Tag: memorable

Road to Murud Janjira Fort

By Abhik Dutta


Maharashtra, specially the coastal belt, is a fort lover’s paradise. There are hundreds of forts that have the history of Maharashtra and India etched on their ramparts. Some like Daulatabad in Aurangabad, Pratapgarh in Mahabaleshwar, Sinhagad in Pune and Govilgad fort in Chikaldara in Amravati district are hill forts, magnificent structures on hill tops overlooking the mighty plains below.

Some like Sindhudurg fort, Ratnagairi fort, and Korlai fort near Revdanda are beauties that rise above the sheer cliffs overlooking the Arabian Sea, their walls ravaged by the sea and the coastal winds over the centuries. But few forts around the world can compare with the majestic splendor of the island fortress of Janjira, a sleeping giant in the middle of the Arabian Sea and the only fort in Maharashtra which neither Chhatrapati Shivaji nor his son Sambhaji could conquer..

The Road to Janjira

Getting to Janjira is half the fun. About 165kms south of Mumbai is the sleepy coastal hamlet of Rajpuri creek. It`s a 4½ hr drive from Mumbai. From Panvel we took the Goa road (NH17). 33kms ahead at Vadkhal, we took the road to Alibaug and proceeded further towards Cheul, a wonderful coastal village. We stopped here for a while and walked through coconut and “supari” groves to the Revdanda beach. There was not a soul in sight. We passed through an Old Portuguese church in ruins and came across the ramparts of an old fort, also in ruins. Across the Revdanda creek stood the Korlai fort high atop a hill, guarding the bay like a proud sentinel.

Returning to our car, we drove across a bridge and turned right and headed towards Murud, 34kms from Cheul. A mile ahead, a road leads to the coastal village at the base of the Korlai fort. On an earlier visit to the area a month back, we had climbed up the stairs from behind the light house right upto to the fort. We had seen some of the most gorgeous views of the bay and witnessed a beautiful sunset from the top. Bypassing the village this time we drove towards Murud. The entire stretch of the coastal road was a fascinating drive with the sea playing hide and seek and kissing the road on many an occasion. We crossed a couple of small ghat sections, the sea never far from sight.

The first view of the Janjira fort is unforgettable. As the road meanders around a bend on top of a hillock, the fort leaps into sight in the middle of the sea. It’s a bird’s eye view and feels as if one is watching from the skies above. 2 kms ahead at Rajpuri, we hired a 20 footer country boat with a sail at a bargain price of Rs.150.00 for a round trip to the fort. One may also share a boat with a bigger group and pay only Rs.8 for a round trip. The waters were very choppy and the boatmen predicted early rain this year. The 25-minute boat ride across choppy waters with the spray hitting us on the face and the boat tossing dangerously was the highlight of the trip. Instead of going diagonally to the fort, the boat went straight ahead, turned back diagonally then went straight into the fort. This was done so that the swells hitting the boat from the sides did not overturn it. However, bigger boats go straight to the fort but I guess the ride is not half as adventurous.

We hired a guide for Rs.60.00 for showing us the fort. The fort was built sometime in 1515 by the Siddis of Janjira, descendants of sailors from Abyssinia. Legend has it that during the first attempts to build the fort, the ramparts collapsed, so taking the advice of a local priest, the son of the Siddi chieftain was buried alive to appease the Gods. Thereafter, it took 22 years to build the fort. There are 275 cannons in the fort out of which the largest with a range of 3 kms, is the third largest cannon in Maharashtra, the largest being at the Daulatabad fort. Amazingly, there is a freshwater tank in the middle of the fort which gets water from an underwater spring and according to the guide that’s how the fort got its name.

In 1659, Shivaji attacked the fort but could not scale the 15 metre high walls. Later, his son Sambhaji tried to dig a tunnel and even fill the channel out to the fort. However, a natural moat, 90 feet deep, surrounding the fort, thwarted his attempts. Even today, on the mainland one can see the entrance to the remains of a tunnel. In despair, Sambhaji tried to build a similar fort in the middle of the sea about 3 kms off the Janjira fort but a call of duty in another part of Maharashtra did not allow him to successfully build the fort. This fort is now called Kasa Kila.

