Karwar: Karnataka’s picturesque northwest

Karwar is the northernmost of port cities of Karnataka and is known for serving as a Naval base too. It lies on the north western corner of Karnataka, a few kilometres south of where the state shares a border with Goa. As such, it seemed like a good idea to drive all the way up to Majali, where the stateline lies. Like I said in the previous post, for me, this trip to the west coast was like filling that gap between Kerala and Goa.

Although Karwar was a big point on our Karnataka-Coast itinerary, we didn’t stay there during the trip. It was Gokarna that was our base for a few days. After a day of exploring Gokarna, we decided to do that drive along National Highway 17 (NH-17) that would take us to Karwar. When we got to Karwar, the kids were still fast asleep in the back seat. That was when we thought we should drive up to state border. On the way we crossed Kali Bridge that connects the banks of the Kali River. The Kali River, which originates in the Western Ghats flows into the Arabian Sea here in Karwar.

The area near the bridge is a scenic one. If you are passing by, it would not be a bad idea to stop here and take in the vistas:  there’s the massive Kali River joining the Arabian Sea, and the Devbagh Island on one side and on the other, is a river island (the person watching Devbagh’s jetty told me it was called the Kali Island) sitting smug in the Kali River.

Karwar in pictures:

Later that day, we stopped by the INS Chapal and had a look inside it. INS Chapal is a warship-turned-Maritime museum stationed just off Rabindranath Tagore Beach. Inside, we saw the ship’s mess, the officers’s bunks, the bridge, the main engine, the places where the officers on duty answered nature’s calls and all that. Now where have I seen this before? Aha! the SS Jeremiah O’Brien in SF. Oh my! that’s another post that still hasn’t gone up, it’s not even in the drafts. My list of places visited and still not documented on this blog is only getting longer but that doesn’t stop me from tripping. 😉

Coming back to the Indian Warship, here is a quick look into the INS Chapal. I particularly liked the life size figures that are on exhibit. I had read about it when I was doing my pre-trip homework but then it slipped off my mind while I was actually on the ship so I’m not lying when I say I got a start when I got to one of the cabins and saw a handsome gentleman in uniform peering at me.

After some learning on the warship, we decided to have an easy evening at Ravindranath Tagore Beach and watch the sun set and allow sonny boy to do what he likes doing most — playing in the sand.

From the warship and from the Beach, Karwar showed us all the islands that lie just off this port city – Kurumgud, Madhyalingad and Devgad islands. And in the evening when the sun was on its way down, they made such grand silhouettes out at sea, turning the landscape into a very pretty picture.

A Karwar sunset

And before we left the seaside, we had an excuse to drive into the heart of the city. Our baby no.2 then a 11 month old had lost a part of her earing and if we didn’t find something for those little ears, we would have had to put ourselves through the torture of another ear piercing. Thus we got a peek at Karwar’s shopping district, although it was not part of the original plan.

Places we did not visit that you might be interested in:

• Sadashivgad Fort
• Children’s Aquarium.