Come close to nature and God - Marleshwar, Maral

Marleshwar, is an ancient Cave Shiva Temple, which is at distance of 17 km from Devrukh, 30 km from Sangameshwar, and 62 km from Ratnagiri. We came across great scenery on the way even in Jan, the views were really breathtaking. 

 
One has to go to Maral village, which is 14 kms from Devrukh. And after that 3 km road is by motorway and 1 km is by foot. Marleshwar name may have come from Maral village. This temple is also known as 'Trambakeshwar' of Konkan.

The craze for travel took us to strange places, this was one of them which was unplanned and I had minor injury in my right foot. I finally convinced myself and others to take the short trek of 530 stairs, and motivated others. :) If you don't mind climbing a few hundred steps, this is totally worth it. As the stairs are not very steep so even old and children can also climb with little support of family. Lovely weather, roads, towards Marleshwar from Devrukh. The vehicles can reach up to the base of the hill on which the temple is located. Area is green so you don't get tired, even the children with us were not. Though they demand their choice of toys, which many shopkeeper have as strategy of shopping while climbing stairs. 

It is a Shiva temple situated in a natural cave and is believed to be Swayambhu. The Shiva temple situated in between the beautiful hills and the Shivling in the cave is mesmerizing. Once we reached on top, there was no queue as such, and we got the darshan (visit) quite easily and with sufficient time. The feel of the hym, aroma, smoke and dripping water were just awesome, that can only be experienced once you are there in person. 

There is 'Kund' of cold water, where few snakes can be seen. I captured one kingfisher grabbing crab at this place, and many small birds flying. We had heard about the snakes roaming in the temple; though we did not see any of them. There were many monkeys jumping from one place to another, and we also found that monkeys also have love for Frooti, there were few monkeys who try to snatch visible food from others hands. The waterfall near the temple was awesome. It was not in full flow though, as we visited during Jan. But still a small stream was flowing from the small waterfall near the temple. It was really a lovely site to visit. There are many stalls on the way from tail to top of Marleshwar temple. There are shops all along the stairs selling food, Pooja items and souvenirs. Water, buttermilk, diffrent sharbat, drinks are available on the peak, some snacks also available there. Our group of 8 had around 25 glasses of all different drinks, and thalipeeth.

This place is must visit in monsoon as view of fall is great. In monsoon it has a beautiful waterfall amidst the Sahyadri hills, also the best season to visit though visitors are not allowed to enter the falls. It is called the place of thousand waterfalls. I can just think of that huge waterfall in front of temple during monsoon, would be just like "BAHUBALI" movie's scene. Think of amazing walk amidst rain, clouds, streams with deep gorges on one side and high mountain on others. There was water even in early Jan, and we saw that many people easily get under the stream and enjoy themselves. We got to hear many stories about Marleshwar from local people and shopkeepers. On the day of Makarsankranti a celebration of the marriage of Marleshwar and Girijadevi takes place. During Mahashivratri and Tripuri Poornima, there is a fair. Hope to visit again in monsoon.

Har Har Marleshwar!

Also few other nearby sightseeing places near Marleshwar, Maral: 

Soljai Gramdevi temple, Devrukh
Karneshwar, Sangmeshwar
Ganpatipule, Ratnagiri
Ratna Durga Fort, Ratnagiri
Ambaghat - Pavankhind
Mahalaxmi Temple, Kolhapur

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An evening at Ganpatipule Beach

In our endeavor to explore the coastal belt of Arabian Sea, we travelled Mumbai - Alibag - Kashid - Murud - Shrivardhan - Harihareshwar - Harnai - Dapoli - Velneshwar - Jaigad - Ganpatipule - Ratnagiri - Tarkarli (Malvan, Sindhudurg) - Devbag (Devbaug) and many other nearby places, but we didn't mind visiting Ganpatipule once again.

We started from Devrukh, and reached Ganpatipule within 2 hours. The route was full of fields of Rice, Cashew and Alphanso (Hapus) Mangoes. After that we visited Ganpatipule temple. We were lucky to get the darshan quite fast, surprisingly there were no queues! And then it was the time for our Pet-pooja (Lunch) Nearest best place for food is MTDC and there we were, for all our meals.

