[nndp87]

There are 3 options to reach Mumbai from Goa:
1. NH17: Goa - Sawantwadi - Chiplun - Mangaon - Panvel - Mumbai.
2. NH4: Goa - Amboli - Nippani - Kolhapur - Satara - Pune - Panvel - Mumbai.
3. Coastal Highway: Goa - Tiracol - Malvan - Devgad - Ratnagiri - Ganpatipule - Guhagar - Harihareshwar - Murud - Kashid - Alibaug - Panvel - Mumbai.

Tell me which route you took?
Well, the answer is obvious, I took the one which is less traveled, the Coastal Highway also known as Sagari Mahamarg, Mahasagari Marg, Maharashtra State Highway 4 (MSH 4).

Below Picture will give you the Glimpse of the route

[nndp87]

Coastal Highway:
The literal meaning of Coastal Highway is Highway / Road running parallel to Coast / Sea. We have heard about many coastal highways across the Globe, I remember 2 of them very vividly.

1. United States of America: Pacific Coast Highway


2. Australia: Great Ocean Road


Coastal Drive in India:
India has a big coastline starting from Bay of Bengal in East to Arabian Sea in the West. Coastal drive can be done in each and every state having a coast. I got an opportunity to complete the coastline trip of Maharashtra during the month of June 2014.

My Definition of Coastal Highway after completion of MSH 4:
Coastal Highway is the road which runs parallel to the coast, having beaches which are unexplored and untouched, temples adjoining the sea, ghats wherein one gets the amazing view of sea, bad roads, excellent roads, ferry crossings, bridges, etc. A thorough cocktail.

Photo Courtesy: Respective Owners.
Source of Information: Various Travel Blogs, Search Engines.

Coastal Highway of Maharashtra / Sagari Mahamarg / Mahasagari Marg / Maharashtra State Highway 4 (MSH 4):
The southernmost point of MSH 4 is Tiracol / Terekhol near Maharashtra / Goa Border. The Northernmost point is Mandhwa Jetty near Alibaug. The route passes through various district of Maharashtra such as Sindhudurg District, Ratnagiri District, Raigarh District.

Starting from Tiracol / Terekhol the major point on this route are Vengurle, Malvan, Devgad, Ratnagiri, Ganpatipule, Jaigadh, Guhagar, Dapoli, Anjarle, Harihareshwar, Murud and finally Alibaug.

The Drive Circuit

The drive circuit is the combination of Beaches, Temples, Ghats, Plains, Bridges, Ferry Crossing.

Evolution of the Coastal Drive:
In past, while surfing through the Internet I came across the pictures of Pacific Coast Highway located in USA & the Great Ocean Road located in Australia. The immediate urge was to drive on the Coastal Highway. Unfortunately reality struck and I realized I stay in India and this Coastal Routes are located in different continents altogether. For time being I just gave up. But as you know, the “Keeda” is the unique thing; it keeps coming every now and then. I have already traveled on Somnath – Dwarka Coastal Route in Gujarat 4 years back, Many times I have heard about MSH 4 / Coastal Highway from a friend of mine, he had completed part of MSH 4 in 2013.

One of my Delhi based friend had completed a part of MSH 4 in 2013. He had Clicked 2 wonderful picture of XUV 5OO, one parked inside the ferry combined with rains and dark clouds and another one on Arrey Warrey Road near Ganpatipule.

XUV5OO parked inside the Ferry


XUV5OO on Arrey Warrey Road


Photo Courtesy: Nitin Mendiratta

I wanted to complete the coastal drive of Gujarat. Hang on Gujarat Coastal drive is not just Somnath to Dwarka, it starts from Umargaon, near Maharashtra – Gujarat Border and goes all the way till Lakhpat. I had drawn the route plan for the same as well. But again the reality struck as the route was very complicated and it required more time, so had to give it up.

Tough Luck, but stars do change!
I have a group of 6 friends all into the same profession. Ideally we have 2 trips during the year. 1 trip is planned during the monsoon and 1 trip during other season depending upon the time and availability of all 6 of us. One trip was essential in current period, since we had never been anywhere in 2013 as a group.

The Team

Starting from Left to Right
1. DP
2. DS
3. SS
4. JK
5. Nandeep Pathak (myself)

We proudly call our team as "Wasseypur". One member from the team is missing i.e. CA. We all are into the same profession.

Destination & Dates:
Normally we decide destination mutually, however this time around there was lot of confusion in respect of destination. Finally we zeroed on to Malvan. Dates were 11th, 12th, 13th & 14th June 2014.

3 days in Malvan, don’t you think you guys will get bored?
Yes, I had similar thought in mind, hence location changed and I quickly understood that this time around it is possible to Complete Coastal Highway. So now destination was Malvan & Coastal Highway.

Few of the beaches, I observed appeared to be from Goa, when you are going to Malvan, how come Goa came into the picture?
During, one of the evening meet DS posed a question, can we club Goa for a day. My immediate answer was yes subject to we skip Malvan, being monsoon, there would not be much activity in and around Malvan. Both of us agreed and it was decided to keep a secret to rest of the Gang.

Vehicle:
It was decided well in advance to drive down JK's Toyota Innova, since I didn't owned Scorpio anymore and XUV5OO was still in planning stage.

[nndp87]

11th June, 2014
So after planning for 1 month, finally the D Day comes.

Planning?
Yes, I had customized the entire route of Coastal Highway for driving parallel to the coast. I had taken printouts of the maps as well.

