AMBOLI IN MONSOON

Amboli, the hill station of mist and waterfalls, is a destination to head during monsoon to witness the beauty of nature. Visited Amboli with family from Pune by car. Before we set out on the tour, we had many questions in mind as to how to reach Amboli, where to stay, what to eat etc.

The best time to visit Amboli is dufing the monsoon season. Although, landslides are reported sometimes, the view of the falls in this region is something that should not be missed. Travellers who wish to visit Goa during monsoon can a redirect via Amboli to enjoy the greenary and view.

It can turn out to be quite misty during the rainy season as this hill station is located at about 2200 ft. above sea level..

The travel route to Amboli hill station was Pune-> Kolhapur->; Sankeshwar on the NH4 (Pune-Bangalore Highway) and took a right turn under the flyover at Sankeshwar (took a left turn at Sai Hotel just before the Sankeshwar bridge and a right turn under the bridge towards Gadhinglaj). The route is Sankeshwar-> Gandhinglaj-> Ajra-> Amboli (70 kms. from Sankeshwar). Sawantwadi is another 30 kms. from Amboli and Goa is further 60 kms. from Sawantwadi. There is an alternate route : Kolhapur->Nipani-> Utter-> Ajra-> Amboli. You have to take a turn near Hotel Kaveri for using the Nipani route.

There are MSRTC as also private Buses available from Mumbai, Pune, Kolhapur to Amboli.

The nearest railway station to Amboli is Sawantwadi at a distance of 34 kms on the Konkan Railway route. Taxis are available from Sawantwadi to Amboli.

Nearest Airport to Amboli is Goa which is at a travel distance of 2.1/2 hours.

Stayed at Silver Spring Resort (which has 4 rooms on the upper floor). We made an advance reservation online. Despite the wetness owing to rains, the room was OK.

MTDC has a resort at Amboli slightly ahead of Silver Spring Resort.

There are other resorts like JRD International, Sailee, Whistling Woods in the vicinity of Silver Spring Resort.

On the Sawantwadi route (3 kms. from Amboli) there is Amboli Waterfall which is a delight to watch in the rainy season. The water falling from a great height and flowing under the road downhill. It was thrill to climb the steps with water flowing from the fall. Amboli Waterfall is considered as one of the best waterfalls where the travellers can move up towards the fall from the road. Landslide takes place sometimes in the hilly area.

Nangarthas is another waterfall at Amboli which is 10 kms. on the Belgaum route. This is a deep waterfall which can be seen from the platforms built around it. It cannot be reached as the waterfall is quite steep and deep. Water flowing from three directions gets accumulated and falls in one big splash to a depth of more then 200' and flows through the gorge into the river ahead. Nangarthas waterfall derived the name from the local diety Nangarthas.

Narvekar's in the market area serves the best Fish thali. They also serve vegetarian thali. There are other eating houses like Balakrishna and other smaller joints.

Other places of interest which we could not cover owing to heavy rains are Mahadevgad (3 kms.) Hiranyakashi River (6 kms.) and Sunset point (1.5 kms.)