[amit_mechengg]

before i start writing i must thank to ashishpallod and sawyer for their guidance on route hotels etc.

7th Dec was our first marriage anniversary and wifey was long time demanding a trip to Dapoli. i had no information about Dapoli earlier untill i bumped in the travelogues threads of our forum. i was confident i need not search anywhere else other than Team BHP.

earlier i had planned to drive via poladpur and mahabaleshwar route to dapoli and stay at Sagar Sawali Ladghar for 2 days. but then saw sawyers thread that varanda is a beauty of nature so decided on that route while going and poladpur route while coming back. also a very good thing that sawyer pointed out was i should stay at karde for one day and then ladghar. this idea yeilded the best results



I started at 5.00 am from my residence in Pimple Saudagar. it was dark and i was wondering whether i will be able to see the scenery via the varanda ghat.



i started moving steadily and slowly towards the katraj ghat hoping to reach bhor by dawn.


luckily as soon as i reached the toll naka the skies started lighting up



some snaps while driving towards Bhor, had a breakfast at bhor. upma and poha.

[amit_mechengg]

i was enjoying every bit of the trip with the beautiful landscapes filled with FOG all over. we reached the Devghar Dam and its damn huge.



my peppy alto, throw any damn tough roads to it and it gulps them with ease. precise handling ,best drivability through ghats in 2nd and 3rd gear. thanks to FFE and K&N with added cream of soft Michelins. no tyre squeaks even at speeds of 60kmph through tough ghats. not a cm offtrack and 110% perfect feel of the road as i dont have any EPS.


varanda ghat starts. roads are patchy but no issue at all. driver has to concentrate a lot and mistakes are not allowed.


more pics to come......

i am not able to resize the images to the 1mb limit. all images are around 3-4 mb. when i resize the quality is lost. any tips on the same will be very much appreciated

[amit_mechengg]

you can have a stop in the varanda ghat and enjoy the bhajji and wada pav there. this pitstop also provides you some relaxation. this place is full of monkeys.

[MX6]

The pics with the early morning mist provides an ethereal look! Great start. Looking for more.

[amit_mechengg]

i could not get bookings at karde in hotel kinara or sagar sawali. i instead booked the hotel SAGAR HILL. view from hotel is very good but the design is old and the food though cheaper here is not as good as other hotels. also the room service is just adequate. but its a very comfortable stay. all hotels are in line touching the beach line at karde. you dont have wide options here.

[vikrantj]

Wow !! Great pictures. Konkan has lots of hidden treasures and amazing beaches is one of them . Did you visit Harne or Anjarle beach ? Did you see the Ganpati mandir near Anjarle beach , I think it is called "Kadyavarcha Ganpati" ?

--Vikrant

[Sawyer]

Good to hear that you had a good trip, worthy of the occassion! And some very good camera work, aided by the early morning light and fog. Here is looking forward to more posts.

[amit_mechengg]

the most memorable part of the journey was the fish auction at Harne port. i have never seen such stuff ever in my life. its a must see place.

the fishing boats arrive at the port around 3.30 and the unloading and auction along with sorting of fish starts at sharp 4.00pm and continues till 7.00pm.
the bullock carts are almost submerged in the water while they offload fish from boats and transfer to the carts.

you can see hell hot of varieties of fish, i couldnt guess the names of single breed . also the place is too crowded. even i couldnt guess what they were shouting. 5500, 5600, 5750 ...the figures keep on changing. i dont know what they mean , either 5500 rs was the price of entire crate.
surmai was 60rs KG and pomfret was 50rs kg at one place while the same rates were 100 rs kg elsewhere.

[vikrantj]

Yeah I remember now it is "Tekdivarcha Ganpati"

--Vikrant

[amit_mechengg]

Originally Posted by vikrantj

Wow !! Great pictures. Konkan has lots of hidden treasures and amazing beaches is one of them . Did you visit Harne or Anjarle beach ? Did you see the Ganpati mandir near Anjarle beach , I think it is called "Kadyavarcha Ganpati" ?

--Vikrant

hey thanks a ton vikrant for your PM before the trip. yes i saw the ganpati. the road is amazing and so is the mandir.

Originally Posted by Sawyer

Good to hear that you had a good trip, worthy of the occassion! And some very good camera work, aided by the early morning light and fog. Here is looking forward to more posts.

the camera is good. panasonic TZ11. the image quality is good but when i resize them some details are lost and so is the quality

[shishya]

amit_mechengg:

I would appreciate if you could share where you were able to obtain this detailed map of Maharashtra. I had been trying to locate such a map for a very long time.

A photo at Karde Dapoli when we visited some time back.
=Shishya=

[advaitlele]

@Amit - nice pix you got there. I am planning to go to Ganpatipule this month end and initially had planned to go via Umbraj - Amba Ghat route and meet NH17 at Chiplun. Your photos are kind of forcing me to change the route and go via Varandha Ghat.

I was refraining from doing that route as I heard its not a good road. Questions for you (and Ashish Pallod - the GURU of these roads)
1. How long it takes from Pune - it seems we stay pretty close by - you in P.S. and I in Aundh.) So from res to crossing the Varandha ghat and touch NH 17. How long it takes and approx how many KMs for that? Considering I have to travel long way ahead and with a baby.
2. How is the road condition adn traffic condition. I am planning to leave home around 4.30 am.
3. How is the support system en route? Food / Mechanics / Puncture repair etc. just in case.

And keep the photos coming. I am tempted to this route sooner than later.

[Majic]

Nice pictures and good narration. I liked the part of the auctions. Its for the first time that i am seeing a bullockcart is being used for the transportation of fish from the boat! Please continue with the postings.

[amit_mechengg]

we proceeded towards anjarle where we visited the most famous Kadyawarcha Ganpati. on the route is the longest bridge i have ever seen of almost 1.5kms, long and slender and at tremendous height. view from the bridge is amazing and so is the ride.

[Sawyer]

Amit, can you please post detailed driving directions from the end of the bridge to the temple? Thanks!