Tour Highlights:

1. Kirigalpoththa Trail
2. Thotupola Trail

I woke up and lowered the blanket covering me and a rain of needles hit my exposed skin. Oh dear, I’m in HP, it suddenly dawned on me. There was a light moving out of the room and it made me feel jittery. Getting out of the bed and landing my feet on the ground sent another dose of needles up my body. It was so cold (probably around 10-degrees) and I followed the light out of the room to find Ana already up and getting ready to make some coffee. The time had just gone 4.30am and I was shivering when I entered the kitchen. There wasn’t any sign of the bungalow keepers (they can’t have ever had their guests waking up at 4.30am) and I waited with my feet up for a steaming cup of coffee.

Atha and Prasa were still sound asleep and I went back to wake them up. It was very cold and we sipped at our scalding coffee hugging ourselves so tight. The caretakers got a shock when they appeared around 5.30am to see us up and about. I guess this was a great shock for them and they got very busy making our breakfast while we washed in the freezing water and got ready to leave while the sun was beginning his painting class towards the east.

After a hot hot Roti and many curries breakfast, we set off towards the Farr Inn with some more packed boiled eggs and sandwiches. About 2km into the drive, we saw a herd of Sambar Deer to our left and stopped to take their pics. The tip of KGP could be seen in the distance while mysterious Agra Bopath kept herself covered with mist. Thotupola was showing her twin peaks to our right with a bright sun glowing the grass towards her.

We reached the Farr Inn and saw the first wave of vehicles coming from Pattipola Entrance and all the tourists were heading towards Gonagala Falls and World’s End. We showed our permit and was given the green light to carry on our trail. Thankfully, there was no one else to do the KGP trail and we started our journey merrily.

Good morning!

We’re ready to go

Hern the Hunter?

Not really

Whole family of them

Ok, no more pics after this…

Gorgeous colors

Agra-Bopath

Comms tower at Farr Inn

The Farr Inn covered by trees

Took forever to take this as there were people milling about all the time

Gigantic Ferns

KGP Trail – Uphill

We started the isolated trail while the sky was royal blue and had patterns of pristine white clouds like cotton wool on a painted canvas. There was a herd of Sambar to our right but ran away at the first sight of us. They were not so forward like the begging few in and around the Farr Inn and Bungalows. The invading Ulex plants were scattered about just like the last time we visited which was a very sad thing to see. There are a lot of dangers to the HP such as Polythene, Invasive Plants and fish species such as Rainbow Trout. To our surprise, we saw quite a number of crows (2 were permanently stationed at Ginihiriya Bungalow) and according to the officials, they are a huge threat to endemic reptiles, such as Rhino Horn Lizard (An Katussa), Smooth Lanka Skink, Common Rough-Sided Snake (Le/Dalawa Madilla), etc. as they feed on them and their eggs. We were told the number of Rhino Horn Lizards is decreasing every day due to the existence of the crows.

We urgently have to do something to eliminate these crows before they completely wipe out these endemic species from HP. Ana kept going at a steady pace and I was suddenly scared he’d outrun us to the summit. We reached the stream that crosses the path and spent a few minutes resting. It was a very welcome break and if you take the left path parallel to the water stream, it should lead you to the Slab Rock Falls but we didn’t attempt it as our priority was KGP. We decided to give it a go supposing we had some time to kill on our return journey and always the weather permitting.

The path there after was in and out of forest patches and bordering the Bamboo plants. We came across gorgeous looking Binara Flowers (We came across them on top of Lakegala too) and stopped at every opportunity to take snaps and breaks. This is when while I was following the rest of the group Atha suddenly stopped me and pointed at the grass to the side of our path. I saw nothing at first but he slowly pointed at it and whispered in my ear “An Katussek”. Despite my numerous visits to the HP, I’d only once seen a Rhino Horn Lizard before but well before I knew about things called cameras. This was a great opportunity as the fella was among the grass blades. The camera had a tough time focusing through the grass blades (wish our point-n-shoots had manual focusing) and after it felt like ages, managed to take a few decent shots.

We left the fella and continued our journey before entering the muddy patches. We saw the paw-prints of the leopard at many places along the path and were hopeful to get a peek at the fellow. Even though Tony was so lucky to get a look at one of them at our last journey, he was way too scared to stop and take a picture. He nearly ran all the way to the summit and fell over the edge. The muddy areas were not so difficult to cross and we entered the forest. The path that was full of Nelu Flowers last time was devoid of any flowers and most of the Nelu Trees were at their last stages. We heard after the flowery season, the trees wither and die.

There were a few still with purple and light green flowers but not a lot. However, we came across some beautiful orchids and white and blue flower that grows on the roots almost along the ground. It was a very beautiful one and bloomed in clusters. We then saw some bones of a Sambar that had probably been hunted by the leopard but couldn’t have been recently. The climb in the middle was a bit challenging and we had to stop frequently to take our breaths. The depleting oxygen levels made the work laborious.

We reached the base of the KGP having crossed the last stream. This is where you have to replenish your water canteens as there’s no stream to have water. We had our brunch too, the half boiled eggs had broken and been oozing the yellow out. We managed to dig in our sandwiches in the yellow gravy and have it. The Jeewani kept us going all the time and we made some more for the final assault. After a long and tedious hike, we arrived at the observation point, short distance below the summit panting like a pack of hunting wolves. As usual the view was unobstructed and panoramic. The tinge of purple was missing from the trees below due to the end of Nelu Season. The slope reminded me of Lakegala but she was far steeper than this.

Arriving at this point was a major milestone and we savoured the moment to the fullest. We then took the path through the trees towards the summit. There’s a very dangerous path along the rock near the edge. Please don’t take this as it can lead to disasters should you lose the footing. Further, there’s a short stretch that you need to climb up along a rocky surface. Be very careful there too and try to avoid windy periods. It took us close to 5 hours marking it probably the slowest of all and Ana may have set another record being the oldest to reach the KGP summit.

We celebrated with stream water and Jeewani with what’s left of our sandwiches. We had the whole KGP for ourselves and felt like we were lost in a world devoid of any humans. The view was great and we could see the Ambewela Windmills, Dayagama Tea Factory and many more. However there were some thick clouds coming towards us and we decided to start the downhill journey as we didn’t want to get wet and be on that rocky slope when the rain came with winds. You can watch the video of us just off the summit and Ana hilariously saying that we’d reached the Kirigalpolla. This was what Tony used when we first reached and did a short video, he was dead scared and forgot the word Kirigalpoththa and instead said Kirigalpolla.

Video of KGP

Ready to go… that 7km is not correct. It’s about 5.5km to the summit… (7km could’ve been using the old path)

We had the path to ourselves while World’s End path was busier than Pettah

Here comes the heavy guns

KGP and Agra Bopath closer to each other

Cotton wool sprinkled royal blue canvas

Ana among the thorny Ulex Plants… (note the GoPro Camera he’s wearing)

Agra Bopath – The unsolved mystery

The dead and the alive together

Endless plain

Not sure if it’s edible

The stream that we had to cross

Despite the rains, there was very little water

Through the bamboo

Kirigotte Balal Adi? – Nope, it’s Kalu Paswala Divi Adi

Two sexy girls

That color is simply uncopiable

Can you see the fella?

Here a close up. Can see the Horn clearly

One with no grass blocking the view

The path through the bamboo

Close up of the paw mark

Taking the paw mark on his lenses

Sitha Pera

To our right was this open terrain and beyond that is Agra Bopath

Few Nelu flowers remaining

Orchid

Close up

The sky through the tree cover

Not Bandura, but something similar

Very beautiful but no idea what they are

Hope you can remember this from my previous trip report. It was very fresh then but now it’s like limestone

The bones I told you about

Some more

Life on the dead

Dead Nelu trees making an arch for us

Beautiful sky all the way

Close up of the bunch of flowers

The summit of KGP is over there

A dead bird?

Just before the final assault

The view on the way up

Commonly seen orchid type

Very common

Finally at the viewing point

The expressions say it all

Clear view

Steep slope

The tricky bit I told you about

He was merrily shooting away

The rocky bit that might be slippery and can be challenging to cross in heavy winds

The trees closer to the summit

Typical summit point

Yeah, we did it finally… with two records probably

KGP Trail – Downhill

The downhill journey was more or less uneventful save for the threat of looming clouds. Fortunately, it didn’t rain until we were back inside the vehicle heading towards the bungalow. Mother Nature had been keeping an eye out for the happy wonderers. However, we were let into a secret by Ana (don’t tell anyone what I’m gonna tell you). He’s planning on competing for the triple jump in Rio in 2016 and was training for it. We noticed he kept jumping over obstacles every now and then and then realized his ulterior motive.

I’ll let the pictures tell the story from here onwards. We came across a snake (my first at HP) called Le Madilla, I guess the same one called Dalawa Madilla as well. I might be wrong but looks like both are the same. The downhill journey took only half the uphill time and we beat the rain and got into our vehicles heading off to the Bungalow for some well-deserved rest. On our way, we met another begging Sambar who was very desperate for something to eat but we flatly refused any. He then asked for at least some money so that he could go grab something such as those jaw breaking Roti from the canteen. We refused that too fearing the bugger might wolf down the note without going to the canteen.

We skipped lunch altogether and waited till evening for a hearty dinner and as usual went to bed just before 8pm coz this was our second but sadly the last night at Ginihiriya. We had Thotupola Trail planned up for the morning.

The steep slope

One of the fellows in disguise

Mind your head

Le Madilla, not poisonous at all – Not Sure? Touch it and see

The triple jump champion ready to cross

Simply beautiful

The muddy path

Prasa explaining the size of a leopard to Ana

Wading through the muddy path

Another orchid?

Wild berries

The SL team leader for Rio 2016

Entering back into the open

Furry

Crossing the stream back

Plenty of them

Very old Leopard Poo

Nearly finished our journey

Prasa complaining about the distance

Good bye Agra Bopath

Reminds me of the first journey too

Farr Inn in full

The modern Thomas Farr…

Click image to enlarge

Sri Lankan White-Eye

Another

Upside down

He was constantly coming out of the hiding to feed on the garbage left by the tourists

Prowling along the drains

The one on our way, coming towards us looking for something to eat

“Anything to eat?” – asked he

Begging look

Backing out knowing we wouldn’t give anything. “At least give me 50 bucks, I’ll go get a roti from the canteen”

View through the windscreen

Maha Bovitiya

Up close

Closer to our bungalow, the darkness made the pic not so good

Another one looking at us

Trying to get up the tree

Whole lot of them

Thotupola Trail

I got up after a deep sleep to find Ana had as usual beaten me to it. He was up and about when I got up and walked into the kitchen. The water was already boiling and he was ready to serve coffee for which I was very grateful. The scalding liquid warmed my body and bungalow keepers were not yet accustomed to our early routine. Prasa, who’s a very late riser, managed to stir up slowly and opened his eyes bit by bit as if they were glued shut. We had to get ready real fast as the time was running out.

