Veraval, 7 km from Somnath, has one of the largest fishing ports on the Gujarat coast. The harbour is always active: hundreds of wooden fishing dhows painted in bright colours, the smell of drying fish and diesel, men mending nets, the catch being sorted and auctioned in the early morning. It is the economic engine behind the pilgrimage town down the road and makes for a striking contrast.
The best time to visit is very early morning, around 5–7am, when the boats return with the night's catch and the auction is underway. The harbour is working infrastructure rather than a tourist attraction — no one will mind you walking around, but stay aware of where you are. The catch includes pomfret, shark, and various small fish that end up dried and shipped across Gujarat. The fish drying racks stretching along the harbour road are worth seeing in themselves.