Having enjoyed
the river cruise the previous evening, we had planned to visit the famed
Dudhsagar falls the next day.We had
booked a package for visiting Dudhsagar falls alongwith spice garden visit as
an add on and the tour operator had charged us @ Rs.1800/- per person inclusive
of all charges, except for breakfast/cold drinks/water and camera charges etc.
payable at the National Park entry.The
Tempo Traveler arrived right at 6.30 A.M in the morning and we were the first
passengers to board.However, a small
fiasco occurred before we could board, as according to the rules of the service
apartment, the gates were to be opened for entry at 7.00 A.M and the Gurkha
guard stationed at the gate refused to even let us out and we had to call the
Manager to sort out the issue, that delayed our departure by a good 10 odd
minutes.Since we were staying in North
Goa and in Arpora locality, the total distance till Dudhsagar falls was about
81 Kms., as it is about 65 Kms. from Panjim.The journey was smooth and uneventful, as the air conditioner was
working well in the early morning hours, we did not feel the stinginess in the
air because of the high humidity, till we got down at Kulem to start the jeep
ride inside the Mollem National Park.A
small eating joint turned out to be one of the many such options available at
Kullem to have B’fast and to use the loo.We had some idlis (steam baked rice pudding), as it seemed to be the
safest bet in the circumstances and some cold drinks to drown the same.Thereafter, we were segregated in batches to
eight persons and allocated jeeps by the tour manager and thus, started our
journey towards Dudhsagar falls through the National Park.
The journey inside Mollem National park area begins
Entry gate of Mollem National Park
The trek inside the Mollem National Park
After a
kilometre and a half of well metalled road, the road deteriorated into a dirt
track and sitting on the back side of the Jeep was an experience in itself, as
it stretched all my muscles in my body, in order maintain my equilibrium in the
Jeep.The distance from Kulem to
Dudhsagar is about 11 Kms., of which the Jeep ride comprises of about 9 Kms.
and trek of about 2 Kms. to reach the base of the Dudhsagar falls.The 9 Kms. Jeep ride takes a good 45 minutes
to an hour and is one hell of an experience, especially if you are seated in
the boot of the Jeep.Yet I was so much
engrossed in my intent to visit this famed destination that this horrendous
jeep ride could not deter my determination a wee bit.I was fascinated by the various photographs
of this famed water fall available in the internet and despite the fact that I
was not visiting it during monsoons, yet I was yearning to see it with my own
eyes, the splendour of this famed waterfall.
A short video of ride inside the Mollem National Park
The famed Dudhsagar waterfalls, is amongst the 100 highest
waterfalls in the world. The waterfall has a height of about 310 metres and an
average width of about 30 metres during monsoons. The falls assume spectacular
proportions during the said rainy season, when it is fed abundantly by the clouds
and the water cascades down in a silver avalanche, from the Mondovi River basin
and is a awe inspiring beauty of the Western Ghats.This cascade of water is at a junction close
to Goa-Karnataka border and visitors can access the falls from both side.However, one is not allowed to visit the base
of the falls, where we were headed for, during the monsoon season due to the
reason that there is flooding in the region and the dirt road inside the
National Park also becomes inaccessible.
Close up of the top portion of the Dudhsagar falls
A close up shot of the middle part of the Dudhsagar falls
A close up shot of the base of the Dudhsagar falls
Like all naturally beautiful destinations in India, there are some
legends or the other fascinating folklores associated with such
destinations.Likewise the famed
Dudhsagar falls is also associated with a folklore that goes as that there
lived a princess on the edge of the woods whose beauty was famed far and
wide. It is said that she was so
beautiful that even the birds sang her praise and the sun blushed and hid
behind the clouds on her approach. The Princess followed a daily morning ritual
of taking a bath in a serene and lovely pool in the woods, and after her bath,
she would partake a jug full of sweetened milk from a golden jug. One day, it so transpired that she spotted a
handsome prince watching her from behind some trees. Embarrassed at the
invasion of her privacy and feeling vulnerable in her nudity, the Princess
immediately flung the milk from the golden jug, in front of her, creating a
sheet of flowing milk that acted as a curtain, protecting her from the gaze of
the Prince. Legend has it that the sheet of milk, which cascades down the
slopes of the mountain to this day in the form of the gushing, milk like waters
of the Dudhsagar falls. Dudhsagar in Hindi literally means “Ocean of milk”.
