Alibagh trip Day 3

by Singapore

D3: One of the most tiresome day of my entire trip

 

Difficulty level: high (endurance,Climbs)

Local attractions:

  • Passing through the dense forest
  • Varandha ghat view point with sunset

Even though I was not having sufficient sleep of last night, I woke up around 6:30, quickly disassembled my tent to go for a sunrise photograph in the beach. Even though Sun rise was not directly reflecting on the beach , but from the backyards of the hill it was looking so beautiful , making a picturesque reflection on the broad beach.

I have observed people from other locations already reached the beach early morning around 4.30 to enjoy its morning view. I also made a ride through the beach from one to the other end on the white sand. People started riding with the motor boats on the low tide  waves.

 

It was so nice to observe the different art formed by the incoming and outgoing sea tides on the white sands .Beach is so clean that we can clearly observer the creation on the sand .After spending couple of minutes  I planned to leave Diveagar and headed towards Mhasala , as I may need to take deviation from there  either to Pune or Mahabaleshwar based on the road condition. I have a strict duration for this trip of 4 days , so I had to cut down few of the places from my initial pre-plan list.

 

The road towards Mhasala was almost good apart from few distance at the starting. The ride of around 20km goes through the rolling road around the small ghats till I reach Mhasala with around 1.5 hours.It was sweating a bit as I was feeling humid in that region.

 

Had my breakfast at Mhasala as there was no such food stall in that patch of the road. Met few bikers coming from Pune towards the beach via Thamini ghat. They told me about the bad condition of the road and asked me to prepare mentally for the climbs in the ghat sections. We left each other after wishing a safe and enjoyable ride.

 

I started my ride around 9.30 from Mhsala point taking guide about the next part of the road from the shopkeeper in the hotel that I had breakfast.

 

After leaving the small town of Mhasala around 3 km, I headed towards Goregaon which was around 30 km with full of ghat section and the forests. Initially I have to climb few km then the road was rolling and downhill. It was one of the best part of the ride with the dense forest surrounding and the ghat with hardly any vehicles. The fragrance of the flowers were energizing my mind the soal. So pleasant and lonely  it was although it was a ghat to be crossed. After around 2.30 hr, I reached Goreagoan and then Lonere at 12.30 pm. There were only few food stalls if you want to have anything apart from the small towns in Mhasala and the intermediate villages. So better to keep water and food for that section. Around the road the paddy field were covered with rice grains and you can see the farmers storing rice grains from the farm in few villages. Quite silent road it was.

 

Still I have to decide where to go further as wherever I go, I need to cross ghat at least 20 KM.As it was 12pm already, I decided not to go through Bahabaleshwar as I have to climb of around 45KM. And planned to go through Varandh ghat via Bhor to Pune.

 

Taken the Panvel- Kochi- Kanyakumari highway road from Lonere towards Mahad of around 20 km .On few places of the road just before reaching Mahad  you can see Savitri river on you right along the road.

 

By mistake I entered in Mahad town taken a deviation from the highway crossing a small river called   Gandhari. I could see lots of masjid in Mahdi passed through and a small pond called Chavdar Tale with a statue of Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar caught attraction of my eye.Through the city of around 3 km I again reached the highway and had my lunch in a small hotel  besides the highway around 2 pm.

 

Continued my ride without any further break with an easy pace to save my time instead taking  .After reaching Savitri river twin bridge  I had to take a left deviation from the main highway through 70 no state highway. On the way you can see river Kal on your left. It was around 20km ride till you reach the main ghat sections. Once approaching towards the ghats and looking into it, mind started tickling about the effort needed  to be put while climbing. It was a fully sunny day and the heat was draining my energy though it was pleasant ride through the villages and the rice paddy field around the road.

Soon after climbing few kms in the ghat I stared feeling thirstier. I had only a 700 ml water bottle and only 1/4th  was left. A car driver offered me water bottle on the way while asking for some water. I had to stop in some hairpins due to continuous climbs and its sudden elevation.

 

Heart beat was raising gradually with increasing heat in my body.I stopped seeing a small stream and decided to take few min rest .Taken a small shower in that cold water make my body to calm and filled both the bottle with stream water coming through the rocks. Even after that also I was able to climb only a few distance. Gear started decreasing till 1:1 from 2:1.

 

There was a small school besides the road itself few meters ahead, thought of taking  rest of  half an hour as body was not comfortable to ride further. I tried to slept for few min in a shed under a tree and the time was 4:30. The giant hills were looking gigantic from the road as I was gradually climbing up. Got few clicks of those hills from the hill top. But after few distance, inclination started decreasing and I also started feeling relaxed with the sun set. The other side of the ghat was quite pleasant temperature as sun was opposite side of the hills. Got the water bottle filled from a food stall.  It was becoming dusk and I planned to stay in the ghat only as it might be unfavorable to  ride in the ghats as the road was not good in the downhill.