Accommodation?
Goa: I am pretty regular in Goa, I stay at Coelho’s Guest House near Candolim. So done with Goa.

Coastal Route: Well Coastal drive was spread across 3 days and accommodation was to be sorted for 2 nights. With the help of various blogs / google search I had jotted down the possible places of night halts, however, no advance booking was done, since we all were bachelors and moreover location was not fixed.

Coming to the D Day, Since we were scheduled to leave at 20.30 Hours, I had entire day to kill. I was dreaming entire day about the drive.

The basic problem of the day of departure is, it gets elongated, time passes very slowly, but finally it was 17.00 Hours. I was literally flying towards home and by 17.30 Hours I was back home. I took a quick nap for 45 minutes followed by shower and dinner; I was ready for the coastal drive. My bag was packed a night before, I was about to leave, but just to ensure everything is on time, I made a quick call to DS.

Me: I am ready
DS: Bhai Late hoga, Gadi ki chabbi ka kuch problem hua he
Me: Kya?
DS: Haa, JK se baat kar
Me: Ok

I immediately called JK,

Me: Kya hua bhai?
JK: Arey maine gadi washing me diya tha, watchmen ne gadi ka chabbi dusri car me rakh diya and dusri car goregaon me he, we will be late, maine bhai ko bheja he, voh chabbi leke aayega and we will leave.
Me: Ok, So 21.30 Hours tak nikal payenge
JK: Haa, Arey sun, PUC bhi nikalne ka he, abhi milega kya
Me: Haa, straightaway leave for petrol pump when your car comes, vaha pe PUC mil jayega.
JK: Ok, I will call you, once I start from home.
Me: Ok.

Well the entire episode goes like this, JK had asked his watchmen to wash the car, Watchmen washed the car and kept the keys of the car in another car, and another car moved to Goregaon (a suburb in Mumbai), and then the watchmen comes and tells this. JK sent his brother to Goregaon to get the keys. Also PUC for the car had expired, all these were managed in next one hour and finally JK arrived at Rendezvous point.

All happy faces, luggage loaded in the car and we were moving on Western Express Highway. Well to exit Mumbai we had 2 options.

Option 1: Dahisar – Ghodbunder Road – Thane – Koparkhairne – Turbhe – Panvel – Expressway.
Option 2: Dahisar – JVLR – Eastern Express Highway – Airoli – Koparkhairne – Turbhe – Panvel – Expressway.

We took the JVLR option, again we were skeptical about the Turbhe – Panvel Stretch, one has an option to take Palm Beach Road and then directly enter expressway via JNPT. However Google traffic line showed less traffic on Turbhe – Panvel stretch so we choose to go via Turbhe only. Within an hours time we were zooming on Expressway towards Pune, nothing exciting about Expressway, steadily we moved towards ghat section, as usual the traffic movement was slow and road was full with heavy loaded trucks, however the best part was that traffic was moving. Once ghat section was over, the movement was quite fast. Our first break comes at Food Court near Talegaon.

The night temperatures are lower once you cross the ghat section of Mumbai – Pune Expressway, the climate is no more humid, no more sweating. Well at food court we had Vadapav & Tea and then the driver changes; it is time for me to get behind the wheels. JK was driving from Mumbai till Pune and I was relaxing in the last row of Innova.

Few things about the comfort of Innova:
It is definitely a passenger friendly car, the one which we were driving is captain seat based. The middle row is nothing lesser to Jet Airways Executive class, such is the comfort. The last row also has decent comfort. Soft suspensions absorb the patches on the road very efficiently.

Well moving ahead, I was slowly driving towards Pune. Why Slowly?
Well it was a new car for me and I was supposed to be driving it for 800+ kilometers of the entire trip, so getting comfortable with the car was very important. My regular drive was Mahindra Scorpio CRDe till date. Lot of things changed when I was driving Innova, I had a commanding position when I drove Scorpio, and here I had much low & relaxed position. CRDe engine throws immediate power whereas here the power was linear, at first instance I felt, this car is really lazy, but once the RPM meter crosses 1500 mark, you get the momentum and then there would be a smile on your face. Well while understanding all this, we crossed Pune Bypass and were approaching Katraj Tunnel. Traffic was thin throughout the Pune Bypass, after crossing Katraj Tunnel we crossed Khed Shivpuri Toll, road ahead was fantastic all the way till the beginning point of Khambatki Ghat. The ghat section has rough patches here and there. Well I normally roll down the windows when I am driving in ghats. Once window were rolled down, fresh air gave fabulous feeling, slowly and steadily we overtook entire traffic and now were descending towards Satara. Roads are average all the way till Satara, not good, not bad, lot of patch work, so it will definitely keep passengers awake. Our second stop comes at Toll gate just before Satara for a quick tea. DS quickly took over the front seat with me, since everyone was feeling sleepy. Next one hour was super smooth all the way till Kolhapur, excellent roads along with excellent markings; one can maintain the constant speed of 100 kmph. Quickly we crossed Nippani and we were in Karnataka. Once you enter Karnataka, roads are even better. In no time we were at the beginning point of Tavandi Ghat and in next 5 minutes comes the exit for Goa.

Now 4 lane divided road becomes 2 lane undivided. Driving on 2 lane undivided road has fun of its own, your driving skills are put to real test, quick decision making is the key, whether to go for the overtake or not. Other than this driving on 2 lane road having greenery on both the side, branches of the trees covering the road, lovely music in the car, what more you can ask for.

