...website of R. Shanthini



All the WAY down to Bambarakanda Falls




We started at Peradeniya at 5.00 am and reached the trailhead, which was about 9 km from the Visitor Centre at Horton Plains towards Ohiya, at 11.00 am.


I know six hours to do a distance that was just a little over 100 km was totally unacceptable considering the facts our hired van was so... good, the driver was so... cool, road was so... private, and what was more, we all wanted to get to the trailhead as early as possible.


The point was one ought to be blindfolded to go from Peradeniya to Horton Plains via Nuwereliya, Ambewale and Pattipola and not stop one's vehicle at least at a few of the numerous locations of enticing beauty.


One such gripping location was at Horton Plains itself placed between the Pattipola-side entrance and the Visitor Centre. Our view was shades of blue peaks surrounding the geometrically symmetric peak of Sri Pada with the cloudy veil that was lifted now and then for just a second or two.


On the foreground, to the left, we had a clear view of the ash-blue peak of Kirigalpoththa, the second highest mountain at 2392 m height situated besides Horton Plains.



Distant blue hills on the Sri Pada side of Horton Plains



After having had our last cups of warm tea/coffee for a long while to come at the canteen by the Horton Plains Visitor Centre, we headed towards Ohiya. The sky on the Ohiya-side was covered with pregnant clouds unlike the hike-prefect sky on the Sri Pada side. We could not help joking, “May be, it is a day for climbing Kirigalpoththa”.



Mist covered ambience on the Ohiya side of Horton Plains



Travelling about 7 km towards Ohiya from the Visitor Centre, we reached the Ohiya-side entrance to Horton Plains. Travelling yet another 2 km along the same direction, we reached the much anticipated trailhead on our right. The trial was a wide non-paved road which met the Horton Plains-Ohiya road (B508) at right angle.


Since our trail was well known to be totally unsuitable for the van, after unloading us and our hiking gears, the van went via Ohiya, Borelanda, Haputale and Kalupahana to get to Bambarakanda Rest (the trail end) and await us there.


Abiramy, the youngest member of our crew was with her pretty red rubber slippers throughout the hike, and was extremely comfortable with them. So much so, I am contemplating on doing the same on my next hike.



Abiramy at the trailhead, and the van in the background

[Abiramy, the youngest member of the crew and of hiking, was very lively throughout the hike. Often, she took off her not-so thick jacket to expose herself further to the cold weather that penetrated through her thin blouse which thrilled her a lot. ]



We started our hike, at about 11.00 am, from an elevation of 2040 m, enveloped by the gentle mist.


Even though it was thoroughly disappointing to realize the possibility of walking through a panoramic landscape adjoining Horton Plains without ever seeing not more than 20 to 30 m from our noses, it must be said here that the gentleness in which those clouds welcomed us and the softness in which they carried us through have no parallel to quote from our everyday lives in the city.


As a matter of fact, I have read somewhere that the mist is one of the essentials for a healthy life, as drinking lots of water and eating plenty of fruits and vegetables.


I am beginning to realize that there is some truth in it since my otherwise sensitive bronchial tubes are so very pleased with themselves whenever I walk though the mist even if it is going uphill along the steep slopes of Sri Pada in the soporific hours, even for the guardians of the forest.



Abiramy and Sarath hiking in the misty tea plantation

[Sarath is a wonderful companion to have on the hike. He is lively, witty and thoughtful. He always does the ground work before our hike such as acquiring laminated coloured printouts of the 1-inch topographical map of the route and its surroundings.]



The trail was full of sharp bends and we were descending on the side of a mountain crested with cropped tea plants. We leisurely hiked about 1.5 km and reached a T-junction at which we continued straight ahead without taking the left turn.


One of the greatest things about hiking on foot is meeting, greeting and chatting with the people to whom our exploring ground is home.


A lady collecting firewood was our first acquaintance in that sense. I was delighted to chat with her freely in colloquial Tamil. She was not surprised to hear about our mission. However, she chuckled when I asked her how long it would take us to get to the Bambarakanda falls. She went like, “Hm.., at your rate, it would definitely be late evening, say 4 or 5.”


We took her estimation very seriously and changed our mind about ordering for our late lunch at the Bambarakanda Rest, as planned. We decided to snack at whatever we had with us for lunch and take the dinner at Nuwereliya. That turned out to be a very wise decision, indeed.


Lesson: Always listen to the locals when in a strange location.


Continuing our hassle-free hike along the meandering trail in the misty tea plantation, 3 km from the trail head, at about 12.30 pm, we arrived at the Ohiya-Kalupahana Colonial Trek which laid at right angle to our trail.



