Half a Day visit to Dawson Tower and Balumgala

Year and Month	12-April-2018
Number of Days	One
Crew	02
Accommodation	N/A
Transport	Motor Bicycles
Activities	Hiking, Nature Exploring, Photography, Sightseeing
Weather	Good
Route	Colombo -> Kadugannawa -> Balumgala -> Dawson Tower
Tips, Notes and Special remark	Carry enough water Do not try in rainy days Take the necessary permission Can go to the top of the tower Ask the directions from Locals about Balumgala Beware on slippery rocks and edges during rainy season Do not litter Leave only footprints
Related Resources	None
Author	Ranshan Fernando
Comments	Discuss this trip report, provide feedback or make suggestions at Lakdasun Forum on the thread Half a Day visit to Dawson Tower and Balumgala

Kadugannawa is a famous destination on the way to Kandy and it is much famous for the dangerous slope for the main road as well as the rail track. There are few thing to see in and around Kadugannawa.

Balumgala
Dawson Tower
Alagalla Mountain
Dekinda Fall
Abundant Miyan Fall
Railway Museum
Balana Fort
Mudukirigala

On that day we were going to Kandy for an emergency of our friend. However we had little time to roam around Kadugannawa and then we thought to visit Balumgala and then Nirosh wanted to visit Balumgala also.

Balumgala

Balumgala is a visible rock to the railway line and also to the main road. This is a rock located at the Kadugannawa gap and it is much famous around all the people live in here. There are 2-3 view points and thpse are the famous destinations to see the surrounding views and there is a small rock as well as the main rock. And the highest point of the Balumgala is about 755m.

Just before the National Railway Museum (after passing the Dawson Tower) you will find a Lagamuwa road. Travel few distance up to the Balumgala junction and turn to the Balumgala road. You can go to a edge of a view point by motor cycles also. But remember, travelling on rainy days is bit dangerous.

Map of those two places. Dawson Tower in Red. Balumgala view points in Yellow. Turning point to Balumgala road is white arrow

Seen on the way

At the first glance

Dawson Tower seen

Climb upward to the summit

Main Road

Nearby Mountain from Balumgala

Time to eat something

Its ready

Railway line

Scenic road and environment

Zoomed

Bathalegala and Uragala

Breakfast is ready

Surrounding

Zoomed Bathalegala

Achieved it

Dawson Tower

I think I have pass this tower for more than 30 times in my life but I never wanted to go to the indside of this tower. But today we had to go there and see the surrounding views and cut it off from our TODO list.

nyone travelling to Kandy along the Colombo-Kandy Road has to negotiate many bends – some of them hairpin bends – as they go up the Kadugannawa incline. At the last and sharpest of these bends, the road forks; and one goes through a tunnel, wide and high enough for a bus or lorry to pass. The other road makes a wider bend and goes a few feet over the rock.

This is the highest point in the climb – the Kadugannawa Pass, which was the lookout point in the former Sinhala kingdom.

This tunnel has been a landmark for over 175 years. Until about 25 years ago, all motor traffic to and from Kandy went through this tunnel. When it was found that the new long vehicles could not negotiate the sharp hairpin bend, another road was constructed with a wider bend and no overhead encumbrances.

When the climb is over, and the travellers approach Kadugannawa town, they will see to their right, a tall white column on the side of the cliff. One gets a better view of the column when travelling in the opposite direction from Kadugannawa town.

This is the Dawson Tower, erected to commemorate Captain Dawson, who built the Colombo-Kandy Road.

Governor Edward Barnes wanted a new road built to Kandy as the old road was long and circuitous. The old road was along the Kelani Valley, via Ruwanwella to the Ma Oya valley, then up the incline to Gampola and on to Kandy.

After the Kandyan rebellion of 1818, the Governor wanted to have tighter control of the Kandyan territory (the old Sinhala Kingdom) and for this, a shorter and more direct road to Kandy to move troops and government officers quickly, was essential.

Governor Barnes appointed Captain William Francis Dawson of the Royal Engineers to execute this task. Captain Dawson studied the terrain, marked out the route and planned the building of the road, phase by phase.

Work commenced in 1820 and was carried out under his immediate supervision. The stress and strain of working in a hot and humid climate and exposure to the frequent changes of weather and to diseases as he worked through jungle land, brought about his premature death on March 29, 1829, when the road to Kandy was still not complete. Folklore says Captain Dawson was bitten by a snake and had to be taken to Colombo where he died.

Captain Dawson was a popular and much admired and respected man. His friends and admirers decided to erect this column or tower to commemorate his service in this gigantic task, and they chose this spot on the top of the Kadugannawa Pass, as the best place for a memorial to him.

No better spot could have been chosen. The road upto the point is testimony to his engineering skills. He worked without bulldozers, backhoes and other machinery and the technical know-how that today’s road builders have.

When you next pass through Kadugannawa, ask your parents to turn to the Gampola Road. A few yards from the turn is a narrow road on the right which will lead you to the Dawson Column.