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Velas Turtle Festival on 14th & 15th March with Mapping Journeys!

Tripoto
13th Mar 2015
Photo of Velas Turtle Festival on 14th & 15th March with Mapping Journeys! 1/1 by Mapping Journeys

A weekend full of watching baby turtles hatch and crawl back to the ocean,
of making sand-castles and winning beach games.
A weekend made of Baby Turtles & Beaches.
Quite a combination, don't you think?

Things you must know about Olive Ridley Turtles:
Of the five species of Marine Turtles occurring on the Indian coast, except Loggerhead Sea turtles, all the other four are seen on the coast of Maharashtra.
At Velas, we will be seeing The Olive Ridley Turtle (Lepidochelys Olivacea)
Nesting Sites: Tropical Coastlines across the world
Natural Habitat: Seas in tropical and sub-tropical regions
Weight: 50 kg
Colour: Olive Green
Food: Gastropods (animals with shells), jellyfish, etc.
Breeding season: Throughout the year, mainly November to March
Current status: The species is endangered due to the consumption of its eggs, destruction
of breeding habitats, and the slaughter of adult turtles for leather and oil. Protected
under Schedule 1 of the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972

Itinerary:
13th March (Friday Night)
Meeting Point:
11:00pm: Pritam Hotel, Dadar East
Pickup Points:
11.20 pm: Chembur Diamond Garden
12.00 pm: Vashi Below Main Bridg
12:30 pm: Panvel ST Depot (For people heading from Pune)

14th March, Saturday
05:00am: Reach Velas
06:00am: Freshen up, Visit Velas Beach for Turtle Festival and watch baby turtle hatchlings!
08:30am: Return to the Villagers Honme for some local breakfast
09:30am: Post breakfast, head to Bankot Fort and explore around. (15 Minutes Trek)
01:00pm: Return to Velas for devouring some delicious Veg. Konkani Food
Spend the afternoon lazing around by the shore or in the village, talk to locals, explore around. Perhaps, play with the kids and stroll around :)
05:00pm: Velas again! This time with the perfect setting of the sunset and some Olive Ridley's hatching themselves and taking their first baby steps towards the ocean. Imagine that sight. Just imagine.
08:30pm: Return post all the fun for Dinner and a Night Walk around the village

15th March, Sunday
05:30am: Wake Up Call
(We sing loud songs in our ugly voices to make up for the lack of alarm clocks to wake you up!)
06:00am: Freshen up and head to the beach for some walking, posing, clicking and beach games. We might get to see some more turtles, if we are lucky!
09:30am: Return for Breakfast and then with the troop, we'll head to Harihareshwar Temple
11:00am: Enroute Harihareshwar
01:00pm: Lunch at Harihareshwar/ Mangoan
03:00pm: Bid goodbye to the sands and beaches and baby turtles! Enroute Mumbai.
10:00pm: Reach Dadar

Special Note: -
1) Emergence of Hatchlings of turtles is a natural process, so we cannot give guarantee of emerging possibility of the turtles on the mentioned dates. These are the most likely dates.
2) The above beaches have strong RIP currents so we will not allow you to go into the water with or without Life jacket / Life Guards

Cost:
Rs. 2200/- per head (With transport from Mumbai