Visit to Gerandi Ella

I do not have a travel partner or a specific travel group. I go with anyone to place I have not been and if I like the person or the group, I will travel again with them. Rana was one such group which is headed by Chamara Weeratissa and Udara Randika. I have been to Thoranakotha and Elgin with them before. Ever since Chamara let me know whenever they go somewhere, and I join whenever I can. So, after a long break I joined Rana to visit Gerandi Ella along with some others I known to me Rane, Rukshan, Sajith, Geeth, Sayu and like in every trip some new travelers.

I have seen photos of Gerandi Ella before and in fact I have heard it as a trek that was challenging but with a beautiful view. So, when I asked Chamara whether there are seats available and he said yes, I happily jumped in knowing them and wanting to cover the location.

So as usual we met at the Fort station around 11:30 p.m. There were many others going to different locations and Fort being a meeting point of many we met some other travelers and bade farewell before we went on our own ways.

As usual I had a good nap although the sleep of others was distracted by the bang bang music that was emanating from the buffle set of the vehicle. I heard we almost went on a different route before we reached Hunnasgiriya around 4:30 a.m. As we were little early, we all slept inside the vehicle till the shops opened for us to get something to eat and prepare ourselves for the journey.

After about a nap of one hour, we went out, had some hot tea as the temperature outside was bit cold. There we were net by Laksiri and his brother who came separately on their own bikes. We headed towards Kalugala after refreshing and got out of the vehicle and changed our clothes and prepared for the hike.

Udara had been there before so he acted as the guide for the trail. It was a long trek from the place we got down to the point of commencing the trek. It was a mini trek itself and from there it was a very steep trek uphill. With all the travel I have done still I was panting. With few stops on the way we finally reached a flat land where we had our first glance of the waterfall.

The area was covered by paddy fields and there were chena cultivations. Many we came there it was very sunny, and the villagers were out working. Laksiri and his brother had already started climbing up as they wanted to come down on the same day. We spent a considerable time admiring the view and getting ready for the steep climb uphill.

After a waiting Rukshan started the climb and some of us followed. It was also a very steep uphill climb through grasses. Luckily Chamara instructed us to wear long sleeves and come and this protected me from getting serious scratches. While we were searching for a path suddenly out of nowhere a buffalo charged at us. I guess it is because of the red colour and the noise that we were making. Had it not been for the rope that tied the animal, one of us would have had a serious injury as we were clueless of a place even to run with the grasses and the steep hill. It was indeed a narrow escape.

After the adrenaline rush, we started climbing up as we found the pathway. As it was dry, we didn’t have issues with leeches and the path was not that slippery. Let me tell a bit about Gerandi Ella.

Gerandi Ella is a cascade of waterfalls and it is in the Kalugala area which is in Udadumbara region. Geradni literally means the rat snake as the fall of water resembles such. The total height of the cascade is about 200-240 m. This could be seen along the Mahiyangana road. This consists of 5 main segments. It is nourished by a branch of Hasalaka oya that flows from the eastern edge of the Knuckles range which is known as Gerandigala.

I would consider this as a medium to difficult hike as it depends on the season and because of some vertical climbs that needed to be done. There are two such climbs that has ropes fixed (Thank you for that) and you need to be bit careful and is bit strenuous. This is where you need team effort. Everyone helped each other passing bags and helping each other to climb.

We had a bath on the top of the 2nd segment on our way up and spend some time to refresh ourselves. It was from there we had the send climb with the rope which was bit strenuous. Once we completed that the way up was another vertical climb. We reached the top around 4 p.m. which was strange as in most of other hikes it is late by the time, we reach our destination. It was very sunny and all of us went near the stream and had a nap which was much needed after the strenuous climb up.

There were three teams that camped up during the day and one team came and went down on the same day. This included Luksiri and his brother as well and they have taken a totally different route. I met Sherman whom I have only chat on FB. There were some others who were firends in Facebook but could not recognize so there were no encounter at all until I came home and saw the updates.  I already had a bath and our team moved away from the stream and went towards the top and set up our camp there. It was getting colder and after we had some food of bread, biscuits we went towards the stream to drink some tea and for the others to get a bath.

I would say this was a kind of “Luxury” camping as we had all resources we needed, water, wood and most importantly the time. We were just lying down enjoying the cold and relaxing ourselves listening to the soft sentimental music of the JBL.

