Doodhsagar

Goa’s best known falls.

Doodhsagar translates to “Ocean of Milk.” This spectacular 310 metres waterfall cascades down a cliff just inside Goa‘s eastern border with Karnataka. The flow peaks during the monsoon months of July and August. I made the trek last year in early August and was met with just the right conditions: wet, squally, misty.

Up close
5D Mark III, TS-E 24L II

Doodhsagar
5D Mark III, Zeiss ZE 50 f/2 MP

Freight train crossing
5D Mark III, 70-200L f/2.8 IS II

Atmospheric
5D Mark III, TS-E 24L II

I took this photo of an old photo from the Central Library Archives in Panjim. It is by the legendary photographic team of Souza & Paul who were active from 1890 to around 1910 and to whom we owe so many photographs of that era.

Doodhsagar circa 1900
© Souza & Paul, Central Library Archives, Panjim

The falls are accessible via the regular train. However, the totality of the experience can be had only over the land trail and during the monsoons that is not an easy undertaking. The journey begins in village of Collem (Kullem) with a motorcycle ride alongside railway tracks. After that comes a trek through dense jungle. En route we ford a couple of swollen streams and then negotiate a steep mountainside. Another hike along the railway tracks brings us to the base of Doodhsagar. I have put together a short slideshow of the excursion below.