A small coastal town in the Ratnagiri district of Maharashtra is home to the annual Velas Turtle Festival. India is a hotspot breeding ground for the endangered Olive Ridley turtles that thrive in warm tropical waters of the Pacific and Indian Ocean. Velas in coastal Maharashtra accounts for 40% of the turtle hatchlings in Maharashtra.
Every year, around November-December, adult female Olive Ridley turtles come to the shore of Velas to lay their eggs. These turtles visit in large groups for mass nesting called Arribadas. Olive Ridley turtles are endangered because they only lay their eggs at select beaches. The females note down the beach they were born at and return when they attain adulthood, to lay their eggs at this very beach, no matter where in the world they are. In recent times, the Olive Ridley turtle eggs have been victims of poachers and pigs, jackals and eagles that eat them. Enter knight in shining armour – Sahyadri Nisarga Mitra (SNM), a Chiplun based conservation team.
Velas Turtle festival – A community initiative
Sahyadri Nisarga Mitra started the Velas Turtle conservation project in 2008 and have successfully released over 25000 turtle hatchlings in a phased manner. They patrol the beaches prone to turtle visits and collect the eggs and place them in a protected area under artificial conditions. The eggs incubate naturally and take around 50-55 days to hatch. New born turtles are released near the waters and allowed to crawl their first baby steps towards the sea.
With the help of the Gram Panchayat in Velas, local villagers have been roped in to open their houses to tourists for homestays during the festival from February to early April – to promote eco tourism and generate seasonal income for locals. The proximity of the beach to big cities Mumbai and Pune has made this initiative quite a hit. Hundreds of weekenders willing to learn and witness this unique sight throng this place during the season.
Velas Turtle Festival: The trip
The easiest way to visit the Velas Turtle Festival is to join any Mumbai or Pune based travel group over a weekend. We generally don’t prefer large crowds, so we drove down with three friends after calling up a couple of homestays to ensure we have a place to crash. You should do this too, as homestays get booked almost immediately for weekends.
We reached Velas from Mumbai at 1pm after starting early morning and headed straight to the village to meet our host and have lunch. That evening, we were unlucky when we visited the beach as there were no turtle hatchlings.
Watching the turtles walk into the ocean
The next morning, we were set to try our luck again. We reached the beach at 7:30am (half an hour late!) and saw a large gathering near the sea. Two eggs had hatched and the team at SNM had carried them closer to the water so they could take their first baby steps towards the ocean. We ran a marathon to get there and fought the crowds to get a glimpse of these little ones preparing to take on lives of their own.
It took the turtles around 30 minutes to walk what could be less than 50 meters. But the crowd looked in amazement and gave it all their patience. The turtles finally left for greener pastures and soon the beach was empty with no sign of civilization. We hung around to click some postcard pictures and even took a dip in the sea.
Exploring Velas Beach
Velas Beach pleasantly surprised us with its clean sands and beautiful landscape including a mesmerizing sunset. Be sure to leave the beach before it gets dark as there are no lights whatsoever. Carry a torch as it can get unsafe to wander alone after sunset.
Velas turtle festival homestay
Part of the deal with homestays at the local village include three meals with tea. The locals are kind people who do everything to make you feel comfortable. At one point, I felt guilty that we were resting in their homes while they sat coyly in the passage between the hall and the kitchen as if they were the outsiders. Rural hospitality is heartwarming! May be it’s the culture, but some of them treat you royally, when you’re just like them slogging it out to make a livelihood, but only in an urban setting.
Some hosts may have private rooms to let but most of them will give you the hall and a mat. We lived it like the locals sleeping on the floor and played antakshari before calling it a night.
Things to know before visiting Velas Turtle Festival
- Watching these turtles is free of charge.
- Two batches are organised every day to see the hatchlings at 7am and 5.30pm
- The incubation is natural and hence there is no guarantee of day, date and time when the eggs would hatch
- Plan the trip so you get at least two visits to the beach.
- Please don’t shout or yell when the turtles are crawling towards the sea.
- For Velas Turtle Festival homestays, call up the numbers on the Sahyadri Nisarga Mitra website
- For any other information about the Velas Turtle Festival, check out the official website of Sahyadri Nisarga Mitra
Places to see around Velas: Bankot fort and Harihareshwar
After a local home cooked lunch, we left Velas and drove down to Bankot Fort (3 km), once ruled by Shivaji Maharaj. We then took the ferry and headed to the beautiful Harihareshwar beach before leaving for Mumbai the same evening.
Other hotel options around Velas Turtle Festival
If you want something more comfortable than a basic homestay, Harihareshwar serves as a good alternative, 13km away. Check out Tranquil Beach Resort with a great location by the beach. The MTDC run Harihareshwar Beach Resort is also a very good alternative.
If you’re planning to go further down from Velas, towards Dapoli, then The Fern Samali Dapoli offers a great stay experience. Must-visit!
What to pack for this trip
- A refillable water bottle to avoid buying plastic bottles. I’m starting to like these collapsible water bottles – great companion for outdoor adventures
- Carry a towel because, of course, you will go in the water. Who are you kidding!
- A waterproof pouch for your cell phones when you go in the water.
- Carry a hat and sunscreen too, and flip flops to get into the beach vibe – these eco classic slippers do the job well.
- A waterproof ocean pack dry bag to keep your valuables dry.
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Also check out….
Beach hopping in Maharashtra
Sao Joao festival – A tradition to jump into wells and lakes
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I have been trying to be there for last 4 years but .. no luck so far… will read this post a few more times for motivation for next year….
haha. do it next year. the place is getting more and more commercialised now.
“Ganpati bappa Morya” is shouted whenever you expect a good outcome or want something to go uneventfully, smoothly. For example, on begining a group travel or journey, it is almost always shouted, in Maharashtra particularly.
I get that, but it didn’t make sense here. Disturbance and annoyance for these sensitive little marine creatures.
yes, too much enthusiasm does not help
For that, Ganesha is called “Vighnaharta”, vanquisher of obstacles