Unlimited Karnataka - A journey through Coastal Villages

After exploring Goa, I and Ganesh decided that we should explore some parts of Coastal Karnataka. The nearest attraction was Murudeshwar followed by Gokarna. We started research on the road trip i.e. the route, hotels to stay, places to eat, etc. During our research for the road trip, we found some attractive pictures of Marvanthe Beach on Instagram and immediately decided to extend our trip to Marvanthe and later on to Udupi. We were to cover a total distance of 300 km from Vasco to Udupi and it was not possible without planning the halts at regular intervals. We decided to leave Goa on a Friday night and our halts would be at Patane, Cancona, Goa for Friday night and Marvanthe, Byndoor, Karnataka for Saturday.

Our trip to Patane was 2 two-hour drive from Vasco considering it was a late evening drive and to top it all we missed an exit to Patane (thanks to Google Maps) and had to drive another 10 km and take a U-turn near Galgibaga beach to reach our homestay at 8.30 pm.

We had our dinner at Sunita's kitchen near Patane Beach. We ordered the Goan fish thali of Bangda (Mackerel) (Rs.200/-) and Kolambi (prawns) (Rs. 250/-). The Goan fish Thali was not only delicious but also easy on our wallets. Our hosts at the Hotel were an old Christian couple. As Ira (1 ½ years old) was giving trouble during dinner, our lady host immediately sprung into action and asked us if she could babysit Ira for us till we had dinner which we happily agreed.

We started the Saturday a bit early since we had to cover distance and places. But we could not leave without a customary visit to Patane Beach The Beach was clean and there were very few tourists which allowed us to have a leisurely walk. Ira also enjoyed the early morning sea breeze and was cheerful & happy.

We started on our journey towards Murudeshwar. The road has lot of diversions as the road is under construction. We had our first halt at Ankola International's Purohit Veg restaurant for breakfast. We broke our fast with hot steaming Idli and medu vada. The idli was fresh and soft which just melted in our mouths. The taste of idli and medu vada is enhanced with sambar and Chutney. The idli temped us to try some other dishes and Ganesh as usual had his Onion uttapapa and I ordered masala dosa. As I am a BIG fan of Mangalorian Bun, I ordered the dish as well for myself and Ira.

After a heavy breakfast, we resumed our journey towards Murudeshwar. However, on the on route to Murudeshwar we saw a board of an archaeological site named Mirjan Fort just after Gokarna and we decided to go off the pre-decided track to explore the fort.

Mirjan Fort -

The fort is about ½ km from the highway (NH 66) and easily accessible by road. It is a land fort built in the 16th century by Rani Chennabhairadevi. The fort changed hands from Rani Chennabhairadevi to Bijapur Sultans and then it was under the reign of Marathas before the British finally took over. The fort is located on the banks of river Aganashini which then joins the Arabian Sea forming into a creek known as the Tadri creek. Thus, it can be seen that the fort was an important military point as it is very near to Mirjan port from where Pepper used to be exported in large quantities in those days.

The Fort is built using the Laterite stones (which are predominantly found in the area). The fortifications of the fort are still intact and one can see huge bastions. The fort has 4 entrances, One main and 3 small entrances. We entered through the main entrance or Mahadwar. The fort is built over an area of about 10 acres. Presently there are very less structures standing inside the fort but one can see many wells that are interlinked by channels and which open in the moat outside the fort.

As we passed through the steps to enter the Main fort we found that the fort is double-walled and has high turrets on the bastions.

We would have loved to spend some more time exploring the fort however due to the afternoon sun & heat we decided to wind up our impromptu exploration. The heat was getting unbearable for little Ira and without further delay we drove to Murdeshwar.

Murdeshwar -

Murdeshwar is a temple of Lord Shiva located right on the shore. Murdeshwar boasts of a 123-foot statue of Lord Shiva sitting in Padmasana which is the main tourist attraction. The temple also has a 20 storied gopuram. The temple is located on Kandukagiri (Kanduka Hill). The hill is covered from 3 sides by sea. The history of the temple dates back to the time of Ramayana and it is said that the Ravana's attempt to bring Lord Shiva's Atma-linga to Lanka was foiled by Lord Ganesh and in frustration, Ravana tried to remove the Atma-linga which was then scattered to places. The cloth covering the Atma-linga fell on the Kanduka Hill which is now known as Murdeshwar.

