Much Needed Getaway to Kokan, India
Since March 2020 the whole world had come to a standstill. Businesses were affected, people had started getting affected with the Covid-19 virus. And the worst part was we all were locked up in our own houses. And work from started for the longest duration had started in every software professionals career.
After months of being harassed, tortured and mentally stressed me and my friend thought of having a trip (like we usually have every year). After lots of phone calls and frantic discussions we fixed the location as Kokan or to be more precise Ganpatipule, Guhaghar and Ratnagiri.
There is a folklore that Lord Parshuram hit an arrow and had created this pristine location on the coastal side of Maharashtra. Recently due to the findings as well, Kokan has become the hotspot for the archeologists. The rock carvings that have found in recent days has pointed out that there was a lost civilization residing in this location. We were basically drawn to Kokan just because of two main things:
- Beaches
- Temples
We had selected the long weekend of 25th December for our trip and hence we started our journey on 24th of December from Pune. And our first location was Ganpatipule. A.C Bus travel costs round about 1000 INR from Pune. You reach there by 8 or 9 A.M in the morning. The village of this Ganpatipule is basically known for the Ganpati Temple which is situated on the seashore.
It is said that this idol of Ganpati is self made and is being there since last 400 years. It also finds its mention in the Mudgal Purana. We got ready and visited the temple and then straight headed to the beach. Ganpatipule beach is one of the cleanest beaches of Maharashtra. Previously it was a calm and secluded beach, but due to its proximity from Pune and Mumbai many people are drawn to it. And where there is crowd there is business. The beachline is flocked with shops selling eateries, coconuts and other items that the children can get attracted to. Camel back rides, Tonga rides have also made it to Ganpatipule now.
Having water rides there was quite a surprise for us. We did try the scooter ride and the boat ride. It was a high tide when we visited and that added to more excitement for the rides. After chilling for some time and having lunch we retired to our hotel rooms and had a quick nap time.
In the evening we again visited the beach and had a nice view of sunset. The sound of waves crashing on the beach, the soft breeze and the setting sun transport you to all new world. Standing in shallow water and watching the sun fade away, nothing can replace this feeling. After the beach grew dark or rather the coast guards drove us away from the water we came back to the hotel, had dinner and ended our day.
There are few things to remember while you visit there. First and foremost you need a private vehicle if you want to visit the Kokan side of Maharashtra. Because public transport sucks. The roads too suck. If you are too much into making something dare devilish then try your luck for it. Secondly the hotels. Usually we tend to have our bookings done before we visit a place. But in Kokan there are very few places mentioned on the booking websites, and there are ample cheap options for stays there. So opt for the later part.
The next day started with 18 km rickshaw drive from Ganpatipule to Jaigad. And we were planning to have a jetty ride from Jaigad to Guhagar. We got to know that this would be a short cut to reach Guhagar, other wise we would have to reach back to Ratnagiri and then head back to Guhagar by MSRTC buses. That cost us 500 INR and the local Rickshaw and the tam tam costed 700 INR from Jaigad to Guhagar. This was actually a bad choice because once the Jetty reaches the shore of Jaigad you do not find a vehicle to get to Guhagar which is 21 km from Jaigad. We had to plead and bargain the tam tam (local vehicle) to take us to Guhagar.
In the mid transit we missed visiting Hedvi Ganpati and Velneshwar Mandir because we were unaware that we would be surpassing them in between the travel. Guhagar is a small town straight out of the 80s or the 90s era. You get a Malgudi days vibe there. The narrow lanes and the houses with front and back arenas, the betel nut and coconut trees in the backyard just make this town a Instagram worthy.
We checked in the hotel and after a quick bite straight headed to the beach. The beach bug in us never gets enough of the beach vibe. It was mid noon but still we enjoyed the time soaking in the sea waters. After like an hour or two we had the lunch and headed back to the Hotel rooms.
We returned back to the beach in the evening time and had the fullest share of watching the pale yellow, red sun setting in the sea. If you are in Kokan and do not purchase the local goodies then your trip is wasted. The Fanas Poli, The Amba Poli, Kokam juice, raw Kokams, Mango pulps every single thing makes its share in your bag and makes the wallet lighter by 1k or 2k. (But its totally worth it)
Third day we headed to Chiplun as we got to know that the frequency of the buses to Ratnagiri is higher from there. But as I said public transport sucks, the wait for the public transport made us loose our 3 hours. And we reached Ratnagiri by 5 P.M. Exhausted and drained we headed to the Mandavi Beach. Not so clean and adorable like the other beaches but this is also one the calmest beach. Not to forget this is one of the crowdest beach.
Nonetheless the sunset made us forget the soul sucking wait and the bus ride trauma from Chiplun to Ratnagiri. And we returned to Pune by the bus on 28th morning.
This way our yearly trip got to an end with recharged mind and lessons learnt.
Every trip teaches us somethings, you have to gather the experiences and learn from the mistakes you have committed.
