[nndp87]

I had planned this trip back in 2013, but it never happened for some or the other reason. This time I had clear window of 10 days and I didn't see any hurdle coming my way. Coastal Ride, as a traveler when we hear coastal ride, the immediate circuits or routes that comes to our mind is Maharashtra Coastal Highway known as MSH4 and East Coast Road known as ECR.

How about Coastal Gujarat. "Gujarat", I had similar reaction when I started a research on Coastal Gujarat Trip. The only thing I knew about Coastal Gujarat was, Gujarat State has the longest coastline in India of 1600 Kilometers approximately. So even if you travel 200 Kilometers daily, it should take 8 days. I have previously traveled on MSH 4 and covered it in 3 days, but MSH 4 is 700 Kilometers. I didn't expect anything from Gujarat Coastal Ride, it was just a ride to explore and visit the areas which people usually don't visit. My research didn't fetch much information since very few people might have done something like this i.e. a complete trip from Southern Coast of Gujarat to Northwestern Coast of Gujarat, and it's not necessary they might have shared the details on internet. My route planning was entirely based upon Google Maps, during route planning my intent was to ride and stay as close as possible to the coast. I have virtually traveled this route on Google Maps.

I have recently moved to Hero X-Pulse 200 from Yamaha FZs and it was gonna be our ride companion for the trip. Luggage system needs to be thought about in case of Hero X-Pulse 200 especially if you are traveling with a pillion. Saddle bag cannot be used because of high exhaust system and after market saddle stays are available but they look ugly in my view, so after careful analysis, I came to conclusion that luggage rack on the rear would be best option. So I got the luggage rack done from A4 Moto Designs located in Dahisar East. I also bought used Gypsy tail bag from OLX, its enough for carrying 10 days luggage.

A4 Moto Designs provide custom made accessories for motorcycles.
Location: https://goo.gl/maps/46vV5c1hqm483ZpD9

The ride preparation and things to carry is not much in comparison to what we prepare and carry for Himalayas, because entire route has phone connectivity and major cities are maximum 60 kilometers away from any point on the route and are well connected. So things to carry included Clothes, Winter Jackets, Toolkit, Battery operated Air Pump, Bungee Cords, Flip flops and Toiletries.

In technical terms Coastal Gujarat Ride starts from a village named Govada in Southern Gujarat and ends at Lakhpat in Northwestern Gujarat. So on the cold winter morning we left Mumbai to explore the unexplored with the help of Google Maps.

Before we move ahead, enjoy the starters.

Umarsadi Jetty


Fishing Vessels anchored at Dholai Fishing Port


Nishkalank Mahadev Temple, Koliyak


Jaffarabad Lighthouse


Fort St. Anthony of Simbor


Parking Area of Fishing Vessels, Veraval


En-route Dwarka


Mandvi, Kutch


Koteshwar, Kutch


End Point of Coastal Route - Lakhpat, Kutch


Coastal Gujarat ride can be broadly divided into following parts:
1. Mumbai – Valsad – Dandi – Hazira
2. Hazira – Bharuch – Khambhat
3. Khambhat – Bhavnagar – Alang – Pipavav
4. Pipavav – Mahua – Jaffarabad – Diu – Somnath
5. Somnath – Dwarka – Okha
6. Okha – Jamnagar – Maliya
7. Maliya - Kandla – Mundra – Mandvi
8. Mandvi – Jakhau – Naliya – Koteshwar – Lakhpat

My Companion for the Trips:
My Wife, Mayuri.
My Ride, Hero X-Pulse 200.

D1: As usual my father came down to see us off and wished us safe ride. Getting out of Mumbai was breeze since it was early Saturday morning. Weather was cold and the ride through NH8 was quick and within 90 minutes we made it to Charoti Naka. We left fast NH8 from Charoti Naka and rode towards Dahanu. First coastal town of the trip is Dahanu. The ride from Dahanu to Gujarat border is beautiful, one rides parallel to the coast for most of the time, on one side of the road is beautiful Arabian Sea and on the other side, chickoo plantation, coconut tree plantation and farmhouses. We crossed the town of Gholvad and Bordi and reached the last village of Maharashtra called Zai.

