Hill Country
The island’s economy was based mostly on pearl fishing before tea was brought there. The Pearl Fishers by Georges Bizet, which had its premiere in Paris in 1863, takes place in Ceylon. Sri Lanka, then known as Ceylon, was well-known for its pearls in 1863. Tea followed. The British tried coffee before tea. In 1863, the businessman James Taylor brought the first tea plants from Cathay. The first Paris performance of Georges Bizet’s opera “The Pearl Fishers,” which is set in Sri Lanka, took place that year. In the British colony’s hill area, a “opera seria” was in progress. Then, tea plantations were being removed from the central slopes. Despite the greedy expansion of colonial economic exploitation, Sri Lanka’s montane rain forests, which are still in their biggest and least damaged sections, are a veritable treasure trove of natural beauty. It is rated as a worldwide conservation hotspot.
The paved roads leading up to Nuwaraeliya, the handy starting point for your exploration of the hill area, pass through carpets of dense emerald green tea plants that blanket the mountain slopes. Samuel Baker, a Nile explorer who traveled through these pristine forests before there were paved roads, wrote: “One fact I wish to impress upon all–that the colouring of every description is diminished and not exaggerated, the real scene being in all cases a picture, of which the narration is but a feeble copy.” The British were drawn inexorably by the stunning beauty of nature, which merged lofty peaks reaching the heavens with verdant mountain slopes, gushing waterfalls, and dazzling streams.
Nuwaraeliya
Nuwaraeliya was discovered and developed as a hill type because of its assortment of woods and meadows and the favorable environment, and it eventually turned into a charmingly replicated English village. A dreamlike Surrey hamlet with numerous well-known sights and hidden gems off the usual tourist path was created by the red-roofed Post Office, the granite Hill Club, the lovely lake, and the racetrack. They wait for you to find them.
The tallest mountains on the island provide shade for Nuwaraeliya, which conveniently has access to all the island’s visual splendor, outdoor activities, and intriguing natural mysteries. Trekking and hiking are not options. These are chances that shouldn’t be passed up. The ideal starting point for exploring Sri Lanka’s central hills’ strange natural puzzles is Nuwaraeliya. Its intermontane basins, valleys, plateaus, and ridges are arranged in an unusual way. Pidurutalagala2, 524 meters (8,281 feet) high; Krigalpoththa, 2,388 meters (7,835 feet); Thotupola Kanda, 2357 meters (7,737 feet); Adams Peak, 2,243 meters (7,359 feet); Namunukula, 2016, meters (6617 feet); the Haputale ridge; and Horton plains are the four mountain ranges in the area.
Horton plains
Horton Plains, a plateau 2,150 meters above sea level, with a unique and vulnerable eco system. These serene grassy forests, which are perpetually whipped by harsh, stinging winds, are home to Smbhar deer, leopards, and uncommon highland birds. Horton Plains spans 3,160 hectares (12.2 sq mi) of land. The largest portion of Sri Lanka’s cloud forest is found there. The Mahaweli, Kelani, and Walawe rivers all originate in this watershed, which is regarded as the most valuable in the nation. At the “Worlds End,” where the plateau abruptly descends by 1650 meters, the only accurate description for the terrifying chasm below that is frequently shrouded in a magical mist. It gives a stunning vista that stretches all the way to the far Indian Ocean on clear days.
Ella
Ella is a little town with few people. Nuwaraeliya is 50 kilometers away. If not for its captivating setting, it would be more than a village and less than a town with its one street mart. Its most well-known feature is the Ella gap. It is preferable if one of its initial lovers introduces you to it. Colonial Secretary James Emerson Tennant sat here from 1845 until 1850. “Perhaps there is no scene in the world that combines sublimity and beauty in a more extraordinary degree than that which is presented at the Pass of Ella, where the road descends swiftly to the lowlands, over which it is carried for upwards of seventy miles to the south coast of the island, through an opening in the chain of mountains.”
You will never tire of the breathtaking vista of the landscape he portrays from the Ella Gap. Looking down, you will see a wide amphitheatre that opens to the coastal plains in the south and ridge after ridge and peak after peak in the north. Some of Sri Lanka’s most breathtaking vistas may be seen at Ella. The Ella Gap, Ravana Ella Falls, Little Adam’s Peak, and Bambaragala Peak are among the sights you may visit in Ella. With crisp, chilly, and dry breezes keeping you active and alert, it provides excellent opportunities for hiking, trekking, and cycling. An unexpected fog that comes over you might come as a nice surprise.It will depart abruptly and with the same contempt for decency. You’ll remember the view from the Ella gap for a long time. With the insight of an eagle, you will understand what is to be seen below.
Haputale
The distance between Haputale and Nuwaraeliya is 44 kilometers. The little settlement is tucked away in the southernmost part of the Central Highlands, sitting perilously on a mountain crest at a height of 1579 meters. It has a well-deserved reputation for having an environment that is both energizing and soothing. The plains that stretch to the coastal plains to the south and east as well as the mountains to the north are both well seen from this location, which is one of its main attractions. The mountains of the Horton Plains, Hakgala, and Namunukula, among other summits, around it. When you turn around once again, you are treated to another stunning picture of the foothills that run from the Southern portions of the island all the way to the water. You may enjoy the view of the ocean’s pale blue edge under the cloudless, sunny sky on a brilliant day. The topography in Haputale tempts you to go walking, hiking, and trekking in the nearby hills.
