It is wonderful to see an old style  boat public transportation system  alive  in Indian villages even after the development of  roads and access to the  villages. But these are alive due to the ‘time save’ factor than the ‘inexpensive travel’  factor. We are not talking about those pricey , colorful, short time tourist boat services which are found in touristy places . These are the boats used by general public on a daily basis. If you want to enjoy these little boat rides in Kumta  following are the best   short boat rides you can get for as less as ten rupees.

[hcode_blockquote blockquote_icon="1" hcode_border_position="border-left" hcode_border_type="solid" hcode_blockquote_heading="- A boat owner who runs his boat between Divgi and Manaki" hcode_blockquote_color="#000000" hcode_blockquote_bg_color="#ffffff" hcode_border_color="#dd9933" hcode_border_size="2px" hcode_blockquote_font_size="20px" hcode_blockquote_line_height="150px"]I do this because I don't know other work. My dad taught me for living. I did not go to school. I don't want to become rich also[/hcode_blockquote]
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Aghanashini to Gokarna

One can easily travel very fast from Aghanashini to Gokarna on boats by paying as less as 10 rupees in 15-20 minutes while by road it would take 3 hours !!  But this one is a fantastic ride as it is by Arabian sea  that you will be riding!

 

Hegde to Mirjan

Mirjan can be seen at a shout distance across Aghanashini river from Hegde . Here the people depend on boats so much that  even the motorbike people pay 15 rupees to cross the river. Traveling by land  will cost you the same money on a motorbike  but nearly an hour ride on a bumpy road.  But if you want to travel by public road transportation it would cost you two hours which is a lot against a nice 5 minutes ride on the boat.

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Minimum two boats always commute between the two shores of the river . Most of the time the boats only start when it gets full customer  but sometime if you are familiar with the boat guy he might just cross the river just for you ! Before the boat leaves the boat guy shouts in a unique way. His voice can be heard from a kilometer so that those who want to cross hurry up to the boat. If they miss the boat they will have to wait for another hour !

Manaki to Divgi

This route is the one I enjoyed a lot during my child hood . We used to pay half a rupee and go back and forth for many times just to enjoy the boat ride. Even today if we visit we will never miss the boat ride! The special thing about this route is the boats are human powered punt boats where the punter uses a pole made out of bamboo to push against the river bed. For beginners riding in this is boat might turn out  scary but this is a must try boat!

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 Others

These are the other boat routes but they are bit far and remote from the heart of Kumta .

Kodkani-Igalakurve ( island)

Here the people are living on an island surrounded  by Aghanashini river and their daily transportation is by only boats!

Bogribail- Uppinapattana

Another boat ride with beautiful backdrop of Westernghats

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There are many more boat transportation available in Kumta which I keep adding to the list here  once I get the confirmation that they still exist ! Please let me know if you want to add to list but remember the criteria is  the boat transport should be running even today and the place must be from Kumta!

boat ride boat transportation public boat transport river sea wooden boats