Ganpatipule beach is one of the most beautiful white sand beaches amongst the Konkan beaches. With the Ganapati temple on the shores rendering a peaceful atmosphere, Ganpatipule is as close as you can get to a perfect holiday destination in Konkan. Meenal and Smrati went for jet skiing at Ganpatipule beach. An evening spent at the beach gives a feel of Chowpati, a little too crowded over weekends and vendors lining the shore. The day was little hot and the best thing to beat the heat was coconut water!

Sunset at Ganpatipule: If you love watching sunset, This is one of the best place. This time we relaxed at this clean beach till sunset. The water and beach is so clean that we could take few reflection photographs as well. When the sun was about to set, I setup my tripod, and could manage a few beautiful clicks. You can explore this beach quite long by walk both sides from the temple.

Aare Ware Beach (Arey Warey Beach): We have been to this place during our last visit to Ratnagiri. The views across seaside is amazing, and you will love the drive following the seashore all the times. This route is highly recommended. Seaside Ratnagiri - Ganpatipule route passes through the twin beaches of Aare and Waare and the Aare sunset point. It is the best place to enjoy splendid sunsets, pulsating palms and wonderful waves in Ratnagiri ranges. We followed the same majestic views along-with sunset at Aare in our last visit. Many celebrities own land properties near to this beach. Certainly this beach will be a star attraction for tourist in near future.

Don't forget to visit Prachin Konkan Museum, if you are with kids or family or interested in conch. We also get to see India's biggest conch (Shankh).

Few other beaches/places to visit nearby Ganpatipule:
Malgund Beach
Nandivade Beach
Kunbiwadi Beach
Jaigarh (Jaigad) Fort and Lighthouse

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An Ancient Temple, Karneshwar - Sangmeshwar

We have traveled many places across Konkan in Maharashtra - Arabian Sea cost from Mumbai to Goa -

Mumbai - Alibag - Kashid and Murud - Shrivardhan and Harihareshwar - Harnai - Dapoli - Velneshwar - Ganpatipule - Ratnagiri - Goa.

After exploring some of the fascinating places in Ratnagiri, Ganpatipule and Velneshwar, we visited Karneshwar temple in Sangmeshwar, on our way back to Pune. 

We took our lunch at Sangmeshwar while returning back from Ganpatipule. Sangameshwar is also a base point to visit Marleshwar Shiva Temple, a cave temple located at 17 kms from Devrukh and 44 kms from Sangameshwar Station. This railway station is also on Mumbai - Ratnagiri train track. Sangameshwar is connected to Mumbai by train also. Many travellers club these temples - Karneshwar Temple and Marleshwar Temple, while visiting from nearby places.

Sangameshwar is a taluka in Ratnagiri district of Maharashtra. The meaning of Sangama in Marathi is 'confluence', and so the name "Sangmeshwar". In Sangmeshwar the two rivers Sonavi and Shastri flow together. As far as history is concerned, this is the place where Sambhaji Raje, son of Chhtrapati Shivaji was captured by Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb. Sambhaji was tortured and executed in Tulapur.

Karneshwar Temple, Kasaba, Sangameshwar

Sangameshwar is a coastal hamlet on NH-17. Above map will help you to reach there. This was not in our plan. But while coming back from Ganpatipule to Pune, we decided to visit this place. Karneshwar temple is 1600 years old Lord Shiva temple at 4 kms from Sangameshwar. It can be reached following a narrow street off the NH-17 road approx 1 KM. You can reach this place asking about Kasaba.

Address: Kasaba, Sangameshwar, Maharashtra

This was approx the end point of the road, where you can see some vehicles. It seems there is no designated parking area. Inside the temple premise huge trees shadow the temple from all sides. The statues and carvings of Hindu Deities can be seen on the temple walls.  The Shiv Temple is location at the center of the premises. An idol of Karna is located near the entrance of the temple. We got amazed to see this olden-golden temple. The place is full of visitors during weekends and Mondays (Shiv worship day).

We were just roaming around this temple, when we met the priest got him to narrate a few stories related to the place. As per our discussion with priest, once upon a time, there were more than 300 temples in this taluka, and this temple was build by "The Pandavas". It was named after 'Karna' the sixth son of Kunti as per Mahabharat epic.

Nivali Waterfall: A Seasonal waterfall on Mumbai - Goa Coastal highway at Nivali and popular stopover for guests travelling on the highway during monsoon season. 

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