Lakegala

This is a super destination for hikers. Lakegala is situated in Knuckles Mountain Range close to a very remote village called Meemure. The above picture was taken from that village. As per the legend, Ravana, a mythical king of Sri Lanka used this mountain as a landing strip for his aircraft.

Once I tried this with a bunch of friends but failed just below 200 feet from the top. The last bit has an incline of around 70-80 degrees and climbing that stretch is really tricky.

You can read about that adventure through the blogs of Halik, Indi, Meg and Jerry.

127 Hours

Have you seen the film, 127 hours? I remembered it while jumping over this vertical crevice with the trapped boulder between the walls of rock.

The picture was taken at mini 'Worlds End' of Knuckles Range.

Through a Cave to the Top

As I mentioned in yesterday's post, the last bit of Alagalla climb was very exciting. The above picture was taken while climbing up through the rocky cleft to the very top of Alagalla. It shows what you see, while looking down from halfway up the cave.

More interesting photos, taken during the climb are stored here.

By the way, this is how you reach at the top!

The Last Bit

This picture shows the top most point of Alagalla. The last bit of the climb was very interesting, as we had to squeeze through a crevice in the middle of the rocky outcrop shown above.

Butawa

Above picture was taken in front of Butawa Tank, within Yala National Park. The prominent rock seen on the other side is Elephant Rock.

A few tanks in the park keep all the animals alive during dry periods. Butawa Wewa is known as the last water resource that remains even during heavy draughts. You could see hundreds of crocodiles here, especially during dry seasons.

Bathalegala from Alagalla

This photo was taken on the way to Alagalla. The prominent book shaped rock in the middle is known as Bible Rock and the local name is Bathalegala. The same rock could be seen clearly as you go through Balana Pass on the way from Colombo to Kandy.

Patanangala

Patanangala is a beach belongs to Yala National Park. This characteristic rock and the excellent beach make this place a memorable one. This is one of the few places where visitors are allowed to get down from their vehicles during their safari through Yala.

To view Patanangala beach from another angle, please click here and see the post by Cerno.

Elephant and the Rock

This male elephant was photographed at Yala. Usually the bull elephant is a loner. The herd is usually made of female elephants and calves.

There is another variation called ‘Thun path rena’ or three elephants. Some incorrectly identify them as father, mother and child. Actually it is either two female elephants and a calf or a female elephant and two calves. Of course one of the calves is bigger.

The rock far away in the picture is known as Akasa Chethiya, but the renowned name is ‘Elephant Rock' as it looks like an elephant.

Yala National Park

Yala is a small area in the south east coast of Sri Lanka . The name ‘Yala’ is well-known as Sri Lanka’s most famous and the second largest national park (Ruhunu National Park) is given the same name. In fact Yala is a part of the park itself.

Yala is situated about 300 km from Colombo . The park is about 1000 square kilometers and it spreads in three districts (Hambanthota, Monaragala and Ampara) belong to three provinces.

The southern part is known as Block 1 and it is the more popular section. The entry point to this section is situated at Palatupana. Nimalawa sanctuary is situated adjacent to this entry point. Western and Northern Parts, belong to Uva Province, are comprised of Yala Blocks 3, 4 and 5. Kataragama and Katagamuwa sanctuaries are situated in the west, adjacent to the park. The eastern part of Yala, belongs to Eastern Province is now known as Kumana National Park. This was recently opened to the public after many years of isolation due to security reasons.

Yala is more famous for its fauna than flora. Elephant, leopard and bear sightings are regarded as prized ones while deer, crocodiles, wild boar and wild buffalos are quite common sights. It is also a paradise for birders.

Yala is situated in the dry zone of Sri Lanka. The jungle is mostly made of dry monsoon forests, thorny forests and grasslands. Among the larger varieties, Palu trees are quite common. This area gets water from two main rivers (Kumbukkan Oya and Menik Ganga), but those also run dry during dry seasons. A few tanks in the park keep all the animals alive during dry periods. One prominent tank is Butawa Wewa, which is known as the last water resource that remains even during heavy draughts.

Yala is famous for its historical significance as well. Quite a few ancient ruins are scattered in these areas and some are yet to be discovered. There are a few prominent temples situated within this park. Sithul Pahuwa is the most famous temple which is situated on top of a rocky outcrop. There are a few more rocky outcrops in the park and some of the more prominent ones are Akasa Chethiya (Elephant Rock), Jamburagala and Pimburagala.

The Indian Ocean is the southern boundary of Yala and it has some of the most beautiful and unique beaches in Sri Lanka like, Patanangala, Kumana and Minihagalkanda.

Yala is one of the must-go-places in Sri Lanka and I shall bring more about this place soon.

This post was selected for Kottu Section of week end news paper, The Sunday Leader.

Kunudiya Parvathaya

This monarch of a rock is one of the prominent sights from the top of Sri Pada. Those who travel from Palabaddala or Kuruwita will see many of its colossal elevations along those trails. Its singular appearance is further buoyed by its tremendous precipice.

This mountain, known as Kunudiya Parvathaya is situated within the peak wilderness area, west of Sri Pada. It juts out from the low country in one sheer, unbroken slope, to a height of over 5,000 feet above sea level. During the sun rise, the shadow of the Sri Pada Mountain could be seen hovering over this mountain like a gigantic triangular silhouette.

Thanthirimale

This ancient and sacred temple is situated in a remote place about 35 kilometers north west of Anuradhapura. It is situated on top of a rocky terrain. Thanthirimale is definitely a larger temple but it surely reminds Buddhangala Temple of Ampara.