From the top we could see Kehelpaddoruwa boarder. Dumbanagala, Yahangala, Deanston and the range of VRR are in the vicinity. From the top we would see the Udadumbara town, Mahiyanagana and the kalugala region. Sorabora wewa, Ulhitiya wewa and wellangolla patna could be seen from a distance.

We lit the fire towards the evening and had a good campfire and then prepared noodles for dinner. It was poya and hence was a moonlit night. It was amazing to see the moon emerging through the clouds and was an ideal time for night photography and light painting. It was fascinating to see the lights of the houses below as tiny dots on a black blanket. The night was cold and the fire gave some form of warmth. Except for the occasional howls that we heard at a distance, the night was quiet.

As I don’t eat noodles, I had some I had some bread and settled myself into the tent to have a nap. It was indeed a cold night. Our tent only had 3 and the ground was not even. Not enough warmth inside so I basically had to wrap my towel around my legs to keep me warm. Had to have a pee break in the middle of the night and few other also were awake because of the same reason I guess. I would not call its a comfortable sleep as my back pained because of the rough terrain.

I woke up at around 5:45 a.m. Two of others were already awake trying to light up the fire. I was roaming around to take some snaps as the sky was really colourful with shades of orange, red and yellow. When we were losing hope of a sunrise, the sun suddenly appeared as a ball of fire out of nowhere. As I always say, every sunrise is different, and it made us all awe with open eyes and mouths. There was a drone flying around and we also managed to get some group photos.

We had tea in the morning with biscuits and chocolate (With Raana we usually have excess snacks most of the time). And we were idling for a long time until we decided to go down near the stream to cook meatballs and have a bath. After the breakfast we started climbing down. It was almost noon.

The sky was sunny, and we had to come down along the same steep pathway we came up. Downhill was scarier and we had to make use of our butts to slowly come down and it took more time than we thought. When we reached the third segment I jumped into the water as I could not resist the temptation to enjoy that water on my body. So, I had a quick dip till the others came and it was a refreshing bath till we came all the way down to the vehicle.

It was almost a never ending walk even on the main road and Rana and me who were at the back almost put a Turbo and hurried our steps to reach the vehicle. At the vehicle we had bread with Jam, Cheese and some even had ice packets.

We all wanted a bath, so we stopped near the stream down and had a short bath and headed towards Digana where we had a decent meal and finally, I said goodbye to the gang from Lewella where I came back to the quarters.

Travelling is my hobby a kind of stress buster that keeps me going and stress free. It helps me to take a break and gets connected with Nature. It is also an opportunity to meet new people, explore new places. This was also such a hike that came with the same bundle of benefits.

As Ibn Battuta said, “Traveling – it leaves you speechless, then turns you into a storyteller.”  I hope my story entertained you and inspired you to do something new. Let me thank Raana for inviting me and all my  team members who supported throughout to complete the journey without any injury.

It has been a while since I last wrote. Until I meet you in another blog.

Cheers.

One day relaxation by the Beach – Stay at the Long Beach Resort and Spa Koggala and Madol Duwa

Although it was supposed to be a 4-day vacation but due to exams and a wedding of a close friend had to let go the idea of a long vacation and be satisfied with a single day. Luckily 2 others joined me. We were looking for some deals at hotel and finally found a good offer at the Long Beach resort and spa on a half board basis.

One of my friends had visited this couple of years back and he highlighted on the beach that was adjacent the hotel. What we wanted was to have a relaxing time and enjoy the day.

We left Colombo around 11:30 in the morning and we stopped at Welipenna for a short break. Then we left the highway from Galle exit. From Galle we had to take the Galle Matara road. After a short lunch we headed to the hotel which was located very close to the Air Force Camp and Madolduwa. It takes you around 20 minutes from the Galle exit to reach the hotel.

From outside the hotel had a traditional look with brick walls. Inside looks better. As per the front office, the hotel was fully booked for the past few days, many being tourists from Russia, Germany and China. It was around 2 p.m. and the front office was very busy. There were some foreigners waiting for the rooms to be prepared. We also had to wait for nearly half an hour till we received our room. Something that they did was to put a wristband on us to distinguish us from Full board and Half board customers. This was seen as something uncomfortable for the guests which I think the hotel will need to consider in future.

