Koynanagar is a town in the western ghats area of Maharashtra on the Sangli-Chiplun highway. It is famous for the Koyna hydroelectric project, one of the largest in India. The several waterfalls that dot the area attract a lot of tourists.
During our recent Maharashtra trip, we stayed in Karad for two days. On one of those days, we decided to visit Koynanagar and the surrounding areas.
Drive towards Koynanagar
We started our journey from Karad on NH 166E. The road was smooth till Patan and then deteriorated. We also lost the network coverage, but the Koyna river accompanied us.
For some reason, there were not many vehicles on the highway. The situation did not change after we exited the main road and entered the town.
Waterfalls
Our focus of the trip was waterfalls, and we drove towards them. The destination was Ozarde waterfall, but we encountered two more waterfalls on the way next to the road.
The recent rains had caused landslides throughout the road, and our journey was slow. The backwater of the Koyna dam was a constant companion, and we spent some time enjoying the sceneries on the stretch.
We finally reached the Ozarde waterfall. It looked amazing from the road, but the entire area was affected by landslides. The landslides were massive and looked scary.
There was no soul present apart from a guard and a shop owner. They said that it was not possible to go near the waterfall. The recent landslides had made the place dangerous. That was not good news, but that is how life is. We spent some time enjoying the beauty of the location. The guard and the shop owner were surprised to see that we came from Bengaluru.
Nehru park
Our next destination was Nehru Park. The ticket person was concerned with my DSLR camera. He told me multiple times not to photograph the dam. I thought, “Boss, just open Google Maps and enable satellite view. You will see a clear view of the dam!!”. But I just nodded my head in agreement.
It was a beautiful garden. A key highlight was the room that explained the complexity of the Koyna power project. Like Kali and Sharavathi project, this one consists of multiple dams, tunnels and power generating units.
Kumbharli ghat
Since we were interested in the waterfalls, we went further on the highway to Kumbharli ghat to see a small waterfall called “Ghatmatha”.
An intriguing aspect of our trip to Koynanagar was that we did not see a single tourist – in the waterfalls, garden or the restaurant!! It was an experience for us!! Surprising as the area houses many resorts. I had been to many places but had never seen a popular tourist spot deserted!! Of course, we were there on a weekday!!
Information and Tips
- Koynanagar is about 60 km from the nearest town of Karad.
- There are no sign boards that are useful for tourists. Forget the tourism department and embrace Google Maps.
- Airtel network was not available after the town of Patan, with few spots having no network coverage. Hence, it makes sense to download offline maps. Jio and BSNL work better in Koynanagar.
- Many resorts and restaurants are available on the road and in the town.
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