Out of all this one of my friend SS had a sensation of puking, so we take our next stop. Well he got relaxed after puking. Now we were at starting point of Amboli Ghat, Driving on Amboli ghat has always been a fun and this time it was green, those views from the ghat on your right hand side are like heaven, one can click endless wonderful pictures. The drive was event-less except one ST bus overtake, it was not close but it was tight as I had to negotiate the turn as well. Well that was it. Amboli ghat has few bad patches, however the views around will not bother you much.

Well now SS & DP are not aware that we are going to Goa. After exiting Amboli Ghat, you will come across a village named Danoli, Immediately after the village one has to take a left towards Goa, it connects NH17 again at Banda. The normal route to Goa is via Sawantwadi, however this road directly enters into Goa, the road is pathetic, not recommended for Cars having lower GC. The advantage of this route is you avoid the Maharashtra Checkpost

Well when I turned left towards Goa, SS intervened saying boss we are going on wrong route Sawantwadi was straight. I told him, yes I know, I will take you to Sawantwadi only, but we are taking slightly offbeat road via Coastal Highway. Well we had told SS and DP that we will be staying at Sawantwadi for the night.

Quickly we touched NH17 and were moving towards Goa, the road is excellent all the way till Goa. Well now we were on the road to Candolim, DP lost his patience and asks “arey yaar tum log sawantwadi bol rahe ho, voh toh kab ka gaya and humlog idhar Goa me kya kar rahe he” JK pretended to be angry and said “tujhe hum logo par vishwas nahi he kya” hearing this he cooled down. Well in next 5 minutes we were having breakfast at our regular food joint in Candolim.

Well here the surprise was broken, and both SS and DP were delighted on hearing that we would be spending a day in Goa. After breakfast we checked in at our Guest House and went to Candolim Beach.

Was it a right decision to spend a day at Goa?
The view of the beach was horrifying. I mean it was like a dead place, beach was dirty, not a single soul around, no shacks functioning. Actually we had always seen Goa in November / December / January / February, never in June and it is supposed to be an off season. Frankly speaking I was aware of this. Well DS for a moment thought, was it a wrong decision to come to Goa in June, I told him "relax dude, we still have an evening and believe me it’s gonna be fun".

By this words we all came back to room, had some spirits for our body and went to sleep.

The Drive Begins


The Gang After a Decent Nap


The Navigator


Always smiling behind the wheels


The beautiful Kolhapur - Nippani Stretch




The beautiful countryside road




Innova



SS Relaxed


Beautiful Amboli Ghat





Even they were enjoying the climate

[nndp87]

12th June, 2014
We got up around 15.30 Hours, of-course with mixed feelings. Except me, everyone had a mixed feelings of whether we are at right place. Well one of the most happening place in Goa is Baga Beach, there are endless shacks at Baga during the peak season. But very few function during monsoon, 2 of the most happening shack at Baga is located at the North end of Baga, Brittos & St Anthony’s. Will come to it later.

By 16.00 Hours we all were ready and out on the road. Well we all were hungry so on the way had tea and some South Indian dishes. Candolim to Baga doesn't take much time, so in no time we were at the north end of Baga, parked our car and there we were on the beach. Well it was 18.00 Hours, sun was about to set, waves were full power, but still it wasn't happening place as it used to be during Peak season, so we walked down the beach towards one of the most happening lane of Tito’s. Some of our common friends were also in Goa, met them in the streets of Baga. JK had to buy some local stuff so we were walking again towards the north end of Baga through the main road. While walking DS broke his glasses and there we were searching for Fevikwick which we finally got. While all this was happening I was busy capturing a small and beautiful church.

Finally we were at St Anthony’s. Well the place has wonderful ambiance, the music is awesome. It was raining and climate was absolutely wonderful, next 2 hours we all were humming to some of famous English numbers along with snacks and drinks. Well none of us wanted to leave that place but our motive of the trip was not to enjoy Goa, we were here to explore the Coastal route so we wrap up around 22.00 hours, had dinner at Navratna Veg Restaurant on Calangute - Candolim road and back to our place.

It was raining heavily and we all were inside the room enjoying the climate, talks, night session. Finally we were all asleep by 02.00 hours.

Well next day was very crucial for us. We would actually start coastal drive tomorrow morning.

The Beach






Water


Sun playing Games





Happy faces on the Beach




Goa



OM


Church



Wonderful Evening



Route: Mumbai - Kalamboli - Expressway - Pune - Khambatki Ghat - Satara - Karad - Kolhapur - Nippani - Tawandi Ghat - Exit NH4 - Uttur - Ajara - Amboli - Danoli - Banda - Mapusa - Candolim.

https://goo.gl/maps/ik3FxRdqfHA2

[nndp87]

13th June, 2014 - Part 1
Coastal Drive Begins, It was decided that we will bid adieu to Goa by 09.00 Hours in the morning. When I woke up in the morning there was mixed feeling, it was curiosity to know how the drive would be, how we would take car in the ferry, where will we stay for the night, what we will eat. But believe me I was waiting for this moment to arrive and finally it did.

Next 3 days are very crucial because the route which we are taking is very less travelled, there are no major cities en-route, I was the only one who would be taking all the calls regarding drive, night halts, vegetarian food availability, since entire gang was new to this region, though DS is always there to share the responsibilities. It was different feeling, the feeling of happiness, the feeling of responsibility, the feeling of anxiousness, but it was fun in a way.

I had virtually travelled entire coastal route from Goa to Alibaug by viewing the satellite images on Google Maps, I also had printouts of the Map. Navigation was always on in my phone.