Finally Prasa managed to defeat the overwhelming force of sleep and get up. The breakfast was in full swing as Abeysinghe brought a wave after wave of fried eggs to go with coconut sambol and sliced bread. We kept eating and Abeysinghe kept running back and forth with fully laden trays. After our bellies reached their bursting point, we decided to pack the things and be ready to leave. The sun was still fighting the clouds and the mist kept coming in covering the whole surrounding with her thick veil and I was worried if we would get a good view from Thotupola.

Having thanked our caretakers we left for Thotupola in the thick mist. The path was fully covered in mist but Ohiya Road being less crowded compared to Pattipola didn’t make it that hard on driving along. Passing the Farr Inn we saw to our right a herd of Sambar out for a morning stroll. The mist was too thick for our cameras to make out them clearly (I keep saying those cameras are not as even half as good as our eyes). All of a sudden, two males started fighting with each other with their horns and I managed to do a small video.

Video of Sambar Fighting

Passing them around the head of Dayagama Trail, we met a jungle fowl who was on the hunt looking for some breakfast despite the mist. The cold was that much we could feel it going right across the bones to the core. Having reached the trail head in the end, we stopped to get ready for the chilly hike. The mist was still so thick and we saw the dying Nelu Trees after the blooming season. The legend goes on as follows:

“Long ago in India, Prince Rama lived in exile in the jungle with his beautiful wife, Sitha. When the sister of the powerful king of Sri Lanka, Ravana, once visited the jungle of Rama, she was mistreated. Returning home, she complained to her brother, Ravana who swore revenge. Taking his mythical plane, he flew to India and kidnapped Sitha and came to Sri Lanka. The aircraft first landed on the peaks of Thotupola Kanda, meaning the “Landing Site” in Sinhala.”

Well, I’ll let the pictures do the talking from now on. However, Ana was in top gear and we had to restrain him from running to the top. It took us very little time compared to the long and arduous journey of KGP. The mist kept clearing from time to time giving us that panoramic view of the surrounding mountains. However, Sri Pada decided not to show herself for some unknown reason. We were treated for a super-duper view when we visited Thotupola Kanda last time to see the Nelus in full bloom.

The team and Abeysinghe at the left

Here they are

Watching the others getting ready to fight

Here they go

In the open

Closer look but not in good quality

On the prowl

The legend (Click image to enlarge)

The path in the morning

Some clearing

Plenty of flowers

Macro

Some more

With the dew collected off mist

The Dhal Tree

Closer to the summit

Here’s the team

Ravana Rawul

The view was not so great due to the mist

Maha Rathmal in the distance

Zoomed in

With my shadow

Ana kept going ahead of everyone

Some of the remaining Nelu

Some bones off the path

The mist had enough of us

Life on the dead

Will have to do something about these, they were along the Thotupola trail too

Towards Ambewela

The cluster of windmills

Giant Ferns

Beautiful center

We left HP, rather sadly, and got on the way back towards Nanu Oya. We met a large group of Black Monkeys closer to Pattipola that gave a good opportunity to Ana and Atha to capture them. Closer to Ambewela Farm, we stopped for some fresh milk where two doggies were waiting hungrily. They too received a full cup of fresh milk for their good behavior. We made good time but the stretch between Nanu Oya and Radella Short Cut was not yet completed as I mentioned in the last report.

I was eagerly waiting for another encounter with St. Claire hoping against the hope she’d have a full quota of water but I was disappointed for the umpteenth time. She was falling in her sorrow state and we didn’t stop by. Nevertheless, we stopped at Devon Viewing Platform for a cuppa tea. Unlike our going on the 04 Oct morning, when Devon was fully obscured by the mist, she was in full view and we once again enjoyed this falling beauty. The artist at the platform kept working away at his canvas with different strokes.

After a freshly fried potato patties and tea from the tea center, we left for Colombo. I kept wishing there was more time to spend at HP but every good thing has to come to an end sometime. This really was a dream come true as I finally managed to spend a night at HP after so many visits over last 15 years. It was great having Ana, Atha and Prasa, we really had a ball.

Hopefully, there’ll be more journeys like this in future. Until such time, this is Sri signing off for the time being.

Take care and keep travelling!

Sayonara…

Sri.

Look at the beard

Another

Colombo-bound train at Pattipola

And then at Ambewela too

Where we stopped for a cup of milk

Lusty greenery and blue

Waiting patiently for some milk

They were working

No matter how many times you see her, you’d always see her in a different perspective

Full flow

The artistic point

Busy at work

Towards Watagoda

Colors

Bidding farewell

A rough map

map around Kapurella – click to enlarge

Hot water springs are a fascinating creation of Mother Nature. There are few theories how these form and they are

• Radiation from radioactive substances like Uranium, Thorium etc may heat up the surrounding rocks which in turn heats up the deep seated water sources.
• Warmed up minerals and rocks in the earth emits heat and this can heat up water springs (most likely)
• Heat from cooling magma could be the cause of heating deep seated water sources which spurs out of earths cracked points

This is a special report on hot water springs of Sri lanka. This was a very tempting topic which made it so irresistible that I ended up visiting almost all of these remarkable sites in a short period. The hot lakdasun forum post was indeed my greatest guide on this venture. I would be adding few details on some hot water springs I visited during the past few years for the sake of completeness. Here are the documented hot water springs in Sri lanka.

Rankihiriya – Gomarankadawala

Kanniya – Trincomalee

Nelumwewa / Gal wewa – Welikanda

Muthugalwela – Gurukumbura / Maduru oya

Kapurella – Tempitiya / Maha oya

Mahaoya (Maha siyambala gas kandiya) – Maha oya

Marangala / Wahawa – Padiyathalawa

Embilinna – Inginiyagala reservoir

Kivulegama – Jayanthi Wewa / Wadinagala

Mahapelessa – Sooriyawewa

Gal wewa / Nelum wewa hot water springs – Welikanda (63⁰c)

We were off to Passikudah for a relaxing weekend and on the way we suddenly decided to visit Nelum wewa hot water springs. One will find the turn off close to Welikanda (after Manampitiya) towards Nelum wewa. After traveling 9km’s we reached the lake which was dried out. If it was full we would have had to hire a boat but since the lake was dried out we did walk towards the springs which were at an elevated island in the center of the lake. This was known as the warmest spring (63⁰c) in Sri Lanka but was pushed back to second place recently by Kapurella. After visiting Nelum wewa we went towards Passikudah and rested the whole day as it was our main purpose of this visit.

Dimbulagala

dried out Nelum wewa

nelum wewa / gal wewa

the drought

hot water wells in the center of the lake

bubbling

Gal wewa / Nelum wewa

what lovely beach at Passikuda

shells

slow shutter at its best

dusk at Passikuda

Next day we departed towards Monaragala along the coast line and on the way we visited the Batticaloa Portuguese (later Dutch & English) fort which was built in 1628 which is now the district secretariat office. They do allow visitors to walk around the fort but it’s limited for obvious reasons. On two sides it’s surrounded by the lagoon and the other two by a canal. The view from this fabulous location is unforgettable. After hanging around we decided to get back to Monaragala via Pottuvil to end that day.

good morning

eastern sun

Eravur lagoon

Batticaloa fort

towards the lagoon

VOC

guard post

bell tower

Kallady bridge as seen from the fort

still in place

makers name

a jelly fish in the lagoon

Golden fields of Akkareipattu

Kapurella hot water springs – Tempitiya (64.5⁰c)

Next was the big one and most anticipated Kapurella hot spring sparsely known and located within the jungle close to Omanugala forest reserve. This was a must visit place in my long list so I decided to give it a go. I had been to Tempitiya temple once and the chief monk was kind enough to introduce me to a guide also I had to get permission from the Maha oya police post to make this expedition a reality. So on a Saturday we gathered at Tempitiya temple where two police officers and our guide Bandu joined us. The distance to the hot springs was around 3Km’s from the village. First 1.5km was through the chena land until Mundeni aru (Maha oya). Crossing Mundeni aru we were in to elephant country. Plenty of elephants roam around this land and there were hundreds of foot paths to justify it. We initially went through a dry zone forest patch and then entered a shrub forest which led us towards Nilgala type forest patch. At last we arrived at a vast open area where a wetland with mangroves could be seen in the center of it. This Thermal wetland is the only one remaining and the Conservationist are trying their best to name this area as a protected site. Walking around this wet land is like walking on sponge and the floor tends to swing with every step we take. The roots go horizontally creating a maze which we could walk on over the mud but one should be careful because if you step on a wrong place you would be stuck in mud. We were told that every year during the drought one or two elephants and few other animals die by drowning in this muddy warm wetland. After tackling the mangrove we reached a pond like area where we could note bubbling and steaming. The heat in the air around this lake was unbearable and we started to sweat in seconds. One foot away from the edge (the roots we were standing on) the water was extremely hot and it was not like any other hot water spring I have ever been to. Definitely this should be hotter than what they have documented (64.5⁰c) unfortunately we didn’t have a thermometer to measure it. Look at the satellite image to get a good idea about this location. The water which springs out forms a stream which leaves this mini lake and ends in a nearby major stream which in turn ends at Mundeni aru. After hanging around we came back along the same route and we did spot few elephants on the way too. There was an archeology site close to the springs where a seven hooded cobra carving could be found but we opted not to visit because of the time factor. After returning to the temple we did note that there was a seven headed cobra carving there too which was found in the nearby Tempitiya lake. After thanking each and every one we took off towards Karadiyanaru and took a detour towards beautiful Unnichchai lake and the detour was worth the effort. We then headed towards Trincomalee after a satisfied morning session.

Google map image – click to enlarge

Tempitiya lake

omanugala seen to tempitiya lake

Kohila ela / ravana ela at tempitiya

a “kon” tree

Neelimalai

maha oya / Mundeni aru

dried out

through the forest patch

pus wel

elephant foot marks

open land

easy to navigate around

it ran away

note the marshy land where the hot water springs could be found

entering the marshy land

more to go

two dogs also followed us

pleasing colours

Kaprulla hotest hot water spring in sri lanka 64.5 c

bubbling and steaming

Kapurella hot water spring

bubbling

extending further

note the mangroves

elephants do die here when they get stuck in muddy hot water

note the marshy land

the water from the spring meeting a main stream

fresh stuff

edible

plenty of foot marks

tempitiya getting ready for the “Katina poojawa”

korawak gal

note the 7 headed cobra

more ruins

half a statue

thoppigala seen over rugam lake

Rukam / Rugam lake

remnants of war

mountains of narakamulla

at Unichchai

Unnichchai tank

the spill

halted

nuwaragala seen to Unnichchai

friars hood

life	pumping drinking water

Like a painting

Kanniya hot water spring – Trincomalee (42⁰c)

After passing Trincomalee we took the Anuradhapura road and reached Kanniya hot water springs (42⁰c) and archaeology site where there were plenty of visitors hampering my attempts to get a clear shot of the site. We obviously didn’t hang around much and decided to leave the place.

