[tejas08]

With my first car now a little over a year older, the yearning to start exploring the not so known places one by one was ever increasing. Also, me and my wife were looking for a much needed break from the regular chores of life (More so my wife needed it badly). Being a finance sector person, she had been under tremendous pressure right since March till date. Me! I am one of those few lucky fellas who come home at 05:35 PM with Saturday’s & Sunday’s off from work. A job which allows me to work up threads like the one you are reading now and some like these ones.

http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/test-d...ip-report.html

http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/travel...ls-canada.html

There’s one more thread in the Assembly line which is long pending and I need to complete soon.

Enough said about me and my wife. The thought of having a 2-3 day trip somewhere near Mumbai was brewing for over 4-5 weeks now. I started looking at the destination options. My first option was Mahabaleshwar / Panchgani. I started talking about the probable locations with some of the BHPians over a Navi Mumbai Whatsapp group. The first thought that crossed my mind half an hour after putting this up on the Whatsapp group, ‘Why in the World did I put this up over here?’ Like all the friendly BHPians over here, these guys had given me at least 15 different options including the likes of Lonavala, Daman, Murud etc.

The date for this trip was still undecided due to my wife’s work pressure. About a couple of weeks back, my wife finally decided she will take leave on 20-Jul-15 & 21-Jul-15. Now the problem was that the location wasn’t decided. Based on the BHPians opinions, I started surfing the internet a little, talked to a couple of close office colleagues. Just a week before the mentioned dates after a lot of thinking I decided on Diveagar. (I really need to cut down on the time required for deciding destinations. I just think a lot when deciding the options as if I am taking a very important decision that is going to shape up my future ). The inclination towards Diveagar came due to the numerous praises heard about the driving pleasure on the road to Diveagar. While writing about this trip a couple of days after, I still grin at the pleasure & smiles I got driving all of the 450+ kms.

The Greenery all along the way from the point you exit from the Mumbai-Pune Expressway just takes all your worries away.









Searched for some stay options in Diveagar and ended up finalizing on the Exotica Beach Resort for 19-Jul-15 to 21-Jul-15.



The above photo has been picked up from the internet as I forgot to take a photograph of the entrance of the Resort.

Hotel booking Details:

• Check-In – 19-Jul-15 @ 12:00 Noon
• Check-Out – 21-Jul-15 @ 11:00 AM

Like at movies have twists in the plot, this plan too had one. The booking was done on Tuesday 14-Jul-15. My wife was still working on some reports which were on topmost priority as per her boss. On Thursday, my wife ended up asking me how much advance was paid and what happens to the advance if we do not go? The best I could hope for was that my wife sits late in the office on Friday and completes the work as per her Boss’ requirement. Sadly that did not happen. Her Boss was somewhere in Europe (Enjoying here vacation) sent her a message on Whatsapp indicating ‘if the work isn’t completed, postpone your leave’.

Wife was working on these reports on Saturday from home and after some discussions with her colleagues and her boss, @ 09:30 PM gave a go ahead. The plan was to leave from home at around 10:00 AM in the morning. The To & Fro routes were already planned. The only plan made for sight-seeing was a trip to Harihareshwar.

Day 1 (Sunday - 19-Jul-15)

• Start Time – 10:00 AM
• Distance Travelled – 190 Kms
• Drive Time – 4 Hours 5 Mins Approx.
• Halts – 1 No. / 20 Mins.
• Destination Arrival – 02:25 PM

Route Map (Courtesy Google Maps)



Since this was expected to be only a 4 hour drive, we did not plan on leaving early in the morning to beat traffic and stuff. Also, this was supposed to be a trip to relax for my wife. She hates to be woken up early. By her standards, 10:00 AM start was a fairly good start for us. The initial 65 Kms upto the Khalapur Toll Plaza were covered in just under an hour. I was afraid that with the late start, we might end up in some traffic but were lucky possibly due to a Sunday morning. The rest of the journey too was pretty much as expected in terms of the time-frame. We halted about a Km before Mangaon for a Tea / Pee Break. Took a 15-20 mins break and had a cup of tea and some dry snacks (packed by us). We headed off for our destination and reached at around 02:25 PM, right in time for Lunch. Checked into the cottage and freshened up and headed straight for Lunch.