Father Seeing Off


First Fuel Stop, Dahanu


First Breakfast Point, Dahanu


Finally on Coastal Route, Dahanu Beach




Beautiful views of Coastal Road from Dahanu to Gholvad



Welcome to Gujarat, there was no signboard indicating it except small Water Department’s Board. We continued ahead, the first major town in Gujarat is Umbergaon. We explored the Beach area of Umbergaon and then moved towards Lighthouse. We successfully persuaded the lighthouse in charge to allow us, climbing stairs wasn’t easy, but the view from the top was simply stunning and worth taking the pain. After visiting lighthouse we explored Umbergaon town and thereafter rode towards Nargol.

Umbergaon Beach




Umbergaon Lighthouse







If you see the map a small creek needs to be crossed to reach Nargol from Umbergaon, there are small ferries which carry passengers, however it doesn’t carry vehicles in it, so one has to take the long detour through main road to reach Nargol, this is the difference between Coastal Gujarat and Coastal Maharashtra, Coastal Maharashtra is approximately 700 Kilometers, however it has numerous ferry options which carry vehicles as well.

Nargol, it has been quoted that Parsi (Persians) from Persia first migrated on the shores of Nargol and slowly spread across the region till Udvada. Nargol beach is wide and lonely, you will hardly find any tourist here. Luckily google map took us to the beach through some unmarked road and it turned to be a small trail passing through tree plantation on both the side and opening straightaway on the beach. We stayed there for some 30 minutes, it was so peaceful and serene that we never wanted to leave but this is just the beginning and there is more to come. We marked our way back towards the main road and continued towards another small settlement called Tadgam.

Tree Plantation


Trail, that takes you to Nargol Beach


Nargol Beach

[nndp87]

Beautiful trail towards Nargol Beach




Beautiful Parsi Villa


A beautiful Weslayan Church is located in Tadgam Village, we didn’t knew the difference between Weslayan Christians and Catholic Christians back then, after coming back from the trip one of my Catholic colleague explained me the difference, Weslyan Christians are protestants whereas Catholic Christians worship Jesus Christ apart from this there are many other small differences, pardon me in case the above explanation is incorrect. Well the Church looks wonderful, adjacent to the Church is a school. The entire setup of the town is simply amazing. On one side you have fisherman’s area, on other side you have residential area, further into the village on one side you have playing ground and on the other side there is beach running by all of this. Wonderful isn’t it.

Weslayan Church




Our next destination is Mangelwad Beach, it’s a detour from the main road, however this place disappointed us because due to low tide it never looked like a beach, but yes here we interacted with villagers and got insights about their daily routine life, they offered us water and food which we politely denied and moved ahead towards Daman, for us Daman was just a passing by town, since we have explored Daman to it’s length and breadth during our previous rides. We stopped in Daman for quick lunch and then moved towards Udvada.

Udvada is a pilgrimage centre for Worldwide Parsi Community, it houses one of the nine Atash Behram (a highest grade of eternal fire flame that is placed in the Zoroastrian fire temple) The write up and teachings placed in Zoroastrian Museum of Udvada will help you in understanding the history of Parsi community. There was lot of construction activity under progress, especially on the beach front of Udvada. The town has huge old mansions like structure with vintage car in the garage and old couple sitting in the courtyard, the sight which we always saw in movies in case of Parsi characters and here we were seeing this in real. The town still has Parsi culture engraved in its daily life.

Welcome to Udvada



Udvada Museum








It's 3 PM already, during winter, day ends early, so by 6.30 PM it would be dark and we had consciously decided not to ride post sunset. So from Udvada we made a quick dash towards Umarsadi, there was nothing special about this place, but one small unpaved road going towards water body or creek which has tree sheds was something special for us, we found peace here, absolute peace and no one to bother. Cool breeze flowing from creek made us sleepy as well and we actually took small nap of 30 minutes, there are some places which remain engraved in your mind and Umarsadi was one of them.