Kanniya archaeology site

runis at kanniya

42 c Kanniya hot water wells

one of those wells

Rankihiriya hot water spring – Gomarankadawala (38⁰c)

From here we took off towards Anuradhapura and after passing Mora wewa we took the Gomarankadawala road. Just before reaching Gomarankadawala(4km’s from main road) there was a name board directing towards Rngiri ulpotha temple(4Km’s). This road ran through elephant country and finally ended at a temple. The temple was in good condition and we were amazed to see such a beautiful temple in the middle of the forest. There is well with walls been used by temple residents for bathing purposes and this was the hot water spring(38⁰c) we were searching for. For me this is the best well to have a peaceful hot water bath out of all others. There is an archeology site close to the well where a beautiful pagoda could be found. It’s fascinating to find ancient temples close to many of these hot water springs. This nature of the water is known to cure some skin diseases & etc according to ancient literature and that might be the reason why archeology sites could be found around these springs. From here we took off towards Anuradhapura along the new tar mac which has been completed and which was a pleasure to ride on. On our way we did have few pit stops and one was to enjoy few elephants at Maha divul wewa. We reached Chilaw at around 8pm to end a long and satisfying day.

Rangiri ulpotha arche site gomarankadawala

ruins

38c Rangiri ulpotha hot water spring at gomarankadawala

the perfect place for a hot water bath

steps to the new sthupa

new sthupa

the view

Maha divul wewa

tusker at maha divul wewa

Here are the other hot water springs I managed to visit.

Maha oya / Siyambala gas kandiya hot water springs – Maha oya (54⁰c)

It is located 2Km’s away from Maha oya town along Aralaganvila road. There are 7 wells here.

Please refer the link to see more.

Maha oya hot water wells

bubbling

Wahawa / Marangala hot water springs – Padiyathalawa (48⁰c)

To reach this one should take the road from Padiyathalawa to Uraula and take a turn to the left from Dorakumbura junction and travel 2km’s. One could also reach this site from Ekiriyankumbura. There are about 17 springs but only half of those have been tanked and used for cultivation. The main attraction is the tall pipe well. Please see this link for further information.

the high pressure hot water geyser of wahawa

continous supply

a hot water well

bubbling

Muthugalwela / Gurukumbura – Maduru oya

Absolutely nothing is known about this place and it’s located in the Maduru oya forest reserve. One Maha oya resident said once he came across an army troop who came across this place. This seems a mystery that needs to be resolved.

Kivulegama / Jayanthi wewa hot spring – Wadinagala (34⁰c)

This spring was shifted from the original locations by pipe line because Jayanthi lake was build where it was located 40 years ago. Now it’s in a privately owned land. To reach it one needs to travel along Wadinagala – Iginiyagala and reach Kivulegama where you would come across an old iron bridge. From there take the left side road towards the bund. Please refer the link for further information

Hot water spring of Kivulegama

warm luke water

Embilinna hot water spring – Inginiyagala reservoir

Currently hidden in the largest reservoir of sri lanka. Must try visiting this site during extreme droughts (if I’m lucky enough)

Mahapelessa / Madunagala hot water springs – Sooriyawewa (44⁰c)

The Famous one out of all and more towards down south not like its other cousins who are restricted to eastern province. Take the road towards Sooriya wewa from Nonagama – Embilipitiya road and take another right turn towards Mahapelessa to reach this famous place. Please refer the link for further information.

modified madunagala springs

same as others bubbling

Temperature order: - Kapurella > Nelum wewa > Maha oya > Wahawa > Mahapelessa > Kanniya > Gomarankadawala > Kivulegama

Chemical composition: - Kapurella > Kivulegama > Wahawa > Mahapelessa > Maha oya > Kanniya

Now you see how fascinating this subject is, it just deviated me away from all mountain climbing, waterfall hunting and etc. Something I found common was the nearby villages named because of the springs itself for example: – Ulpotha at Gomarankadawala, Unuwatura bubula at Maha oya & Kivulegama at Wadinagala. Also there were archaeology sites at most of these places for example: – Gomarankadawala, Kanniya, Nelum wewa, Tempitiya, Maha oya, Wahawa & Mahapelessa. Hope you enjoyed this report, So until I find something new it’s time to say adios.

Waterfalls are like a virus in my blood, simply incurable. I keep yearning to go see them whenever possible and sometimes try to make time available despite having loads of other work to do. It doesn’t really matter if I’d seen them before. I’d always try to grab even a slight opportunity to go be with them even for a few seconds.

I hope you guys have enjoyed all my Tour de Waterfalls so far and I’m gonna bring you yet another one. I’m trying to do all I can to match or even surpass the 21 Stages of Tour de France with my Tour de Waterfalls and find I’m only 10 more short. The most recent addition to my old gang, Ana is a very keen traveler who’s very much like a walking encyclopedia with plenty of insights. We’ve done some remarkable journeys since our Rail Hike in earlier this year. Most recent being the marathon hiking in Horton Plains doing three major trails in three consecutive days.

So when I came up with the idea of visiting in and around Bambarakanda as the water levels were better than most of the time, Ana jumped in with both hands. Atha and Prasa the usual tough cookies that join me in many journeys too decided to have a go while my old uncle, Tony decided to break the ice saying that he’d skipped too many trips and now getting too jittery and old for these kinda games. After doing the initial planning and booking the Bambarakanda Rest and arranging Ranjith to be there to guide us through we set the dates and waited impatiently for the set date.

Just to let you know folks that I did a comprehensive Tour of Bambarakanda last year with Ranjith. It was all about walking, hiking and climbing up and down for three consecutive days that tested my poor legs to almost their breaking point. From that experience, I knew he was a very good guide who you can trust on a journey like that which is, for me, the most important thing. You can read about that by clicking on the link above.

Day 01

Having got together at our usual time, 3 am in Koswaththa we left for Bambarakanda while most of the rest of the country was dreaming and snoring. It was good to have the old uncle with us who provided the free entertainment along with Prasa all along the journey. We reached Bambarakanda Rest around 6.45am while the sun was lighting the surrounding mountains with his golden brown rays. There was a slight chill in the air and breathing this fresh mountain air is the best medicine for cold and sore throat which I was suffering for a long time.

I immediately felt better and at the sight of Bambarakanda Falls, the tallest girl in SL, made my day. She had more water, at least more than my last visit, and was looking radiant in the morning. We parked the vehicle and went inside for a warm welcome by Mrs. Mayakaduwa and her daughter Erandi who served us with tea and coffee. We were staying in one of the two cottages there. The walls were built using mud and had the look of a typical rural house. It can easily accommodate 8-16 people and has 4 rooms and a large living area and a verandah as well. Two washrooms are located at the back and with hot water.

We unpacked and got everything ready while they prepared our breakfast, Rotti with a Dhal Curry and Lunu Miris. Some cowpea was also served with freshly scraped coconut and we had a bellyful breakfast and were ready to go. It was so good to see Ranjith again and together we left for our hike that turned out to be tougher than we anticipated.

Tour Highlights: 

1. Bambarakanda Falls.
2. Lanka Ella.
3. Yahalathenna Ella.
4. Bambarakanda Upper Falls.
5. Diyaluma aka Jalaja Pahana aka Vismitha Falls of Sri Lanka.
6. Galkanda aka Nisansala Falls.
7. Surathali Falls.
8. Brampton Falls.
9. Ellepola Falls.
10. Collection of Panos.

There’s a new development at Bambarakanda Falls now as the Pradeshiya Sabha has built a path, viewing platform and a couple of toilets. They now have a ticket counter that charges Rs. 30/- from local adults and Rs. 20/- for kids.

Bambarakanda Falls

We bought the tickets and started walking along the now well cleared footpath. The closer we got to her, the taller she looked. The Pradehsiya Sabha seems to be doing a decent job of keeping the place nice and tidy even though our careless visitors had left many liquor bottles, beer cans and all the other junk. They were cleaning the toilets when we went past them. The path now has cement steps and a hand railing almost to the base of the falls.

At the base, they’ve built a viewing platform with plenty of space and even left a few cement benches for visitors to sit and enjoy the view. However despite their notice asking not to scribble on the surrounding, we saw many idiotic people have written on the tree trunks. Ana beat us all including Ranjith to the base and was merrily shooting away when we came up panting.

The sheer height of this beautiful lady is enough to make you feel like a dwarf, very tiny one at that. You’re bound to get a sore neck if you try to look at her from the top for a long time. The sky overhead was royal blue with a nice checked pattern in the sky with white cotton wool. The water drops kept splashing on our bare skin sending a chill down our spines. After a while, we left for Lanka Ella.

Good Morning Bambarakanda

Right on cue

Pine top

A4 seen

Hi Sexy Lady!

Balathuduwa and Gon Molliya Range

First of Red

There’s the second

And the third

This one is one of a kind

Where we stayed

From the front

The verandah

The reason why it’s called Jack Tree

The Oldies

Changing the attire

What a view

Armed with everything

Flowery frame

What a lovely pic

The top with the rock formation

Now cleared path

The bridge modified

Resting places too

Steps and the railing

Towards the base

She’s unbelievably beautiful

The triple layered base

Sheer height

Bending inwards

Base	The sky with cotton wool pattern

Team at the base of Bambarakanda. Pic by: Ana

Lanka Ella

The climbing up along the pine forest was full of needles and loose rocks which made walking very dangerous. Most of the times I wished we were like those mountain goats who can climb with no problem along any steep or slippery surface. Nevertheless, Ana kept going well ahead of us and we managed to cross the pine forest and enter the Mana patch that kept brushing at our bare skin and made it itchy.

We could see the Wangedigala, Bala Thuduwa and Gon Molliya Range clearly to our left. Looking at Wangedigala brought back the memories of climbing down through the dense forest infested with many poisonous snakes and spiders all the way to the Seven Basins in my previous visit. It brought a smile to Ranjith’s face as well. The sky was very clear and had a few stray clouds scattered about. The mist hung stubbornly at the Gon Molliya summit and to our right.

We were walking along a valley and beyond the mountains in the distance lies the gorgeous Horton Plains, a place very close to my heart. The water stream that feeds Lanka Ella and then goes further downhill created another tiny falls. I can remember Hariya getting down to this in his solo visit but the water levels were not so great making me change my mind about getting down. The sun beat on us mercilessly in the open terrain. We walked towards Lanka Ella named by Mrs. Mayakaduwa’s husband who’s passed away some 18 years before.

