Devgad Island

We reached Baithkol at around 9AM. Baithkol, situated at a distance of just 2 kms from Karwar, is the village bay where the boats and launches park after their hectic routine of fishing. Until we were waiting, (with the fish smell all around) for motor boat which we had hired, we enjoyed watching tonnes of fish getting unloaded at the dock. We also got a chance to try a hand on fishing. As soon as the motor boat arrived, we set sailing to our destination Devgad Island.

Baithkol Port

Baithkol port in Karwar is a natural harbour, one of its kind, formed by mountains. As we passed through all the fishing boats on the left and a huge ship from China parked on the right, we saw the break water built by stones over a stretch of  400 metres to slow down the huge waves during bad weather . After that it was blue everywhere. We were right in the middle of Arabian Sea. We could see few islands far from us, straight ahead was Devgad with the Light house, and on the right, 6 kms  away, was Kurumgad Island famous for its annual Narsimha Jatra. We also got a glimpse of Lady Beach which is on the other side of the mountain beside Baithkol. During British rule, the wives of British officers used to come to this beach to have bath while enjoying the nature, since it offered complete privacy from rest of the town. On the way to the island, around 1.5 kms away, were the shipwrecks of Singapore registered vessel M V Ocean which had drifted towards the island on account of rough weather and hit rocks in 2006. Due to this, there was a huge oil spill extending upto South Goa and had severely affected the acquatic fauna and flora. The ship was later broken down to pieces and carried away to Karwar bay.



Devgad Island

Finally, we reached Devgad. The entrance of this island was as of the entrance of the ancient times. We anchored our motor boat, got off on the rocks in front of the island and entered through the entrance heading to the top of the mountain. The mountain has a Light house on the top which is powered by solar technology. We had special permission to enter the Light house premises.

Oyster Rocks

The view from top of the light house was mesmerizing. Light blue sky merging with the deep blue sea at infinity was delight to our eyes. We got down from the light house to go towards the beach and oyster rocks on the other side of the mountain island.

Down below with the rocks, beach and the mountain, Devgad Island,  I feel is a best place to camp and spend a complete day in the nature’s warmth.