Umarsadi - Enlightenment Tree


Umarsadi - Damaged Jetty


30 minutes nap


Time to leave and move ahead


From Umarsadi one could have directly gone to Tithal, Valsad via Magod Dungri, but there isn’t any ferry to help you cross the creek and hence one has to take a long detour via Pardi and Atul to reach Tithal, Valsad. Tithal is famous and most visited beach in this region of Gujarat and naturally it has to be crowded, it also has options of numerous activity like Water Scooter, Para Sailing, Horse Riding, etc. After having a brief stop we moved ahead towards Tithal light house, evening is the best time to visit it, one can watch the sunset from the top. By now, I was sure in my mind that we would stay somewhere near Tithal and the best option which came along the way was BAPS Swaminarayan Temple, let me tell you, the location of the temple is amazing, right onto the beach, Luckily we got the room as well. After settling our luggage in the room, we quickly made it to Lighthouse, the best part about this light house is, it has lift to go upstairs (paid option) so just 15 minutes before the sunset we made it to the top and spent next 30 minutes looking at wonderful views around. Post sunset we came back to the temple had snacks, dinner, explored temple premises.

BAPS Swaminarayan Temple, Tithal, Valsad


Semicircle staircase of Tithal Lighthouse


The view from the top of surrounding area


Sunset



Low tide spoils the look of the village


There is one more floor upstairs, where actual light illuminating machine is kept


Tithal Lighthouse


BAPS Swaminarayan Temple - Night View


Today's View from my GMaps Timeline


GMap Link:
Hotel Fountain to Umarsadi: http://goo.gl/maps/i3BWZvhLuU5SQQBd6
Umarsadi to Tithal: http://goo.gl/maps/uyxgartFbZ2JDJJHA
Accomodation: BAPS Swaminarayan Temple: http://goo.gl/maps/jZWyYewfqTxnuLKS9

[nndp87]

D2: Morning was really cold, as we move upwards towards North, morning and evening would really get cold. By 7.45 AM, we were ready to roll, one needs to factor 10 to 15 minutes everyday to mount and un-mount the luggage.

The route ahead goes through Valsad town, from Valsad one is supposed to take Coastal Highway and proceed towards Dholai / Billimora. There are many small pockets of Coastal Villages besides this Coastal Highway, however one cannot visit each and every village, it’s possible but then time should not be constraint. If you are travelling on bike and especially in coastal area, please factor in for cross wind as well. This was first time I was encountering strong cross winds and believe me it was difficult, but slowly I got used to it and we made it Dholai Village, We appeared like alien to the village folks, many of them thought we had lost our way. After struggling for few minutes we made it to one end of Dholai Fishing Port, local fisherman folks started asking us questions like, where are you coming from, is this sports bike, from how many days you are on road, what is the purpose of trip. I calmly explained them that we are on a coastal ride and have started from Mumbai and planned to go all the way till Lakhpat in Kutch region. They were surprised and happy at the same time, thinking this crazy people are going to visit such places everyday for next 10 days. While talking to them we understood their daily routines of fishing as a professions. Once they understand you are here to explore they start feeling comfortable and share lot of things, I really feel travelling on offbeat routes helps us in exploring real India. Moving ahead they guided us to another end of the port which is much developed and lot of fishing vessels were anchored here. Again similar reaction from people, there was another couple who were there on their pre-wedding shoot and they were more interested in what we are upto.

BAPs Swaminarayan Temple, Tithal. Beach in the background is not visible due to fog


Ready for the long day ahead


En-route Dholai Fishing Port



Old Dholai Fishing Port


Old Dholai Fishing Port - Broken Jetty


Fishing Boats, this is newly developed port




The Pre-wedding shoot couple


Post wedding shoot





From Dholai we were back on the main road and proceeded towards Billimora, even Billimora has a port, but that is not active and it’s become a relaxation place for senior citizen. We were hungry by now and luckily at the corner of the road was Vadapav and Dabeli Centre. After quick brunch we left Billimora, our next destination is Dandi, yes the same Dandi where Mahatma Gandhi broke the salt law. The road infrastructure in Gujarat really helped us all the way till Lakhpat, the ride was quick and we made it to Dandi in no time. We first visited Dandi beach (there wasn’t much activity since it was 11.30 AM) and thereafter visited National Salt Satyagraha Memorial. There is entry fee of Rs. 20 per head. You will really enjoy this place, the memorial will walk you through entire events of Dandi March through depiction in the form of statues and details of the march.