 

After few km Varandha Ghat valley view I met an villager asking him for a guide about the road.He happily suggested me to stay in nearby hotel roadside near Nira-Deoghar dam as it was just few km distance away from me.

 

Downhill was quite uncomfortable with the potholes in the road and I decided to take a stop looking at a hotel.And requested him if I can pitch my tent nearby his hotel. He also suggested me to not to ride further at night due to bad condition of the road .

 

They even prepared the food that I might like knowing about my trip story and we talked about my experiences  .It made me so happy that people are still ready to help whenever you are in need. Captured some clicks with the hotel guys as a memory and I put my tent near their hotel. They even offered me to take rest along with them as  it would be cold at night .But I preferred to use my tent to get the experience under the blue sky. Those hotels runs throughout the night and day. The vehicles were getting parked just near my tent .Might be I was occupying the parking area.

 

At night was it was quite chilled and my tent was  covered with the mist at night as the dam was just below the area.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Alibagh trip Day 2

by Singapore

d2:

Difficulty level: Easy

 

Attractions:

·         Diveagar beach

·         Murud beach

·         Murud Janjira fort

·         Khokari tomb

·         Seaside road from Murud

·         Jetty ride

 

 Most relaxed day of my trip . Left Kashid beach around 7.30 after making ride in the beach enjoying the sunrise on the lengthy broad white sand beach. People already started their adventurous activities in the early morning_. Reflections of sun rise on the beach was making like a golden sand beach.  

 

   Not spending much of my time, I headed towards Diveagar around 20 km away from Kashid .The road passes through the small ghat section on the left and the small villages .Villagers are so fortunate to have their lifestyle besides the sea around the greenery.

 

    I met a villager happily briefing about their village and showing a portion of their coastal side. It was so beautiful with the green forest and few coconut trees besides their home in the sea shore. He even guided me about the     route of my next destination the . Can you imagine how happy are they to meet a traveler like you .  After a gratitude I continued my paddling through the coastal road.

 

Within an hour I reached Murud beach. It was already bit crowded with the visitors playing in the water. It’s bit commercialized beach compared to other beaches around that. Many food stalls were there along the way on  the sea shore. Without spending much time, I continued towards Murud Janjira fort, which was around just 2 Km away after crossing a village.

 

There were many fishing boats floating on the beach and the back water. Can you guess the smell of the location, yah you are right!! It’s the smell of the dry fish all around the place. I even encountered few areas used to getting them dry under the sun. There was even a dry fish market on the side of the road.

 

The patch from Murud beach till Murud janjira ride was a kind of dream ride. From the road along the hill you can view the sea and the view was just breath taking . I couldn’t help myself making few rounds in the same road for few km. Left side is the hill and down the road is the sea, can you visualize the view how mesmerizing would it be!!

As you need to go via ferry to reach the Janjira for which was just 10 min by ferry and by observing the queue in the ticket counter I decided not to visit the Janjira fort and headed towards Diveagar Beach. By the way from this small port you can cross to Dighi as well by jetty.I preferred to go from Agadanda jetty as there were frequent boats from there. It was around 7 km till Agadanda . Road was bit more greenery and road was of broken tarmac.

 

I have seen Vehicles also getting crossed by the ferry from Agadanda to Dighi port. I also crossed by a jetty of around 15 min on the sea. You can prefer to go through the  road also along the sea  which was a longer route by skipping ferry.

 

Even though I was hungry by the time I reached Dighi around 1 PM ,I decided not to take lunch as somebody told me that there is ghat  on the way  to reach Diveagar.

 

The road from Dighi was not much rolling for few distance, but once the climbs starts , that road was also of broken tarmac. It was quite effortful in that sunny day at noon.Even I was not able to get the speed in the downhills due to it’s bad road condition. The location around the ghat looks to be bit dry .

 

After the ghat there were few hotels where I decided to take my lunch and headed towards Diveagar which was again 7 km away from the lunch place. Road seems to better from there and bit rolling without much climbs.

 

The narrow road into beach is a diversion from the main road . After around 2.5 km you can see the village full of guest houses providing good services for food and accommodation to the tourists. Quite green place in the village.

It started feeling calm and relaxed by the air flowing through my  body once I reach the beach.It was a clean white beach with a lengthy broad area ,and  other part of the beach  was covered with jungle and the village.

