St Mary's Island, Karnataka

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St. Mary's Isles / ಸಂತ ಮೇರಿಯ ದ್ವೀಪಗಳು v • d • e Karnataka • India
St. Mary's Isles / ಸಂತ ಮೇರಿಯ ದ್ವೀಪಗಳು
District(s)	Udupi
Coordinates	13.3795° N 74.6730° E
Time zone	IST (UTC+5:30)
Area	- km² (Expression error: Unexpected * operator mi²)
Population • Density	- (-) • -/km²

Coordinates: 13.3795° N 74.6730° E

St. Mary's Isles (Kannada : ಸಂತ ಮೇರಿಯ ದ್ವೀಪಗಳು) (popularly called as St. Mary's Island) is a set of small islands in the Arabian Sea off the coast of Malpe in the Udupi district of the state of Karnataka, India.

Contents 1 History 2 Geography 3 Getting there 4 Points to note

[edit] History

Supposedly in the year 1498, Vasco Da Gama landed here on his voyage from Portugal to India and named one of these islands El Padron de Santa Maria. It is from this name that the islands have got their current name.

[edit] Geography

These islands are just rock projections arising out of the sea near Malpe. The northern most island is about a square mile in area and not more than 250 yards in width. It has a coconut plantation. The major attraction of these islands are the basalt rocks which have crystallized into whole columns and split into a horizontal mosaic. Apparently, these rocks have been formed due to a volcanic explosion in which the lava flowed in a peculiar fashion called as laminar flow creating these polygonal shapes. Considering the importance and raity of such an occurence, these islands have been classified as a National Geological Monument by the Geological Survey of India. The Western coast of these islands are a seashell haven with seashells of various shapes and sizes littered along the coast.

[edit] Getting there

The only way of getting to these islands is by boat. Regular boats ply from the Malpe Harbour to these islands. The frequency of these boats may vary depending on the amount of tourists available.

[edit] Points to note

• The island rocks and sand get really hot in the afternoon and hence it is advisable to take appropriate precautions. Summer season (March-Jun) is not a good time to visit these islands.
• There are no shops or landline telephones on the island. It is better to carry food and plenty of water before landing on this island. Mobile connectivity however is available
• The boat operators allow a time of about 1.5 to 2 hours for the tourists to stay on the island. The last boat leaves back to Malpe by 5 PM