Nov 05, 2004 06:25 PM
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(Updated Nov 05, 2004 06:25 PM)
Kashid - A scenic beach in Konkan, Western Maharashtra
The entire konkan stretch of western coastal Maharashtra is full of natural beauty. Its a thick green stretch, with number of untouched clean beaches and superb roads to reach out. Though the train connectivity is not that good but at least Konkan
Railways' arrival ensured that this area is no more inaccessible.
Kashid is one of the best beach in may ratings , in this region. The reasons why I am calling it best is White sand, blue seas, green mountains, paddy fields, and rivulets. Kashid has a 3 km stretch of beach with the cleanest, whitest sand and Casuarina groves that make just the perfect setting for a beach holiday. Also close to Kashid are Famous Murud and Janjeera.
Murud is an old fisherman town with one very nice beach...with calm water and Janjeera is a famous fort in the middle of the sea near Murud. The setting for the fort is perfect for any film shooting.
How to get there?
140 Km from Mumbai
135 KM from Thane
110 KM from New Bombay (Vashi)
Buses plying regularly between Mumbai central - Murud halts at Kashid
Buses plying regularly between Thane - Murud halts at Kashid
Frequent service available for Alibaug from Mumbai, Thane. From there buses are
available for Murud which halts at Kashid village
Driving down to Kashid itself is a rejuvenating experience. Its around 140 Km from Mumbai / Thane. The road is quite good in condition except for few patches. The journey itself is very rewarding.
I love to do this route on my Suzuki Samurai (so far I have done it 4 times). It takes 4 hours from Mumbai to reach Kashid with a decent speed of 50 KMPH. Road up to Panvel (50 km from Mumbai / Thane) is well laid 6 lane highway with plenty of traffic. After Panvel, take Mumbai - Goa road. The road from Panvel itself is quite rewarding (caution: Be aware of blind turns and speeding vehicles and especially ST buses). Well laid carpet road with a lot of thick forest patches around it for 10-12 KM. It passes through famous Karnala Wild life century.
Then from a place called Vadkhal, the road deviates from the Mumbai - Goa highway and makes its way to Alibaug (same Alibaug mentioned in ''Alibaug se aayela hai kya'' dialogues of movies). the traffic becomes non-existent from this place. Sparse traffic, but only of light vehicles and ST buses moving at rocket pace. Be careful of these rockets , as they approach without warning and normally none of them have horn installed in them (State transport departments have to seriously think about installing horns in their ROCKETS).
Take right turn after crossing Alibaug for Revdanda and the Konkan coast unfurls its magic. Beaches (yes a number of beach fronts) on the right hand side about 200-300 meters from the road and thick coconet tree jungles on the other. Villages are quite picturesque with concrete roads and beautiful landscapes. Revdanda, Naugaon. After crossing the Vikram Ispat, take right turn for Kashid. Its another 10 km drive with thick forest covered hills on one side and vibrant Sea on the other. The winding road to Kashid provides glimpses of the sea, mountains and the shores.
Where to stay?
There are many good options for staying at Kashid. Kashid beach resort, Prakruti resort are the places with four star facilities. But there are many other good options for low budget travelers. Many cottages an holiday homes with budget of 200-500 per day. A good ample space , a double bed and clean toilet. Food on demand. You order the dish and its ready. Ingredients are the freshest one which you can get. I would suggest to try out for these options for budget travelers. Matoshri homes / sea facing homes / sea view resorts etc are good ones. But try hard to bargain on rates. Food is a bit
costly but you can have the fresh sea food.
What to do?
There is nothing much to do around. This place is meant for resting on weekends , away from crowd. Its an excellent place. Go to beach in the morning, in the noon time and in the evening. Have a walk on sand under the moonlight. This is what you can do. The beach is excellent, I bet you can never get a beach of this kind with almost no crowd. The water is quite vibrant here as compared to other beaches. Its almost like Bogmalo beach GOA. But comparatively its quite big.
If you are bored from this beach, hit the road and move towards Murud, Which has got another good beach. The difference you will find in the both beaches are, Murud has got crystal clear greenish water whereas Kashid has crystal clear blue one. Murud beach is quite calm and has got around 4 km stretch. Murud is a town and there are plenty of holiday homes for all budgets. 6 KM ahead of Murud is Rajapuri village from where one can take ferry to Janjeera fort.
Just when you reach on the hilltop on the way to Rajapuri, you would be definitely astonished to have a look at the magnificent fort of Janjeera standing amidst deep seas. Boats are available to take you to the fort. normal charges are 250 Rs per boat (with return) which can carry 10-15 people. Bargain for guide as they ask for more. Rs 100 per troupe of 15 people is fine as the fort is not big and there is nothing much inside to see.
Place : Kashid, Murud & Janjeera
Accessibility :
4-5 hours by bus from Mumbai
4-5 hours by bus from Pune
4 hours by bus from Thane
Best season to visit :Oct to March
Clothing :Light cotton throughout the year. Do not forget to keep sun screen
Places to stay : Kashid beach resort, Prakruti with four star facilities and few good budget hotels with 250-500 Rs per day.
Food : Indian, Chinese. Konkani food is specialty. Fresh sea food.
Shopping :Not Applicable :)
Recommended stay :2-3 days to enjoy the quietness and freshness it provides