People were busy playing with different  adventure activities on water.

The broad clean area of the beach attracted me for a ride along  beach.

Even though my plan was to reach Harihareshwar on that day which was 38 km away, but looking at the bad patches of the road and ghat I planned to take a halt and play  with the water accompanying with a friend who  was doing Mumbai to Goa expedition ,which made me interesting to interact with him. Spending time till evening with him telling about each others experiences of our adventures ,we left after having dinner together at his guest house .And started searching for my halt area with the tent near the beach.

 

 

Beach was stretched so long that I was feeling lonely and bit scared to pitch my tent as other side was jungle area. Though I put the tent near a street light in the beach at mid night, high tides started scaring me with its strong sound. Water came almost 200 ms of my tent area. I observed after 2 hours the tides moved back to its normal flow at midnight. Mosquitoes were disturbing quite a bit. Passed that night with those memories with a half sleep condition under the tent in the beach. Quite adventures it was!

Alibagh trip Day 1

by Singapore

Would you like to through the beaches besides the mountains crossing the country roads of Konkani coastal villages ,Let’s walk through my story riding solo from a city to the beaches climbing some of the giant climbs of Western ghats of Maharashtra.

 

Main attractions:

  • Beaches
  • Coastel lines
  • Western ghats
  • Historical forts
  • Jetty ride
  • Beach camping
  • Lake camping
  • Glance of Konkani village

Difficulty level:

  • Moderate
  • Endurance ride

Coastal roads through  the beaches were always appealing me to see the enchanting beauty of Konkani region. To get the feel of such a beauty I planned my trip from Pune to Diveagar beach and back to Pune through killer ghats of Varandha ghat.

 

D1: Started my day around 7 am from from Pune following Mumbai – Pune highway. After leaving Pune city, highway was quite lonely without any traffic at all. Terrain was flat to rolling with downhill till Lonawala with some scenic with some hills beauty around the road. Good road made me unstoppable ride till Kanadala.

 

Reached Khandala around 9.45 and after having a breakfast of a hot vada-pav and then I continued towards Khapoli.That was the easiest ride of the entire trip. The downhill of around 30 munities from Khandala to Khapoli will give you a feeling of flying on the road without a pedal.

 

Just after the downhill you have to take a left turn towards Khopoli . From Khopoli to Pen road is not so good with few normal climbs. Bad road made me to compromise with my speed on that sunny day. It has taken around 2 hours to Reach Pen.

 

From Pen road became better with few ghats  .You can see a massive steel plant of JSW steel on the riverside of Amba river. I reached Alibagh around 2.30 and there itself I had my lunch .

 

At that time it was quite sunny on the Alibagh beach. So , spending very little time on the beach and with a  motivation to enjoy the sun set on Kashid beach , I left Alibagh around 3:30.

 

The countryside narrow road goes through the small villages with many temples by the roadside .Sun was also gradually setting down.

 

Once approaching Kashid , you can see the beach from some part of the road giving a feeling of coastal side. While crossing Kundalika river on your way you can see Revdanda Bunder on you left. The coastal road also with few small ghats  to cross to the beach. No exception here also. I reached Kashid around 5.30 just before the sunset.

The portion of the beach with the sun set was looking stunning from the hill top in that ghat section .

Legs were completely tired and the I was desperate for a rest on hammock  at  the small food stalls at the seashore.

Can’t have that luxury without lying  down on a hammock  watching the stunning sun set.

 

Prepared my mind to pitch my tent just besides those stalls for that night.

The fisher men’s boat was forming like a train at distance at night with their light. Clear sky with the smiling stars and the music of surrounding tides were the only thing you can think about at that time during the night.   The midnight high tides were creating some thrilling sounds like thunderstorm was an experience of a kind .

 

 

 

 

 

 

Ratnagiri trip Day 4

by Singapore

D4:

Waking up on the cliff   in a Konkan village near a temple surrounded by hills on one side and the sea on the other side, can you just imagine the breathtaking view of the sunrise.It was a famous Ganesh temple named Kadyavaril Ganpati Temple on the cliff.You can see many shops in the arena of the temple selling many Konkani local foods specially dry fruits and spices.

The morning sunlight  light breaking over the hills  into greenery of the village in sea side was eye catching. The boats were gradually visible with the raising sun on the bluish sea water. I could not help staying for an hour to observe the natural beauty of the place. I could even see some Gray langur monkyes were playing on the tree taking morning heat.

I went to the village nearby and had a glance about their life style. How  great full they are to be in that amazing beautiful place, where scenery of hill and sea is at their place itself. They even planted cashew and mango trees in their firm land.

