Dudhsagar Waterfalls of Mandovi River | Goa
This place is a mind blowing Waterfall and trekking heaven with one of the scenic expedition on Rail tracks in Western ghats / Sahyadhri Hills.
DudhsagarFalls! My first Trek on Rail tracks + Tunnels + dense forest to reach Hidden Heaven
5th highest waterfalls of India, of 310m
Where it is located
It’s located between Karnataka Castle rock and Goa Mollem Border, near Bhagwan Mahavir Wildlife Sanctuary. The Mandovi River makes this falls majestic and it is one of the pride falls of India.
How to reach
By Road – First of all we cannot reach till the falls by road except the last 12 km. But don’t worry!! We can have a jeep safari from Kulem on the Bhagwan Mahavir Wildlife Sanctuary.
Many private buses and KSRTC buses are available to reach Goa from Karnataka or anywhere. Kulem is the nearest village to the falls which is 12 km from Dhudsagar falls. Many Private buses or Taxis or rented bikes/cars are available to reach Kulem from Goa which is just 40 km from Margao.
Kulem is the last point to reach by our own transport; from there we have to hire a jeep safari to reach falls which drives through dense forest and Mandovi river belt. Price will be nominal depends on season.
For Jeep Ride:
Ticket counter for Jeep safari will open at 6 am and closes at 2 Pm at Kulem
If you people are less than 7 members, you have to wait until the jeep is full or pay full amount of Approximately 2800/- to have your own.
After the jeep ride we have to walk around 10-15 minutes to reach the falls,
By Train - IRCTC Train facilities are available to reach this place directly; but wait, there is no stop at Dhudsagar falls!! Shocked!?
Yes! Nearest Railway station is Castle Rock from Karnataka or Kulem from Goa side.
CAUTION: TREKKING ON RAIL TRACK TO REACH DHUDHSAGAR FALLS FROM CASTLE ROCK AND KULEM IS STRICTLY PROHIBITED. BUT A MUD ROAD FROM KULEM IS THE ONLY OPTION LEFT TO REACH FALLS BY JEEP OR BY UPHILL TREK.
By Air – Goa International airport is the best option! Obviously. Falls is just 75 km from Airport.
Best time to visit
Summer - Feb to May : Water steam will be very less, not much fascinating at this time.
Rainy - June to September : Trek will be good for people who love to explore the place in rain, but leeches will say Hi every minute. Funny!
Winter - October to January : Best time to visit, fully covered with lush green, Dense fog, Peaceful river stream and quiet climate.
Trek Difficulty level
Easy to Moderate. Suitable for average to pro trekkers. Not recommended for families to trek. But Jeep safari is an added advantage for Families and everyone. This is a recommended ride for all to reach the falls.
Trek distance & Time required
Castle rock to Dhudsagar falls - 14 km one side on rail tracks and tunnels. 6-8 Hours
Kulem to Dhudsagar falls – 11 km one side on rail tracks and uphill trek. 4 to 6 Hours
Kulem to Dhudsagar falls – 12 km on Mud road. 4 to 6 Hours.
Accommodation / Camping
There are no accommodation facility near the falls and staying near to fall is prohibited nowadays, previously there was a small place next to the falls beside the tracks, where we can put our tents. Hardly maximum of 15 tents can accommodate at this place.
But there are many ECO resorts and Home stays are available near to Kulem, which you can find online and book your stay.
Food : There are no hotels or any sort of facility for food near to falls, nearest facility will be Kulem/Castle rock which is 12 km.
Permission : No Permission required to visit from Kulem side on jeep safari. As it is prohibited to trek on rail tracks it is better to inquire local police station and get the permission for trekking, if you’re lucky!
Things to carry : Shoes, rain coat, tent, sleeping bag, torch or headlamp, enough water bottles, emergency first aid kit, energy savers, fruits, energy bars, cookies, importantly camera. 😇
Precautions
Take some prevention from leeches in rainy season, and from heat in summer, no worry about wild animals, carry enough water to avoid dehydration, carry torch you will be camping on the hill. Jeep safari can leads to shake off your stomach so have less before the journey.
Experiences
Those who experience the stay at the falls, those who experienced the rail tracks, Tunnels, night trek, I don’t have any comments to say to you all!. But for those who have never seen, Do not miss this place it is a life time experience to watch the magnificent Dhudsagar Falls and to feel the beauty of mother nature.
We can play in the falls near to Rail track bridge, Forest officials will provide Safety jackets, they will bring along with Jeep. It will be slippery and be careful. If the water flow is too much going near to water will be prohibited.
Travel plan
Dudhsagar Waterfallsis located in Goa
Detailed travel plans for Goa with various options are explained on the Guide page.
