Netrani: Dive into the calm water

Netrani (also known as Pigeon Island) locally known as Netragudo, is a tiny island located in the Arabian Sea off the Bhaktal coast. It is situated approximately 10 nautical miles (19 km) from the temple town of Murudeshwara in Karnataka and located approximately 500 km from Bangalore.With depths ranging from six to 40 metres, and visibility between 15 to 30 metres, this island offers excellent scuba diving and snorkelling options, suitable for all those who are hungry for an adventure trip.Netrani is not only home to the great diversity of fish life common to Goa and the Arabian Sea, it is also well known for regular sightings of turtles, napoleon wrasse, great barracuda, cobia, white and black tip sharks, stingrays and stonefish. The Netrani island is an excellent picnic spot. Besides pigeons, the other inhabitants of the island are wild goats.The lee of the island, a seamount supporting a soil layer overgrown with trees and plants, looks like a cake with its vertical sides topped by a gentle sloping plateau.There exists a subterranean cave with openings in the south and north above the high water mark.The island is enveloped by untamed growth of trees and climbing the steep hill is not that easy. The ruins of a temple, a Roman catholic church and a mosque show the ancient past of the island.The place looks like a botanist’s paradise and at night, it is a still world from a city dweller’s point of view. To get there, one has to hire a fishing trawler from Bhatkal or Honawar. This island has some of the best sites for scuba diving. There are many dive shops from Goa that regularly organise dive expeditions to Netrani. Netrani is a coral island and, therefore, is very suitable for snorkelling and diving activities.Many varieties of coral, butterfly fish, trigger fish, parrot fish, eels and shrimps can be seen here. Divers have also reported seeing Orcas and Whale Sharks around the island. Normally diving/ snorkelling is done from a boat which is anchored close to the island and usually visitors do not climb on to the island because of the sharp rocks and steep cliffs on the island.The island also offers diving suitable for professionals.The island adjacent to Netrani is used by the Indian navy for target practice. One could see empty shells rusting around Netrani and adjacent island. It is not recommended to visit Netrani without permission.The best time to visit is between December and January. The resort stops taking tourists for snorkelling and scuba diving during June-September because the sea becomes rough.