We all were ready by 08.40 Hours. Settled guest house bill followed by breakfast at Hotel Navratna on Candolim – Calangute road and we were moving towards Querim, the first Jetty point which will take us into Maharashtra at Terekhol / Tiracol. The road is confusing all the way, so when you open the navigation, search for Querim Beach, it will take you exactly to the ferry crossing point. When inquiring with local, ask for Querim Beach, because if you ask for Terekhol, they will direct you to go by road.

From Candolim take a road to Arpora, then Siolim and then Querim, the distance is around 40 kilometers however it will take around 90 minutes, since one has curiosity to know whether we are on correct route or not so we confirm the same with locals. When we saw a board specifying Querim Ferry Point, entire gang was delighted, JK was behind the wheels and I was navigating him till now, once car was parked all came out of the car immediately. I quickly ran to the shop to enquire about the ferry and he told us that ferry is expected in 15 minutes and then we began our photo session, 10 minutes passes and we saw the ferry coming and all of us shouted, “abey dekh ferry aaya” i.e. see the ferry is here, nothing special about the moment but we were on top of the world. Now ferry reaches the loading point and we were ready to load the car inside the ferry. JK was behind the wheels and he carefully managed to get the car inside the ferry.

Monsoon drenched Goa Roads



First View of the Sea


Winding Roads


Querim - Terekhol Jetty



Views from the Jetty




The Team



Ferry Exit Point



13th June, 2014 - Part 2
Well, inside the ferry there was a different feeling altogether, actually I am not able to explain it, to put it in simple words, a ferry is driving, humans and car from point A to point B (one mode of transportation transporting other mode of transportation) We were experiencing it for the first time. We reached Terekhol / Tiracol, the Point B of first jetty and now we were in Maharashtra, carefully JK gets Innova out of the Ferry and I get behind the wheels. The atmosphere changes completely, now we were in Konkan area, food, dressing, language, aroma of the region is little bit different from Goan Villages.

Our next point was Vengurla Bunder (Port) slowly we passed Shiroda Beach and reached Vengurla. The roads were decent, however we never paid attention to roads as they were never the criteria, we were on a driving holiday. We left MSH 4 and turned towards Vengurla Bunder. We reached the end point of the road. Looking at the place the first feeling that comes to mind is “this place must have been small port years back maybe during the Portuguese era, at the same time we felt the place is neglected, we were the only one who wanted to see Vengurla Bunder and rest of the crowd was more interested in the happening places in Malvan” The port was covered by small wall, the view was mesmerizing, I will not talk about the views much because pictures will do justice to it. We guys had small photo session, some wonderful pictures clicked. There was a restaurant near the port, Wow the views from the Restaurant were amazing, and we had some kasata, ice-cream.

What about lunch, yes will have our lunch, when we reach Malvan, it is delayed right? Yes, The place was not a routine highway, where you have numerous options to have food; it was state highway, passing through small villages, limited options for food, especially if you are vegetarian.

Our next destination was Bhogawe Beach, for Bhogawe Beach one has to leave MSH4 again and join back later on the way to Malvan. The Road has amazing landscapes throughout. From one point on the route the coast is visible; the view was just jaw dropping. Finally we made it to Bhogawe. The beach was unexplored; I think very few people are aware of it.

We all were hungry now and we wanted food badly, so our next target was Malvan, major town on MSH4. We quickly joined MSH4 again and raced our way to Malvan, Now a task on hand was finding a Vegetarian Hotel in the Konkan Area, well with some enquiry with locals we were able to identify one restaurant, however it was not a pure vegetarian hotel but folks along with me were convinced that it would be better. Food sorted, Parking, What, Is parking an issue?, Yes, Malvan is a small town the lane is very narrow and that is the reason it is one way, yes, roads in Malvan Town is one way, we got parking at one house in Malvan, we requested the house owner to allow us to park our car for 30 minutes and to our surprise, he agreed, you know that’s how this small town people are, Believe me he was the owner of the Bungalow in the heart of Malvan, must be a rich guy, but not even slightest of the attitude he had.

Lunch over and now we all were super happy, you know when stomach is full, it gives a different feeling altogether, you are happy with locals, you are happy with traffic jams, you are happy with surroundings, you are no longer cranky, the situation is different when you are hungry, everything appears to be pain.

Our next destination was Tarkarli. It is one of the most commercialized place in Konkan region, it sees lot of crowd all credit to MTDC Resort adjoining the beach and various activities on the beach. We were lucky, there was no one on the beach and it was like a private beach for us. Beach + FIFA World Cup = we were carrying football along with us in the trip. Next 30 minutes were spent on playing football, we witnessed rainbow as well, frankly speaking we never wanted to leave the beach but then we were on a driving holiday so drive should continue ahead.

Kunkeshwar, had heard lot about it, and we were on our way driving as fast as possible to witness the temple adjacent to Beach in the daylight, have seen many such temples like Ganpatipule, Somnath, Koteshwar. Kunkeshwar is proudly located on the western coast adjacent to Beach. We witnessed sunset on the way to Kunkeshwar, some wonderful views of the hills, beach from the road, we reached Kunkeshwar, it was dark by the time we reached there, after darshan at temple we moved in the campus of Temple and the waves were making a roar. I was sad; that we reached after sunset, reaching at the time of sunset would have been ideal. Nevertheless, there is always next time. I want to do this trip again with lot of time at hand, and then only you do justice to entire drive circuit.