The Tea Break Location



Some photos of our Cottage in the Resort. Apologies for not having photos fro inside of the Cottage.





A Sit-out Gallery attached to the cottage. During the Day-Time its good, but mosquitoes and insects due to the forest like setup will make your life hell at times.



The view from the Cottage. The beach is immediately behind the trees in the photo.



Post lunch retired into the cottage for a short nap. Headed off to the Diveagar Beach in the Evening, which is like exiting from the Resort main gate, crossing the road and onto the beach.





Diveagar Beach is a superbly flat beach inviting automobile enthusiasts to bring their vehicles onto the beach for a ride. This has led to some reckless creatures racing on the beach on bikes. I was tempted to take my car on the beach, but by the end of the second day I had kept the temptation away and the Head overcame the heart in this case. Not really the brightest of ideas to take your car on the wet sand of a beach. Since Diveagar Beach is not yet popular, it is fairly a clean beach. My personal opinion is that it won’t stay that way for long enough. We could already see garbage pits being formed at the entry points of the beach. There are already 4-5 vendors selling Chaat, Vada Pav, Tea etc. Adventure activities (and some not so adventurous ones) such as Parasailing (by car), Horse cart riding, All Terrain Vehicle have already started on the beach. All in all, a very calm beach which gives you the feeling of a slow paced life which not many are used to.



How can I stay away from a ride on this? I was not allowed to drive it all by myself. The best I could achieve was a 46 kmph speed.

There is nothing much to do in Diveagar other than the Beach. One more possible spot could be the Suvarna Ganapati Mandir where there was a Ganesha Status made of Pure Gold. I said was because, it was stolen from the temple and never found. Currently the temple has a normal Ganesha statue with Photos of the Gold Statue put up on the wall. It’s not really a huge temple like the ones you see in movies and stuff. We did go to the temple while leaving from Diveagar to Mumbai on Tuesday. Sorry no snaps of the temple. I am not a person who would click photos of temples and religious spots.

Came back to the Hotel at around 06:00 PM. The Resort had activities like Carrom, Table Tennis, Fussball & badminton. As there was nothing to do, we decided to try some of these things. Here's some photos of the Hotel.

The Recreation Area



The Restaurant



The Sitting / Waiting Area



We tried our luck at watching the sunset on the beach, but both days the sky was cloudy and we were left disappointed.



At 07:30 PM, back in the hotel cottage, it was like the time stood still. For people like me who are not used to sitting idle, the whole hour wait for dinner from 07:30 PM to 08:30 PM was really weird. But my wife loved it. 08:30 PM headed for a buffet dinner and retired into the cottage by 10:00 PM with no plans to get up early the next morning.

Day 2 (Monday - 20-Jul-15)

• Start Time – 10:00 AM
• Distance Travelled – 80 Kms. Approx.
• Drive Time – 2 Hours Approx.
• Halts – Multiple Photo-Stops
• Back in Hotel – 04:00 PM

Route Map (Courtesy Google Maps)



The thing for the day was drive to Harihareshwar via the Coastal Route, Lots of Photo Stops in Between, go to the temple, have some typical home-made Sea Food Lunch and return back to Diveagar. We did think about going to Shrivardhan beach but decided to skip it. After going to so many beaches over the last few years, I and my wife aren’t really crazy to go to any more beaches. The Swimming Pool is more enjoyable than the beach for us.

After a nice heavy Breakfast, we left for Harihareshwar at around 10:00 AM. Drive from Diveagar to Harihareshwar was supposed to be about an hour. With Photo-Stops it became one and half hour. As we started from Diveagar to Harihareshwar, within 15 mins we discovered out first photo-stop.







Another 10 Mins drive and we were at another.







Another one after 10 mins.