As per the historical evidence this area is one of the oldest human settlements in Sri Lanka which dates back to pre 6th century BC. Also it is mentioned in many historical chronicles as a pivotal place all throughout the history.

The Bo tree here is said to be at least 2300 years old. It is a direct sapling of the famous Sri Maha Bodhi of Anuradhapura.

I’m not going to give detailed explanation about this place as Harumi has done a few wonderful narratives about this place. You can see those posts here, here and here.

The view from this wonderful hermitage is stunning. The above picture shows the granite Buddha statue which dates back to 8th century AD. I have uploaded more pictures of this wonderful place here.

Rocky Seashore

I’m taking you back to my favorite rocky beach in the South Eastern coastline. This time, I’m attaching more fabulous photos of this rocky seashore here.

As you can see in the above picture, the view here is incredible.

Kirinda Beach

This is a similar beach to the one I posted a few days back. The difference may be that this one is more popular and you may see lots of visitors here every day.

Kirinda, is situated South of Sri Lanka close to Yala National Park. This is a popular beach venue for thousands of devotees who go on pilgrimage to Katharagama – The place of worship, South of Sri Lanka where all Sri Lankans visit so religiously regardless of their religion or creed.

There is a small temple in this place on top of a medium size rock outcrop facing the sea. As per the historical chronicles, a princess was sacrificed to the sea to prevent a catastrophic sea wave (Tsunami?) that destroyed the land in the Western coast of Sri Lanka more than 2000 years ago. To some extra ordinary reasons the sea wave was immediately suppressed and this princess survived and landed back at a remote beach South of Sri Lanka. People believe Kirinda is that historical place, where this princess landed safely. Subsequently this brave princess became famous as Queen Vihara Maha Devi.

This beach is one of the most attractive beaches in the Southern coastal belt.

Rocky Beach

This lonely rocky beach was captured close to Panama village (pronounced as paːnəmə) in the South East of Sri Lanka close to Ruhunu National Park (Yala). You can view more pictures of this place, in this post as well.

There are many similar beach fronts in that region in Yala National Park (E.g. Patanangala) and South of Sri Lanka close to the reserve (E.g. Kirinda).

I have seen some of the most attractive beaches in this region!

Buddhangala

Sri Lanka is full of temples and monasteries. Some temples in places like Anuradhapura are older than 2000 years. In addition to the famous temples in main cultural towns like Anuradhapura, Kandy and Polonnaruwa, we find many important temples all around the country. These temples are full of devotees throughout the year. One interesting feature is that we find many outstation temples located in rocky outcrops. One good example is Dambulla. These locations give the temples, an elevated position compared to the rest of the buildings and they become visible from distant places.

Above picture and some more here were taken at this very interesting buddhist temple called Buddhangala Aranyaya (Hermitage) about 8 kilometers from Ampara. The temple is situated in a very peaceful location on top of a rocky outcrop which is about 450 feet high.

You can see a panoramic view of the region from the top. Ampara town, Galoya valley and Inginiyagala area can be seen very clearly. Please visit this web site to find more information about this monastery.

The Cave

This cave known as Fa Hien (Pahiyan Lena) is possibly the largest cave in Sri Lanka. It is situated in the village called Yatagampititya in Kaluthara District. You can reach here via Piliyandala – Horana road and it lies about 5 kilometres from Bulathsinhala.

This cave can easily shelter 1000 men and the cave entrance is at least 50m in height and 60m in length.

Fa Hien's cave is famous for two reasons. Firstly, Sri Lankan archaeologists found evidence of human existence date back to thousands of years in this area. Usually we do not get any written records related to this era so archaeologist have named this period as pre-historical period. Dr. Shiran Deraniyagala the former Director General of the Department of Archaeology was instrumental in discovering this very important evidence from this cave as well as many other locations in Sri Lanka. In this cave, they have found a few human skulls and bones dating back to 35000 years and lots of man-made tools used for hunting animals and various other purposes.

The second reason is that Fa Hien, the famous Chinese Monk of the 5th century AD, who came to Sri Lanka in search of Buddhist scriptures and sacred places used to stay in this cave for some time on the way to Sri Pada (Adam’s Peak). Hence the cave got his name - Pahiyan Lena (Cave)

There is a road leads very close to the cave so you do not need to do much walking. There are similar caves mostly in Sabaragamuwa District which are quite famous for pre-historic evidence of human existence. Batadomba Lena in Kuruwita and Beli Lena in Kitulgala are some of them. The trails to these caves are even more interesting.

Panama Beach

I am attaching more photos from Panama Beach here. This is the complete set of photos from Panama sand dunes.

The above photo is taken from the top of the rocky outcrop shown here. The beach is definitely one of the largest in the country.

The Dawn

Every day starts with lots of new hope for every living being. The sun creates one of the most beautiful spectacles on earth to freshen the whole day.

This beautiful sight of the dawn was seen in the village of Panama (pronounced as paːnəmə) in the Eastern Province of Sri Lanka.

Wonderful Rock Formations

This amazing rock was seen near Arankele.

Infact I have seen quite a few similar rock formations in Wayamba and North Western Provinces. It is difficult to explain how it is balanced over there but definitely this must have created over thousands of years of sunlight, wind and rain.

It is another remarkable creation of mother nature.

The Sea Beyond the Rocks

There are some great places where you can take a nice relaxing evening by the sea. This particular place close to the border of the Yala Nature Reserve is such beautiful place. The rocky outcrops closer to the beach add more beauty to the view.

You can find similar places all around the country.

To view more pictures of this place, please click here.