After Tea at Kunkeshwar, we got ourselves moving towards the final destination for the day. We reached Devgad around 21.00 Hours and our next task was finding hotel, Well some enquiry with locals and we got the place, it was secluded on the coast, yes the hotel was near the coast, when you open the windows from the room you see Waves, Light House. Dinner was ordinary at local restaurant followed by some pastries.

Day is over, No not yet, there is some big football match and we have all the stuff to enjoy the match. So Goodnight from Devgad.

Konkan



FIFA Fever



Steering fever


Enroute Vengurla



MSH 4. The Shape of the Board is Similar to Boder Pillar


Roads



Vengurla

[nndp87]

Enjoying the views



DS caught by surprise


Me and SS we never knew that one year down the line, we would drive together on the most dangerous road of the world, well that's another story to tell


We bid adieu goodbye to Vengurla Port


The Beautiful MSH 4


Bridge, A kind of fascination





The view enroute Bhogawe Beach


Bhogawe Beach


Tarkarli




Rainbow


Players



Wasseypur visits Konkan


One of the best pictures I have ever clicked


Enroute Kunkeshwar





Sunset


Again MSH4


The Night Drive



Kunkeshwar Temple


Route: Candolim - Arpora - Siolim - Ashvem Beach - Arambol Beach - Paliyem - Querim Beach - Jetty - Terekhol - Shiroda - Vengurla Bandar - Gavan - Bhogwe Beach - Malvan - Tarkarli - Malvan - Mithbav - Kunkeshwar - Devgad.

https://goo.gl/maps/XJBTnW55sBw

[nndp87]

This is the View from the Room, When you wake up in the Morning. At Devgad


14th June, 2014 - Part 1
It was difficult to leave that place; it was so peaceful, completely secluded from the chaos of outside world. But wonderful day was waiting ahead for us so after checking out from hotel, we move towards Wadatar Bridge, I had identified a backwater route to touch Wadatar bridge on google maps before the trip, it goes via temple and from temple it touches MSH 4 just before the Wadatar Bridge. Till the time we reached the temple I was not sure whether we would be able to drive through the identified route, but on reaching the temple, I confirmed the same with Priest and he gave a green signal. It’s a narrow road all the way till temple, descend from the temple and then you see a water body, the view is just beyond imagination.

Direction for this route:
When in Devgad, ask for Shree Kelkar College, Once at Kelkar College keep going straight ask for Temple from there descend towards backwaters and then continue on the road running parallel to backwaters and then join MSH4 just before the Wadatar Bridge.

The Below Picture will explain you properly what I am trying to convey

https://goo.gl/maps/k3kw8G16uaw

The Drive through Backwaters was wonderful; views on the route were breathtaking. This part was surely one of the best parts of the drive. We were now moving closer to Ratnagiri, our next viewpoint was Vijaydurg Fort. We didn’t have our breakfast for the day so first halt comes at Padel Canteen Junction for tea. Padel Canteen is major junction from here we took left since we’re going towards Vijaydurg. Now the route from Padel Canteen to Vijaydurg passes through scenic bridges and Giriye Windmills, traffic was very less, in no time we were at Vijaydurg. First thing we did was breakfast the local missal paav and tea again.

Now the question was whether we are interested in viewing the fort?
Negative, Well I requested guys to join since we are driving 18 kilometers to and fro just to see the location of the fort, all agreed and the trekking to fort begins. To tell you about the forts in Maharashtra they are huge in size and are in circle and the diameter is huge, so if you are having limited time than you can view only a part of the fort. Well we did same thing. After clicking pictures across the fort we moved back towards parking and continued ahead to Ratnagiri. Again we were required to drive back to Padel Canteen, so the drive was eventless, from Padel Canteen we took left towards Ratnagiri, Ratnagiri was a long way and hunger had already striked us. After turning left at Padel canteen road was pathetic for 15 kilometers beyond that the road was beautiful all the way till Ratnagiri and it was drizzling as well which made the climate really wonderful. Before Ratnagiri we passed through Pawas, It has a very famous temple of Swami Swarupanand, we just stopped at the gate of the temple to click a customary picture of the location and started moving again.

Finally we were on the outskirts of Ratnagiri, food was only thing on everyone’s mind. The entrance to Ratnagiri was similar to Mumbai's entrance from NH8 side, there is bridge before the city which takes you inside the city similar to Fountain bridge on NH8.

Food? Did you find it?
Yes, of-course, While we were passing by the town, SS saw the Board of the Restaurant offering Snacks. We were super happy with the menu, Dosa / Medu vada / Chaas (they call it Taak in Marathi language) Cutless / Parathas / Chutney / Rice Thali. Mouth Watering, isn’t it?

Done with food, What next?
The drive ahead is the best in this entire circuit, its unmatched. But before that few pictures of the drive till now.

View from the Room



Temple on Backwater road


Innova Gliding down towards Backwaters


DS and DP gliding down


Backwaters









Wadatar Bridge


Fisherman


One of the best pictures I have clicked


Finally on the bridge


Winding Roads





Straight Road


Innova happily posing




Giriye Windmills

[nndp87]

Vijaydurg


Entrance


Temple


Pathway


Team


Viewpoints from Fort









Cactus


With this picture we bid adieu to Vijaydurg


Location Unknown


Waterfall


Coastal Feeling




Some wonderful countryside roads

[nndp87]

Best Picture of JK's Innova clicked till date




We all wanna get clicked





Ratnagiri, 53 Kilometers


Pawas


Some wonderful views





Bridges, the Fascination




Before Ratnagiri



Lunch Finally

[nndp87]

14th June, 2014 - Part 2 - Ratnagiri to Ganpatipule
Following is the conversation with Restaurant owner at Ratnagiri:
Restaurant Owner: Beta, Kaha Jaa Rahe Ho,
Me: Ganpatipule
Restaurant Owner: Galti se bhi paani me mat jana, abhi pichle hafte 2 log dub gaye he, vaha ka samudra bohot ghatak he
Me: Ok, Shukriya.