Our trail meeting the Ohiya-Kalupahana Colonial Trek



By this time, the mist had cleared to some extent, and we started to see far and wide. We walked about 50 m towards Ohiya for a good view of the unfolding panorama.


Entranced by the shades of colours that rolled out ahead of us, under the partially lifted misty curtain, we were much tempted to continue our hike in the direction of Ohiya along the Colonial Trek. “Perhaps next time,” we told ourselves.



South-east from the Ohiya-Kalupahana Colonial Trek



It is fitting to mention here that we met two able young men at this location and they were walking from Ohiya to Kalupahana on some business, and not for pleasure. They told us that it took them 45 minutes to get to that point from Ohiya and that they would be at Kalupahana within another hour or two. They offered to take us with them, but we politely declined because we did not think that our leg muscles would match those of the locals.


The road up to that point was pretty decent for a hiker, and the rolling stones under the feet appeared only as we got close to Bambarakanda Falls.


As we continued hiking towards the Bambarakanda Falls, we saw many dwellings, people at work, the first rapids, a well-managed bridge, a tiny shop, a dog, and signstones featuring 'WELCOME TO King's Lynn Bio Dynamic Project' and other similar texts.


As we passed all the symbols of a desolate micro town, we came to a Y-junction. We took the right track, and I guessed that the two young men we met must have taken the left trail.


From that point onwards, we went uphill a bit and then downhill a bit taking the left track at the second Y-junction.


Then, there we were facing the most anticipated Devils Staircase.


The time was about 1.00 pm.



Gayan and Anuradha at the entrance of the Devils Staircase

[Gayan, on the left, is the prime inspiration for us to take all these hikes for no rain, no cold, perhaps not even a cyclone, could make him change his mind once the hike date is fixed. He was one of the photographers of the crew. His passion is going uphill and not so much going downhill. Eranda Aruradha, on the right, is very original, a great listener and says something only if it is absolutely necessary to say it. He was also one of the photographers of the crew.]



A few sharp turns and an appreciable elevation gain coupled with precipitous edge linings are the characteristics that must have earned the notorious reputation for the Devils Staircase.


As we were on foot and walking uphill on a wide concreted track, some of the crew members had not even noticed that they went passed one of the most anticipated excitements of the hike.


By the way, we also met a cow grazing at the edge of the Devils Staircase, which was indeed not so devilish for those on foot. As we passed the Devils staircase, we came across the signboard (not a signstone) on the left reading 'Udaveriya Estate, West Haputale Division'.


Walking another few hundreds meters or so, we reached the second rapids coming down on our right and the second well-managed bridge.



Ishak at the rapids after passing the Devils Staircase

[Ishak thinks aloud. Along our hiking trail, he discussed with the serenity of a philosopher religion, mathematics, politics, education and the cleverness of the roots that crack the rock walls only to fall silent at the plight of the estate walkers hugging on to their meager livelihoods for generations in that no man land far away from schools, hospitals and other basic accessories of modern civilizations.]



No sooner than passing the rapids, we come to a point where the sign read 'Agarapatana Plantations Ltd, Udaveriya', and another Y-junction. We kept to the left.


After hiking another couple of hundred meters, we entered the dreamland. Glorious sceneries unfolding in the mist-less ambient towards the southern Sri Lanka were simply overwhelming.


Under the picture-perfect sky with rolling clouds, boundless view of the earth laid stretched ahead of us.



Continuing our hike in the grand ambience, we came to a picturesque bend in the track with the view to the virgin forest on the sharp edged mountain range which, I guessed, stationed itself in the gap between us and the precipitous drops of the small and big World's Ends at Horton Plains.



The picturesque enviable luxuries of the township of the estate workers



To the right of the bend was the plain luxury abode of the ‘Kanakapillai', who was revered by the simple folks labouring at the surrounding tea plantations with whom we chat away for a while on Ishak's fact-finding initiation. We realized words such as 'A/L' and 'university', even though said in Tamil, had very distant meaning for them.



The simple possessions of the township inclusive of a tireless van



Trekking along and meeting several inhabitants of the township, young and old, in an otherwise dreamland, we reached an irresistible location at about 3.00 pm. Taking a long break there, we chat, laughed, and had our lunch which included cakes, biscuits, other tit bits, and the infamous ‘kurakan roti' with the delicious ‘seeni sambol'.



