Night Camp at Vadhavan Beach

It was in the evening hours on the second Friday of May 2023 that I along with my office colleagues set out on a journey to a quaint little fishing hamlet named Vadhavan. Vadhavan village is situated about 10km north of the famous nuclear power generating town of Tarapur in the Indian state of Maharashtra. It is the hometown of my colleague Mr. Ulhas Kadu ji who had been insisting for quite sometime that we make this trip to explore his beautiful village and revel in the night camping experience. So our coterie of colleagues comprising myself, Ulhas Kadu ji, Pushpendra Hazari, Vishesh and Vilas Raje ji all nature lovers and passionate travellers finally decided to set camp on the coast of Vadhavan.

It was to be a little road trip about 135 km from Mumbai requiring a good 4 hours chugging through the City traffic on a Friday evening. Two large tents, a barbeque grill, a gas cylinder, a pair of gas burners, water dispenser, camping chairs etc. were loaded onto my car and the large boot gobbled up anything we threw at it. We managed to start the trip around 19:30 Hrs. We drove through a slew of newly opened flyovers in Mumbai helping us save some time and traffic. As we approached Ghodbunder Road in Thane which is infamous for its traffic congestion, it was miles of vehicular traffic waiting to greet us. We progressed at crouching speeds until we managed to hit NH-48 also known as the Mumbai-Ahmedabad Highway. We halted for Dinner around 21:00 Hrs at a roadside Dhaba named Kinara. It was a sprawling Dhaba with good vibes. The food however was fair to middling. We had our dinner and we resumed our journey. The next 60 km was a well paved stretch of road having excellent tarmac- the kind any auto enthusiast would love to ply his car on. Shortly after Manor at Chilhar Phata, we steered towards Boisar,  driving through it’s industrial complexes. Further up we drove along the townships of BARC and NPCIL at Tarapur. The wide roads gave way to narrow and winding lanes as we meandered through the villages of Chinchani and Vadhavan. As we approached the precincts of Mundeshwari Temple the famed village deity of Vadhavan, we were greeted by friends of Ulhas Kadu and we all set forth towards the beach. It was roughly a kilometer of offroading along the coast through the vast tracts of casuarina trees where we identified a cozy little place to camp for the night. It was well past 23:30 Hrs when we reached. We had a spectacular view of the night sky in the absence of light pollution - one of the many things we don’t get to see back home in the city. 

Our beloved Rajeji is a retired employee of our organisation. He is an experienced mountain hiker with a few Himalayan treks under his belt. He started setting up our tent and we helped him with it. His mountaineering days had given him a lot of experience in organizing camps and hiking sessions and he wishes to setup a mountaineering institute with his friends in the future. He is also a good chef and enjoyed preparing barbeques for all of us. There was music, food, the sound of the waves while we partyed through the night and we retired to sleep around 04:00 Hrs., only to be woken up again soon by the bright sun beaming through our tent. In the daylight, we had a great view of the beach from our tents. The nuclear reactors at Tarapur were visible at a distance.

View of moonrise from campsite

Tent set up for the night

Barbeque Nation @Vadhavan beach

View of Vadhavan Beach from Campsite

We freshened up and helped Rajeji prepare “Misal” accompanied with bread. It was delectable to say the least. After breakfast, we packed our belongings and set off on the car for a village tour. Our first stop was at the shrine of Jhotung Baba who is a deity of the local fishermen community. The way to reach there is driving on the beach sand for two kilometers. There is an vermilion clad idol at the base of an old Khirni (Manilkara hexandra) tree and a small temple is erected around it. The locals believe that the Baba comes to the rescue of fisherfolk caught in turbulent weather during seafaring and there are stories of men returning safely home after their boats capsize upon making a distress call to the revered Baba. The locals make offerings at the temple when their desires are fulfilled by the Baba.

Lipsmacking Misal

Jhotung Baba Temple, Vadhavan

Our next stop was at a rock overlooking the sea, situated deep inside the mangrove forests. At this place, the locals make offerings to their ancestors. The locals also erect plaques in memory of their loved ones on this rock. Quite a unique way to remember the dead. Legend has it that Lord Ram performed “Pind Daan” in memory of his father Dashratha at a spot deep within the sea near Vadhavan. Ulhas Kaduji says that the holy spot remains inundated around the year and is accessible by foot only on the auspicious day of Akshaya Tritiya when the sea water recedes beyond that point. This rock however is accessible throughout the year and acts as an altar carrying similar significance as the holy spot among locals.

We then visited Kaduji’s home. It is a two storeyed structure. Beautiful and well maintained. At his house we observed a table with a couple of bench vices and some machines used for die casting. Kaduji’s brother is in the business of die casting. Infact, it was a common visual at almost every house in the village. Many families here depend on jewellery casting as a means of income. Some also use advanced CNC machines to develop molds having complex design patterns. Ulhas Kaduji’s friend Tushar caters to even export orders from his little workshop. The locals say they are reducing their dependence on fishing. Agriculture also holds economic significance. Rice, Capsicum etc. are the main produce in the village. The mulberry at Kaduji’s home and the organically grown and ripened mangoes at Tushar’s house were simply the ones to die for.

Mulberry Tree @ Kaduji's house 

On the way to Kaduji’s house we observed a couple of banners in protest against the proposed Vadhavan port. We interacted with a few locals during our visit around the village and they were very vocal against the project. One of them explained the ecological damage that the project would bring to the rich biodiversity of the marine ecosystem. He explained to us the different types of fish, molluscs etc. that can be observed in their waters. It is also home to some endangered fauna. Ulhas Kaduji explained the various impact assessment studies that have been carried out in the past that clearly outline the harmful impact of the project on the ecology. “We do not need any jobs from the port development” added another. “We will not back down” they say unanimously. The villagers are fighting to save their livelihood, the tranquility of the beach landscape and most importantly their simple way of life which they feel will be affected by the port project. All we can hope is for an amicable solution to the issue by addressing the concerns of the project affected people while trying to meet the aspirations of India at large.

It was about 15:00 Hrs and was time to bid adieu to the village and the locals. We briefly visited the Mundeshwari temple and sought her blessings before returning back home. On the way back we halted at the much famed Bhajanlal Dairy Farm for some Lassi. We carried home some fresh cottage cheese and ghee too. That summed up our fun filled visit to Vadhavan. We only wished that the sultry weather had been a little kinder on us.

Acknowledgement: I would like to thank Pushpendra Hazari and Ulhas Kaduji for contributing pictures towards this post.