So how do I start ......Let's just say I had it in my mind for quite a while .... Uhuh ... No actually from a really long time and I had to make it happen. So some struggle some friends agreeing, disagreeing, some plans being firm and all of a sudden just go down the drain as some got other plans. People saying "not sure Sid... What if we don't get to see turtles?" ...Some saying "it's so far.... 5 hours drive are you crazy:0"..."it's so expensive" and all sorts of excuses I was getting bored but had to have atleast of friend ready to explore Velas with me. After a few days some of my 4 of my office colleagues went to Velas and looking at the photos on Facebook I said to myself that it's okay if we don't get to see turtles making their way towards the sea, the place itself is so beautiful that it's worth the visit. Read a
Random blog on the internet and thanks to that blog I found the cheapest mode of transport to Velas and that how unexpectedly my not so picnicky friend for years whom I never expected said yes to the trip. It was like the YES that I wanted to hear (Lol :) pun intended). So for the first time a long journey with just one rare buddy.....
The route that we used to reach Velas was MSRTC bus from Dadar East. There are 2 buses one is at midnight 12.30 and the other is at afternoon 12.30 (The is called Mumbai Central to Velas). Don't panic if you think you missed it there are buses till Mandangad also, from there you can find a different bus or tum-tum rickshaw to Velas. There are various Jetty available also and people are helpful if you wanna know places ;). The bus came around 12.45am at Dadar East and got our online tickets checked (always carry a photo ID proof) and there was a sigh of relief
Turtle hatchery
(however the bus was not comfy at all but when you have the excitement then nothing beats it).
Velas beach
By morning 6.30 we reached Velas and the village is very pleasing in the morning. Velas is situated in the Mandangad taluka of Ratnagiri district. There is an old Lord Shiva temple in the village which has its ancient few relics besides the temple. Turtle festival in Velas is approximately from November to first week of April. And the timing for watching turtles start at 6.30 am then directly at 5.30pm, they say turtle don't hatch out in harsh sunlight so it's only in early morning and during sunset or sometimes even after sunset. We honestly had less expectations about seeing turtles but that okay as the beach is one of its kind with soft dark brown sand, ecalyptus trees and cleanliness. Swimming is prohibited and there is a bay-watcher always to keep check on people. So we did spend a couple of hours here and then decided to have our breakfast.Here is my Youtube video of Velas Beach:
View from Bankot fort
Bankot fort (Himmatgad)
Although Velas is a tourist attraction there are no hotels or fancy accommodations here. For food and stay people provide their houses at a cost. As we didn't have any food since the banana chips in the bus ride we were hungry as EF! So decided to have 'Sabudana Khichdi' in one of the houses. Please keep a check on the rates of food and discuss with other tourist who had food there where you are gonna eat. So me and my friend decided to have our Lunch in Harihareshwar but before that we had to see the Bankot fort (also known as Himmatgad). Bankot is 2-3 kms away from Velas and tum-tum rickshaw or ST bus will provide service till Bankot village. Vehicles reach near the fort but only private vehicles or rickshaws can take you there. There is also a trek route available or else walk towards the fort (we preferred to walk while our return from the fort and the nature is amazing to be with). The fort is in ruins but well kept. Also the scenic view from the fort is fabulous.Here's my video of Bankot fort :
Bankot jetty
So after spending a good couple of hours at the fort enjoying cool breeze which was relaxing we decided to move on to our next destination Harihareshwar (actually it was so soothing that we didn't want to get off our b**** but plans man plans). So walking slowly down the lush green paths of Bankot we made our way till Bankot jetty or ferry. Ferry boats are available till evening 6.00. We bought our tickets and had a joyful ferry ride till Bagmandla. The ferry also carries vehicles for a different cost. From Bagmandla you can hire a tum-tum Rickshaw to reach various places like Harihareshwar or Shrivardhan at a very reasonable cost. Nearby beaches are Harihareshwar, Shrivardhan, Aarvi, Diveagar.