I was about to return from the place towards my  next route. On the way surprisingly I met a villager who made my day memorable.As he has seen me on my bike pack with the tent and all, he assumed that I might be staying at the hill for the night.Thinking so he even came searching me just to inquire about my comfortability at staying there and even he was about to get some food for me for the night.I had some conversations with him knowing about the life at those Konkan villages and he was happy to elaborate their living style and how happy are they.With those sweet thoughts I left the place and headed back to end of my trip towards Dapoli. After crossing the village near the beach it was a climb and the beauty of the beach the sea was breath taking.You can view  the Suvernadurga fort from the top among many other scenic view of the sea.

The curvy road from the top of the hill was clearly visible near Murud beach. You will be amazed to see thousands of dolphins playing of the sea from the top of the hill.

U can hire a boat to go inside the sea to observe then from nearer.

The road to Dapoli was the same route that I came from through Karde-murud. It was around 24 km from there with gradual uphill around the cashew and mango firms.

I reached Dapoli around noon to catch a bus to Pune. Since there were   couple of hours more so I decided to go to Khed , around 25km from Dapoli.The road was initially bit flat to incline and last 12 km was mostly declined.After reaching Khed after one an hour I just wanted to visit to Khed railway station , as there are trains to Pune or Mumbai.

On the way to the train station from  the Bus station We need to cross a river called Jagbudi river.While crossing the bride something surprised my eyes , all of a sudden. A wood was playing hide and seek in the river.and to my surprise it was a big crocodile. A conversation with a local, he told me that crocodiles are usually seen in the river.Forget about fishing in that river.even though people go for washing clothes, they have to go as a group, just to make some noise to scare those crocodiles.

 

After waiting couple of hours and passing time on the streets of the small town of Khed, talking with the local people and getting to know whatever possible in that last span of time I returned to the bus station and caught the bus around 9.30 Pm towards Pune.

 

The unique view of  coastal road along side of Arabian sea and the western ghat hills, will always appeal me come back again to  those beautiful place.

 

  

 

 

 

Ratnagiri trip Day 3

by Singapore

D3:  The beauty of the beach on the sunrise was just stunning. Few birds were seen trying to catch fish on the shore. Morning sunrays was  reflecting on the flat white sand beach.After making a morning ride on the beach I started towards  Murud.

I need to cross by a ferry  to go to the other end of the side at Dhabol that was just a few kms from Guhagar. The ferry port from the top of the road with the boats was a picturesque view.There was a steep climb too to reach the  port in each side.

 

Once reach Dhabol and further ahead , he road was through a jungle. Lots of banyan trees were seen .you can see the sea on your right side from the road.You also cross a Power plant covering huge areas on your way.The huge power transmitting cables were noticed crossing over the hills .The freshness of the air was witnessing about the presence of the jungle .

 

To reach Murud, there were two roads  ,one through the  highway road via Dapoli and the other was through  nearby the beaches but with some giant steep climbs with bad patches inside the villages.

I preferred the second one through Panchnadi  and was not mistaken by choosing the later one,as I could had a clear idea about its village life crossing many Hindu temples and local schools.I have seen few local  Cashew and betel nut factories in a village.

On the way I even came across a place with a big statue Parashuram , called Parashuram bhoomi (the birth place of Parashuram ).Freshen my throat with a local made Konkani soda.I could clearly see the beaches of Lohadgad ,Karde-Murud from the top of the hill.IT was then just downhill with some few curvy road til Lohadgad beach.Those beaches were adjutant to each other .

 

I Had my lunch in one of a local food stall beside Karde beach.IT is one of the pristine beach.Just few kms away through the road was Murud beach.The road along the beach was bit curvy and few climbs , but a different view of the beach.

Just 5 Km away is Harnai beach fish market. I reached at a perfect time to wittnss the market environment.Large group of fishing ships were staying at the port.Many fisher men were making their nets at the bank where few were preparing their boats for their livelihood to catch fish for few days to the sea.

With a conversation of a fisher man , he told they go for fishing around 7 to 10 days.

Few nets were kept on the fort nearby to make them dry.

In the fish market , small shop keeper were waiting for the fresh fishes from the small boats.Those smaller boats are used to get the fishes from the larger ones and then by some bull carts those are brought to the beach to the end sellers.Air was smelling dry fish smell through the beach.

It was one of my attraction point of this trip, so I never wanted to miss the fish market at Harnai.

 

The road to Anjarle beach from Harnai that was around 7 kms was through the small villages on the bank of the  sea .you can almost see the boats along the way to Anjarle with few temples and mosque  .I reached Anjarle beach that was bit inside from the main road with some declines and through a village.