A short video of the Dudhsagar falls
After the torturous 50 minutes of Jeep ride inside the Mollem
National Park, as the road meandered through the forest and across steams
overflowing across the roads, we finally reached the point from where the trek
to the famed waterfall commences.By
this time it was about 10.00 A.M in the morning, but the humidity and heat was
exhausting, so we commenced on our journey with water bottles, cameras and the
life jacket towed onto us, as the last article is not of choice but compulsion
to carry as per the rules of visit to the falls.At this start point there is a viewing
gallery infested with monkeys and provides for a glimpse of the waterfalls, for
those who cannot trudge the 2 Kms. trek.The journey was through jungle and hence it was a bit more pleasant, as
direct sunlight was not making its full impact on the forest floor.There were rivulets flowing by, with small
wooden and metal bridges strewn across them for east passage, birds were
chirping high up on the canopy and overall it was experiencing nature first hand.We trudged for a good thirty odd minutes,
stopping here for a gulp of water or there on a rock to catch our breath and
suddenly the top of the waterfall became visible.This vision suddenly rejuvenated our flagging
spirits and the sprint was back in our legs.There were quite a few monkeys around on the trek route and so were of
same kind from our species as well, who despite instructions, were feeding them
and thus, creating a nuisance for other visitors.Even some foreigners, who are otherwise more appropriate
in their approach, were indulging in the same act.However, these little distractions were too
trivial to take away the pleasure of imbuing the immensity and grandeur of the
waterfall.
A photo of the famed Dudhsagar falls during monsoons - added from the internet
A bird inside the Mollem National Park
A train passing by high above on the bridge was an added spectacle
for us and for a few seconds I went into a trance and visualized the view of
the waterfall during rainy season when the waterfalls in cascades as the train
passes by, albeit in reality it was a small trickle now. I have culled an image of the fall from the
internet as it appears during monsoons for benefit of my viewers to appreciate
its immense beauty. However, during
monsoons no one is allowed to approach this base region due to heavy inflow of
water and the other spectacle during these lean months is the water reservoir
that forms at its base, where the tourists frolic during this period. Having, spent a good hour or so at the base
of the waterfalls, we retraced our steps back to the Jeep and fortunately being
first to reach this time around, occupied the front seat and thus, was saved
the torturous ride during the return journey.
A panoramic view of the Spice Garden
Close up of plant that provides Vanilla essence
Close up shot of Cashew fruit and flowers
A Nutmeg tree in the Spite garden
A Cardamom plant in the Spice Garden
Having returned back Kulem, we again gulped in some packed fruit
juice, cold drinks etc. to replenish our depleted energies and water intake to
offset the loss due to heavy sweating.Thereafter, we boarded the Tempo traveller again and headed back towards
Panjim.On the return leg of the
journey, near the Ponda Township we headed to a Spice Garden (name I do not
recollect or do not want to mention as I am not inclined to provide any
recommendations etc.).The trip to the
spice garden was also a soothing experience, after traditional welcome, we were
offered ginger lemon laced green tea, which was quite refreshing and for the kids
there was a separate paid counter for purchasing cold drinks etc.After a brief introduction thereafter, all
guests were taken around the spice garden on a guided tour and this was
followed by lunch that comprised of typical Goanese cuisine and we enjoyed
every bit of it.Thus, concluded our
journey for the day and we headed back to your apartment in Arpora.
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