Birdwatching - Places

Karnala Revisited

One of our early treks was to Karnala. Karnala, with its thump-shaped pinnacle on its top cant be missed when you take the Mumbai-Goa highway. An easy climb. Till the pinnacle. Conquering the pinnacle calls for technical rock climbing.

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The trek is more interesting as it is through the Karnala Bird Sanctuary. If you can combine early morning, keen eyes, and luck, you will spot many winged creatures. In our first trip we spotted a crested serpent eagle and an owl.

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This time, on May 1, we decided to celebrate Maharashtra Day by taking an early morning hike through the sanctuary looking for some birds. Karnala itself has changed a bit. The forest department had put up a board depicting the birding trails, which was very helpful for us. We explored the longest trail.

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The leafless trees against the backdrop of blue sky offered some frames for the camera. En-route we got two knowledgeable and avid bird watchers – a father & daughter – for our company.

Birds, we spotted. But also an unfair share of plastic waste strewn across the forest. Soon we started picking up the bottles, cups, carry bags, the works.

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Maybe, as a token of appreciation, nature let us spot a rare-to-see bird – Shama.

Half-a-day well spent.

Karnala bird sanctuary is about 61 kms from Mumbai, on the Mumbai-Goa highway. See more photos here

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