CANACONA: Sadolxem is a God’s own village in Canacona taluka where Our Lady of Rosary and Devki goddess have made a permanent abode for themselves by the river Talpona which was enraged on October 2, 2009.
This unspoilt village is unique in a numbers of ways and a wonder of this place a lake in the forests by name Gogel was kept a closely guarded secret and kept aloof from outside invasion and now has been frequented mostly by merry makers from all over south Goa, thanks to the social media and other micro blogging sites.
It is believed that ancestors of this place accidentally discovered Gogel when they were grazing their cattle on the hills of Sadolxem. Since then this rain fed lake with a mini-waterfall named Gogel has attracted picnickers to enjoy the heavenly waters in the company of earthly booze.
Gogel can be tracked by foot which is a couple of kilometres from the closest road in the company of a local else there is every possibility of getting lost in the wilderness of the forests of this village.
Gogel is located in the forests of Pokolim, on the way a Holy Cross welcomes you and reminds you to be careful on your way uphill. A little ahead all type of birds sing for you till they leave you in the company of the dead at the now unused cemetery of Our Lady of Rosary Church. As you pass by the cemetery saying hello to all the dead, remembering your loved ones buried and saying a small prayer, in no time you realize that the Gogel is not so far.
One of the uniqueness of Gogel lake, which is ten meters deep and twenty meters wide, is no life is lost till today in this lake where water falls from a little height at the center and forces its way up in all directions.
The divine water is also believed to be having some medicinal properties, as it comes from the springs from the upstream as it rubs with all type roots and stones enriching it with minerals.
Xavier Barreto, a senior citizen from Sadolxem who often visits the waterfall with his friends spoke to this correspondent and lamented that people, mainly youth come in large numbers and make the place dirty with all types of waste, besides creating a ruckus.
He has requested authorities to plan ways of maintaining the beauty of this lake and also post gueards to maintain discipline and orderliness.
