I set out on the journey early in the morning hoping to catch a train
to Dudhsagar from Collem. But I got a carriage train which directly
stops at Castlerock, a village in Karnataka. My actual plan was to go
to Dudhsagar, explore the area and then go to Castlerock. I wanted to
go to Castlerock since long as I had heard a lot about it.
I then decided to go to Castlerock first in the carriage train and
then to Dudhsagar and back.
I saw a glimpse of the Dudhsagar waterfall while going. I had seen the
area till Dudhsagar Railway station but this time I got to see beyond
that. It is amazing, a paradise. I got to explore some of the area
when train had stopped at the Caranzol station. I was eagerly waiting
for Castlerock to come and it finally came.
Much to my dissappointment, Castlerock appears to be like a ghost
town at first. I started wondering, is this the same Castlerock I had
heard about? I gave up the thought of seeing any wildlife and decided
to explore the village. As I entered the actual village, my views
about the place started changing. Nestled into the greens, the villge
was not familiar with so called 'development'. That is what I liked
most about the village.
I reached the 'market' through the greenery in search of a drink (Soft
drink).There I found out the best thing about the village, the people.
They are very friendly and to my astonishment, they were speaking
Konkani. Most of them are supposed to be Goans who came there in
search of jobs when the railway station was built. And to speak about
wildlife, I saw many Malabar Pied Hornbills flying all around.
I think the actual Castlerock, talked about by wildlifers, is the
patch between Caranzol to Castlerock which is sure to house a variety
of wildlife. I am planning to go there as well in few days.
My next station was supposed to be Dudhsagar. But I got a bad news
that there is only one train remaining which can take me to Collem. If
I get down from that at Dudhsagar, I will either have to stay (which
was not possible because I didn't have enough food supply) or walk
back 12 kms (for which I had no stamina left). I boarded the train and
came back to Collem and then to Ponda. All my plans of exploration
were devastated due to train schedules. But I got to learn so much
about the Castlerock village. Not a good wildlife trip. But I will
return. I will return to fulfill my destiny.
Links to my previous trip report from Dudhsagar