Mahatma Gandhi under civil disobedience movement conducted 24 days Dandi March against draconian salt laws. The march started from Sabarmati Ashram, Ahmedabad and passed through various districts of current day Gujarat State and finally on 5th April, 1930 marchers reached Dandi and owners of Saifee Villa welcomed them as their guest. On 6th April, 1930 Mahatma Gandhi broke the salt laws and it sparked nationwide civil disobedience against the British Rule.

Click on below Wikipedia Link for more information on Dandi March:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Salt_March

En-route Dandi




National Salt Satyagraha Memorial, Dandi



Mahatma Gandhi and his marchers cross River Narmada on the way to Dandi to break the Salt Law


Marchers cross Midhola Creek on the makeshift bridge


Finally Mahatma Gandhi broke the Salt law on the shores of Dandi on 6th April 1930


Mahatma Gandhi Statue


Marchers


Solar Panels


Message from Mahatma Gandhi


Behind is the Saifee Villa where Mahatma Gandhi along with Marchers were welcomed by the owners

[nndp87]

From Dandi we proceeded towards Navsari and from Navsari fast four lane road takes you to Surat, we decided to skip another 2 pockets of coastal town and villages between Navsari and Surat i.e. Ubhrat and Dumas Beach area. We straightaway proceeded towards Hazira. We have never visited this side of the Surat and I was surprised to see so much industrial development. The road till Hazira port is entirely 4 laned and 6 laned. Hazira is a River Port and Liquefied Natural Gas Terminal. It houses major companies like Reliance Group, Essar Group, ONGC, GSPC, Ultratech Cement, L&T. We made a quick round across the port area and came back on the main road towards Surat. Suvali beach is 5 kilometers from Hazira and is one of the most visited place in Surat. So we proceed towards Suvali beach. Suvali beach was buzzing with lot of activities. It's a black sand beach. I was surprised to know that Suvali Beach was the Gateway from where East India Company made inroads in India. There are various shacks on the beach which serve maggies, vadas, samosa and other food items etc. Our lunch for today is Masala Maggie. We spent next 15 minutes in the backyard of shack, looking at the sea, we felt peace here in spite of chaos around, that’s the effect of travelling. Enough of peace, its 3.45 PM already and we have good 4 hours ride ahead. Next point is Shree Vamleshwar Temple or Shree Vimaleshwar Temple.

En-route Navsari



Welcome to Hazira




Suvali Beach


15 minutes peace moment


What is the importance of this Shree Vamleshwar?
There is pilgrimage in India called as Narmada Parikrama, wherein a pradakshina or circumambulation of River Narmada is carried out by pilgrims, one of the important rule of this pilgrimage is at no point you can criss cross River Narmada, so from Vamleshwar (located near Katpor Village) one takes a boat to Mithi Talai through Arabian Sea without crossing River Narmada, it’s 4 hours journey.

We made it to Vamleshwar in 2 hours from Suvali Beach, the ride was through state highways with decent roads, the ride was quite silent, we were quite but at the same time enjoying the roads, fields, farms and were in complete sync with nature. There are very few moments in our life when we feel everything is fine with us, we experienced those moments during the ride to Shree Vamleshwar. We crossed the village and asked the locals about the boat to Mithi Talai, they told us that Mithi Talai is the point where River Narmada meets Arabian Sea and boats operate in the morning depending upon the rush of the pilgrimage. We rode ahead as far as we can and finally the road ended, however Sea was not visible due to low tide. What a day it was simply amazing. We were supposed to touch Bharuch by day end which was still another 50 Kilometers away, the ride was quick and in 50 minutes we made it to Ankleshwar. We were exited to ride on Golden Bridge between Ankleshwar and Bharuch. By 8 PM we checked into BAPS Swaminarayan Temple at Bharuch.

En-route Shree Vamleshwar





Salt pans around Shree Vamleshwar


X-Pulse is the one of the most photogenic bike in India



The end of the road



One of the best picture, Happy and Curious faces in Vamleshwar Village


En-route Bharuch


Golden Bridge


Today's View from my GMaps Timeline



GMap Link:
Tithal to Dandi: http://goo.gl/maps/2LYDK4bu6C7XDv8W8
Dandi to Katpor: https://goo.gl/maps/pUeBwqLaG7CPHTBv7
Katpor to Vamleshwar to Bharuch: https://goo.gl/maps/g8DXzh2nyg9KKZ2m6
Accomodation: BAPS Swaminarayan Temple: https://goo.gl/maps/Nc1P1aiRDyNHm8pD6