The restaurant owner at Ratnagiri asked us where are we going, I replied him we are on our way to Ganpatipule, he immediately warned us, not to venture in the sea because the beach is damn risky, recently 2 persons drowned there. It is indeed risky, the waves are very fast, currents are strong and sand sinks quickly, making it a deadly trap.

Warning: So anyone going to Ganpatipule, please don’t venture out in the sea, enjoy the views from the shore.

Coming back to our travelogue, Now I got behind the wheels, till now Jagdish was enjoying the drive of MSH 4. One needs to get on Arrey Warrey Road to reach Ganpatipule from Ratnagiri, this road runs parallel to the coast and has some beautiful views.

Getting out of Ratnagiri was pain; exit point is through small lanes, having lot of miscellaneous traffic. Slowly we maneuvered through the narrow lanes and were on outskirts of Ratnagiri. Beautiful 2 lane countryside roads welcomes you along with amazing views. First view of the sea from the road and we were delighted, the route continues all the way till Ganpatipule, it passes through the ghat wherein Sea is visible from various points, fantastic, lovely, fabulous are all understatement, such are the views, we were driving at snail’s pace to enjoy the drive. Finally we were approaching Ganpatipule. We skipped the temple as we had already been there before, after a small halt for tea, we were racing on our way to Jaigadh.

One of the best moments of the drive



Amazing View









View from the Ghat


Anything special about Jaigadh
Before the trip, I had seen the pictures of my friend wherein his Honda City is parked on the helipad in Jaigadh and light house is visible in the background. Here is the picture.


Photo Courtesy: Ashish Sharma

Obviously I was super excited to drive down to Jaigadh. Jaigadh is 20 kilometers drive from Ganpatipule, in no time we were approaching Jaigadh. Jaigadh also has industrial setup. One can view the plant of JSW from the main road. We straightaway drove to Bus Depot at Jaigadh and inquired with the locals regarding location of Light House. Light house is around 3 to 4 kilometers from main town, we were literally racing to light house. As per the information from various sources light house gets closed for civilians at 06.00 PM in the evening. We were finally on the top of Light house clicking photos of the sea and of-course ourselves. The view was fantastic, I think pictures will do more justice than my narration. We saw helipad on our way to Light House, so we wanted to get ourselves clicked on the Helipad as well. 15 minutes of photo session on helipad we were quickly moving towards Jaigadh Jetty Point.

JSW Plant



Innova


Storage tank


Road to Lighthouse


Unknown


The view from the Top




The Lighthouse Tower




For memory






Innova waiting for us to come down

[nndp87]

From the Helipad





14th June, 2014 - Part 2 - Ganpatipule to Guhagar
Quickly we made it to Jaigadh Jetty. Ferry Crossing is Between Jaigadh and Tavasal. Parked ourselves at Car pickup point, bought tickets, had tea and snacks. Ferry was expected in 15 minutes, till then full on time pass, pulling everyone's leg in the group. Ferry appeared from the other side of the mountain and we were ready to get inside the ferry. Well there were many cars coming from the Tavasal, once all those vehicles got out, we were asked to get inside the ferry. This time I was behind the wheels, carefully I managed to get the Innova inside the ferry, it was raining when ferry started moving towards Tavasal, We were super excited and clicking pictures, and others in the ferry were observing us, thinking what these guys are up-to. It wasn't routine for us so excitement was natural and moreover it was routine for others.

Ferry is mode of transportation for locals but it was fun factor for us. In 20 minutes we were at Tavasal and it was time to get the vehicle out of the ferry, I was the last one to take the car out of ferry. It was raining heavily and the climate was amazing and we all wanted to have tea desperately. We spent around 30 minutes having tea, biscuits, etc and the hotel guy was really a warm host, lots of discussion about current political scenario, life in small towns, we got lot of information about Guhagar from him. It was dark by the time we left from Tavasal, our next destination was Velneshwar Temple, again we visit temple after sunset, for Velneshwar temple one needs to take a slight detour from MSH 4. The temple is around 5 to 6 kilometers from exit point of MSH 4 but it was heavily raining and that really slowed me down. Finally we were at temple and we were the only one at temple. After darshan at temple, we move towards the Guhagar, of-course we had our navigation on, because if lost there was no one on the road to ask for direction, for 2 to 4 kilometres I didn't see a board of Guhagar and I was sceptical about the route, 100 thoughts came to my mind, like whether I have taken a wrong turn somewhere, where will we eat if we get late, its heavily raining, mobile connectivity is limited, etc But all this thoughts vanished when I saw a board of Guhagar 9 Kilometres, road were good so quickly we were on the outskirts of Guhagar, the town appeared to be sleepy, no one on the road. Immediate question came to our mind was “Khana Kaha Khayege”, where will we have our food. Little inside the town we found a hotel for food.