Harihareshwar Pradakshina Marg
By the time we reached Harihareshwar it was 1.30 pm and we had lots of time to explore the tourist places in Harihareshwar. So we decided to go have our lunch and seriously Harihareshwar has a lot of facilities in terms of stay and food so yes Harihareshwar thumbs up! After having our lunch we went to the famous Harihareshwar temple. the ancient temple is located near the Harihareshwar beach. It's a tradition that you first pay your visit to Lord Kalbhairav then to Lord Harihareshwar (Lord Shiva). Harihareshwar is also known as God's land. So Behind the temple there is a staircase leading upwards towards the mountain it is called 'Pradakshina Marg' and what you see it and astounding art of nature. Two mountains or presizely two huge rocks and a staircase leading down between them towards the sea. And there are natural carvings created in the rock along with some reefs and natural caves. The place is a perfect natural museum of what water can do to a rock after being gushed on for years. Please be careful on this beautiful place though. The area is only accessible during low tide and the place is quiet slippery at some place and tidal changes are irregular.And the video is here :
Harihareshwar beach
Lastly we went to see the awesome Harihareshwar beach which is very silent and has less crowded. Walk by the beach taking the sea breeze. We had our tea time and started our return journey from Shrivardhan where we boarded on our Mumbai return ST bus and this time the bus was quite comfy :)
Its a bit late to post this blog as we went for this trek in February 2016 (way before Dapoli trip happened) but i thought it would be nice to share this experience with you. So this time my residential friends and a couple of other friends who were school friends with my friend(confusing!...lol) including my younger brother decide to go a Saturday morning. Took the 05:32 am train for Karjat. Unsure whether we should get down at Neral railway station or Karjat we got down at Neral station. Super chilled whether and we didn't carry any warm clothes and all the surrounding were foggy and misty. It was Neral West (opposite to where you catch the mini train to Matheran hill station). Had some tea and 'batata vada' and packed some for lunch and looked for a ride in ST bus or Tum-Tum rickshaw whichever available. One person there told us that it would have been convenient for us to take an ST bus at Karjat which is half an hour away from Kothaligad rather than Neral so we realized our mistake as Tum-Tum rickshaw really cost us a lot. But that's okay we learned and move on with the rickshaw. Don't remember how much time it took to reach Peth village which is the base of Kothaligad fort(And how we all freaked out at the fact that my brother almost lost his mobile phone in the rickshaw and we found out that his phone slipped through his pocket and fell under the seat).
The 'guardian' dog
Gazing the Fort
So a dog started chasing us from the start of our trek (they follow you for food but they do follow you till the end). Its an almost 3-4 hours trek and has roadway made by rock destruction and ground leveling. Maybe they are trying to make it the next 'Matheran' because as we were progressing we saw so may government notice boards saying 'this is a private property' and all over the first phase. For Kothaligad you have to cross a mountain to reach the one with the Fort on it. Its fun!
Kothaligad from Ambivli village
There is not much to say how we kept moving and what we saw because its pretty much clear to every trekker and person who has at least done trekking ones. so going on further we came across a patch of hill plateau like from were Kothaligad was visible like a 'Submarine' and the view was magnificent.
So walking and taking picture we arrived in the village called 'Ambivli' and this people literally walk the distance everyday for going to the market and all(that's fit) and the dog that was chasing us passed on to the female dog (how can I use the word b**** here). And then she started followng us till the Fort top. The village was amazing with all the small farming and domestic animals and mud houses. Some provide eatables and lemon juice to trekkers and earn money. At around 11:45 am approximately we were inside the fort. Its fascinating that the entire fort is nothing but a carved huge rock from inside and from outside it looks just like any other rock on a mountain. Only the outer fortification of the fort and the gate was build with rocks. And we see some birds and a bumblebee! You know when you trek hard and its only 12 noon and you are already on the top of the fort and seen everything you can after the adventurous 'no support' of any kind climbing towards the top of the fort. I will post the link to my video of Kothaligad below and also one of my friend's video who is my fellow traveling partner. Our other friends had brought tiffins for lunch which we had no idea and it was a lot and delicious to eat....finally after full in our stomach we had to give the remaining food to the dogs(they did follow us to the top) and then we took a lot of photos.
Entrance of the Fort
I may not be able to describe the fort fully as i made a video about it you guys can have a look and see for yourselves. I can tell you that the fort was under British fort a really long time and they used it as a watch tower and stoing all their gunpowder and canon balls.
Sitting and chatting till 03:00 pm and we started our return journey and felt hungry again so had food in a small hotel in Peth village at the base(reasonable price and good food). Its is important to keep track of bus timings so that you don't miss your ride way home as the frequency of vehicles in rural areas is low.
Entrance to the top most part of the Fort
While returning we took ST bus and just couldn't control sleep for almost half an hour we slept in the bus and we reached the ST bus stop in Karjat. From where we walked for 15 minutes towards Karjat railway station and reached Bhandup railway station in the evening. My Kothaligad video..
My college buddies can be crazy sometimes as honestly I was fed up of visiting Kondane caves for for the 5th TIME!!! Arghh!! But never made a video about it so taught to myself that lets just this time be the final time I visit this place just for the sake of my Youtube channel ;)
The tum-tum ride
As I said they convinced me into this and I was like "Okay whatever" and forcibly woke up the planned morning.SO we took the 07:14 am train to Karjat railway station and then it was just a matter of time of us reaching there which takes approximately 1 and a half hour. One funny thing when one of my mates was going to show up late as she woke up late which made my other friend rage out of frustration...Lol!!! But luckily she was able to get on board. Reaching Karjat around 08:45 am we had some tea and breakfast (Vada pav, Bhaji pav) and packed some more for lunch(Later on checking that the vendor forgot to add Samosa Pav in it :( and was too late for that...but that's the latter part).We walk towards the ST bus stop to hire a tum-tum(rickshaw) and the charges have gone up...sigh...But we have no other option as it takes 20 minutes to reach the Kondiwade village of Karjat by a vehicle.
When you don't have a car
After reaching the village there is a 15 minute distance to walk till you reach the base from where the trek starts.Kondane caves trek is short and easy difficulty level and you can clearly see Rajmachi Fort atop which takes more 2 hours from the point where the caves are located.