[nndp87]

D3: Original plan of D3 was to catch RoRo Ferry operating between Dahej & Ghogha and reach Bhavnagar, however ferry was non-operational due to siltation at Dahej Port and because of this reason we had to circumnavigate the gulf. In technical terms, one should go towards Dahej from Bharuch, thereafter explore salt pan area and proceed towards Jambusar and then continue ahead towards Saurashtra region of Gujarat, but we decided to skip Dahej part and proceeded towards a village called Kavi. We were completely geared up in winter gears since mornings were very cold. The route to Kavi goes through double laned state highway. Jambusar is the major town en route.

What is special about this village Kavi?
Shree Stambheshwar Mahadev Temple is located on the beach of Kavi Village. The specialty about this temple is that during high tide it submerges under the sea. One can visit the temple only during low tide. For more details you can visit below mentioned website.
https://stambheshwarmahadev.com/

BAPS Swaminarayan Temple, Bharuch


Shree Stambheshwar Mahadev Temple, Kavi











Beach of Kavi


After blissful darshan at the temple we marked our way back towards main road and proceeded towards Dhuvaran, Dhuvaran is a power plant town located on the coast of Gujarat, it is settlement under the control of Gujarat State Electricity Corporation Limited. One can see mind-blowing views of Gulf of Khambhat. The roads were fabulous throughout. Our documents and luggage were thoroughly checked at the entrance gate of Dhuvaran, we made it to the last point of the settlement and the views were simply mind blowing.

BAPS Swaminarayan Temple, Somewhere between Kavi and Jambusar


This is basically a shorter route for going towards Khambhat from Kavi bypassing Jambusar, it's called Canal Road


Entry Gate of Dhuvaran


View of Gulf from Dhuvaran



Dhuvaran Plant


It was time to move ahead and explore the town of Khambhat. The ride to Khambhat from Dhuvaran is 25 Kilometers. We had always read about Gulf of Khambhat in our Geography Textbook during our school days. Finally we were seeing it in real. The sea or the gulf has receded behind and there was no sign of water from the view point, we ventured inside for few kilometers, still there was was no water here, nevertheless we thoroughly enjoyed our time at the view point, riding the bike on the beach followed by a photo shoot. It was time to say good bye to Gulf of Khambhat and proceed to Saurashtra.

Khambhat Town, Clock Tower


Photoshoot in Gulf of Khambhat




Port Road, Khambhat


Today we would enter Saurashtra region of Gujarat, our destination for the night is Bhavnagar which is 138 kilometeres from Khambhat, the roads were good till Dholera, post Dholera entire National Highway all the way till Somnath is under construction with lot of diversions, finally we reached Sanes, the point where you leave National Highway going towards Somnath and take left towards Bhavnagar, we rode non-stop from Khambhat via Vataman till Sanes, After a brief stop for 10 minutes at Sanes we continued ahead and made it to Bhavnagar by 6.30 PM.

Somewhere near Vataman


Barren land, just before Bhavnagar Town


This cable bridge is entry point of Bhavnagar


Today it was more of a distance covering than exploring, the major reason is RoRo ferry, even as of now it's shut. Bhavnagar is major town in Saurashtra region of Gujarat. Lot of interesting places to visit in Bhavnagar ranging from temples to forts. Local food in Bhavnagar is not to be missed. We spent evening exploring road side food of Bhavnagar such as Pav Gathiya, Bhugada Bateka (Friums with Spicy Potato), sandwiches, etc. The best place to eat street food is Ghogha Circle and Sanskar Mandal area of Bhavnagar.

Today's View from my GMaps Timeline


GMap Link:
Bharuch to Bhavnagar: https://goo.gl/maps/cCz4v2pSBFvoTb2x6
Accomodation: Hotel Sankalp https://goo.gl/maps/ARkjE1JbWwLuisXb7

[nndp87]

D4: We started early from Bhavnagar because there were lot of places to cover, so by 7.30 AM we were on our way towards first destination of the day, Nishkalank Mahadev Temple near Koliyak Village which is 20 Kilometers from Bhavnagar.