The was the beauty of those places where along with your destination to enjoy in the beach, you can experience the local culture and the lifestyle also.As there were lots of home stays near the beach in the village which offers you some delicious home made local Konkani dishes.

 

Anjarle is famous for turtle , which are seen at large numbers around January-February months where they come to the beaches to lay eggs. The palm and coconut tress were beautifying the surrounding of the long white sand beach.

 

 

 

 

Haw Par Villa : Visit one of the Asia’s rich open cultural gallery in Singapore

by Singapore

The sculptures comes alive once you understand the story behind it.Amazing story telling and a great opportunity to witness the old art and cultures influenced by Chinese mythology.

  • 10 courts of hell
  • Depicts how living activities of old Chinese village
  • Famous Tiger balm
  • Richest family is Asia
  • Chinese mythology and story telling
  • Open art gallery in the world
  • Nice view of Harbour Front with the cargo ships loading and unloading.

One of the most attraction that you should never miss is Ten courts of hell.You should be bold enough to enter the cave of hell.You will get goose bump once you enter into the time-machine that will let you feel like a thrilling earth.

The different characters of statues in ten different courts of hell shows, how an offender goes into different stages of punishment till death based on the offence .This is nothing less than a famous horror Hollywood movie Saw. The scene of dissecting different body parts in live,putting into a pond of thrones ,letting feel suffer to show loved one in trouble are a few of those.

Believed on the Chinese and Buddhist mythology, these stories interprets the scary environment how the hell is.and how a sole is released after so much of sufferings.

There are many other stories also which showcases the greatness of their art at those time of Chinese sculptors with their colorful statues.

Take a good clicks of the masks of different characters.

Children will also enjoy with the stories of Monkey empire..including others. Those represents how moral value is shared among community in Chinese culture.

Get a feel of how a traditional Chinese village looks like , depicting different walks of life .

There are even stories of god and animals also sharing the morals to us.

The continuous series of stories of different human evolution form different groups of people were eye catching with their perfect sculpting skills.

There is a museum also ,covering the expansion of their Tiger balm business of Haw family , one of the richest Asian family at that time and the purpose of building this amazing cultural garden ,and donating towards public.

Thanks to the family of Haw Par for their great work towards the society as a result we could witness the rich Chinese art and culture.

Around Arab street Singapore

by Singapore

Singapore gives you a great opportunity to indulge with the Middle eastern culture.

The colorful vibes of the artworks in the walls of the streets . Just walk down to those narrow short streets to get a feel .

If you love handicrafts , definately visit Arab street to witness the creativity made by Arabian artist.There are lots of shops selling perfumes,hand made handicrafts,mosaic lights,different colorful pots and appreciate their creativity.

Sultan mosch is the most beautiful Mosch in Singapore .

Must visit for a dinner with different cusines of Arab,Intanbul, Egypt,Turkey in that colorful open Street.

Feel the crowd in the evening with the other travellers .

The whole streets around this area transformed to be a musical hub with the street perfotmances .Grab a glass of beer and get lost in the music and the crowd.

east_cost_park_bluish_water_and_those_cargo_ships8797543819022255346.jpg

A day out in East coast park

by activitiesCampinggreenerynature parkssightseeingSingapore
fishing at east coast park ,Bedok , singapore
Fishing at east coast park ,Bedok , singapore

Singaporeans are so blessed that you hardly need to go so much away to enjoy for an outdoor closure to nature.Come and relux yourself listing the sea waves at the beach looking at the huge cargo ships on the bluish sea water.


In East coast and Pasir Ris park you can pitch your tent in some designated areas . Starting from Marina Bay till Tenah Mera road,this 15 km straight stretch is perfect for cycling or jogging.Tons of active enthusiast make this road live with their bicycles or the running gears throughout the clock. Facilities like shower and water dispensers are there in those park areas.Rent a bicycle from one of the kiosk and explore those beautiful beach side along the road covered by trees both the sides .Even you can hire a human powered rickshaw for you entire family and have a leisure tour by the beach .Pack your backpack with your favorite eateries and laze around on the grass in the open air with the pleasant breeze of sea.

How can you skip without soaking a dip in such a low tide beach water. Don’t forget to pack your swimming kit with you.Fly a kite with your little one following the airplane moving towards you from the other side of sea .

Prepare your own delicious barbecue at the designated pit and have a stomach full meal.If you want to be lazy for cooking yourself, hawker food stalls are just around you with varieties of seafood dishes.

There are other adventure activities also you can try near East cost park.Permits and other.

details:https://e-station.axs.com.sg/NParks_Camping/Internet/index.php