We decide to split in the group, so SS and DP blocked space for us at restaurant, DS JK and me were moving in the car for accommodation. Both the group succeeded, SS called me and asked us to come to restaurant as last orders were being taken, in the meanwhile accommodation also got sorted out. So there we were in Guhagar restaurant hogging food like we have never seen it before. Food sorted entire gang moved to Hotel and enjoyed the night discussing memories of the trips.

Jaigadh Jetty Point



Coastal Highway Map


Ferry Approaching


Loading inside the ferry



JK with his Innova


Always ready to pose


Gang


Tired


Views Enroute Tavasal


Velneshwar Temple



Long Day tomorrow and the most painful as well, since we were returning back to our home and our routine.

Route: Devgad - Wadatar Bridge - Padel Canteen - Vijaydurg - Padel Canteen - Rajapur - Adivare - Purnagad - Pawas - Ratnagiri - Ganpatipule - Jaigadh - Velneshwar - Guhagar

https://goo.gl/maps/ZNFYevBuDxT2

[nndp87]

15th June, 2014
Here comes the last day of the trip, I always consider it as “double edged sword” there is happiness of returning back home and the sad part is that, you will also have to return back to your routine as well. In my case last day of my trips have always been long.

Tell me about this trip, how long was it?
I will come to that. In the meanwhile we started off from Guhagar after a good sleep.

Immediately we checked the fuel indicator and 20% was still there in the tank, so approximately 80 kilometres should not be a problem. We started off quickly, no breakfast because the next town was Dabhol which was 15 kms away + a ferry crossing. We were suppose to reach Dhopave the Ferry Pickup Point it is 15 kilometres from Guhagar, in no time we were at ferry pickup point, bought the tickets and were waiting for ferry, distance was not too long as we were able to see the other end i.e. Dabhol Pickup point. The approach road of Dhopave Jetty Point is beautiful and if anything beautiful comes around, we don’t have an option but to click. Moving ahead Ferry was here and it's time to load the car in the ferry, done with that. Ferry was less crowded, there were around 4 to 5 cars and few bikes; again it was a wonderful feeling inside the ferry. Quickly we were on the other side.

Approach road Dhopave Jetty



Ferry


Inside the Ferry



Innova Brothers


Bridge


Team



Wonderful Views





Smaller One


Anchored


The Object is the mirror is closer to my heart, Well, this is the statement from Mrs. JK now.


Breakfast, Yes, too hungry, subeh se kuch khaya nahi he. Immediately after reaching Dabhol first thing we enquired was “Nashta or Diesel kaha milega” Nashta was available nearby only and diesel pump was few kilometres away. We loaded our tank first with Samosa Pav, Vada Pav, Kachori etc and tea of-course. Heavenly feeling. Now it was time to fill the car tank, we filled up diesel at Dabhol and now were ready for a long day ahead. The next town after Dabhol is Dapoli, there are 2 ways by which you can reach Dapoli, without thinking we went on the least travelled road, the road for few kilometres was pathetic but then that is the best part of the such trips, we always drive on good roads. Few Villages passed by and we were now driving parallel to Sea again.

Then comes a y fork, Which way to go? No one to ask, Right or Left. When everything from Day 1 is going right, so let’s take another right, in this manner we were on the outskirts of Dapoli, now our next destination was Murud and Harnai, followed by Anjarle. Well the stretch from Dapoli to Murud Harnai, till the time we join coastal highway was fabulous, the road quality was awesome. I was ripping apart as fast as I can, to cover the time ahead, Back on Coastal highway, slow movement all the way till Anjarle.

Coastal Views








One of my favourite


Roads post Dapoli





Board


Anjarle


Something about Anjarle: Anjarle has a famous Ganpati Temple, located on the coast, similar to that of Ganpatipule. Now it was one of the most pathetic roads for next 15 kilometers all the way till Kelshi. Abusing every possible leader we kept on moving, finally after struggling for some 50 minutes, we found a decent road going towards Bankot i.e. Jetty point. The road from Kelshi to Bankot Jetty is super scenic; I have one picture which will be posted in coming posts, Unbelievable location.

Importance of Reaching on Time? What rubbish are you talking, are you giving some management gyan
Well, not really, but on that day I realized the importance on time, At Bankot Jetty only 8 cars are loaded, just before reaching the jetty point I took 3 quick overtakes and there I was placed on the jetty(We were the 8th Vehicle), SS quickly bought the tickets.

Loading Innova Inside the Ferry, Tricky Situation? What tricky, you have loaded car in the ferry 3 times, what is the big deal now.
The Jetty attendant wanted us to park the car in reverse direction, well from pictures the entire process appears to be manageable, however it was not that easy when you have car with lower ground clearance. I had to park the Innova in reverse mode exactly between 2 cars, the space was tight, I reversed the car and quickly got the momentum on incline and bingo there I was in the Ferry. After that a Nano was parked on the incline of the Ferry, that guy literally burned his clutch plate. Well in 20 minutes we were on the other end, which is called Baghmandle.

Now we were in Raigad District of Maharashtra, Harihareshwar is 6 kilometers from the Jetty Point, roads are good, so we were at Harihareshwar in next 15 minutes. Lunch was due, as it was almost 15.30 Hours. Lunch was traditional Maharashtrian thali. Well we all are not much of a foodie, we expect decent food that’s it, nothing specific, even if routine food with good taste serves the purpose. Done with Lunch, Meeting with Lord Shankar, yes, Harihareshwar, again is the temple located on the coast. After visit to temple a quick dash to Srivardhan. We were enjoying the coastal route to its core. From Shrivardhan it was just ripping apart to Dighi port.