The base pool of this falls is very much like Sri Lanka map thus making him name Lanka Ella. She had more water than my previous visit and we enjoyed some chocolate at this point while being splashed by this mischievous girl. The virgin water tasted ever so good and we took our leave after a bit hoping to get to the top of her on our way towards Yahalathenna Falls. We retraced our steps back uphill and then took a left and in no time reached the top of the Lanka Ella. There’s a whole pine tree kept across the water stream as a bridge but you need a bit of summersault skills too to cross this along that.

We got to the top and enjoyed some quiet moments. It felt heavenly to be in the midst of never ending greenery all around and a royal blue umbrella overhead. Time was getting shorter so we very reluctantly decided to go search for Yahalathenna Ella that’s located somewhat deep in the jungle.

There they go

What a place to make home

The ground is cluttered with pine needles

Tiring

Ana playing the alien

Scenic

Wangedigala

The modern Farr arrived at Bambarakanda

Wonderful patterns

The HP beyond all these

Just look at the colors

Gon Molliya

Endless

Rastha clouds

The lower Lanka Falls

Seen from afar

The water colors

Here she is

The base

The sky with beautiful colors

Look closer, the base pool has the shape of Sri Lanka

The top

Going down

Remember the triple jump champ going to Rio in 2016?

“See ya lady”

The sun bringing the purple tinge of the leaves

The never ending picturesque mountains

Ranjith, the trustworthy companion

Many colors with patterns

Here we go

Well, I’ve run out of words

You can see the path along the Mana

Perfect Pose

This bit was a bit tricky

Felt like a king

Some funny moments with grand poses. Pic by: Ana

The tail

Not edible

The water stream that makes Lanka Ella

Here the top

And plunging down

Yahalathenna Falls

She’s a hidden beauty and one needs to follow the path that runs across the water stream of Lanka Ella. After about half a km or so, you’ll enter the tea plantation and going another 200-300m along this, you have to get down to the stream and then follow it uphill for another 300-400m till you find the breath-taking Yahalathenna Falls.

Climbing down towards the stream was not so easy as the slope was way too steep and we had to be very cautious. Entering the jungle and going through that wasn’t easy. We were bothered by a few leeches on the way but not very much. The journey turned out to be tougher than we anticipated even though I had done it before. However, there was no stopping of Ana and the Co. who kept up their pace with Ranjith.

Prasa, as usual decided to walk sandwiched by the rest of the team not because he was scared but he loved the company of others. After a laborious task, we finally arrived at the beautiful Yahalathenna Falls who had more water. She was taller than Lanka Ella and we felt all the hard work was worth to be here. We waited about 20 mins admiring this beauty and decided to get back as the climbing uphill was going to be more challenging as the time was getting to noon.

The clouds getting together

Sheer climbing right throughout

Here comes the hero

Hathawariya

Big tree trunks

You can see how difficult it is

Yellow

The Yahalathenna with the cave in the middle

The water is pumping out

The base

Taking a break

Water making a big pyramid

Side angle

See ya lady

Bambarakanda Upper Falls

We climbed up about a km and reached the main road which is still in worse condition. They’d done the road some way beyond the Bambarakanda Rest but not for long. Climbing up took a heavy tall on the team and we stopped every now and then for a breather. After what felt like an eternity, we arrived on the road and sat down on the rocky ledge to give a rest for our battered muscles and bones.

The clouds gathered over the mountains bordering the Horton Plains and we knew the rain was imminent. Ana put on his raincoat while we sought the shelter under the umbrellas but after a mild drizzle it wore off and we felt better. The most tiring and challenging bit was yet to come as we took the downhill path through the pine forest towards the top of Bambarakanda Falls.

With a difficulty we arrived on the top to see the Bambarakanda Upper Falls. Just note that there’s yet another upper part of the Bambarakanda Upper Falls that you can see coming down from the road. Unfortunately, it’s not possible to get there, and we didn’t even try as it looked more dangerous. The Upper Falls is also about 30ft in height and has more water. Looking at the surrounding from the top of Bambarakanda is something you must experience.

To our horror, there were charcoal-grey clouds forming and coming towards us from Beragala-Koslanda side. The wind picked up bringing some water drops making us hurry with our picture taking and running to grab the umbrellas. This time it was for real and no stopping after a drizzle. We hurried up the path back trying to join the downhill path when all hell broke loose bringing heavy rains and winds. It was very hard to keep the umbrellas upright but the pine trees slowed down the rain somewhat making it not so difficult.

The pine needles got wet in the rain and we found it a little easier to walk on them but the loose rocks were an extreme hazard. You had to remain in constant alert and we kept walking looking at the ground like meditating monks to avoid any slip. The umbrellas provided very little comfort and we kept getting soaked in the ice cold water and Tony simply gave up and came in the heavy rains.

When we reached the ticket counter, the rain had eased and we saw the water coming from the top of Bambarakanda had turned into brown due to the mud washed down with the rain. It was past 3.30pm when we got back, being on the constant run for a good 8+ hours. We all were born tired and after a cold bath, went and had our lunch.

The evening wore off amid all the pleasantries and we settled down for the night after a hearty dinner in the comfort of our beds. It was very cold, about 15-16 degrees and we were thankful for those cozy and thick blankets.

Climbing out of the forest. Pic by: Ana

Exhausted

Not seen them before

Tea flower

Tree well

The uphill journey we had to take

The view

Taking a break

Here one of them I got

Dotted

Here it’s the men who do the plucking

Towards Walawe Basin

Tricky bit to cross

Here the water stream so far high that feeds the Lanka Ella

Wondering when to get to the road

Many cascades

Patterns on the rock

Getting darker

Laughing at a joke

The team. Pic by: Ana

The rain is heading towards us

Prasa telling many stories to Ana

Different kinda rock formation

Heaven is that way

Icing on the cake

One of the many hairpin bends

The Green Jacket

Made like a seat

Not much to go

Tony and Prasa heading in front

Framed pic of the road

Bambarakanda Upper Falls

From the front

Bottom

The top

This time it’s for real

Check the snaking road

The top of Bambarakanda

Just before the top

View

Finally at the falls

The sun is setting

The mountains in the twilight

Prasa animatedly talking about something

Day 02

We as usual were up and about by 5.30am and hurriedly did the morning chores. By 6am, we had changed into our hiking attire, deposited our baggage into the vehicle and were sitting down ready for the breakfast of Tempered Dried Fish, Coconut Sambol and Dharl Curry with Steaming Rice. Simultaneously we had our tea as well coz we wanted to leave as early as possible. From the dining room, we could see the never ending beauty of Bambarakanda Falls.

The mountains were under the shadow of other mountains but gradually the sun came up lighting the Gon Molliya, Bala Thuduwa and then top of Bambarakanda. It was a sight worth seeing million times and it will still not be enough to satisfy us. After the meal, having thanked Mrs. Mayakaduwa profusely for her great hospitality we left for Diyaluma Falls.

Here the colors

And now

Time to go

Diyaluma Falls

We reached Kalupahana and went up towards Beragala where we took the Wellawaya Road passing Koslanda to visit the 3^rd highest waterfall in SL, or the 361^st in the whole world (according to Wikipedia), the mighty Diyaluma. According to the notice board at the falls, she’s also called Jalaja Pahana and Wishmitha Falls of SL. This was something very new for us. However, the notice board mistakenly rates this being the 62^nd highest in the world. Wonder how on earth they came about that or who’s correct. Further, the Wikipedia states Diyaluma is the second highest falls in SL which is not correct as it’s the Kurundu Oya Ella. So the facts are varied and hard to pinpoint on one thing.

Passing Koslanda brought back the memories of the Meeriyabadda Landslides which stole around 3 dozens innocent human lives. Driving along the A4 looking at the Walawe Basin to our right was a magnificent view. We could see miles into the horizon bathed in the morning sunshine. All along the road there were signs of landslides and it must’ve been a very scary experience travelling along this road during that heavy rainy season.

We arrived at Diyaluma Falls around 7.30am and wow, what a sight she really was. Even though I’d seen see before, sometime in 2011, this was a completely different Diyaluma I saw. The foliage either side of her is now no more and below there’s a new bridge built. The menacing looking rocky boulder is spitting this gigantic water stream straight downwards falling nearly 700ft to the base crashing on the rocks all around.

Even Diyaluma has some sad stories behind her and one of the shop owners close by told us that he saw the tragic accident of one boy falling down while attempting to climb down her setting a new record time. Nevertheless, the beauty of this tall lady with long legs never ceases to amaze the passers-by. After having for ourselves nearly half hour and drinking a king coconut, we decided to go looking for the sexy Galkanda aka Nisansala Falls at Nikapotha.

Click image to enlarge

Here we go

Beautiful one she is

See the foliage that used to be around is gone now

The base

The thick top

Beautiful colors

Brilliant one

Next to the bridge

She’s devouring on something

See the kid on her lap

Good one

Sweet

Time to go

Galkanda aka Nisansala Falls

She’s located about 17.5km from Diyaluma and 5.5km from Beragala Junction. She’s a miniature version of Ramboda Oya Falls that has three parts. Similarly she too has 3 parts and from the road you can clearly see the Center Falls and the top of the Upper Falls as well. However, there’s a path with steps to go see the Upper Falls. The path with steps in fact leads to a nearby village. On the right hand side, the water falls under the bridge and makes a beautiful and taller Lower Falls.

This is a very beautiful one but my attempts at getting down to the base of the lower part failed. It’d’ve been lovely had I been able to get down and see the lower part from the bottom. Leaving her, we stopped to take a few pics of the basin below us and the mountains in the distance at Kalupahana.

The middle Galkanda

Look at the bridge and the gates through

Steps that go to the village but can also use to reach the top one

Upper Galkanda

Top

Bottom

The bending road and the bridge

Here’s the best one, the Lower Galkanda

Very beautiful

The lower part, note the pipe line

The top of her

We’re going

Showing the arrogance. Pic by: Ana

Looking at us shyly. Pic by: Ana

Walawe Basin

Towards the Kalupahana

Surathali Ella, Brampton Ella & Ellepola Ella

We got back on the main road and headed back towards Kalupahana. Just a small tip, you can also visit the remains of the Old Portuguese Fort at Haldummulla. There’s an archaeology department notice at the Old Haldummulla Town and you have to take the footpath that leads to the remains in the middle of a pine forest.

Arriving at the 168/3 bridge where the playful Surathali Ella around 9.00am brought us to a halt. We got off and went on the clear footpath for about 50m at the base of this beautiful girl. She too has a similarity of Saree Ella, with a long and thin stream coming along the rock at an angle before taking a turn and falling to the base.