Specialty about Nishkalank Mahadev Temple:
The temple can be visited only during low tide. The walk to temple from Koliyak Beach is some 800 meters, it is not easy as you would be walking through wet and slippery layer of soil. The temple is entirely submerged under water during high tide. When you look at the temple from Koliyak Beach, it looks stunning, especially during sunrise. It's a must visit place if you are around Bhavnagar.

This is the path you will walk through to reach the temple



Nishkalank Mahadev Temple, During high tide, only flag is visible











Trishul


Birds kept flying


After darshan, we were on our way towards next destination for the day, Alang Ship breaking Yard. Alang Ship breaking Yard is 50 Kilometers from Bhavnagar, its is divided into 2 parts, North Side and South Side, the best way to explore this place is first ride to any of the one side and then slowly keep riding to other side. Basically land near the beach has been bifurcated into the plots and given to the companies involved in ship breaking activity, technically you won't be permitted inside, however you can try your luck. Apart from this there are numerous small openings in between this plots from where you can see the ship breaking activity. Lot of material from the ship is on the sale in the market area of Alang. If you are lucky you might see the ships which you have never imagined. Again a must visit place, if you are on this side of the country.

The North End of Alang Ship Breaking Yard



The opening between plots, I was talking about


Ships taking their last breath








I think, this must be anchor cable, not sure


The Company, which allowed us to visit their premises


For memory


Moving ahead, our next destination was Gopnath Mahadev Temple. We always opted for internal village road, it might be slow compared to fast state highways but you will enjoy the ride and will come across real India and also the real motto of this ride was to stay as close as possible to the coast.

Local Tempo, carrying passengers


Fryums with Potato called as Bhugada Bataka in Gujarat


A seat with a view

[nndp87]

We made it Gopnath Madadev Temple, a sprawling temple on the coast with beach and lighthouse, it also has an option for food and accommodation in case you require. We didn't visit light house in Gopnath.

Gopnath Mahadev Temple





Our next destination is Bhutada Dada Temple, we kept riding as per GMaps, however GMap was incorrect here, I checked with locals in the village of Uncha Kotada and they told me that temple can be accessed only through off road trail and a river crossing and advised us not to venture ahead, because if one gets stuck, help is miles away, so we took their advice and moved ahead to Mahuva, Mahuva is a simple coastal town and the best place in any coastal town would be either beach or lighthouse, the ride to Mahuva Light house also known as Jegri Light house is beautiful. The light house staff was surprised and excited to see us, especially when they came to know that we are riding all the way from Mumbai and are keen to visit the lighthouse. We were allowed to visit the lighthouse in spite of odd timings. The view from the top is simply mind blowing, let pictures do the talking.

Jegri Light House, Mahuva














After visiting Mahuva Light house it was time to push towards the last destination of the day, Chanch Bungalow. Chanch Bungalow also known as Vijay Mahal is abandoned palace of King of Bhavnagar Shree Krishna Kumar Sinhji built in 1945. The location of palace is again out of the world, bang on the coast, from the balconies of the fort one gets amazing views of sea, however why it was abandoned, no idea, if anyone here has any information, please share it.

Salt Pan on the way to Chanch Bungalow


Chanch Bungalow










After visiting Chanch Bungalow, we moved towards Pipavav, I knew there were few hotels near Pipavav on highway. So by 7 PM we checked into Hotel Darshan near Pipavav.

A seat with a view


Last few rays of day light


Today's View from my GMaps Timeline


GMap Link:
Bhavnagar to Pipavav: http://goo.gl/maps/74YhfKjMqE5NJF416
Accomodation: Hotel Darshan, Pipavav: https://goo.gl/maps/HP6cMmuxhmv6D3AFA

[nndp87]

D5: Good Morning from Pipavav


By 7.30 AM we were on our way to Pipavav Port, Pipavav Port is private port owned and maintained by APM Terminal, entry inside the port is restricted, however there is an island off the coast of the Pipavav known as Shiyalbet, one can get the permission to enter the premises of the port on pretext of visiting Shiyalbet Island. The road to Shiyalbet Jetty goes through Pipavav Port area. Just before the entry point into Pipavav Port Terminal, a small road towards right will take you to Shiyalbet Jetty. Shiyalbet Island is connected to main land through small boats, surprising thing about Shiyalbet Island is, it got electricity connectivity in 2016, and the moment was similar to what we have seen in movie Swades wherein light comes for the first time in the village. The frequency of the boat depends upon frequency of passengers, there are no fixed timings.