Wasantha (left), Senarath (middle) and Sarath at our lunching location

[Wasantha is the silent enlightened type and a skilled painter and a creative writer. Senarath is an experienced hiker and have had the unique experience of having been lost in the Thotupola Kanda Nature Trail with his wife of their fresh marriage in a born chilling night of February. It appeared they were occupying the honeymoon ground of a leopard couple and that thrilling story must be told in some other place. He paints on paper as well as on wood (burning it to create lovely paintings). ]



A few hundreds meters from there, we reached the unique township at Yelatenne surrounded by a number of virgin forest crusted peaks that were 2000 m high and above, including Gonmolikanda to our left, in the gap between us and the Worlds Ends of Horton Plains.



The temple getting ready for its much awaited festival at Yelatenne



The township at Yelatenne appeared a richer one in a comparative sense, and its livelihood did not depend entirely upon tea. The most educated lad there had done his O/L, living with his uncle at Badulla. He had been told by his three elder brothers that working at tea plantations was not for someone as educated as he was.


For those lads with no generous uncles living close to ‘proper' schools, schooling beyond Year 5 was not only a distant affair but also a luxury affair because of the location of Yelatenne right in the middle of Ohiya-Kalupahana Colonial Trek which could be traversed either by foot or by a glamorous 4WD.



A lad at play with his home made toy at Yelatenne



At a distance from the township, there were streams flowing down from which water supply to the town was provided with some clever engineering and a lot of hardship.


Construction of a mini-hydro power plant for the township had been completed to a great extent by an NGO and the final stages of which were not concluded owing to lack of funds, as we were told.


I could not help thinking very seriously to get there to educate those kids on weekend basis or something – for that I need to get my 4WD first.



Kirthi and myself flanked by Gayan and Ishak at Yelatenne

[Kirthi never gets tired on a hike and was one of the photographers of the crew. If not for him, many of us in the crew would (happily, perhaps) get lost in our hikes. He's got many hobbies such as TaiChi, Chigun, Painting (not the walls, mind you), and so on.]



A kilometre or so passing Yelatenne, the much anticipated rain, though not so very welcomed, descended upon us – first a few drops on a sunny sky, and then a moderately cold shower with a foggy curtain enveloping us.


We continued on, with rain coats and umbrellas, and at about 4.15 pm, we reached the location where the stream feeding the Bambarakanda Falls crosses the 4WD trek.



Reaching one of the the streams feeding the Bambarakanda Falls in the rains



Because of the volume of water and the force at which it was crossing the 4WD trek, we chose the narrow metal bridge to go over the stream.


Continuing under heavy rains, we reached yet another most anticipated milestone, the V-cut (1408 m high), at about 4.45 pm. Rain ceased temporarily for a few minutes as we walked across the V-cut.



Passing the misty V-cut in between two showers



Though the rain had ceased, visibility continued to remain far reduced. By now we had hiked 9 km from the trailhead.


From then onwards, we went nearly downhill walking on rolling stones under our shoes and, of course, slippers.


Along our trail, we had several sightings of the powerful Bambarakanda Falls through her misty veil.


The first such sighting was awesome not only because I had waited for that moment for a long time but also we came all the way from Horton Plains on foot to sight her.


That was indeed exhilarating.



Mother Nature herself showing off one of her wildest chattels Bambarakanda Falls – the tallest in Sri Lanka



In another hour or so, hiking through tree-lined trails, passing a few partially constructed homes featuring limited affluence, some of us reached the Bambarakanda Rest (1142 m high and about 11.5 km from the trailhead), where our van was awaiting us.


Some of our crew members had, fortunately, missed the location of the Rest and had, enviably, walked up to the best location (1056 m high and about 12 km from the trailhead) to sight the majestic beauty of the Bambarakanda Falls.


I changed into dry cloths after carefully removing all leaches adhered to my body, and got into the van with the remaining crew. We moved towards the popular location to absorb the beauty of the Falls.


Alas, the rain started to thrash so very heavily as we approached the trendy location that I wavered about getting out of the van lest my cloths got wet again.


What I saw through the rain pounding windows was gripping – there she was, or is, free-spirited, wild, graceful, flowing down with shear force having detached herself from her stately, weather-beaten, immortal companion.


I said to her – I will come again ma'am for I have not had enough of you.


Nearly 13 years after, in February 2023, it so happened that I ended up at her abode, totally unplanned, when taking my long-time friend Buby, visiting me from Australia, around on a day-out in the upcountry.


She was lean, indifferent, of course, and boastful.



Bambarakanda Falls, visited in February 2023



I insist on a world with justice and equality for all human and for all animals, big and small, and for all trees and for all that is wild ...