Liptons seat
With its breathtaking vista, which formerly delighted Sir Thomas Lipton, Liptons Seat is the highlight of your travels. The great tea grower of Ceylon, Sir Thomas Lipton, loved to appreciate and enjoy the expansive view from the fiefdom he constructed for himself at Haputale, which is the highest point in the mountain range. Do not linger excessively. If the mist rolls in, you won’t get your tea or tiffin. You really must see the charming tiny town of Ella.
Adam’s Peak
From Nuwaraeliya, a leisurely journey of 1.5 hours might be taken to the base of this renowned triangular-shaped mountain. The winding path to Adams Peak, which is revered by Buddhists, Hindus, Muslims, and Christians, leads through the 98- and 80-meter-high Devon and St. Clair Falls as well as some of the greatest tea estates. Buddhists think that the Buddha himself placed his big footprint in the temple on Adams Peak. It is revered by Hindus as the object of Lord Shiva. It is regarded by Muslims as Adam’s. Christians believe St. Thomas the Apostle, who prayed on top of this hill, left his footprint there. It is physically demanding but incredibly rewarding, and it is best done from December to May when pilgrims are traveling. To reach the top before sunrise, it is preferable to start the trek at 2 am. When your feet are fatigued, the seemingly unending staircase ends at 7260 feet. You observe the muted beauty of the Peak’s enormous triangular shadow descending on the drab, dense woods of peaks, valleys, and plains until it reaches the island’s coastlines in melancholy quiet.
The rapture’s abrupt surge will be subtly replaced by the breathtaking understanding of nature’s incredible secrets, which try to simulate heavenly eclipses on Earth. As the rising son enters the mountain’s bosom, the mountain’s shadow will gradually disappear. While you were in connection with the skies, the Mountain Bell will ring, announcing the start of a new day. You have the finest access to the Sri Lankan Cloud Forests’ nature trails from Nuwareliya.
Pidurutalagala
Pidurutalagala, Sri Lanka’s highest mountain at 2524 meters, is the most straightforward to reach by foot from Nuwaraeliya.
Since the 19th century, people have been using the trail. On February 16, 1882, Ernest Haeckel reached the highest point, and on September 19, 1986, Andreas Franz Wilhelm Schimper did likewise. You must be pleased with the forest reserve that is still there on the slopes of Pidurutalagala up to the Le Vallon tea estate in Galaha, despite the fact that the mountain range continues north-west all the way to Kandy. The Victoria Reservoir, Kandy, and the Knuckles range can all be seen from the top of the Dotelagala rock, and closer to you is the Loolecondera plantation, where James Taylor originally grew tea in 1863.
Namunukula
With an elevation of 2036 meters, Namunukula is an isolated peak in the eastern Uva basin that you can see in the earlier eagle eye view from atop Lipton’s Seat at Haputale. It usually always hides in the clouds.
It is advised to go through the Spring Valley tea estate to reach this obdurate and evasive mountain environment. From the Elle gap, which is 19 kilometers distant, you have already seen the Namunukula mountain range. Before arriving at the foothills of the mountain range, which as its name suggests has nine peaks, you must make a lovely 6-kilometer hike through a forest of rhododendrons and enormous trees. On this mountain, a portion of a very fine primeval forest cover has been maintained. The enormous trees become stunted at approximately 3-5 meters, providing a thick canopy, as you rise. The mountain itself is covered with shrub forest, providing a sweeping view of the island’s eastern and southern beaches.
From Horton Plains, the other two paths go to the second-and third-highest peaks, Kirigalpoththa and Thotupola Kanda, respectively.
Kirigalpoththa
The hike to Kirigalpoththa mountain, 2388 meters above sea level, is unquestionably the most alluring nature walk for both the intrepid amateur and the serious naturalist. It is not simple and takes around 4 hours, but it is definitely feasible. At its crest, the route continues to wet grassland, cloud forest, and shrub jungle. For this tryst with authentic tropical nature, which seeps out of natural springs of water that are the source of the Belihuloya and the Walawe River, the optimum months are February to April. A dazzling assortment of wild flowers will excite you during these months.
Thotupola kande
The Thotupola Kande During the months of February through April and July through September, a footpath from Horton Plains leads to 2357m, Sri Lanka’s third-highest mountain. With the least amount of resistance, this route makes it possible to access the darkest corners of a cloud forest. Although it is the third-highest mountain, the elevation rise is so gradual that you only notice the height you reach when the bite of the winds that buffet you becomes sharper and more progressive. By many accounts, the breathtaking vista of the nearby savannas and clumps of deep woodland is an ecstatic encounter with mother earth. There was a valid reason why the prehistoric man worshiped mountain summits.