17 kms from Murud, on the road to Alibaug, are 2 resorts. The first is the Kashid Beach Resort with split level A/C rooms with gorgeous views of the sea on one side and the hills on the other. The second is the more up-market Prakruti Beach Resort with AC rooms set in villas. Both are on the periphery of the proposed 54 sq. km Phansad wild life sanctuary. For bookings, contact The Wanderers, Mumbai.

The nearest rail station is at Roha on the Konkan railway route, 50 kms from Kashid. One may also take the Catamaran from Gateway of India, which reaches you to Mandwa jetty. From there the complimentary bus service of the Suman Motel Catamaran takes you to Alibag. From Alibag either take the S.T bus to Kashid – the S.T. Bus will be for Nandgaon a place after Kashid or for Murud, which is 20 kms from Kashid. From Alibaug one can also take an autorickshaw [the approx. charge will be Rs.150 per auto] for the 32 km drive to Kashid Beach Resort.

Other places to visit nearby are the Nawab`s palace. It is owned by the erstwhile Nawab Shah Siddi Mahmood Khan who now lives in Bhopal. Entry here is restricted but if you speak pleasantly enough to the old chowkidar who runs the place, he may let you in for a short while and allow you to see the durbar hall full of priceless marble and beautifully carved wooden furniture. Stuffed animals adorn the walls. The fort that one can see from here in the middle of the sea is Kasa Kila. On a clear day a daring boatman will take you there for Rs.500. The Dattatraya temple dedicated to Shiva, Vishnu and Brahma on a hill top in Murud is also worth visiting. For the hiker, the hills surrounding Kashid Beach Resort and Prakruti Resort is a veritable paradise.

5 Tips for Nubra Valley in Ladakh

By Abhik Dutta

 

There are many valleys in the Himalayan range that just take your breath away because of their sheer beauty and magnificence. Many of these valleys are, however, on trek routes beyond the reach of many who are unable to walk to these heights. And those that are approachable by road are sometimes, more often than not, one of those tourist attractions that inspite of their beauty are pockmarked with tourists walking all over the place during the “season months. At times don’t we really wish we had a vale all to ourselves?

This wish of mine was granted during my first visit to Nubra Valley in Ladakh a few years back. Crossing the great Khardung La (18380ft), the JKSRTC bus meandered on the endless mountain track till suddenly the Shyok river valley opened up beneath us. Nothing had prepared me for the first sight, which I guess, has remained glued to me like the many monasteries that have for decades clung on to those barren and majestic slopes of the Nubra. There below us to the right the glistening river snaked its way through the wide gorge. Slowly as the entire panorama of the valley opened up ahead of us, the sheer setting, beauty and magnitude of the Nubra left me awestruck.

After the lunch halt at Khalsar (10080ft) at the mouth of the valley, we entered a flat stretch of road with the enormous valley unraveling itself like a plot from a Hitchcock novel. We followed the turbulent and muddy Shyok and as it grew wider, so did the valley. We soon came to a bifurcation, the right fork leading to the villages of Sumur, Tegar and Panamic and onwards to the Siachen glacier; the left fork going to the villages of Diskit and Hundar. We took the left fork.

Over the next few days I stayed with local families and explored the valley on my own, my trusted backpack and camera slung across my back, my worries and moods scattered all over beyond the Saser glaciers..beyond Turtuk..beyond the mighty Siachen hidden behind the mountains to the north.