The temple is about a 5-minute drive from the highway. As you start approaching the temple the Gopuram and the Statue of Lord Shiva are visible from the distance. After parking our car near the temple premises, we moved for darshan of Shri Mirdesa linga which is also called Murdeshwar. As we approached the Raja Gopuram, 2 live-sized elephant statues guarded the temple. There is a queue for darshan which starts from the gopuram itself. On route to the temple, you can buy prasad (Naram Boondi cha Ladoo – Rs. 20 each packet).

After paying our respects to Lord Shiva, we again came to the Gopuram where a lift was waiting for us to take us to the top floor of the Gopuram (lift ticket costs Rs. 20/- per person). The Lift closes at around 1 p.m. for lunch and resumes at 3.00 p.m. On the highest level of the Gopuram, the temple premises authorities have kept 4 windows for the tourists to enjoy the aerial view of the Temple premises. The 360-degree view on reaching the top floor of the gopuram is simply stunning. The main highlight is of course the 123 feet Shiva idol of Shri Akshayguna. After having the darshan & the aerial views of temple premises we decided to have a closer view of the idol of Shri Akshayguna.

After completing the important destinations in Murdeshwar and some shopping too😉, we were famished and immediately had veg thali at Kamat Restaurant which is just outside the temple.

Marvanthe Beach -

The Marvanthe Beach is an hour and a half drive from Murudeshwar and the newly built road (NH -66) made our journey very easy. We reached Saikushi Resort at Marvanthe at around 4.00-4.15 p.m. The best thing about this resort is it is bang opposite the beach. All we have to do is to cross over the highway to reach the beach. Another good thing about the resort is that the big windows of our room opened towards the beach and we could have views of the beach whenever we wanted.

The beach at Marvanthe is very clean and the local authorities to attract tourists have made a T-shaped design with tetrapods on the beach. These T-shaped tetrapods design created small pools on the beach where a group of tourists can then have a small beach to themselves.

By the time we were ready to visit the beach, it was time for the sun to bid us goodbye for the day. The sunset was a picturesque site. Nature had painted the sky will all the shades of red, orange, blue, and black combinations. To add to the beauty there were a few boats on the horizon which enhanced the beauty of my photos 😊.

After the sunset, we returned to the resort as Ganesh was tired from the day-long drive. We checked at the resort about the food/dinner however they gave us the number of nearby restaurants from where we had to order the dinner. As there were no restaurants in the 1 km range, we left it for the restaurant guys to deliver the food.

The next day early morning we decided to explore the other side of Marvanthe i.e. The River Suparnika which flows along the other side of the road. So after checking out of the Resort, we reached the Suparnika River which almost touches the Arabian Sea here, and then made a complete U-turn to go west but it did not join the sea immediately instead it completed a journey of more than 10 km before its union with the Sea.

We were lucky to capture some beautiful sunrise pictures by the riverside. We found “Marvathe” a unique place where one can experience sunset by the beach and sunrise by the river by just crossing of the Road.

As we walked down the river, we saw a small temple on the river banks. We decided to have a closer look and also pay respects to the deity. The temple of Maharaja Swamy - Shri Varaha Temple is an older structure but has a beautiful newly constructed entrance. From the temple, we saw a bridge crossing the River and we enquired where the road lead to. We were told that the road across the bridge led to the village of Padukone. The birthplace of famous Badminton Player Prakash Padukone and the native village of his daughter Deepika Padukone.

We could have easily spent another hour photographing the reddish early morning sun by the riverside which is a photographic site. But we proceeded on our journey to Udupi.

Udupi -

We proceeded on NH66 towards Udupi as it was high time to visit the famous Krishna Matha Temple there which we had planned when we came to Goa. We reached Udupi by around 9.00 am and by then the crowd had started pouring into the temple for darshan. We were lucky to get parking for our car.