Pipavav Port


Actual Entry Point, on the left is the office for obtaining permission for Shiyalbet


Permission for Shiyalbet


A small road which branch offs from main road and takes you to Shiyalbet Jetty


Offshore exploration unit, please elaborate if anyone has more details




Shiyalbet Island



Boat coming from Shiyalbet with passengers


Some photo session for memories





Actually they are parking the boat


This is Pipavav Terminal from distance



Navy Frigate, if not mistaken


After Pipavav, we proceed towards Jaffarabad, one of the big town in this area. From Pipavav one can take main highway towards Jaffarabad, but we took internal roads going through villages as usual. We checked with locals at the bus stand, if there is any interesting spots in the town and they were like, why have you come here, go to Diu, very interesting. We laughed off and proceed inside the town. We didn't knew we are on the way to explore one of the best place in this entire trip. We reached light house, this time we were unsuccessful to convince light house in charge to allow us on the top. But when we went inside the light house compound, we saw a temple beyond the wall. So after we were denied entry to the top of the light house, we moved beyond the light house towards the temple and believe me, it was one of the best places we visited during the trip. A temple some 100 meters into the sea on the rock like structure. Amazing, I think pictures will do more justice than words.

Rajula Pipavav Railway Line


Beautiful internal village roads




Welcome to Jaffarabad


And we arrive at light house


Jaffarabad light house



Road towards temple


View of breakwaters


This is the end of the road


The Beautiful temple

[nndp87]

Picturesque location



Temple stands on the edge


You can see the erosion


Light house in the background


Random Click of the stone


For memories



You can see the bike parked


Breakwaters


View of temple from breakwaters side


It was time to move ahead towards our next destination for the day, Fort St. Anthony of Simbor. Simbor village is divided into two parts, first part is Fort of St. Anthony of Simbor, it falls under Diu Administration (Before independence: Portuguese Administration) and second part is Simbor Village, it falls under Gujarat Administration (Before independence: British Rule and Junagadh State). The fort is located off the coast of Simbor and can be accessed only through local boats, currently the entire fort is in ruins. The island fort, along with two small plots of land on either side is about 1 square km. Along with Diu and the rest of Portuguese India, it was absorbed by India in December 1961. Nevertheless the fort looks amazing from Simbor Beach. Enjoy the pictures. If anyone is more interested in the History part of this area, please click below link from Wikipedia.

History of Fort St. Anthony of Simbor: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fort_St._Anthony_of_Simbor

X-Pulse always ready to pose


We found this in almost every village. They seat together under the tree / chowk area of the village, discuss and talk about various topics, they are under no hurry, neither they are worried about the future, they just enjoy their present.


Simbor Beach



Fort St. Anthony of Simbor



Erosion of rocks due to waves


Voluntary promotion of Quechua Brand


When you are forced to smile


Road to Simbor Beach


From Simbor, we move towards a small hamlet called Nava Bandar, located 5 Kilometers from Delvada. It is beautiful coastal town with fishing port, light house and beach facing temple called Lahereshwar. We were able to explore only fishing port, due to scarcity of time.

Nava Bandar fishing port


From Nava Bandar we proceed towards Diu, when you first enter the town, entire look and feel of the surrounding changes, you feel like you are in city like Delhi, then it clicks, yes it's a Union Territory, directly administered from New Delhi. We entered from Ghoghla side and crossed over to Diu through Dr Shamji Bridge.

Welcome to Diu


Directions


Dr Shamji Bridge connecting Diu and Ghoghla


Random click, somewhere in Diu.

[nndp87]

First major attraction is Diu fort. We were shocked when we entered Diu Fort, it was densely populated, yes in last 5 days we were not used to this kind of crowd. After visiting Diu fort, we explored the residential area of Diu and thereafter it was time to fuel up the bike, cheap fuel you see.

