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Amazing road trip to 2 nature-oriented places in southern Maharashtra

15th October 2024, 17:40 by Utkarsh Chaudhary

I decided to take the kids to spend a few days in Chiplun followed by some time in the coastal town of Ganpatipule.

BHPian Mustang Sammy recently shared this with other enthusiasts:

The write-up for this November 2023 trip is long pending and has been stuck in the assembly line (much like traffic on our city roads) for almost 1 year. With Diwali 2024 approaching, it was high time I uploaded the pics and submitted the write-up.

So here goes:

Diwali was approaching, and with it the kids’ holidays. With our busy schedules (often they are far busier than I am), the decider (me) took the call to visit the southern part of the great state of Maharashtra.

Since Diwali is a crowded and noisy time of year, we used the week before when the kids’ holidays had started. This decision was a winner in many ways, giving us better availability for the places we stayed at, more personalized attention, easier driving and uncrowded spots to visit.

Yours truly chose to spend a few days in the Chiplun area, followed by some time in the coastal town of Ganpatipule. The places we stayed at in both locations were simple setups and nature-oriented, to give the young ones Shelby & Cobra some experience of the outdoors, away from the city creature comforts, and to get them comfortable around other creatures. Since this was our first time in the Konkan, there were a lot of places for us to visit and sights to see.

Tip: Download an offline map of the region before you head out, as there are significant patches in the countryside with no mobile coverage for certain carriers.

Note: The fastest route might have changed now thanks to the rapidly progressing construction on NH66.

Day One:

The Drive to Chiplun:

On a pleasant Monday morning, the three of us headed out in trusty Vader on NH48 towards Satara. After exiting the ever-expanding Pune outskirts, we took a short breakfast break at Vithal Kamats (the Maharashtra version of US highway McDonalds, but with MUCH greater variability) and then headed back down south. Shortly before Shirwal, we were instructed by Sundar-bhai to take a right on to NH965DD, also called Maharashtra SH70. Interesting that many of our highways have multiple names, although they don’t have uncles, aunts & mean schoolmates like we do.

Route we took to Dongarmatha

Turn off from NH48

After exiting NH48

Lovely old Banyan Trees

The town of Bhor (which spellcheck corrected twice to Thor and Bohr)

The road is nicely tarred all the way through the ghats, and we hardly encountered any traffic, making the drive an absolute pleasure. Making good time, we zipped through the countryside, encountering a couple of scenic mini-ghats along the way. Took a short break at what looked like a quarry, and then later at the Nira-Deoghar reservoir after driving past the dam (which we missed, damn!).

Road gets quite scenic here

A quarry which has become a temporary lake

Pretty countryside. Grass has already turned yellow.

Panoramic view of the Nira-Deoghar reservoir

The road had started climbing by then, and we were soon going through the steep and windy Varandha Ghat. The views were spectacular, but the curves can be troublesome for those who suffer from motion sickness, particularly so if you are in a BoF SUV like ours. Recommend frequent breaks, light eating and possibly preventive medications for those who are very sensitive.

The winding roads of the Varandha Ghat

Rugged hillsides of the Varandha Ghat

Kawla Gad (Crow Fort in Marathi). Didn't stop to explore it.

After descending, we were now in the Konkan and started encountering significant amounts of roadwork. The smooth sections were interrupted almost like clockwork by rough patches and diversions. Perhaps the civil engineers in the group can enlighten.

These patches of bumpy roads were encountered every couple km

Shortly before Mahad, we turned off onto NH66, which is being redone on a war footing. The road was a divided 4-lane concrete expressway now, and we made rapid progress, barring a couple of patches still under construction. 1.5 hours later we exited towards the village of “Lote Parshuram”, which is named after a temple to the deity, one of the few in the country. Less than a kilometer later, we entered the compound of our first stay, the Dongarmatha Eco Care resort. The final drive is a steep ascent on an unpaved road, but Vader made it without any issues. Per the resort owner, Tata Nanos have also driven there without any issues. We were welcomed by the owner Mr. Mangesh Govekar and his friendly staff with a refreshing raw mango aam panna.

Joining the Goa highway NH66

6-lane concrete section of NH66

Last stretch to Dongarmatha

Getting Closer

The final approach

Dongarmatha:

As the name suggests, Dongarmatha sits at the top of a hill. It is an eco-resort, constructed almost entirely out of local and natural materials. The flooring is also natural, made of mud and cow dung, and is redone every year. The place has been built over the years by ex-Mumbaikars Mangesh & Shraddha and is truly a labor of love. They have a passion for nature and for their work, and were impeccable hosts. The food was delicious, both vegetarian and non-vegetarian items, with a 100% local menu, and our special dietary requirements were accommodated without hesitation. Mangesh took us on a couple of hikes, crocodile watching in the backwaters, gave additional recommendations for sightseeing and regaled us with his knowledge of the area and the outdoors.

Our room was big, airy and clean, and one wall was decorated with a lovely painting of village life, unique to each room. The setup is very comfortable and all essentials are available. Don’t expect a hotel-like experience, though. It is run more like a homestay, with personal attention and activities arranged to your taste.

Our room, occupied by Shelby

The tastefully done-up courtyard

After a late lunch and afternoon nap, Mangesh took us out on a short hike outside the property. The tall grass had become yellow by November and was consequently a bit itchy for those who were not wearing long pants (Shelby). It was great fun to be back in nature, scrambling up rocks and breathing clean(er) air. At night after dinner, Mangesh set up curtains of white sheets that attracted large numbers of local moths, including some large and colorful specimens. He also shared a wealth of information about these species (self taught and through courses) with us. The Atlas Moth, the largest species in the area and one of the largest moths in the world didn’t show up though. The presence of moths also meant the entire place was full of caterpillars, and we had to be careful to avoid squishing them, or having them fall on us. Mosquito nets were required in the room at night to guard against this risk.