[nndp87]

Relief after pathetic 15 kilometres


Bridge Finally


Amazing Views, I was talking about




Road en-route ferry point, this is where I took those quick overtakes, which ensured my place in jetty


Last Ferry Ride for the Trip


Baghmandle Ferry Point




Harihareshwar




Well the only thing which didn't go according to the plan is going to come now. The ferry at Dighi Port was closed due to low tide in the sea, and I was seriously annoyed.

What Next, Ab kaha se jau, immediate question cropped up in my mind?

Kumar H V, without wasting time I called him,
Me: Sir, Nandeep here.
Kumar: Anything urgent Nandeep, I am in a meeting
Me: Yes Sir, Urgent
Kumar: Go ahead
Me: The ferry at Dighi is closed, so now I will have to reach Murud by road, please enlighten me on the road,
Kumar: Do one thing go to Mhasla, just 1 kilometre after the village there is a turn for Murud / Kashid. It will take at least 2 hours, drive safely.
Me: Thank you Sir.

I was literally disturbed, 30 minutes drive circuit got converted in 2.5 hours drive, just because of that stupid ferry. But that’s how it is. It was getting dark very fast, we halted at Mhasla for a round of tea. Started off from Mhasla, I had an fair bit of idea about the road. Roads were not good, so more time was always on cards, nevertheless we were moving at a decent place and by 21.30 we were at Kashid.

Closing Picture of the Trip


The drive would have been really boring post Mhasla, thanks to the gang they spiced up the drive with Some Crazy Stuff. Interview of Journalist, How to talk when you meet your expected would be for the first time, etc. It was super fun, we were now on the outskirts of Alibaug, Ideally Mandhwa Jetty is the last point on MSH 4, however considering the time, we decided to give it a miss and move straight away towards Mumbai. The road from Alibaug to Panvel was pathetic, lot of diversions, speedbreakers that do not allow you to up shift. Dinner was still pending, we decided to halt at Panvel MCD, bad luck, it was closed, now what? it almost 00.30 hours, DS comes to rescue, he got it confirmed that there is one fast food centre in Borivali which would be open, so we were quickly moving towards Borivali.

Finally at 02.00 Hours we reached Borivali and had extra delayed dinner. From there Home was just 15 minutes. We accomplished the trip without any hassles and were back home with wonderful memories.

Route: Guhagar - Dhopave - Dabhol - Dapoli - Harnai - Anjarle - Kelshi - Bangkot - Baghmandle - Harihareshwar - Shirvardhan - Diveagar - Dighi - Murud - Kashid - Revdanda - Alibaug - Mandva Jetty.

https://goo.gl/maps/5jUmse35F8S2

Route which we took was Guhagar - Dhopave - Dabhol - Dapoli - Harnai - Anjarle - Kelshi - Bangkot - Baghmandle - Harihareshwar - Shirvardhan - Diveagar - Dighi - Mhasla - Murud - Kashid - Revdanda - Alibaug Bypass - Vadkhal Naka - Panvel - Mumbai

https://goo.gl/maps/zppn1FbUWuR2

[nndp87]

Information on this Trip.
MSH 4 is also known as Maharashtra State Highway 4 / Sagari Mahamarg Mahasagari Marg / Coastal Highway. It runs all the way from Terekhol, Goa to Mandhva / Alibaug, Maharashtra. It passes through 3 districts of Maharashtra Sindhudurg, Ratnagiri and Raigadh.

Best Season: This circuit can be done any-time during the year, In my opinion, one should avoid doing it in March, April and May, since you are travelling parallel to coast, climate would always be humid. Best time would be June mid onwards till January end.

It is recommended to plan this trip over a period of 4 to 5 days, especially for those who love photography.

Highlight of this trip
- You are driving parallel to coast.
- Ferry Crossing i.e. A car is to be taken inside a ferry to cross from Point A to Point B.
- Small Villages all the way.
- Awesome Sea Food.
- Bridges

Major Towns / Places of Visit on this route
- Vengurla
- Malvan and Tarkarli, lots of activities on the beaches of Malvan & Tarkarli
- Kunkeshwar Temple of Lord Shankar overlooking Arabian Sea
- Devgadh, you should visit Wadatar Backwaters, details are specified in my Travelogue.
- Giriye Windmills
- Vijaydurg Fort
- Pawas Devsthan
- Ratnagiri
- Ratnagiri to Ganpatipule one of the best route of the entire trip
- Jaigadh, you should visit Light House at Jaigadh
- Guhaghar
- Anjarle
- Harihareshwar
- Srivardhan
- Diveagar
- Murud, you must visit Janjira Fort
- Kashid Beach
- Alibaug

Every village on the coastal route has beaches. In-spite of planning we missed out on many places en-route. Nevertheless you need reason to do the same circuit again.

Hotels where we Stayed
Goa: Coelho's Guest House / Contact / +91-9890213607
Devgad: Galaxy Resort http://www.hotelgalaxydevgad.com/default.html
Guhagar: http://www.nisargresortguhagar.com/

List of other hotels on MSH 4


This trip would not have been possible without my buddies, my parents, who allow me to do such crazy stuff, Kumar H V, he is always there.

Thanks for viewing the Travelogue. If you require any details or any help regarding planning this trip do let me know.

Keep Driving / Riding, of-course with your seat-belt / helmet on

[ampere]

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

One for that perfect Sunday morning read. For every one there is that one drive which starts it all. We may do many after that, but its that particular one, which we would always remember!

Great going!