This Krishna Matha Temple at Udupi is a 13th-century temple founded by Sant Madhavacharya. This temple is of Balkrishna (Baby Krishna). As we entered the temple, we found beautiful paintings of Lord Ram and Lord Krishna on the wall. We got into the queue which led us towards the temple. We passed by a small pond inside the temple premises. At the entrance of the temple, Ganesh was asked to remove his shirt as all the males had to enter the temple with bare bodies. Inside the temple, we heard bhajans Lord Ram being played in the background. The Garbhagruha or the santorum of the temple is small and no one is allowed to enter except the priest. Through a small window, we could see the small idol of Lord Balkrishna. As no photos are allowed inside the temple, we couldn’t click any. Udupi temple premises is famous for Brass utensils for Puja, Brass idols of various gods, and other Puja samagri.

Though the temple offers prasad at noon which is popularly called Annabramha, we didn’t wait for it as it was too early and we also had to pay respects to Lord Mahabaleshwar in Gokarna.

After the darshan, we had a local breakfast in Udupi and then started a journey back towards Gokarna / Goa.

Gokarna -

Image from Google Archives

With Gokarna, our temple run on Sunday continued. 😉

Gokarna is one of the holiest places for Hindus in Bharat. It is considered a pilgrimage place and is commonly referred to as Dakshin Kashi or the Kashi of southern Bharat. Gokarna is famous for the temple of Lord Mahabaleshwar (Shiva temple). The Atma-linga is situated inside the temple. The temple is believed to have been built during the rule of the Kadamba dynasty in the 5th Century. However, the structure is a blend of the Dravidian and Nagara style of Architecture. The temple opens a 6.00 a.m. and is closed in the afternoon. It reopens at 5.00 p.m. and is open for the next 3 hours for Indian tourists. Foreigners are not allowed inside the temple.

There is a dress code for

Men - dhoti and uparana and

Women - traditional Indian saree or salwar suit.

The Dhoti and Uparna are available for sale outside the temple.

The temple is on the route to the Gokarna beach hence there is a huge rush of tourists on this path. Therefore, the local authorities have banned entry of cars near this temple as the roads are narrow and not convenient to drive cars.

We got into another temple queue for the darshan of Lord Mahabaleshwar. After a long dwindling line, we reached the Garbhagruha inside the temple where Atma-linga is kept in a closed place below the ground. The priest told us to touch the Atma-linga through the hole to seek blessings. On our way back from the temple we sought blessings of Mahaganpati which was nearby. We were surprised to find some Marathi-speaking priests around the temple.

Om Beach -

After the darshan of Lord Shiva, we decided to visit the famous Om Beach which is a tourist attraction. But there was a huge rush and we had to park our car at least 300 meters away from the beach. Further, We have to climb down about 50-odd steps to reach the beach. The name Om Beach was given because of the naturally formed Rocky structure which is in the shape of Om. As the beach was crowded, we didn’t spend much of our time and decided to try our luck for Yana caves after having lunch at Namaste Cafe which was on the beach.

Yana Caves -

Yana Caves was an hour drive from Gokarna. It is famous for 2 massive rock outcrops known as Bhairaveshwara Shikhar and Mohini Shikhar. The huge rocks are composed of solid black, crystalline karst limestones(Source: Wikipedia). Yana village is also known as the pilgrimage center because of the cave temple below Bhairaveshwara Shikhar where a Swayambhu Linga has been formed and the dripping of water over the linga adds to the sanctity of the place. This attraction of Yana caves made us divert our car towards it but the Google map misled us and we took the longer route to reach Yana Caves via Kumta - Sirsi highway which took us more than one and a half hours to reach the gate of Yana sanctuary. At the entrance, we were told that we had to hike for 1 ½ km to reach Yana caves. It was already 4 p.m. and we had to carry Ira along with us which would have been more exhausting for us. Hence, we dropped the plan to trek to Yana Caves and headed back to Goa thus leaving Yana Caves for some other time to visit. Now looking back, I feel we should have visited Yana Caves as we do not know when we will get the opportunity to visit it as we have now shifted our base back to Mumbai.

Though the trip had a packed itinerary, we felt we needed to explore places more leisurely or plan Susegad trips going forward.

-Mohini Nabar