Check the link below for more information.
“As long as I live, I’ll hear waterfalls and birds and winds sing. I’ll interpret the rocks, learn the language of flood, storm, and the avalanche. I’ll acquaint myself with the glaciers and wild gardens, and get as near the heart of the world as I can”
My Trek story to Dhudsagar! Ufff!!
Stage 1 of 3 - Initial Excitement
Dhudsagar is 550 km from Home, That far we have never traveled until then, we didn’t had any car or neither we knew driving to hire one. So our option was only Train! We were 11 idiots to make this trip success. You might wonder why am calling idiots our self. Because we booked 11 seats for Friday night on a train, 1 month before which we wanted to travel together, But on the day of journey we realized 6 seats were on the correct train and remaining on different and that train has left already, Initial excitement was completely broke down, yes! We thought to kill the one who booked tickets!
Don’t worry, you know the meaning of killing in friendship!! In the entire trip that friend we took care of him very well, haha! So somehow we managed and got into same train, paying additional ticket price and heavy penalty (Fine). Finally we reached Castle rock early morning by 9:00 am. It was 12 hours very Fineeeeeeeee journey. All our excitement regained again with the beautiful foggy climate and chilling experience, of course it was October.
Stage 2 of 3 - The walk
It was a 14 km walk on Rail tracks from castle rock station to Dhudhsagar falls. There was no place to get fresh on the railway station, we managed somehow, considering ancient techniques to get fresh! funny! and so we started to explore the very first tunnel experience. Our plan is to reach falls in 4 hours as it is just a walk on tracks and not much big deal. But that’s the critical part, Walking on it is bit difficult, slippery and super clean! you know what i mean.
We have crossed many small and big tunnels, found natural water falls, available only on rainy seasons, snakes, cliffs, monkeys, paradise birds, leeches, bridges, many trekkers like us and much more. It was a hell of a journey of our life time, in between few trains also crossed and we were safe by the way, as there will be some space beside the tracks to stand. But be careful on bridges and tunnels. Some longer tunnels are difficult to cross as there is no power and it ll be fully dark, we need torch as a must. It was a time where we didn’t even had any camera, it was just mobile shots and that time it was more than enough to capture the memories.
We reached around 4 Pm, with no lunch. “Caution - its a rail track and tunnels, you won’t get any shops till the falls and there is only one small shop near the falls, who sells only tea and some snacks like Maggie and omelet”. So better plan your food.
Stage 3 of 3 - Train sound scared the s**t out of me
After reaching we had enough time to watch the majestic Dhudsagar falls, we were just some foots away from the falls and to the right sky high falls and to the left deep down flowing down, we were exactly on the middle of the falls. That’s the beauty of Dhudhsagar. Amazing, One of the bucket list fulfilled. We tried our hard to get the good photos as it was crowded fully and its the experience unable to explain or show in anyway. Marvelous!
There is a small place around 8-10 tents accommodate right next to the falls and it will be first come first serve, otherwise you end up with mess. literally there is no space besides the tracks to camp, you might have to walk bit further or backwards to get some space, but plan to make it happen next to the falls, you wont get that experience any where else.
We bought some ready made food for dinner, started a small fire camp with that little drizzling and shivering cold, with tea and something, i don’t want to mention! hehe! we had a very good time, having chitchat, jokes, memories, other trekkers travel experience, rain, fully flowing waterfalls breeze, of course mosquitoes, no power only torches, completely wet dress, shoes, jackets, Even few trekkers came at night 11 pm too, that time night trekking also was allowed, but not now.
Our tent was next to falls and of course immediate next to the rail tracks, as we were sleeping a good train was coming on its way, but the double engine train, we are next to the tracks, the sound was literally scared the sh** out of us, as the train come close we felt it will run on or chest! oh my god!! Never ever sleep next to the tracks. Even though we were a safe distance from the tracks but still i wouldn’t slept that night. uff!!! No comments on that.
Finally early morning, we started back to castle rock, waited for our train which and carried lot of memories and reached back to Bangalore on Monday morning.
The END.
NOTE: *Trekking on Rail tracks is strictly prohibited now, we cannot access Dhudsagar falls from castle rock any more, we might need some permission from the police or forest department. Only access in from Kulem. A jeep ride or Trek on Mud road. There are few will get down from the train near the falls even while its moving slowly, but this is dangerous and if get caught will be fined heavily. Please Do not try this* And Going near the water is recently prohibited as per latest updates, but depending on the water flow and safety, tourists can enjoy getting into water with safety jackets only, provided by jungle officials.
If any information is insufficient or if any latest updates from the recent travelers, Please leave your comments below.., Your comments are most welcome & valuable.
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