google



2)Ratnadurga fort - The first historic place that we decided to visit in Ratnagiri was ‘Ratnadurga’ Fort. This Fort is situated at eastern side of the city. One can take his car till the parking lot and it doesn't involve any heavy climbing. So, it was very easy for my parents to walk around the fort. This fort is situated right next to Arabian Sea in gives a panoramic view of the sea. After visiting ‘Ratnadurga’ Fort, it was time for us to visit another historical place in the city.



3) Lokmanya Balgangadhar Tilak’s birthplace - This place is situated in a heart of the city in lane called as ‘Tilak lane’. As soon as you enter the premise, you can feel the vibes. This place provides a glimpse of how India’s freedom fighting era would have been. Lokmanya Tilak’s life journey has been portrayed in this house. In-house photography is not allowed here but we can take pictured outside of the house. This is the only pose we can think of in respect of great freedom fighter. There is a Ganesh Temple few meters from this place. This is where Tilak initiate public Ganesh festival which is one of the biggest festivals in Maharashtra. We had a quite bite in local snacks centre and headed towards Thiba Palace.



4)Thiba Balance - Thiba palace was built by British Government to keep the former king of Brahmadesh (Now Myanmar) Thabba Min in house arrest. It was built in the year 1910. Until 1916, the king and queen of Myanmar lived in this palace. Now there is a museum in this palace. Some of the things used by King Thibaw are still preserved in this palace.



The palace is a beautifully constructed three storied structure with sloping roofs. Semi-circular wooden windows with beautiful carvings are the main attraction of this structure. There is a dancing hall with marble floor on the first floor. One Buddha idol is installed at the back side of the palace. This idol was brought to India by king Thibaw. This is one of the most visited places in Ratnagiri. We can take our vehicle in campus. Please note, this a huge palace but not entire area is open for tourists.



With Thiba palace, we were done with the city. Now it was time to proceed towards out next destination, Ganpatipule. Road that takes you from Ratnagiri to Ganpatipule runs along coastal line. Be prepared, it will temp you to stop an almost every corner since every turn too beautiful to resist. One of the major attractions on the way is Aare-Ware beach. These are twin villages that hosts these huge beachs. Can you imagine it took us 1 hour to cover this 20 KM distance. No, its not because of bad road but because of scenic view throughout the way.



We reached Ganpatipule at around 15:30. We already had booked bamboo houses at Ganpatipule’ s MTDC resort. Check-in process was smooth.



Little about the resort – MTDC (https://www.kohinoorhotels.com/kohin...dra-ratnagiri/) is a great place to stay. Its right next to Ganpatipule mandir’s entrance. In the first phase, they have rooms and a big restaurant. At the rear side they have Bamboo houses and a small restaurant.



Since distance between bamboo house and main entrance gate can’t be covered by walk, they provide battery operated golf kart. Alternatively, you can drive your own car. This resort has a private beach too.





This is one the most beautiful but dangerous beaches in Konkan. Don’t go deep into the sea !! While the stay was good, our experience with their restaurant was not good. We spent some time on the beach then had Ganesh ji’s darshan. For dinner, as per our research list we headed toward Bhau Joshi’s restaurant. This place serves veg dishes only. I was hoping to see authentic local dishes in their menu card but was little disappointed to see typical commercial dishes there. On the positive side, all those dishes were prepared in local spices so had a refreshing taste.

That was end of second day.Take rest Nexy !!




Day 3 - 4th December – we have a plan to cover quite a good distance between Ganpatipule to Palande (Dapoli). Exciting part was going to be couple of Jetty rides (ferry ride) between Jaigad-Taswal and Dabhol-Dhopave. Typical day started with quick walk to beach, checkout formalities and a good breakfast at local food joint. With basics done, we headed towards Dapoli. List of attractions we covered were…

1)Kavi Kesahvsut Smarak in Malgund – (Information courtesy – Google) The pioneer of modern Marathi poetry, Poet Laureate Keshavsut alias Krishnaji Keshav Damle was born in 1886 in Malgund. As a tribute to him, the Konkan Marathi Sahitya Parishad has built a memorial at his birthplace, which is merely 2 km from Ganpatipule. At the inauguration of this memorial, Dnyanpeeth Awardee Kusumagraj has lauded Keshavsut with the words ‘This Memorial is the pilgrimage of Marathi poetry and Malgund is the capital of Marathi poetry’. (The Dnyanpeeth Award is the highest title bestowed upon the best litterateurs in India). In his short lifespan of 39 years, Keshavsut’s 103 poems have attained the stature of a literary treasure. As an occupation he was a teacher, however his heart and soul always resided in the domain of poetry. The aficionados of his work consider him synonymous to the true essence of Marathi poetry. His best known poems are ‘Tutari’ and ‘Nava Shipaee’. He has always been an immense inspiration to writers and poets across generations. Keshavsut died in 1905 AD. His belongings are displayed in his old house, which has now been converted into this historical memorial. It was a great place to visit.On the way we covered many beaches and scenic point. Keeping the clock in mind we rushed through them.