After her, we went to see another beautiful girl about 3km towards Belihul Oya called Brampton Falls. She’s at the 165/10 bridge and now can be seen from the main road as the foliage around her is now cleared probably by the Brampton Estate itself. Water levels were good and we got close to her and took half a dozen pictures without taking a breath. The intensity of the previous day’s hike was affecting the whole team but we carried on till we reached the Ellepola where Ellepola Falls is located. Others were too tired to get down to take a few pictures of her so I went all alone and took some of her. The water levels were good, very much similar to what we saw last time with Hasi and Tony Mama.

Afterwards, some hungry travelers stopped at Rathnagiri Bakers at Opanayake for lunch. The place is very good and the food is also tasty and worth the price you pay.

The path to Surathali

The thin line

Here us

We were wondering why she was hiding at an angle

Curving center

The lower part

Going back

The Brampton can now be seen from the road

The 165/10 bridge

There she is

The falls is so good

Portrait

The top

The small dam that diverts water

The lower part of her

The top of Ellepola Ella

Water sliding along the rock

Here is the top but the falls is some way down

There she falls

Beautiful falls

Two sections

The bottom

The Kabaraya

Look at the tongue

Well, there you go folks, another Tour de Waterfall of mine and I do hope you enjoyed this episode as well like you did the rest.

It was a very pleasing experience being with these beautiful girls and I really enjoyed getting it across to you.

Keep travelling and I hope we’d’ve had a nice time at the Lakdasun Gathering by the time you read this.

Take care and enjoy the breath-taking Panos below.

Cheerio,

Sri…

Collection of Panos

Pano 1

Pano 2

Pano 3

Pano 4

Pano 5

Pano 6

Pano 7

Pano 8

Waterfalls have played a major part in my life in 2014. I’ve been going all over the up country searching for pristine white beauties with many of my friends and the hunting was a runaway success. As the rainy season shifted from South-West to North-East, that had been long overdue, I too decided to shift my focus from hill country to somewhere else. This was not because I’d lost interest in my beloved waterfalls, but just wanted to have a change of scene. However very little did I know even though I wanted a change of scene from hill country, I’d end up yet another hilly place.

Staying at home, doing nothing in my weekend can depress me to no end. It’ll further increase when the darn weekend falls on a weekday. There’s a limit that I can sleep so when I knew I was in for yet another useless two days of weekend, I wanted to scream my head off. Amid all the confusion I browsed Lakdasun looking for somewhere to go and I hit the jackpot after a few tries. Ritigala has always been a mystery to me as much as to anyone else. So the need to go see was like a sleeping lion in me, or rather a semi-active volcano, bubbling inside trying to burst the outer crust.

Having failed to find a mate for this hastily arranged journey, I decided to do another solo stunt. Thinking back, I’ve only done 2 solo stunts before out of all the journeys. So this came as the third and I hope it’ll be the last as travelling alone is such a bore. There’s no one to talk to and make plans, it can also be a pain having to satisfy the curious people who are only interested in getting information from me, not giving the information to me.

So thankfully I got a very useful contact number from Ashan and called Dayarathna (Daya for his close friends) who was very cheerful and helpful. However, he said that the rains have started their sing-song and for me to be ready. Well, what on earth was there to be ready other than either call the whole thing off or go get soaked to the bones? I went home on the 18^th evening, still undecided whether to go ahead or not. Around 8pm, I was beginning to sweat profusely and had begun to feel feverish too. These symptoms had only one cure, to cut lose and go somewhere.

Day 01

Having called Daya, I got ready to go and slept fitfully till 4am. Getting up, I saw plenty of mist hanging around in the air and on tree tops. I washed my face quickly to make sure that I wasn’t dreaming or I wasn’t in Nuwara Eliya. This was the sign of the Winter had arrived and the chill sent shivers down my spine. I got ready and reached the Fort Station around 5.15am, way too early for the 6.05am train. It was the Udaya Devi Train that runs to Batticaloa. Even though, Podi Menike has been my favorite train to date, not so after the name used on those S-12 Chinese power sets, Udaya Devi took a very good impression on me immediately. Powered by M8 engine, a clone of former Canadian Engine, built in India she had those newly acquired blue and white stripped wagons giving it a matching color combination of the dark blue engine.

During my wait amid less crowded Fort Station unlike on weekends, there was the newly introduced AC Express train to Jaffna that leaves Fort at 5.50am. Finally Udaya Devi reached the number 4 platform in her majestic style and waited for her passengers to get on board. The 2^nd class was not at all crowded giving a wider array of seats. It actually made most people go haywire as they simply couldn’t make up their minds about where to sit. They kept hopping from one to the other and then realizing the former was better than the current one, and then going and sitting somewhere else.

It was so fun to watch this drama unfolding and the sun had a tough time penetrating the thick layer of clouds. The seats however were too straight for my liking; it makes you sit upright right throughout the journey with no option to angle it back even slightly. This is the only thing I didn’t like about the train and it was a big mistake by the designers. At the chime of 6.05am, she pulled out of the station sending a jolt through my bones.

Away she went passing the smoky and stinking Colombo suburbs, adding more poisonous black smoke to already over smoked city sky. Reaching the wetlands and swamps in around Ragama and then towards Gampaha in the wee hours was a treat for the eye and the mind. The mist had come in full force the previous night covering the lush green marshlands and paddy fields with her white cloth. I felt so cold when the train went cutting through the morning mist that had hung across the railway line. This was a journey to treasure. The trees stood in the distance amid paddy fields and wetlands covered in mist giving it a ghostly impression. Something you usually experience in Nuwara Eliya, the pine trees covered in mist. If it wasn’t for the paddy field and stretches of open marshy lands, one could’ve easily mistaken the surrounding to be Nuwara Eliya.

Tour Highlights: 

1. Awkana Buddha Statue
2. Kala Wewa
3. Vijithapura RMV
4. Ritigala Archaeological Remains and Una Kanda
5. Andiyakanda Hermitage

The train journey was nice and smooth and I had the carriage pretty much for myself. What irritated me somewhat was Udaya Devi retouching her make up at Maho Junction. She kept looking at herself this way and that way still not satisfied, finally when she managed to make up her mind about her look, we were late by more than half hour. My plans nearly were shot to hell. From Maho, it’s the thick forest and isolated villages the train runs through. It’s very sad to know this is the most evil track for elephants in SL. Hundreds of jumbos have sacrificed their lives for the Iron Monster between Maho and Batticaloa despite various unsuccessful measures taken by our authorities.

The time table from 5.40am (Click image to enlarge)

@ Maho

Having a bath

Changing the sides

Overseeing the operation

The rainy clouds in the distance

Curious

Awkana Buddha Statue

Finally, after 4.5 hrs of travelling, I was on the platform at Aukana looking left and right feeling completely lost. I reached the main road (Galnewa-Kekirawa) and found a tuk-tuk and headed towards the statue while the laden skies decided to unburden themselves. It was pouring with rain by the time I reached the temple and had no umbrella to go up to the statue. Thankfully, Niroshan, the tuk-tuk driver had a jacket which he lent me. Using that I managed to reach the temple and keeping my cap as a cover for my camera (thanking my wisdom for sticking with point-n-shoot not with mortar-sized SLR), went towards this beautifully carved Buddha Statue.

I was stopped in my tracks, the rain was pouring over my exposed head, the cap was getting soaked leaking water onto the camera but I was frozen at the sight of this majestic creation. The police officer and another fella kept firing questions at me and they all fell on deaf ears as I was too busy admiring this gigantic and sensational rocky statue. This was a master piece created by the best artists at that time. Every nook and corner with carved with such precision and smoothness, I felt awed by simply looking up the serene looking Buddha.

It’s said and believed a drop of rainwater, detaching itself from the tip of the nose of the statue, would drop in perpendicular into the small depression (providing there’s no wind) carved between the big toes of the statue. It shows the sheer skill and accuracy in those days. I felt proud of our ancestors but sadly can’t say the same thing now. When the rain was too much for me to stay closer, I borrowed an umbrella from one of the tourists and went and took some more pics.

They’re planning to build a roof covering the statue in order to protect it from winds, rain and piercing sun. Whether this will pay dividends is yet to be seen. Having worshipped and said my prayers I left donating a small amount to the foundation and got back in the tuk-tuk in search of Vijithapura RMV.

Good bye Udaya Devi

Here I am

Majestic looking Buddha

Closer

The Stupa near the statue

The plaque symbolizing the visit of Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip with then President J. R. Jayawardena back in 1981

Simply unbelievable craftsmanship

Side view

Raining very hard

Can’t believe this is done out of rock

Upper part

And the lower, would be a sight to see bathed in flood lights

Very old

Kala Wewa and Vijithapura RMV

The sky was heavily pregnant with water and looked at me gloomily. I stopped on the bund of this mighty creature pondering of King Dathusena who had built many tanks and canals. Unfortunately, his fate was sealed at the Kala Wewa itself when his son, gone insane killed him by burying him alive on the bund of this tank.

My next stop was Vijithapura RMV, a temple believed to have been built by King Dutugemunu after defeating Elara. Vijithapura is supposed to be the great battlefield where King Dutugemunu re-united the country defeating South Indian invaders. The rains had eased by the time I got off the tuk-tuk and went in, having paid Rs. 400/- for Niroshan for his troubles. The Stupa is something I hadn’t seen anywhere before with a uniquely design structure. I’ll let the pics do the explaining. There were many remains of ancient civilizations.

Out of all the historical remains, the “Kadu Ge Gala” (The rock where the swords were sharpened) is the main highlight. It’s believed this was used to sharpen the swords by King Dutugemunu and his soldiers. The rock itself is showing so much erosion in the middle proving it was very heavily used. Bidding farewell to this historic place I got into a bus and reached Kekirawa in the middle of yet another heavy shower.

Kala Wewa

Water levels increasing

One of the many sluice gates for canals

Isolated

At the temple

Majestic

With the thousands of years old stone pillars

One of the beautiful Stupa’s I’ve seen

The top of it

Famous Rock where the swords were sharpened

Showing heavy use, that sword is not a real one

You know what these are

Some more

Another

The main image house but not open at the time, thanks to treasure hunters

The steps to the Stupa

On the left

And the right

The full package

Towards the top, this looks like a king worshipping but the head is broken

Seeking some warmth

Remains

Foundation of a former complex

Another

Mmm, mouth watering

Scattered across

Fully stone

The official logo of the Department of Irrigation nowadays

Many more across the road too

Keeriyagaswewa, Ritigala

Daya was waiting for at Kekirawa and after a hasty lunch, we wanted to the go see some more archaeological remains in a place called Divulwewa but the intermittent showers made the decision for us. Having abandoned our plans, we reached his house in Keeriyagaswewa, right in front of Ritigala Visitor Centre and settled for the night.

The jumbos usually roam around the area at will but I wasn’t lucky enough to see any. However I took the opportunity to roam about the Ritigala Visitor Centre and take some pics. Then it was time to call it a day and go to sleep. So after a wash and a heavy dinner I was fast asleep the moment my head hit the pillow. It was a very good night with no troubles from jumbos and I slept without a dream till 6am.