After the third stop, we decided to just head to the destination. Although we did find a couple of more places for Photo-stops, but the heat at around 11:00 AM wasn’t really pleasing.

We reached Harihareshwar temple, parked the car in pay & park. Went for the temple Darshan and then headed for the Sea-Side of the Harihareshwar. The side facing the Sea has been done up very well with barricading and paver-blocks and stuff. Some of the photos below:







All this photo session really made us hungry. Today’s lunch had to be a lunch at a local ‘Khanaval’. Typical home made sea-food lunch. Enquired with some local shops near the Temple and found out that Pournima Khanaval seemed to be a famous one. It was about 300-400 mtrs from the temple. Reached there and ordered two Thalis (One Pomfret and one Surmai). We were so hungry that I forget to take a snap of the Thali that arrived on our table. Simple Thali with two Chapatis, One Pomfret / 2 Surmais, Prawns Gravy and rice. Those piping hot Chapatis with Prawns Gravy was amazing. (Before being a Car Enthusiast, I am an even bigger foodie) I can go on and on about this. My wife must have eaten double the quantity of her regular lunch and still wasn’t tired eating.

Total Cost – Rs. 600 (for Two persons)

Took a 10 mins break after the lunch and then headed off to Diveagar via the same route as had been taken to reach Harihareshwar. Reached the resort at around 4 PM and retired into the cottage for a small nap. The evening activities were the same as Day 1. As I said before, there is nothing much to do in Diveagar apart from the Beach. Dinner @ 08:30 PM and into the bed by 10:30 PM.

Day 3 (Tuesday - 21-Jul-15)

• Start Time – 10:30 AM
• Distance Travelled – 190 Kms. Approx.
• Drive Time – 4 and half Hours Approx.
• Halts – Suvarna Ganapati Mandir, Tea Break & Pali Ganapati Temple
• Back at Home – 05:15 PM

An even lazier start to the next day. Got up, freshened up and headed for Break-fast. B y 10:00 AM, we were done with the Break-fast and almost through with the packing. Check-out of the hotel at 10:30 AM and headed for the Suvarna Ganapati Mandir. It’s about a Kilometre from the Resort. By 11:00 AM, we were headed out of Diveagar towards Mumbai.

The rain gods were on song on Tuesday. A small ghat section of about 15 kms. is to be crossed after heading out from Diveagar. Due to the heavy downpour, the visibility was minimal to an extent where my wife asked me to wait by the side of the road. The roads not being that wide and also a Ghat Section it wasn’t really a good idea to stop anywhere. I had to navigate the ghat section for a major amount of time between 20-30 kmph. B 12:30 PM, we crossed Mangaon and decided to take a Tea / Pee Break. The location was the same as the ‘To’ Journey as the tea we had while coming was good. Took a 15 mins. break and headed back on track.

By 02:00 PM, we reached Pali Ganapati Mandir. Went for Darshan and were out of the temple by 02:30 PM. Lunch was on our mind. But where was the bigger question? There are no restaurants like stuff in Pali. Some small hotels like the ones we see on highways for truck drivers or we see in rural areas.

The lunch we had was a Misal Pav, a plate of potato bhajji & a Thalipith. For those who might not know Thalipith, it something like a Aloo Paratha or stuff like that but with Multi-grain Flour and onions and Mirchi. (Sorry for some of the Hinglish words. The original feeling just doesn’t come back with the English Words)

Total Cost – Rs. 100 (for Two persons)

After finishing with our lunch, by 03:30 PM we were back on road to Mumbai and at home by 05:15 PM.

Trip Summary

• Total Kms. – 456 Kms.
• Fuel Economy – 15.3 Kmpl
• Resort Package Cost – Rs. 8,000 (2 nights with Breakfast & dinner on both days and Lunch on One Day)
• Other Cost – Rs. 4,000 Max. (inclusive of Fuel & toll)

[ampere]

Thread moved out from the Assembly Line. Thanks for sharing!

Makes me "green" with envy! Perfect time to hit the roads. That snap of Honda with the road in the background is the one for which we all live to drive. Isn't it?