2)Jaigad -Taswal Ferry boat – This ferry service is amazing. It reduced the travel time by considerable margin. Official timetable says that they run the ferry at every 45 mins but in reality they operate it at very shorter interval. They don’t wait for the ferry to get full. I am really impressed with their turnaround time. Ferry tickets are affordable INR 16 for adult and INR 160 for a car. Car driver can travel for free. Total voyage time for this ferry is just 10 mins but since it was for the first time for us and in our new car, we enjoyed it. Last time we took a ferry when I was in UK (https://www.poferries.com/en/routes/dover-to-calais).



3)Welneshwar temple - Sri Velneshwar Temple is believed to be one of the ancient temples dedicated to Lord Shiva and his consort Goddess Parvati. Earlier, the temple was built by Gadgils and was later renovated by Sri Trimbak Ravaji Gokhale. Representing an example of ancient Hindu architectural style, the temple houses many small shrines dedicated to Lord Vishnu, Ganesha and Kala Bhairav. The main sanctum of the temple is adorned with paintings and stone carvings representing various episodes of mythology. This temple is flocked by a large number of devotees during the festival of Mahashivratri. It is held in the month of March and celebrated in honour of the deity Lord Shiva.
Another prime attraction of Velneshwar is the Velneshwar Beach which is lined with coconut trees. This is one of the most secluded and pristine beaches in the entire Konkan stretch and with popular destinations like Guhagar and Ganpatipule flanking it on either sides. This beach is quite famous for its location and also the peaceful surroundings. The beach experiences stable waves throughout the year and is an ideal beach for swimming and sunbathing. Water sports are the frequent activities, which are carried out here.

PC-Google


We met my brother-in-law there. He was also on his family trip and was driving through Konkan. We Spent good time in Velneshwar and took a lunch break at a restaurant very next to the beach. Later he decided to travel with us to Palande. Kids were happy. Here are two indian crossovers taking a quick break on Velneshwar beach. My Nexon and my brother in law’s XUV300.



4)Guhagar beach – Post the ferry ride, we took a quick stop at Guhagar beach. This is another city we liked.

5)Dabhol-Dhopave ferry service - This is another ferry service we used on our way. This ferry service has travel time of less than 10 minutes but saves 25-30 KMs of distance (if travelled by road). While travelling towards the ferry point, google map surprised us. It shown a shortcut which ended up with almost no road. It was scary for a moment since the road went through dense forest patch with no human being or a single vehicle was visible. We reached to a point where presence of road was not there and ‘U turn was not possible since the road was too narrow. That’s where Nexon’s off-road capability came handy. We could easily pass the ‘no-road’ scenario with ease. Thanks to Nexon’s high ground clarence. I am sure, if it would have been a hatchback or sedan, we would have landed in trouble. Lesson learnt – Google map is 99% right but do another check before you follow it. Sometimes route suggested by Google could be a difficult one.

6)Palande beach -After a good day behind the wheel and doing some off-roading before Dhopave ferry point, we reached our resort, sea princess beach resort (http://www.seaprincessresort.com/). This resort is located exactly at Palande beach. Beach is hardly at a distance to 200 meters. Structure of this resort is typical old school hotel but provides a great access to the beach. Rooms were basic but they serve very delicious local food. I recommend talking to them in advance and give your food order. We ordered local veg dishes and ‘Ukadiche modak’ food was awesome. Post a good dinner we had a quick walk on the beach and that was a wrap.

Here are our cars taking rest after a good run throughout the day.



Day 4 – December 5 – This was the last day of this tour. So far we had a great time in Konkan. Beaches, ghat roads, local food, temples everything in Konkan is very beautiful and authentic. While leaving place we were wishing if could have spent more time here. Whenever we used to leave any place, my family members were like “We will come here again and lets spend some more time, when we will revisit this place”. We had a good breakfast at the resort and headed towards Harnai port. Harnai is well known for its fishing port.