Note: Before I get up, just wanna keep you guys in the loop about another blunder by the officials. They had started a project very much similar to Udawalawa Ath Athuru Sewana called “Ritigala Ath Athuru Sewana” and was open to the public. Having spent millions of public money for this, now they’d simply abandoned the whole thing and giving away the remaining baby elephants to places even the wildlife officials have no clue.

So this is yet another blunder by the officials and I guess mainly the politicians. I also received some inside information from someone who likes to remain anonymous that the number of baby elephants that were stolen in the recent past is well over 100. This is very reliable information coming directly from the people who know it for a fact. Just imagine the plight of those poor fellows having no freedom and separated from the warmth of their mothers and care of the families.

Instead they are kept as a symbol of status by those who can pay large sums in either bribes or illegally to those corrupt officials and politicians. Unfortunately many tourists, especially the foreigners, get misled by these boards which are located at Kekirawa Town, Galapitagala Turn off and near the premises too. Someone has written on the board close to the premises with some paint “Wasa Atha” or “Closed” trying in vain to keep the tourists informed about it not functioning anymore.

Buildings of visitor center

The range

Kodi Gala

Rest of the range

Only the boards

Causeway aka Shoe Bridge

Against the dark sky

Huge mushroom

The full package

The old board

Built in 2008

Open to the public

Either side of the entrance

The other

The pathway

Higher up

The summit over the roof

Do this please

Interior

Towards the cafeteria

The prison is around the corner

A big complex

Like walking through a jungle. Reminds of a theme park in Malaysia or Singapore?

The icing in the distant

Can’t get enough of it

Colorful fella

Water dripping off

Some more

Day 02

Nothing beats a good night’s sleep which was exactly I had last night making me feel nice and fresh in the morning. The wildlife kept making various kinda noises throughout adding flavor to the music industry. I had big plans for the day and hurriedly got dressed and was about by 6.30am while the sun was fighting a fierce battle with the clouds. The clouds were not in the mood to give in and instead gathered so thickly covering the tip of Ritigala as if icing on a cake.

With Daya, I went to see the Keeriyagaswewa Tank in the hope of seeing a jumbo but the Nuwara Eliya-esque climate kept them hidden deep in the jungle, probably still snoring loudly. Unfortunately, the renovated tank in 2008, now in a very bad shape as there hasn’t been any maintenance. We saw some foot marks of the elephants and had to be content with that. The Rigitala Range with 7 peaks was covered in mist and were looking absolutely breath-taking in the morning.

It was time to have an early breakfast and Daya got one of his cuisine brothers, Thissa to accompany me to Ritigala. Thissa is a very good fellow with loads of knowledge about Ritigala and its historical value. He claims that he’s visited Ritigala more than 100 times covering most of its area. After talking to him, I came to believe that he knows what he was talking about. So time to go see the Majestic and Tranquil Kingdom of Ritigala.

Daya and Son

Posing shyly

The path towards the Archaeological Site

Keeriyagaswewa Tank

The right plank of mighty Ritigala

One of the peaks

This is the left plank

Very hard to get a clear pic…

Busy early morning despite being so old

Pinkies up in the morning too

Some yellows too

Not edible, unfortunately

Daya’s son keeping an eye out

The last in the herd

He could drive this as good as any

Ritigala Archaeological Remains and Una Kanda

Facts on Ritigala in Pics:

Do check the information given at the Visitor Centre that I took on my lenses below. It helps to check the pics rather and reading them I guess. Then let’s go to the fairy tale bit.

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There’s 2km of muddy road till the archaeological site of Ritigala from the Visitor Centre. This has many pot holes and extremely slippery even after a slight drizzle. Low clearance vehicle such as a car will have a rough journey, so better to avoid going in one. Instead, you can walk this 2km along a nice and shady road or use your jeep, van or 4X4. If none of them suits you, hire Daya’s tuk-tuk from the Visitor Centre which I did.

The sky looked threatening and very dark; the picture became even gloomier inside the forest-covered road. We reached the archaeological site around 8am and obtained the permission to go see them from the officer on site. I felt it was a pity they didn’t charge anything to see them as anything given for free has very little value. Hope they will start charging to enter the site in future.

As soon as we entered the site, there were remains of what looked like a big tank and Thissa duly informed me that it is called “Panda Wewa”. There were these huge rocky slabs (must be about H x W x D = 4’ x 1’ x 0.5’) used as the outer wall making it a set of steps that lead to the tank gradually. I was immediately fascinated by the sheer ingenuity of this structure. These rocky slabs were placed so close to each other and they must’ve used some kinda very special cement mixture to keep them in place and retain the water without any leaks. I even heard that those days, they used bee-honey as well in those special cement mixtures.

Passing this, we kept going uphill along the well-paved 10-12ft wide rocky path. Similar kind of rocky slabs used to border the path wile even wider ones were used along the path placing them closer to each other making a nice path with steps where necessary and resting places too. I was lost for words and was staring at these wonderful creations as if they were talking to me. I was hypnotized by the ingenuity and creativity of our ancestors. Everywhere I looked, there was abundant evidence to the mastery of our former architectural skills.

Thissa gave a running commentary over the ruins telling me of their significance. I was a kid once again listening to a very interesting history lesson from his teacher. One such extraordinarily place was the remains of the ancient hospital. There were many rocky mills, where they used to grind medicine. The rocks looked heavily used over years of grinding and blending many different medicinal leaves, flowers and barks. There were a couple of medicinal boats in which the patients were submerged in medicinal liquids. To the center of the complex there was the place where the seriously injured were treated. A rocky bed was laid with a fascinating drainage system to remove the urine and bowels.

The whole mountain range was self-sufficient in every way. There were medicinal gardens, fruit gardens and tanks along with watch towers and their own hospital. This was a very modern living system created some thousands of years ago in this country that was beyond the wildest dreams of many others at the time.

At the archaeological remains

Some of them kept in front

Mud-walled Office

Here we go

Panda Tank

See how neatly it’s done

Path

Very big

Scattered all around

Shady path but no sun to disturb us

Circling around these obstacles

Going up

Beginning of the mile long rocky stairway

Climbing all the while

Resting places

Just can’t get enough of these

Rounding paths

Goes on

A huge complex

Must’ve been a grand construction in the past

The ancient hospital

Remains

Where they blended the medicine

Medicinal boats

Where the severely injured was treated

Drains

Sandy path

Many more to see

To another level

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Amid the trees

Never ending

Almost 150-200m long this direct stretch

Not explored properly yet

Gigantic trees

To the watch tower

Closer

Here it is

Going up

The solidly built walls

View not clear due to gloominess

This is believed to be the pillow used by the guards to rest. Just imagine having to rest on a rocky pillow this big, the guard must’ve been so big

From the watch tower

Much much more

Higher ground

More resting places

Another of buildings

Looks very well planned

Must be the most artistic commode

Framed

This is a meditating chamber

Time to go see the Bamboo Mountain

Passing all these we went further up. Our target was to reach one of the seven summits of Ritigala called Una Kanda. Others are Andiya Kanda, Awshadha Kanda, Amarapathi Kanda, Na Ulpath Kanda, Palathuru Kanda and Kodi Kanda. Out of these, Kodi Kanda aka Kodi Gala is the highest summit point with a height of 766m.

The forest was so dense and there was no sunlight, though there was very little of it, coming through the thick tree cover. Led by Thissa we started the ascent amid a moderate trail uphill. There were a few snakes that went across the path at intervals sending fear through the ears. However, Thissa was unfazed by any of that and kept climbing. It was tough going and the humidity was unbearable despite it being so cold the previous night and early morning.

Closer to the viewing points, the going became a bit treacherous as the terrain was soaked in rain and all the rocks were as slippery as an eel’s back. Finally, with a lot of going around and hanging dearly for tree branches, we were at the viewing point but the dark umbrella overhead didn’t help the visibility at all. The Kodi Gala, highest point of Ritigala, rather the whole of North Central and Northern Province combined, was to our right covered by the mist. While thick grey clouds were going overhead towards Minneriya, Dambulla and Matale.

The weather held all the time but now the rain was imminent, so without wasting any more time, having done a very quick documentary we started our descent while the rain started hammering the tree cover above us. I panicked big time but thankfully, the rain gods took pity on us as they sent it farther away after a short burst. We made to the office where Daya was waiting patiently for us. It was time to go see the last of the tour highlights, Andiyakanda Hermitage.

Some more mammoth trees

Mushy mushrooms

Artistic

Just look at the path

Now the thick forest

Goes up around these

Colorful

Wasps’ nest

Full of snakes too

Twisting

Towards Habarana, Minneriya and Pollonnaruwa

Kodi Kanda covered in mist

Thissa giving a running commentary

Where we went in the middle

Zoomed

Got back

Daya must be waiting

Majestic and Mysterious Ritigala

Andiyakanda Hermitage

This is located about 2km from the Ritigala Visitor Centre along Keeriyagaswewa-Galapitagala Road. You need to take a similar road to the Archaeological Site for about another 2km which is also not in good condition for a car. The road is among the forest and Daya kept a close watch for jumbos. I was yearning for them to appear but none of them did for my disappointment. Daya’s little son too came with us.

We could see the Andiyakanda in the middle of the mountain range. According to folklore, one old person had been told about a treasure at Andiyakanda and was specifically asked to take only a small amount. However the sheer greediness of the human nature took the better of him and he went inside the cave on the Andiyakanda for more and more treasure. Sounds like Ali Baba and 40 Thieves, doesn’t it? As a punishment for his greediness, once he was inside the cave, one huge rock had fallen barring the entrance trapping him inside.

Listening to all these fairy tales, we reached the hermitage which was so calm and quiet save for the wind rustling the leaves, birds, mainly peacocks, making different tunes and our feet crunching on the gravel. The monks were having their meals and without disturbing them, we went for a look see. There were many caves with drip ledges. The outer walls have now been built using bricks and cement making them protect from insects and other animals for the monks.

After a brief tour, we got back to the alms hall where the monks were doing the post-meal rituals. There was a tiny deer named “Bindu”. It had been wounded on the thigh and now receiving treatments from these monks. The chief monk was very kind and understandably even Bindu felt it as it kept running towards him whenever a stranger or some fearful noise was heard. After a short stay, we returned to the tuk-tuk and were on our way to the Galapitagala Junction. I then bid farewell to my hosts and got into a bus to Habarana from where I took a very fast bus to Colombo.