Diu Fort









Diu light house




View of the Arabian Sea




Diu City





If you are in Diu, please make sure you visit INS Khukhri Memorial. INS Khukhri sunk off the coast of Diu on 9th December 1971 due to attack by Pakistani Submarine. 18 officers and 176 sailors were lost in the sinking. Captain Mahendra Nath Mulla was in charge INS Khukhri. He is the only Indian Navy Captain who decided to go down with a vessel. He was posthumously awarded the Maha Vir Chakra. The memorial consists of a scale model of Khukri encased in a glass house, placed atop a hillock facing the sea. Currently Memorial is under renovation, however it can still be visited.

INS Khukhri Memorial




Gangeshwar Mahadev Temple is another beautiful place to visit if you are in Diu. The Lord Shiva Temple is located 3 km away from Diu in the Fudam Village of Diu. It is quoted that temple has been built by the Pandavas, this temple is famous for its five Shiva Lingas, i.e. rocks in the shape of Lord Shiva which are present in the middle of the sea. Only the tip of these rocks can be seen whenever there is a high tide because the sea water submerges them.

Gangeshwar Mahadev Temple



Time to leave Diu and proceed ahead towards the last destination for the day, Madhvad light house, we wanted to see the sunset from the top of the light house, we made it to Madhvad Village before Sunset, however it took time for us to reach the Light house as GMaps shows incorrect way. We made it to the top of the light house and sun disappeared, but let me tell you, the view from Madhvad light house was by far the best in entire trip. We spent some 30 minutes on the top and enjoyed the view around.

Madhvad Light House







Next town en-route is Kodinar, which is 20 kilometers from Madhvad, the roads were decent and by 7.30 PM we made it to Kodinar and found the accommodation near bus stand. What a wonderful day it was.

Today's View from my GMaps Timeline


GMap Link: Pipavav to Kodinar https://goo.gl/maps/bzS4dBeiUk8kvLMi7
Accommodation: Hotel Sun View Regency, Kodinar https://goo.gl/maps/PMheDg59hS6czVZp9
Just besides Hotel Sunview Regency, there is Restaurant named Hotel Krishna Park, which serves amazing food, it serves everything breakfast, lunch and dinner. Location: https://goo.gl/maps/rWJ6Zq2DgzHvK5LW6

A quick recap of the Coastal Gujarat Ride up till now
D1: Mumbai - Dahanu - Gholvad - Bordi - Umbergaon - Nargol - Tadgam - Mangelwad - Daman - Udvada - Umarsadi - Tithal.
D2: Tithal - Dholai - Billimora - Dandi - Navsari - Hazira - Suvali - Shree Vamleshwar - Hansot - Ankleshwar - Bharuch.
D3: Bharuch - Jambusar - Shree Stambheshwar Mahadev - Dhuvaran - Khambhat - Vataman - Sanes - Bhavnagar.
D4: Bhavnagar - Nishkalank Temple - Alang Shipbreaking Yard - Gopnath Temple - Mahuva - Chanch Bungalow - Pipavav
D5: Pipavav - Shiyalbet Jetty - Jaffarabad - Fort St Anthony of Simbor - Nava Bandar - Diu - Madhvad - Kodinar.

In next 5 days we would be covering Somnath, Veraval, Mangrol, Dwarka, Okha, Beyt Dwarka, Jamnagar, Mandvi, Jakhau, Koteshwar and Lakhpat.

[Aditya]

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

[ampere]

Truly one of a kind log! When we all think, we have seen whats there to be seen, here comes one more!

[am1m]

Awesome! Always felt that the Xpulse would be the best India tourer, solo. Lightweight, good ground clearance, easy to maintain, lots of Hero service centers. But always felt it would be under-powered with pillion and luggage. How did it perform on the highways?

[paragsachania]

Good one Nandeep. As a state with one of the longest coastline, there is a lot to see right from the southernmost part of Gujarat till Narayansarovar or Lakhpath.

When you are not active, it only means you are wrapping up another trip like this and then you are back with an awesome log.

The diversity that you get to see and experience through this long coastline is immense - Temples, Churches, Ports, Beaches, UTs.

What I have liked is that these places are not too crowded, thanks to the regular popular destinations becoming more popular and tourist crowd sticking to these locations while explorers like you having the best out of such rides. I dream that they remain this way for years to come.

[handsofsteel]

Originally Posted by nndp87

[
Navy Frigate, if not mistaken
Attachment 1975157

It is a NOPV (New generation offshore patrol vessel) which is being built at the Pipavav Shipyard for the Indian Navy.