1)Anjarle - The only place in our itinerary was Anjarle’s Ganpati also known as ‘Kadyawarcha Ganpati’ (Meaning- Ganapati on a cliff). (Text courtesy Google) - The vast sea to the west, the Anjarle village lost in the dense coconut grooves, the far flung Jog creek, and the twisted road winding down from the mountains, climbing steps from the village to the temple and the beautiful temple surrounded by dense trees…there aren’t enough words to correctly describe this scenic beauty. One should admire the vision of the person who thought of establishing the idol of Lord Ganesh, who is the God of art and wisdom, in such a suitable and beautiful place. The Anjarle village is situated on a distance of 18 kilometres on the road from Dapoli to Kelshi. While entering the village, you can see the temple of Lord Ganesha situated on a small hill to the right and is popularly known as ‘Kadyavarcha Ganpati’. The road leading to the temple is engulfed in dense green trees and there is a straight road for the vehicles that directly lead to the temple. It is so believed that the temple was established approximately 600 years ago. On the way to Anjarle, we deliberately took a right turn and climbed the hill. It provided a great panoramic view of the beach, sea and fishing boats who just started their journey for fishing. I can still feel the fresh air.




After experiencing calmness and spirituality of the temple, it was time for us to start our return journey to Pune. 4 days went like a flash. Monday was waiting for me to restart the office work with fresh mind-set. Our return journey was via Mandhangadh->Mangaon->Tamhini Ghat->Pune. What a way to celebrate Wedding anniversary. Nexon really impressed me with its ride and handling. Its a highway cruiser for sure. Stiff suspension make low speed ride bumpy but provides great stability on high speed. With all these twisty roads, car managed an average of 17.5 KMPL. I am really impressed with the drive. Wait for my ownership article in Feb 2022, when my Nexon will complete 2 years tenure wit me


Good Job baby! You deserve a pat on your back !!

[silverado]

Absolutely stunning! Konkan trip is refreshing in many ways.

I am just back from Pune - Kolhapur - Vengurla - Phondaghat - Admapur - Pune 1000 kms of blissfull driving. Except for the HORRIBLE state of Gaganbawda ghat ( Which i coudnt skip since my village lies just after that ), all roads were fun to drive.

Every time i visit Konkan, it attracts you more and you wish you had good internet connection so that WFH was possible in such a serene place.

[amol4184]

Konkan is my favorite holiday spot and the food is just heavenly. Thanks for refreshing my memories even though I did a 800km trip just last month one can never have enough of Konkan!

Originally Posted by silverado

Except for the HORRIBLE state of Gaganbawda ghat ( Which i coudnt skip since my village lies just after that ), all roads were fun to drive.
place.

Same for Varandha ghat (for those who are not going from Pune area) - it's terrible. There are landslides and road has caved in in some places not to mention horrible road surface and potholes. In some places it's outright dangerous, thought I'll just mention it here if someone is planning to take that route.

[ashish2nd]

Originally Posted by silverado

Absolutely stunning! Konkan trip is refreshing in many ways.

I am just back from Pune - Kolhapur - Vengurla - Phondaghat - Admapur - Pune 1000 kms of blissfull driving. Except for the HORRIBLE state of Gaganbawda ghat ( Which i coudnt skip since my village lies just after that ), all roads were fun to drive.

Every time i visit Konkan, it attracts you more and you wish you had good internet connection so that WFH was possible in such a serene place.

Agree. A trip to any part of Konkan is always memorable. Doesn't matter how many days you spend there, at end of your trip , you feel like "I wish could spend more time here".

[ashish2nd]

Originally Posted by amol4184

Konkan is my favorite holiday spot and the food is just heavenly. Thanks for refreshing my memories even though I did a 800km trip just last month one can never have enough of Konkan!



Same for Varandha ghat (for those who are not going from Pune area) - it's terrible. There are landslides and road has caved in in some places not to mention horrible road surface and potholes. In some places it's outright dangerous, thought I'll just mention it here if someone is planning to take that route.

Agree. While returning to Pune from Anjarle, I initially thought of taking Varandha Ghat. But considering the road condition, I dropped the idea. Other 2 options were a) Poladpur-Mahabaleshwar-Pune or b) Mangaon-Tamhini-Pune.

We opted for Tamhini. This ghat section has transformed. What a road !!!

[Sach_511]

Nice Travelogue , enjoyed it thoroughly , always wanted to visit this part of India , but Covid with its new iterations keep putting spanner to make it possible .