Our last destination

Finally the mist drifted off. Can see some Elephant poo on the road

Here’s the Andiya Kanda

Entering the Monastery

Do read this. (Click image to enlarge)

Water beginning to find new paths

Through the dense forest

The main alms hall

Going uphill

The Bo Tree is around the corner

Here it is

One of the modified caves. Note the drip-ledges

A close up of a drip-ledge

Choco and Creamy Mushroom

Backwards

Another similar cave

It’s believed the whole of Ritigala housed some 500+ Arhath Bhikkus during Aritta Thero’s era

Another drip-ledge but very special

Coz of these writings

Few more

Here’s Bindu

Can’t stand properly due to the injury

Seeking protection under the Saffron Robe

Compassion

Knows no harm will come to him

Here’s the wound being treated by the monks

Time to go

The stupidity of the officials

Check the couple of Panos I took:

Well, folks, that’s the fairy tale of this unbelievably beautiful and tranquil place. You’re bound to be awed by its history and the majestic craftsmanship of our ancestors.

Do pay a visit if you already haven’t done so. This is Sri signing off for now and hoping to see you once again with another journey…

Until then, be safe and keep travelling.

Adiós!

Sri…

The travelling frenzy started nice and proper when a gang of us (Tony, Hari, Dhana, Thilini, Harsha, Wumi, Prince and Me) got together and went to Bathalegala in Mar, 2013. Since then, for the last 20 months, it’s been travelling from one end to the other with scarcely a few breaks. The Lakdasun Gathering in Feb, 2014 triggered this as we met so many other like-minded travelers. We just had yet another on the 23 Nov at Muthurajawela doing something worthwhile for the nature cleaning up the polythene and plastic filled Hamilton Canal. Hopefully this too will form new friendships that will lead to more travelling and greater causes.

Something very similar happened to me as well in this gathering as I met one of the like-minded waterfall-crazy fellow (Shareez), who’s been in touch with me but never bumped into each other before. Fortunately for us, his annual leave coincided nicely with the gathering and we agreed to look each other up and probably do some waterfall hunting as the rains were falling freely. On a different note, it’s a real pity (as Atha keeps saying) that we ain’t got any waterfall closer to the heart of Colombo as the rainfall Colombo receives would create some beautiful and overflowing waterfalls.

Well, I’ll leave the details of the gathering for the time being as many of you must’ve heard what went on including all the mud-slinging campaigns too. It was really good to get together and share all the expertise, fun moments and much more with the fellow hikers. It was good to see Shareez and we planned to go see the waterfalls in Walapane including the evading Kurundu Oya Falls. I’d failed both of my previous attempts at visiting this 2^nd highest beauty but decided I was in with a good chance this time.

However, little did I know that I’m still not qualified to go see this girl as all our plans were shattered like a fallen egg on concrete? First of all, Tony Mama who was keen to get together with us damaged his finger trying to do I don’t know what and missed out at the eleventh hour. Then Sheham had other plans preventing us leaving our usual time, early in the morning.

Having called each other trying to work out something for the whole day Tue, 25 Nov I was ready to quit. However Shareez kept on and finally we decided to change plans and visit one of the beauties at Aranayake, Asupini Ella and providing we have enough time to go see some others as well. Fittingly, I rather we, had missed visiting Asupini Ella during our Bathalegala Journey and never got the chance to go see her after. So I jumped in at the opportunity and finally we decided to leave late and cover as much as we could within the short time available.

So on the 26 Nov, Sheham picked me around 7.30am and we struggled for nearly 2 hours zig-zagging through the over-crowded Colombo s

ts to reach Peliyagoda where Shareez was waiting for a good one hour or so. I was going crazy but there was nothing either Sheham or I could do. Finally we caught up with Shareez at Peliyagoda around 9.15am and went on towards our target.

Tour Highlights: 

1. Asupini Ella, Horawela.
2. Selawa Cave Temple, Aranayake.

Asupini Ella

Having driven along the ever-so-busy Kandy Road we reached Mawanella and turned towards Aranayake which is another 15km away. The whole sky looked grim and not a sign of sun appeared through that cloud cover. The whole day remained the same constantly dripping water through the holes in those clouds making life hell for us but enjoyable for the damning leeches.

We reached Aranayake and then took the road towards Horawela which goes direct without crossing the bridge on the left. This road goes passing Horawela and you’ll reach Naththakanda, about 4km from Aranayake. Just bear in mind this road is good for about 2-3km and afterwards it’s in very bad condition despite having occasional concrete patches at intervals.  So if you’re in a car or a low clearance vehicle, then you’re dead meat. Ideally stop the vehicle as close as you can get then either walk or take a tuk-tuk. I’ve given some good contacts at notes.

The unexpected occurred as we reached this terrible bit (we had no idea the road was too bad and we were in a Maruti which considerably higher compared to many in that class) when Sheham got a call asking him to return as his wife was not feeling well. We were in a dilemma whether to go back empty-handed or let Sheham go and do this by some other means.

I didn’t wanna turn around having come so close coz not being able to visit especially a waterfall going all the way is something that tastes bitter. It not only tastes bitter and it keeps nagging at me. Reluctantly, we decided to let Sheham go and Shareez and I walked up for another 1-1.5km along the road till we reached a sign board giving details about a Asupini Ella Village Project with half a dozen faces of politicians. The road forks into two here and you have to take the right turn that goes uphill.

Another 500m or so will take you to a stream that flows across the road. Pass this and you’ll come to a sharp right bend with a black wooden electricity pole on the left. On this about 6ft up is nailed a tiny board saying “To Ella” with an arrow. We were grateful for this and followed it. The path hasn’t been used recently, must be due to rain and was infested with leeches. We kept going uphill and Shareez who had had very little physical activities in this kind was ready to give up after a 1km or so.

“Sri, machan shall we go back?” was his words but I wasn’t ready to do that. I just left him there and did a quick recon ahead and found the path to be flat after a short hike. So encouraging him we reached the flat terrain and after another 400-500m came to a concrete-slab paved path. The falls was visible through the trees and we hurried and saw the viewing platform below. The concrete path runs for another 200m or so towards the top of the falls (you can’t get down to the top especially in rains) and we followed it.

Finally getting there and seeing the top of her was something that’ll remain in my mind forever. She was so beautiful, not overflowing even after all that rain, and looked very serene. The leeches nonetheless had different ideas as they kept coming wave after wave at us while we were enchanted by this beauty. We got back to where the viewing platform was and got down to it. This is a highly commendable job by whoever did this as it makes the life so much easier for the tourists to this remote falls.

Unfortunately, it’s now in a somewhat dilapidated state maybe due to the lack of maintenance and adverse weather. I felt some warm liquid running along both my feet and removing the shoes found nearly two dozen leeches hanging onto me merrily sucking what little blood I have. Removing them left some long trails of blood but I couldn’t bother with it much as the sheer beauty of Asupini Ella took hold of me.

She was similar to a Bo Leaf, especially the upper bit. Unfortunately from where we stood, there’s no chance to take a picture of the full package. We saw a damn built at the base of the falls diverting water to the light house we saw in our last journey. The water taking huge tunnel could also be seen while we were coming down the road towards Aranayake and probably we could reach the base along that tunnel providing the path is ok.

Having spent about half hour with this beauty and unplugged all the leeches we were ready to get back and face the second attack.

Initially we took the wrong turn but rewarded with this view

Young plants

Raksawa Mountain Range with Asupini Ella in the middle

The view was breath-taking despite gloomy skies

Closer view

There’s the beauty, very much like a Bo Leaf

Closer view

Further more to go, this is just before Sheham had to turn around

Take the right uphill road

The turn off to the footpath is just at the end

Here’s Shareez with the sign

Leech territory

Soaked mountains

Endless view

The path is somewhat better around here

Closer

Another sign

Where Shareez had had enough

Finally, the viewing platform is just below

Zoomed in

We went up the path looking for the top and found this on the way

The top

Closer

Plunging down

Back to the hut, Shareez going down

There she is

Lush greenery

Sweet white foam

View is mostly obscured by those trees

Closer

The top

Drops

Surrounding mountains

Wow

My dream shots…

Selawa Cave Temple

The time had gone past 3pm and we knew there was no hope to visit any other falls. While walking back we met a tuk-tuk (Ananda’s) and he agreed to take us back to Horawela. From there we got into Indika’s tuk-tuk and headed towards Selawa Cave Temple which was built by King Keerthi Sri Rajasinghe about 400 years ago.

This is located about 6km from Horawela and you need to cross the big bridge and take the right turn towards Horawela-Rahala Road. This is as soon as you cross the bridge at Horawela, to your right with a big sign board. As this road was being repaired, we took the Horawela-Hemmathagama (the left turn after the bridge) and took a cross road to join back with this road.

We reached the temple while the rain kept on. After a set of cement stairs we reached the main image house which was locked. There were some elderly people at the Sanghawasa watching us and we went to speak to them. After a short deliberation among themselves, they finally decided no harm will come to them by opening and showing us this majestic creation. Shareez looking like a foreigner also helped make up their mind. They were under that impression so deep when we spoke in Sinhala they had asked Indika how on earth this foreigner is speaking Sinhala for which Indika had replied after a few tours they might know the language. It had apparently satisfied their curiosity.

Until we were back on the road, even Indika didn’t know that Shareez was Sri Lankan, born and bred. According the elders, the image house had been broken into by the treasure hunters who don’t believe the temples can look after these precious artefacts. It’s a pity to see almost all the temples in Sri Lanka have suffered the same fate despite authorities boasting about improved security measures. Archaeology department is helpless and probably tooth-less too.

Whenever, we go to an ancient temple like this, they all give the same disgusting look suspecting each and every one to be treasure hunters for which we really can’t blame them. Thankfully these elders were very supportive and gave us a good narration of the value of the place. It’s even sadder to see they had ruined the precious wall paintings doing the wiring for electricity.

There was a big stone inscription elaborating the story behind this temple and we spent good hour or so admiring this marvel and while we were leaving the chief monk who’d been to Kandy was coming up the steps. The elders pleaded not to tell the monk that they had shown us the interior fearing he would scold them and we duly obliged. I hope you too will keep that as a secret.

Here’s the notice board I told you about

The path to the temple

Towering rocks

The image house

Here’s the front

The whole thing is underneath this huge rocky boulder

The stone scripture

Closer view from the left

And the right

At the door

Some more, wonder if it was wise to paint them over. See the wiring too

The corridor

Entrance to the main image chamber

The paintings on the rock

The door with paintings and ancient lock

Solid locks despite the age

Built in 2222, Buddhist Calendar (Some 380 years ago)

Renovation in 2471, Buddhist Calendar (Some 131 years ago)

Paintings on the rocky ceiling

More

The treasure hunters had broken the back of this Buddha Statue’s head

This pillow apparently had a nice gem carved into it but was stolen. This is a renovated one by the Archaeology Dept.

