Day2: Sunday, 26th April, 2015
Continued from Part 2
1730 hrs:
Our train is announced. It is on time. We've successfully spent an hour doing nothing. Just freshened up a little. There's not much available at the Sawantwadi station, so we pack a few snacks and water for the return trip. Neither of us are very hungry anyway.
1733 hrs:
The train arrives and leaves almost immediately after we board.
1915 hrs:
Vada pav at Vaibhavwadi is our final snack for the day. We pack off to sleep. Luckily we have upper berth tickets so we can do so without disturbing anyone else.
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Day3: Monday, 27th April, 2015
0300 hrs:
Tejal frantically wakes me up. The train is already at Panvel. Bang on time and least expected. We scramble out of the train with our minimal luggage. The train leaves after a few minutes. And with that our trip ends. A good trip, and totally worth doing again.
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Some Important Contacts:
1: Hotel Sagar Darshan, Bhogawe
Homestay at Bhogawe, ideally set overlooking the Devbag Sangam. And isolated too.
Room rates start at Rs 600. Group accommodation available.
Contact: 7588448424
2: Simran Tours & Travels, Sawantwadi
Two wheelers on hire. Rates start at Rs 200 per day.
C/O at Mujib Video Game Parlour
Contact: 02363-274587, 9404448030, 9423051556
3: Pappu Tours & Travels, Sawantwadi
Two wheelers on hire. Rates start at Rs 200 per day.
C/O at Kadar Watch Dealers
Contact: 02363-275392, 9823147407
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Some Insights:
1: Train travel through Konkan region can be very unpredictable. If you are planning to backpack through the region, always have a contingency plan at the back of your mind if you don't want your trip to be thrown off track entirely
2: Road travel is no less unpredictable though. Narrow winding roads are aplenty here. Add to that the inclines and declines and you have a very tricky combination. The road quality is good though.
3: Best time to be in Vengurla is sometime after the monsoon to about new year. The beaches are at their best and you can expect a decently cold night. Noons will be hot though.
4: There are plenty of mango orchards by the roadside. But they are guarded very well. Beware in case you plan to 'borrow' some.
5: Apart from mangoes all local fruit is easily available at local markets. The Vengurla cashew is famous too.
6: Quite a few accommodation options are available. The MTDC Bed & Breakfast list for Sindhudurg is a good directory of places and rates.
7: The people of this region are generally good-natured. Though the ill-effects of the easy tourism money is beginning to show. Be aware of the rates and beware of cons.
Yewa ... Konkan aaploch asa ...
The Vengurla Backpack Trip had us travelling through places like Sawantwadi, Vengurla, Kondura, Mhapan, Bhogawe and Nivati. These places are as yet unexplored and hence offer a very rare kind of solace. In all the places that we touched, we were the only non locals and that too at the peak of the vacation season.
It has been a great trip. There's a lot of ground to be covered as yet: Amboli, Mochemad, Airavali, Terekhol beckons ... Fingers crossed ...
© Kapil Pilankar
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