[tejas08]

Originally Posted by ampere

That snap of Honda with the road in the background is the one for which we all live to drive. Isn't it?

Definitely. But I, for one, hate to stop on such roads. The pleasure of driving continuously on such roads is something I relish and wish to keep doing always.

The snap was taken right towards the end of the Journey where I forced myself that I need to have one photo of the Car on these roads with the green back-drop to cherish in the future. The moment I saw that photo on my laptop, I had goosebumps or should I say an orgasmic feeling.

Hope I am allowed to make such statements on the forums. If not, it can be modified please.

[SDP]

Nice crisp travelogue, Tejas! Loved the green pics!

I have never really explored the Kokan belt for monsoon drives. Its mostly due to the dreaded NH17. But Diveagar , Shrivardhan and Harihareshwar are on the cards for some time now. Let's see when the stars align.

Thanks for sharing the experience!

[arnabchak]

VEry well written Tejas.

Nicely clicked pics too.
I too had a great outing to Divegar and Harihareshwar a couple of years back.

Infact, am just back from a another "mind" break staying in the green jungles and quiet beach of Srivardhan (returned about 15 days back after a three day mini trip).

Not only was a the outing peaceful and serene, it gave a peace of mind that we solely lack in the hustle and bustle of Mumbai metropolis!!

For a sneak peak to my small travelogue of Harnai/Murud which is nearby, you can refer to the below link:

http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/travel...rud-karde.html

Enjoyed your review Tejas!!

[venkatt1800]

Tejas, nice little travelogue which told as much about yourself as it did about Diveagar and the nearby spots. Being an avid foodie myself, I could relate to your disappointment of not taking the snaps of the Khanaval thali meals because of your hunger. I myself had done this many times. Diveagar beach and the drive from there to Harihareshwar really looks inviting. but the place looks a bit too desolate for my liking.

Usually in January every year during the long Pongal holidays(I am from TN) me along with my wife end up in Goa. For 2016, instead of Goa I was planning to try out a Konkan trip from Mumbai to Ganpatipule with overnight stays at Mahabaleshwar and Diveagar or Harishareshwar. But after reading your travelogue and seeing that there is nothing apart from the beaches at these places, I am having second thoughts. May be I will stick with Goa as my base and drive to Tarkarli/Sindhudurg from there.

[S2!!!]

Have read so many good things about the Diveagar and Harihareshwar Beaches, still haven't got the chance to visit the place.

After reading your travelogue, I think I'll plan a visit soon. The monsoon season with the lush greenery and awesome weather makes the drive even more inviting.

[tejas08]

Originally Posted by venkatt1800

But after reading your travelogue and seeing that there is nothing apart from the beaches at these places, I am having second thoughts. May be I will stick with Goa as my base and drive to Tarkarli/Sindhudurg from there.

Diveagar offers a different experience of hearing the Nature and not just seeing it. A simple example would be sitting on MUmbai's famous Marine Drive you wouldn't hear the waves that clearly as your mind would be distracted with things going around. In Diveagar, we could hear the waves inside out cottage with the doors and Windows closed. Even that is a different experience if you ask me.

Finally its your choice.

[GTO]

Great travelogue! Very tempted to make a dash to Diveagar after seeing the fun you had. Good roads and just the right distance from Mumbai. Nice change from the usual Lonavlas & Mahabaleshwars that we usually do.

Can spend all the time relaxing on the beach. Watersports & ATVs ought to bring some spice.

Thanks for sharing

[tejas08]

Originally Posted by GTO

Watersports & ATVs ought to bring some spice.

There are no Watersports on the Beach. All the Adventure Sports are limited to the Beach Area. No speed boats or normal boats giving banana rides and stuff. It will come soon though looking at the growing popularity of the Beach.

The Adventure Sports were limited to these three Things.

1. Horse-Cart Rides (No Individual Horse Riding though)
2. ATV's
3. Para-Sailing (using some old SUV and Ropes tied to the SUV)

Good Business Idea to start some inside water Adventure Sports on Diveagar beach.