At Diskit, the little children were a revelation. Five tiny ones, they emerged from the forest. Prancing around me they led me to their school, introduced me to their teachers and little friends with permanently flowing noses that would put the Shyok to shame. Later they ran with me to their waterhole, where the clear stream water collected for a while before slipping over the log into the adjoining fields. Here, they stripped naked and jumped into the pool- their innocent laughter reverberating across the valley and right into my soul. Bidding them a fond farewell, I moved on deeper towards the end of the pasture, past farms hidden from sight by tall thorny shrubs. Suddenly the path opened up and an amazing sight unfolded! A rolling meadow with a stream running through it! Horses and cows grazed peacefully. This was no man’s land really. Here nature danced to the tune of chirping birds, trees swayed in the breeze echoing a haunting whisper across the meadow. Rocks whispered magic words that made the stream water gurgle with laughter. I sat and watched the sun setting gradually over the distant peaks, casting long shadows in the valley and removing some from my mind.

The days came and went and I clung on to each moment, each passing hour hoping against hope that the sun would never set and my long carefree walks would never end. I just didn’t want to arrive anywhere. Each day began early and ended well past the time when the villagers would turn off the lights and go off to sleep. I’d walk out of the room with a blanket wrapped tightly around me and gaze at the stars that shone so brightly, so close and so gently that I wondered why I searched for my God in a temple when he stared at me all the while from aboveAnd so it went. One hour overlapping the next, one mile extending into another. I hiked to the gompa at Hundar perched high above the bridge with a mesmerizing view of the valley beneath. I saw the monastery at Diskit and the impressive Shamstelling gompa at Sumur, rode across the dunes on the double humped bactrian camel that I hired from Abdul Razzak for a paltry Rs.150, got invited (and later drunk) at the delightfully amateurish Tegar village festival, and devoured the not so tasty “skiu” and the unpalatable “khambhir” served by my new found friends. T. Dorje taught me how easy it is to make friends and how a wonderful friendship can last all of one day. Perched precariously on his Bajaj Chetak, I went all over Panamic village and to his small dwelling where we shared his lunch and his many stories of Ladakh. He walked me to the hot springs, to his workshop where he taught the locals carpentry and introduced me to the locals as “mera Bambe ka dost.”

I left Sumur early one morning at 6am. I kept my money on a makeshift table in my room and slipped out of the house quietly so as not to wake up my wonderful hosts. I walked over to the village bus stand across the road. For an hour I sat there on a culvert watching a remote mountain village wake up to the sounds of a new day. I drifted in and out of moments that made up my days in the valley. The distant drone of an automobile jerked me from my reverie and slowly I stood up, dusted my pants and as the jeep rumbled towards me I stuck my thumb out in the direction of Leh.

Snippets for the traveller:

1.  Nubra Valley is best visited in July and August. Situated at an altitude of 10,000ft (the road never going above 10500 ft), it is warm and sunny during the day and pleasantly cold at night. The Nubra winter is harsh and almost unbearable for people not used to the plummeting mercury. Although the road through Khardungla is open throughout the year (as Nubra is also the gateway to Siachen glacier and the border post of Turtuk) it is not advisable to venture in there during the other months without proper arrangements.

2. One should spend a min of 3-4 days at the valley staying 2 nits at Diskit or Hundar and 2 nits at Sumur, Tegar or Tirath. Spend the first 2-3 nights at Leh, get acclimatized and only then venture the 7hr drive to Nubra.

3. One can stay in simple and basic lodges run by the local families. For those who to travel in comfort and style, a jeep safari is recommended with stay in deluxe campsites available at Tegar and Tirath which are open in July and August.

4. Inner line permits are required to visit the valley considering its proximity to the border. Permits can be obtained in Leh from the DM office.

5. Must see in Nubra is the “jheel” between Panamic and Tegar. Ask a local for directions. While going to Panamic, you will have to get off the road to the left, drive to a point after which the sand will not allow the vehicle to go any further. Thereafter, start walking in the direction of the grayish black mountain crossing a 1ft deep brook on the way. The “jheel” or the pond has a religious significance. Sitting on the banks one can see many reflections on the water. Some have seen a monastery, some a deity, some their future and most nothing. I believe the art of seeing something in there is to go with tremendous faith.

Check out our package on the Snow Leopard Trail in Ladakh