Rain Walks - Two of the many

Since the beginning of the rainy season, we, a group of  4-5 people with common interest, have been walking every Sunday for a distance of 10 - 20 kilometers. In pouring rain if it is raining. We start at half past five and start walking in whichever direction appeals to us. Now, we have covered almost all directions and all available roads around our city Ponda. So, last week we decided to cover the first 10 kilometers by car, and walk in a till then uncovered area, which I had been thinking off for quite some time.

This morning saw four of us starting from what is known as Apewal and walk to a village called Keri and from there to another place called Savoiverem and then back to Apewal. It is a circuit of about ten kilometers and a very picturesque one. There is hardly any traffic and the houses are sparse. The road is good and the surroundings absolutely clean and green. I good bird watcher can easily identify about twenty species of birds during the walk. I could identify Warbler, Peahen, Scarlet minivet, Hornbill, Bulbul, Robin, Brahmini kite out of a dozen different birds but none of them were prepared to come into my frame!

Following are some pictures from the walk.

Morning sunrays in a green valley

A clear water stream by the side of the road

Another land scape

My companions for the walk. 

This morning I had planned a 15 km walk connecting some temples around Ponda and called it ‘The Temple Circuit’. Due to  constraints of time, we had to curtail the distance to 10 kms but the route more or less remained the same.

We started at the Kashimutt, Bandora - went to Mahalakshmi temple - then to Gopala Ganapati at Farmagudi - Down to Nagesh Maharudra temple at Bandora - On to Shantadurga and back to kashi Mutt. We were six in the group.

following are the pictures of today's walk.

An interior road, where a Leopard was seen a month back. I call it the Leopard road.

Entrance to the Gopal ganapati temple - Farmagudi Goa

Nageshi Maharudra - what is prominantly seen is the palace of Saundekar, the earstwhile rulers of Ponda. Temple is by the side. You may notice the tower behind the coconut tree. 

Chapel of St roque as seen from Shantadurga temple.

Temple of Shantadurga - one of the famous temples in Goa.

Landscape near Shantadurga

The Kashimutt, from where the walk started and ended.

The temple tower of Mahalakshmi - Bandora

 I was just speaking to some friends and casually said “we had four people for the ‘Nature Walk’ last week, but six for the ‘Temple Circuit’ today”.

One of my friends quipped in  : “Forget your nature and temples doctor, plan a ‘Bar circuit’ and I assure that twelve of us will be with you!!