The 'Gaonwale' pose
When I previously visited this caves there was a small Emu birds farm at the base which is just not there now or maybe due to rainy season they sheltered them somewhere else.So some photos with friends and a gushing river by the side of the road. Even though i don't like to travel in rain the scenic views balance out those uncomfortable feelings....Huh.. So you will come across many minor waterfalls in rainy season and there's one halfway in this small trek. And we go there to have some fun and get soaked. Moving on further after some more trekking you can see some plateau like areas in between with great view. In rainy season it becomes really messy to trek in the mud as my friend just didn't care and all her feet was huge pile of mud so walk carefully guys.. The first glance of this caves is really what catches my eye like you see some secret hidden ancient civilization visible amidst the dense trees although its just caves but anyways...there is also a waterfall near the caves. You can see the steps towards the caves. Here's my link to this youtube video below
In the video you can see the scenic water falling from above and the caves having a super huge roof of rock.and my friends abandon me while shooting it and decide to go in another waterfall...crazy friends man!
Seeing the difference from my previous visit I could tell that they have started to reconstruct this Buddhist caves, the pillars etc. Place is super crowded with people on weekends as it is the nearest picnic spot for people to hangout from Mumbai. And now at around 01:45 pm we had our lunch and sadly the vendor just forgets MY Samosa pav...man it was too late.So ate the extra plate of Bhajis that we bought and had an apple brought by a friend. So after spending time and drying up after being drenched in the waterfall we walk to our journey of return and sit by the river and play skipping stone. We were just throwing stones in the river like crazy.... And its started raining... Getting a tum-tum rickshaw is a real task when it comes to going back to the railway station so make sure that you note down the contact number of the previous rickshaw driver in the case you are not able to get any of the vehicle.... But they charge big...sigh... Hopping back up on the train and we share out memories with each other via 'Share It' app and deciding on our next venture.
By morning 6.30 we reached Velas and the village is very pleasing in the morning. Velas is situated in the Mandangad taluka of Ratnagiri district. There is an old Lord Shiva temple in the village which has its ancient few relics besides the temple. Turtle festival in Velas is approximately from November to first week of April. And the timing for watching turtles start at 6.30 am then directly at 5.30pm, they say turtle don't hatch out in harsh sunlight so it's only in early morning and during sunset or sometimes even after sunset. We honestly had less expectations about seeing turtles but that okay as the beach is one of its kind with soft dark brown sand, ecalyptus trees and cleanliness. Swimming is prohibited and there is a bay-watcher always to keep check on people. So we did spend a couple of hours here and then decided to have our breakfast.Here is my Youtube video of Velas Beach:
Although Velas is a tourist attraction there are no hotels or fancy accommodations here. For food and stay people provide their houses at a cost. As we didn't have any food since the banana chips in the bus ride we were hungry as EF! So decided to have 'Sabudana Khichdi' in one of the houses. Please keep a check on the rates of food and discuss with other tourist who had food there where you are gonna eat. So me and my friend decided to have our Lunch in Harihareshwar but before that we had to see the Bankot fort (also known as Himmatgad). Bankot is 2-3 kms away from Velas and tum-tum rickshaw or ST bus will provide service till Bankot village. Vehicles reach near the fort but only private vehicles or rickshaws can take you there. There is also a trek route available or else walk towards the fort (we preferred to walk while our return from the fort and the nature is amazing to be with). The fort is in ruins but well kept. Also the scenic view from the fort is fabulous.Here's my video of Bankot fort :
So after spending a good couple of hours at the fort enjoying cool breeze which was relaxing we decided to move on to our next destination Harihareshwar (actually it was so soothing that we didn't want to get off our b**** but plans man plans). So walking slowly down the lush green paths of Bankot we made our way till Bankot jetty or ferry. Ferry boats are available till evening 6.00. We bought our tickets and had a joyful ferry ride till Bagmandla. The ferry also carries vehicles for a different cost. From Bagmandla you can hire a tum-tum Rickshaw to reach various places like Harihareshwar or Shrivardhan at a very reasonable cost. Nearby beaches are Harihareshwar, Shrivardhan, Aarvi, Diveagar. 
By the time we reached Harihareshwar it was 1.30 pm and we had lots of time to explore the tourist places in Harihareshwar. So we decided to go have our lunch and seriously Harihareshwar has a lot of facilities in terms of stay and food so yes Harihareshwar thumbs up! After having our lunch we went to the famous Harihareshwar temple. the ancient temple is located near the Harihareshwar beach. It's a tradition that you first pay your visit to Lord Kalbhairav then to Lord Harihareshwar (Lord Shiva). Harihareshwar is also known as God's land. So Behind the temple there is a staircase leading upwards towards the mountain it is called 'Pradakshina Marg' and what you see it and astounding art of nature. Two mountains or presizely two huge rocks and a staircase leading down between them towards the sea. And there are natural carvings created in the rock along with some reefs and natural caves. The place is a perfect natural museum of what water can do to a rock after being gushed on for years. Please be careful on this beautiful place though. The area is only accessible during low tide and the place is quiet slippery at some place and tidal changes are irregular.And the video is here :