[fiesta1.6]

Awesome travelogue and equally nice set to pictures. I love konkan and konkan in monsoons is a treat.

By the way, there are couple of interesting places in Diveagar itself. Diveagar is a place where five copper plate inscriptions(Tamrapatra) were found out of which one is the oldest in Marathi and is around 950 years old. These inscriptions are not in Diveagar currently. Also, this place has two epigraphs (shilalekh). The one is exactly opposite to the Grampanchayat and second is adjacent to the Suvarna ganesh temple.Apart from this, Diveagar has a Marine Drive too (read Diveagar to Shriwardhan route).

[humbleroadster]

Very interesting travelogue there! I have stayed in this resort in 2009. MTDC was maintaining it that time. Is it still the case? Apart from the electricity issues in the resort at that time, we loved our stay there. The entire deal with the coastal roads, and konkani food is a delight! Loved the snaps!
Did you get a chance to drive to Shriwardhan as well?

[tejas08]

Originally Posted by humbleroadster

Is it still the case? Apart from the electricity issues in the resort at that time, we loved our stay there. The entire deal with the coastal roads, and konkani food is a delight! Loved the snaps!
Did you get a chance to drive to Shriwardhan as well?

Not sure whether MTDC was ever maintaining the resort. The land is owned by MTDC and privately let out for development for tourism.

I went to Harihareshwar via Shrivardhan but did not go inside of Shrivardhan. All I knew was the Shrivardhan too had only a beach which neither me or my wife were interested.

[highway_star]

Thanks Tejas for sharing the details of this place. I read your travelogue and last week did a trip there with almost the same schedule as yours.

Some updates from what I observed:

Prices at Exotica resort have increased - now it is 4,000 per day without food and 6,500 per day with food (includes lunch, dinner and breakfast)

The food was good. Starters during lunch and dinner were excellent, desserts were good, only the main course was not up to the mark. Breakfast buffet was standard fare. But there was no authentic Konkani food.

Staff at the resort was very friendly and helpful.

Since I went in the summer I there were no issues with insects in spite of the greenery around. I am sure it would be different during monsoons.

It is advisable to take along a car cover otherwise the car gets dirty overnight because it is parked under the trees.

Watersports have now started on the beach with a variety of boat rides available.

And finally, I managed to convince the ATV guy on the beach to let me drive it all by myself

[VTCarlove]

Hello friends,

I am happy to share you details about my quick one day visit to Diveagar.

Seating home in lockdown is punishment last several months and it was dream to drive Kia Carnival on favourite kokan roads mainly for 2 reasons.
1. To eat favourite fish, prawns at rane home lunch.
2. To play with kids on beach.

Initially I was thinking to go to Goa but still fear of Coronavirus is in head so don't want to take too much extra risks also Goa needed more time, office leaves etc.

Diveagar beach we always love more as it is quick and can be managed in one day.

We started at 6.00 am and it was so nice and pleasent weather in thamani ghat and mulshi area.

Enjoyed taking small breaks on the way near mulshi area.

We reached around 11 am to Diveagar, loved to drive on this beautiful road, compare to last year road conditions is excellent. Except small bad patches on the way you will enjoy this drive.

Rane mess was not having dinning facility but parcel was available so we ordered our favourite prawns fry, kolombi sabzi and taken parcel.

First thing we parked carnival in front of exotica hotel and from there we can see beautiful view of beatch & waves.

Unpacked everything and had nice lunch in car itself.

Few hours we spent time on beatch playing and it was like own private beach feeling our was the only family in that area of beatch. At some distance few other families was enjoying.

After playing few hours we started back, enjoyed so much waterfall on the way and it was really good refreshing one day break.

Travelling is my passion and it keep me fresh physically and mentally to take up new corporate challanges.

Planning few more trips soon tadoba in Nagpur in diwali let's see last time they informed kids below 11 years are not allowed so will check more details before starting for it.

I really loved reading travelogues of our members how detail they are writing this is my second one but feels like needs to write more professional in all aspects. I will try to improve further in upcoming visits.