Land of beaches and temples. Review on Gokarna

GOKARN: this quaint little town on the west coast of India is shaped like a cow’s ear - hence the name Go (cow) – karn (ear). (The anglicized version is of course Gokarna).

Description of the place:

There are two ways of looking at Gokarn:

1) as a temple town – hence a pilgrimage centre

2) as a beach town – with some of the most resplendent untouched beaches in the country.

Pilgrimage centre:

Gokarn is an ancient temple town with references to it found in many old scriptures as well. Some of the more prominent temples that easily come to mind are:

World famous Mahabaleshwar Temple of Lord Shiva (This has a Aatma lingam or natural formation of linga)

Bhadrakali Temple

Brahma Temple

During Mahashivratri, the town witnesses a huge festival at the Shiva temple which has a procession of the deity around the streets of the town, well lit and beautifully decorated.

Beach town:

There are 3 different beaches in this town. The nearest one of course is Gokarn beach, which due to the proximity to the town is quite crowded especially during the evenings. (Crowded is a relative term and if you are used to seeing the crowded Juhu beach in Mumbai then you will find the Gokarn beach a dream)

The second beach is the slightly smaller Kudle beach. But the star attraction is the Om beach, which is quite secluded due to its distance from the main town. Its inaccessibility has resulted in its remaining untouched by frivolous travelers. You either need to walk down to the beach by trekking on a hill or take a rickshaw to the nearest point and then trudge the remaining distance. Most of the foreigners who come here make a beeline to this spot, They have their own shacks there and use the place almost like a private beach for their sunbathing and swimming. You will rarely find any locals there. The beach is called Om beach, because from an aerial view, its shape resembles that of the Hindu symbol Om in devanagiri script.

Other nearby attractions:

If you don't mind traveling by road (the quality of the highways in this area is among the best I've seen in India), then you can visit many nearby places which are of tourist interest.

1) Karwar beach: another lovely beach about 2 hours drive

2) Murdeshwar temple: a huge statue of Shiva is built at the top of the temple which itself is surrounded by sea on three sides. Its quite a sight to go to the top and look around. This is about 1.5 hours drive.

3) Jog falls (or Gersoppa falls): Slightly far away takes about 3 hours to reach, but well worth it. Do visit this point on a Sunday. This place has one of the best waterfalls in India. They are 4 falls called Raja, Rani, Rocket and Roarer (the names meant to describe each of them) which fall from a huge mountain onto the plains. Earlier this sight was really majestic all year round, but now due to the dam being built on the Sharavati river, the water has reduced considerably. However, as a tourist attraction, the authorities release the water on Sundays. Hence one must visit this place only on a Sunday.

4) Idgunji: The famous Ganesha temple about 2 hours away is another landmark pilgrimage point.

Geograhical Location:

Lat. Lon: 14.36 N, 74.18 E

Taluka : Kumta

District : Uttar Kannada (Karwar)

State: Karnataka

Nearest railway station: Gokarna Road (15 minutes from the town)

Nearest airport: Goa (Dabolim airport) about 4 to 4.5 hours drive

How to get there:

By road: KSRTC runs regular buses from Goa, Bangalore as well as nearby cities such as Hubli, Karwar, Ankola, Kumta, Udipi and Mangalore.

By rail: The Konkan Railway runs a daily passenger train from Mangalore to Goa which halts at Gokarna Road station. For express trains, you may have to alight at either Kunta or Honavar and take a cab or bus.

If you are a foreigner: You will be required to submit your passport at the entry point of the town which you can take back while leaving.

Where to stay:

There are many small lodges in the town if you are on a shoe string budget. Many foreigners who stay here for a longish period have their own shacks and other such arrangements. But for a regular tourist, I would recommend either Hotel Om, or Hotel Gokarna International. These are reasonable in terms of prices (in the range of Rs.200-300 for non AC and Rs.350 – 500 for AC). The food is ok, nothing to write home about, but if you are a fish lover, you will be delighted at the vast variety of fish available on the coast).

The other hotels are Rama Garden (slightly out of town), New Prasad Nilaya(well within the town), smaller lodges such as Vaibhav Niwas, Nimmu House and Shastris. Besides there is KSTDC’s Hotel Samudra, which is on the outskirts of the town situated on a hill. This hotel too has quite clean rooms and is fairly easy on the wallet.

Recommendation::

I don’t know how many MS readers are in the pilgrimage mode at the moment, but if you like to see lovely virgin beaches and cannot go to Mauritius, I would recommend this place whole-heartedly.