Just look at these paintings

Paintings-covered wall

Hundreds of them

Many more

Towards the back of the statue, these are fading away

Nearly gone

The other chamber

One of many Buddha Statues

Fading away

Similar one to the statue at the main chamber

Another

In this room, the paintings are not so preserved like the main one

Not in good condition

Some wall paintings too

This was on the roof

Time to go

Afterwards, we got Indika to drop us off at Mawanella around 5.30pm and on his recommendation we went to Seetha Restaurant which turned out to be a grand one. As usual, we had had nothing to eat since the breakfast which was so light (two buns) I was surprised we kept going with no problem. After a hearty meal, we took Gampola-Colombo bus and reached Kadawatha where Shareez bid farewell to me around 8.00pm.

This turned out to be a yet another super-duper journey despite plagued with many hazards. It was good to see Shareez and actually being able to do a journey with him.

Well folks, this is where I say good-bye to you all. Hope you enjoyed this report and introduction of a new mate to my old gang (Shareez is not that old, mind you).

Well, keep travelling but be safe.

Cheers,

Auf Wiedersehen!

Sri…

Map 1 – click to enlarge

Map 2 – click to enlarge

Map 3 – click to enlarge

It was the period of heavy monsoons and we managed to find few days which was perfect to travel. On day one Kasun & I got together and headed towards Balangoda to try and do a complete copycat of Niroshans trip. After having breakfast from Balangoda we took the road towards Kalthota and at Tenjentenna took the carpet road to the right to reach Kuragala.

Pre historic Kuragala

Kuragala is a pre historic site where fossils of humans were found which dated back to 6500BC. This monastery complex provides a staggering view towards the southern plains of Sri Lanka. We did walk about for about 1 ½ hours before we left this peaceful place.

dawn at kalthota

morning rays

මල් තුහින

vandalized caves by religious groups

main cave at kuragala

vandalized

inscription

where a 16000 old skeleton was found

Kalthota plains

plenty of fields

Dambetenna tea factory was seen

Haputhale town seen

Hambegamuwa side

lovely

looking back towards kuragala

family

narrow passage to Hituwangala

southern boarder of central hills

Budugala seen from kuragala

good for a painting

beautiful man made creations

close up

pano towards Welipothayaya

another pano

the drop

reconstructed pagoda

udawalawa

Mauw ara

බෙලි කටු ලෙන

view point

framed

Galtemyaya complex

After Returning back to the road we went towards Kalthota. We found an archeology board towards Galtemyaya archeology site on the right side of the road and few hundred meters from it was Galtemyaya. This was a Panchawasa temple and one could easily view the ruins of the pagoda and an ancient bo tree.

pagoda at galtem yaya

steps at galtemyaya

partly excavated

galtemyaya ruins

Kalthota Dhuvili falls

After passing Galtemyaya one would come across the turnoff towards Duvili falls since both of us had been there we skipped it but on my second day I did visit it because my better half has not been there. Will be adding it here for the sake of the order attractions.

majestic cascade of walawe river

Duvili falls

Budugala archeology site and temple

Next we reached Kalthota and from here we took the right turn and reached Budugala Archaeology office where one could view an ancient Buddha statue which was found in a privet land. Next to the office is Budugala monastery complex with few “Padanagara’s” at different levels. Opposite to the archaeology site is the temple which has a drip ledge cave and a view point with a pagoda.

statue found on a privet property could be seen at the budugala arche office

luna moth

Budugala monastery

padanagara

steps

drainage system

padanagara

budugala sthupa

view of kuragala from budugala

wow

plenty of paddy

the cave image house

what a passage

the cave towards kuragala

Dewagiri R.M.V & Diyawinna falls

Crossing many causeways we reached Diyawinna and took a right turn towards Dewagiri temple. And on the way we didn’t forget to snap Diyawinna falls which was in full flow. Halting our vehicle we proceeded towards Dewagiri RMV. This is an ancient drip ledge cave temple.

Diyawinna ella

zoomed

wow	Priyangiri ella seen from the paddyfields

Dewagiri temple

the inscription

another cave

more drip ledge caves

Piyangiri cave and falls

At the entrance to the temple there is a huge jack tree with a name board directing towards a foot path. If one takes this foot path and travel 100m you will come to a “T” junction. If you take the left turn you could reach the base of Diyawinna. We took the right uphill path and after traveling 1Km we reached a newly built suspension bridge. After crossing this bridge we reached a huge drip ledge cave which was been bordered by two waterfalls. Unfortunately the monk who was here wasn’t to be seen. On the right hand side one could see the top of Piyangiri falls which cascades down along the rock surface.

on the way to priyangiri falls

the new suspension bridge to Piyangiri cave

Priyangiri cave

enormous

top of piyangiri falls

priyangiri falls

lower reaches

deadly

Handagiriya

After a tiring adventure we reached back towards our vehicle and headed towards Kapugala where we took Weligepola road for about 4Km’s. While you are on the move keep an eye on the left hand side of the road and you will come across Handagiriya Archeology board. The archeology site of Weheragodella could be reached after a 200m hike. The pagoda, bo tree and other ruins could be seen in the middle of a paddy field.

next attraction

Ruins of hadagiriya arche site

the pagoda

the bo tree

කැදැල්ල

Lendara temple

Passing Handagana nuwara one would come across a cave temple on the left hand side of the road this is Lendara cave temple.

Lendara cave temple

a new statue

old one

roof paintings

bo tree at lendara

Kottimbulla punchi Dambulla temple

Next inline was Kottimbulla cave temple and to reach it one needs to get to Weligepola. From the mini town one needs to travel 7Km’s along Hatangala road to reach Kottimbulla ancient temple which is also known as Punchi Dambulla. Kottimbulla cave was a massive one with many paintings belonging to Kandyan era. Please refer the images and enjoy the beauty of this cave. Highly recommended place to anyone who is interested in paintings. Both of us somehow managed to cover all of those places found on Niroshans report and been satisfied we decided to head back towards Colombo.

Kottimubulwala cave temple

zoomed part

what a painting

entrance

outer wall

outer wall paintings

wood work

Kottimubulwala cave temple roof paintings

pagoda

made out of wood

inner image house

been reconstructed

Kottimubulwala cave temple paintings

rock paintings

udawalawa seen from rajawaka road

end of a day

Welipothayaya cave temple

Day two my companion was my better half. Both of us left early morning and reached Balangoda and took the road via Diyawinna. At Welipothayaya (puhula yaya) we came across a drip ledge cave temple called Sudarshanaramaya. To reach it one needs to take a left turn from the road and travel 200m’s

the cave temple of welipothayaya sudarshanaramaya (puhul yaya)

ancient guard stones

bo tree between rocks

Hambegamuwa ancient temple and archaeology site

Next we visited Kalthota duvili falls and afterwards we took the left hand road from Kalthota which led us towards Hambegamuwa. There was a nice causeway across Walawe river at one point and it seemed that they were building a bridge across this stretch. The Hambegamuwa road which joins Udawalawe – Thanamaliwila road was under construction at some places but was not a big issue. At Hambegamuwa junction one could find the ancient Hambegamuwa temple which was under excavation. There is another archaeology reserve in Hambegamuwa and to reach it one need to take the road on the opposite side of the temple and proceed 500m. This site has an ancient pagoda, ruins of an image house and etc.

Hambegamuwa RMV sthupa

no idea about this

pillars

buried steps

Archeology site close to hambegamuwa

ruins of an image house found at the arche site

pagoda

finding a partner

more ruins

halted

hambegamuwa tank

tank was spilling

Arambekema archeology site

After passing Hambegamuwa and proceeding few Km’s towards Thanamalwila side you would come across a fleet of steps on the left which will take you to the top of a rock. This place is known as Arambekema. There was one of the largest Rock ponds I have ever seen. There were rock caves in this archeology reserve but we refrained from further exploring because of the bad weather conditions. After hanging around a bit we took off towards Monaragala to end our expedition. Hope this comprehensive guide will be useful to future travelers.

arambe kema arche site

steps

arambe kema

parts from the past

ruins

more to climb

the site with caves

summit

endless view

debara ara tank at balaharuwa

its spill

It was nearly a year and a half since we (Ashan, Amila, Hari and me) went on a bike tour covering Yatiyanthota-Seepoth and Parussella-Dedugala roads and saw many waterfalls. There were more than a dozen of them at the time making me think that the waterfalls headquarters were here. What’s more, there’s no need to go for treacherous hikes searching for these beauties as they’re more or less located either by the roadside or with a short hike.

So you’re blessed to go see more than a dozen of gorgeous falls within less than 12 hours that is something you won’t get anywhere else. So, having done it once didn’t stop me from getting back again. The intermittent rains made the thought more appealing and I managed to find Atha to accompany me after a numerous put-offs.

So on the 13^th December, we left Colombo around 6am, rather late for us, and headed towards Avissawella. Well, as the number of falls is so big, I’ll try to keep the story short and give you the directions. Otherwise, I’ll end up writing a mile-long report. I’ve managed to dig up a picture from Amazing Lanka website giving a list of falls along these roads. You’ll be amazed to see them in a cluster located so close to each other.

The list of falls on Yatiyanthota-Seepoth and Parussella-Dolosbage Roads. Pic Credits: Amazinglanka.com

At Mansala

Mediya Dola flowing next to Mansala

Creating a waterfall

Tour Highlights: 

1. Jayawindagama Falls, Jayawindagama.
2. Wee Oya Falls, Wee Oya Estate.
3. Malalpola Falls, Malalpola.
4. Kithul Ella, Malalpola.
5. Punugala aka Anda Dola Ella, Punugala.
6. Gorok Ella, Meenagala.
7. Olu Ella, Amanawala.
8. Katuwel Ella, Dombepola.
9. Parussella Falls, Parussella.
10. Punahela aka Suramba Ella, Warawala.
11. Rikili Ella, Bulathkohupitiya.
12. Nalagana Ella, Dedugala.
13. Rukmal Ella, Dedugala.
14. Diyangiri aka Diyawadana aka Diyawetena Ella, Upper Palampitiya.

Jayawindagama Falls

This is located about 4-5km from Yatiyanthota along Seepoth Road at a village name Jayawindagama. Most would say this is a seasonal cascade. We were lucky to see her due to heavy rains in the area over last couple of weeks. This is right by the road with a height of close to 40+ft. To your left is the Wee Oya Estate and you will be able to see the beautiful Wee Oya Falls in the distance amid the estate.

It’s a very interesting story how the Jayawindagama name came to the village. It was during the presidential election in 1982 when Mr. J. R. Jayawardhana won his second term and MR. R. Premadasa was the Prime Minister. According to a group of elders at the village, this is where they were when the results were released. So they celebrated their victory in this village and the name came about as a result. The village where the victory was celebrated = Jayawindagama.

Sun peering through the trees

Can you see the eagle? He was holding a prey but turned its back to us

Here’s the one

The top of her, not much water.