Long Weekend
Long week end means chill out! Something which Puneris are deprived of is Oceans’ Delight! So, normally they opt to drive to the nearest sea shores! But me, the guy who is born and brought up in the coastal region, never found it as a good option. But alas, this peer pressure - finally I have conceded to their demand. We have decided to explore the following
Shrivardhan, Harihareshwar, Dive Agar and Janjira Fort and night halt will be at Dive Agar.
In a nutshell, all these beaches are over rated and I have not found any fancy to keep you there for longer hours. But please dont believe me as I am biased and my benchmarks are Palolim Beach, South Goa and Kovalam Beach, Thiruvananthapuram. Anyone hailing from Mumbai - Pune will swear that Dive Agar is one of most exotic virgin beaches in Konkan Strip (I remember Ajay and Harry wondering whether the beach still remain as virgin after our exploration). So, here is a brief account of the ride, some ROFLs, Beaches -----
Route
From Pune City you have to ride towardsChandni Chowk, Mulshi (you will never forget to click photographs of Mulshi Lake which is a part of Tata Power), Tamhini Ghat and reach Mangaon. I strongly recommend to have your food from Hotel Sai Palace near to Mangaon ST Stand. Enjoy the Malwani Delicacies and take a right turn and reach Mhasala. From here, you have the choice to reach Dive Agar first (around 22 KMs). But we decided to ride to Shriwardhan via Aarathi Road Junction.
Shriwardhan
You have to cross a haunted Banyan Tree to reach the beach. There we saw a fine, smooth stretch full of gaily colored boats lined up in readiness for the next fishing expedition. The tides were not wild and hence my friends decided to have sea bath. As the beach sand was found to be pretty hard, I took the risk to take my car to near the sea and started riding through the beach touching the tides! That was such a lovely experience and I explored haunted and deserted portion of the beach having a creek and white sand! I stopped the car and saw lots of sea gulls. Suddenly a guy reached there in bike and told me not to spend much time there as high tide might sweep away the car into the sea. I drove back. On the way I found a dead Jelly Fish on the shore.
Note -
a) Kondivli beach is only 6 KM away from here is considered to be more beautiful. I have not visited this beach.
b) History buffs shall not miss the "Bajirao I’s Smarak" . He is the successor of Balaji Vishwanath, the founder of the Peshwa Empire
Harihareshwar
Around 24 KM away from Shriwardhan, is the famous Harihareshwar Beach. It is considered as "Dakshin Kashi’ as the Kalbhairav Mandir is situated in this village. The temple is having the idols of Brahma, Vishnu, Maheshwara and Paravti Devi in Pindi Form.
At the rear of the temple are stepped leading to the top of the hill confronted by a huge boulder splint into half. Legend has it that pandavas while in exile visited Harihareshwar and Bhima wielded his fist and smashed the rock into two to explore the path ahead.
After visiting the temple you can go to the Southern Stretch of the beach near the temple. To be frank, there is nothing much to explore here.
North beach is near the temple and south is near MTDC Resort. This is clean and the seclusion can give rise to romantic inclinations if you are interested. There is facility for boating in this stretch.The beach is quite inviting but there are strong and treacherous undercurrents. The scenic beauty of the beach can be enjoyed from the huts of MTDC provided you place order to have some eateries.
The beach is quite inviting but there are strong and treacherous undercurrents and hence I wont recommend anyone to venture for a sea bath.
One of my friend who wanted to answer to natures call enquired the staff about the washroom and he got a shocking reply "Idhar koyi Wash Room Nahi hai saab"
He was in agony but didnot give up his humour sense and remarked "To tum log nahi karte ho kya?"
Finally we left to Dive Agar, the final destination for the day. On the way, all of us experienced foul smell inside the car and it is quite natural to suspect our friend who could not answer to the nature’s call. This triggered serioius discussions and finally another friend suggested "As AC is on and all of us are travelling together, for the sake of all friends, we should have an EMISSION NORM. I mean, some advance intimation need to be given to all"
The leg pulling session continued for long (thank god, I was not a vicitim being the driver! They need my service)
Dive Agar
Around 28 KM drive again. The languid beauty mesmerizes you as you pass the tiny hamlets surrounded by supari bags (Beatlenut Plantations) and hay stacks. Ocassionally you slow down because a local waving you with karvand or a cowherd is languidly tending buffaloes. It is quaint, forever sleepy village. Civilization hovers at its borders but the village remains idyllic. The road veers off from small ghats shaking off mobile connectivity, losing FM airwaves and sometimes mixing the frequencies of two stations, traveller stumbles into the world of innocence.
The beach is quite long (around 4 to 5 KM Stretch) and hence the waves are also quite docile. Without much worries, you can venture for bathe in the sea. Camel ride, Horse ride Tender Coconut vendors etc. are there but more or less it is not a crowded beach.
We stayed at Maitreya Resort that charged Rs.1600/- for six of us. It is better to opt for Wadis (house hold stay arrangements) where in you will get chance to have delicacies like Ukadiche Modak, other sea food etc.
Dighi and Janjira
Around 14 KM ride from Dive Agar via Borli will lead you to Dighi Beach. It is the same Dighi which is infamous for RDX Landing which resulted in serial blasts of Mumbai in 1993. Kindly donot associate the decent and pious Muslim Population of Dighi with terrorism. They are real gems! From here, you can take a boat ride to Janjira Fort. It is 20 - 25 minutes ride and will cost you Rs.23/- person. On the way, the waves were quite wild and I have really prayed for a safe sail. The big boat will drop you a few metres away from the fort and from there you will be carried in a small boat.
Again, you will be greeted by a guide who is connected with the boat which sails you. You might have to pay him around Rs.15/- to Rs.25/- per person (as per your bargaining capacity). He will
take you through the history of the Ajinkya Fort (The fort which is never conqured). My friend almost convinced that this fort is built by Shivaji but we got a totally different story fromt he guide.
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