The Kokan coastline in maharashtra is blessed with numerous scenic getaways and beaches. If you seek serenity under budget and within a few hours drive from the IT hub of Pune, I would like to take you to Guhagar and Chiplun. Chiplun and Guhagar are in Ratnagiri district of Maharashtra. Chiplun is a taluka place on the Mumbai Goa highway, whereas Guhagar is a coastal town. The place of accommodation we selected is "Dongarmatha eco care resort".
The resort is a homestay built on top of a hillock adjacent to the mumbai goa highway. Look for a sign indicating diversion for Parshuram temple to the left on the highway while travelling from Mumbai. The owners being environment lovers themselves have ensured the resort has least carbon footprint. They were probably the early adopters of the concept of "Experiential living" theme of resorts. The homestay has 5 cottages with bamboo walls and roofs. While constructing the Eco-resort, they have tried to conserve natural resources by adopting renewable construction material such as Bamboo and minimum use of steel and cement. Bamboo, a species of grass can be regrown every 5 years. They have ensured that to plant bamboo trees so that the resource we have used gets renewed. The resort itself covers approximately 5 acres of land and the main facility spreads over 3500 sq.ft. All the cutlery and serving utensils are primarily bamboo and earthenware. There is a courtyard (aangan) which is the common open air space for everyone to come together and have dinner. They also conduct star gazing activity here. Apart from the common courtyard they also have a common hall with recreational activities like a hexagon carom, some puzzles and books and a wooden swing. This opens up straight into the verandah where you can see the vashishti valley before it's forms the delta with the Arabian sea.
For resort and package details: https://dongarmatha.com
The package includes : 1 night stay including 1 lunch, 1 dinner, morning and evening snacks and tea. You can also contact the owners beforehand in case you want some special menu. They have a homely kitchen, where if you wish to lend a hand you are most welcome.
This will cost you around Rs. 5000/- for 2 nights per person. This is a strictly non alcoholic and non smoking property. Prices may vary based on tourist seasons.
Most importantly the hospitality is genuine and warm. The owner whenever he is around ensure to accompany guests at dinner or lunch time and essentially keep the guests occupied with talks and informational guidance. The inhouse library has books for bird lovers as well as general reading. Every evening they take the guests to the sunset point, walking through farms on top and reaching a cliff point. They are also lucky to have found man made caves on their land which supposedly were used by sages to meditate. The owners have a pet dog which accompanies the guide and the tourist on each excursion, and if you happen to make friends with him, you too can walk him. Every morning they take guests to a jungle walk which also follows the route of an ancient aqueduct system which used to bring water to the Parshuram temple. Along the way there are plenty of cascades and the trail ends when the stream transforms into a plunge waterfall 100ft deep.
The Parshuram temple is worth a visit to get a glimpse of the history of the Kokan culture and traditions. Parshuram is the presiding deity of many Kokan folks. The temple campus is red local brick construction with tanks for water storage. You can see turtles swimming inside these tanks.
40 kms from Chiplun lies Guhagar a coastal town. The name translates to 'cave-port' as in "guha (cave) and agaar (port)". There are few Important temple campuses in Guhagar. The Vyadeshwar temple and the Amba devi temple are the prominent one's. If one isn't inclined towards spirituality, then just visit the temples for their ambience and meditation. The campus are at paar to the likes of Angkor in Cambodia. Guhagar beach is calm and vast in expanse. I have visited the place many times and one particular spot is favorite among us friends. There is a dead coconut tree still rooted but lying inclined on the far side of the beach. I remember playing swing on the tree and the long beach walk. The beach offers both long stretches of secluded beaches as well as few sport activities which can be moderately crowded. One can enjoy long walks with their near and dear ones whilst viewing the sunset and then enjoy bhelpuri or maggi in the chowpaty near the entrance of the beach. Annapurna hotel is a famous for its Solkadhi and non vegetarian food. Vegetarian choices include suruchi, savarkar restaurant, Bhaves lodge. A very common delicacy throughout Kokan is ukadiche modak, or what I consider them as "sweet, coconut mixture stuffed momos". These are enjoyed fresh and hot, so you must inform the hotel owners regarding your lunch or dinner plans in advance. All these hotels are near the vyadeshwar temple complex.
Vegetarian food:
1. Hotel jogeshwari ( mr. Bhave owner)
2. Savarkar bhojanalay
3. Vaintaiya restaurant
Non vegetarian:
1. Annapurna
2. Hotel kinara
The town market sells cottage industry products like canned mango juice, dried kokam, areca nuts, papad, pickles, kokanee sarbat. All of these are homemade and fresh.
Hedvi and Velneshwar are other two important towns to visit. The ganpati at heidvi has a history associated with the Peshwa dynasty of pune. The temple at velneshwar is dedicated to vishnu and is very close to the sea. The temple campus and the beach form a pleasant scene to view from the approach road.
Chiplun has our own gator alley. The delta formed by the river vashishti with the Arabian sea has created a habitat for salt water crocodiles. Our homestay through its local contacts arranged a boat safari at reasonable rate of 700 per hour to witness these shy creatures and also experience other fauna in the delta. The safari starts from the footsteps of fort Gowalkot also called govindgad. Our guide takes us on a private motor boat inwards from the sea. His skilled eyes spot hidden crocodiles from dense mangrove bushes. He gouges out even the most shying ones from their nests on the river embankment. He deliberately gives a kick to the motor, and as the motor growls, the laid back crocodile takes a spasmodic leap into the water and swims away. As we return from the excursion, one can see the plush looking mansions of the muslim quarters with stained glass decorations and greenish and bluish painted exterior walls. On the way back to our homestay, we see another huge beastly croc relaxing in a trench near the road. Since it's not visible clearly, we try out taking snaps through the eyepiece of our binocular.
After an eventful afternoon, it's time to relax with some refreshing lime juice and fruit snacks with the setting sun in front. The location of the homestay is like a balcony in the clouds, aptly named "Dongarmatha" or head of the mountain, and through its eyes we see the evening colours of the sky.
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