We were hoping for a sea view room and we got one. In fact, I think all rooms had a seas view as the hotel is built along the beach. The view from the top was good and had a good view of the sea. The room was great. Unlike other hotels the triple room had a good double bed a comfortable single one. It was relatively spacious with a Balcony. There was only two proper towels and single face towel available. Apart from that there was nothing to complain.

There are two swimming pools. One very closer to the lobby and for me it was bit too open. The other one was bigger with a mini kiddies pool and was located at one end of the hotel which according to me was located at a good place. There was a pool bar but was no open.

The best part of the hotel was the beach. It was surprisingly clean. The sand was pure white. The water was very clear. No garbage was to be found, which was surprising. As per my friends the beach was bigger few years back but  maybe because of Tsunami the beach has reduced. Lifeguards were available throughout and almost after sunset everyone was asked to get out of the sea. The beach was not rough. As the sky was very clear a good sunset was visible though the sun was not seen as a ball there were hues of yellow, red and orange painting a picturesque background and the white froth created a magnificent foreground with the blue waters.

We had a wonderful relaxing time at the beach. First, we had a nice swim in the pool and then a salty bath in the sea. Even the blue sky above was creating a wonderful picture with the white colour clouds. It was amazing just to lie down on the sands and look up at the sky. It almost got us into a trance when we were lying enjoying the serenity and the beauty of the surrounding. We were covered with sand all over and by the time we left the beach we were fully satisfied on all our senses.

Although the hotel was booked, there were only few to be seen outside. Few groups of people were seen scattered and there was a DJ playing music and some were enjoying this with the sound of the sea breeze in the background. Many had bought their own booze and were enjoying them either in the rooms or the beach benches. We did not have a room menu card therefore we had to go down and get a menu to order the food that we wanted.

The food as a whole was tasty. The dinner buffet was not large but had a good mix. Two action stations one for hoppers and the other for Chinese soup. The spread had various types of bread, salads, rice, meat and some good desserts mainly made of chocolate. The tables closer to the sea were already reserved but it was open to outside and had little disturbance.

The DJ stopped closer to 10:30 p.m. and there was no disturbance from outside to sleep. We had a good night sleep. I woke up to see whether the sunrise was visible. Though it was not clear, the sky had a pleasing aura and was indeed like a gift for those waking eyes. Hot water was available and after a hot bath we went to have breakfast which was also a buffet. Like the lunch it had a good selection. There were action stations for hoppers, omelet and bacon. We had a heavy meal, a good cup of coffee. The staff was very friendly and quick attending to the needs like providing hand wash bowls or refilling cups with water.

The checkout was at 12:00 p.m. but we wanted to leave early to visit Madol Duwa which was close by. We had another morning path from the pool and the sea before we left the hotel around 10:00 a.m. While one of my friends was sleeping someone from the room service has come opening the door which was an unpleasant experience as we had not checked out and this was even before 10:00. a.m. Apart from that the stay at the hotel was pleasant. When we were about to leave the hotel the person in charge came and asked about the stay and apologized for the rush. But I recommend going to the hotel specially look for offers and it will be a memorable stay for anyone who loves the sea and wants to reach a location within a short time.

On our way we visited Madol duwa. There was nothing much to see except for the trail through the island which was covered with a  lot of Mangroves. But the time of the day gave a good relaxation to both the body and the eyes specially by the colour of the greens and the blues. Best timing would have been a bit early or late evening so that there could be more chances of seeing some birds in the vicinity.  There are tour operators that take you on the ride and they charged us Rs 1500 for the ride. The length would depend on the time you wanted to spend there. 

I am glad I made this tour even for a single day as it was a great stress relief and also an opportunity to meet some new friends.

Until I meet you all again on another article cheers. Do let me know anyone who wants to explore some good hotels with me preferably with a vehicle so we can have some time relaxing...

Visit to Madulsima

It’s been a while since I wrote something since, I got some free time thought of writing of a recent event to Madulsima.

Like most other this was an event that was planned unexpectedly. Madulsima is a place I wanted to go for a long time and finally the trip was arranged. It is famous for the Mini World’s end and is a traveler’s hotspot ever since it was declared and there’s a view point to get a good look of the town below.

This is about 180km from Colombo and from Passara town you need to reach Pitamaruwa to reach the location. Legend says that the town got its name ‘Pitamaruwa’ because this was the place tea boxes being transported were exchanged from one set of caravans to another.

We were planning to visit some waterfalls on the way and hence by the time we reached Madulsima it was very late. We rested at the camping place, prepared our dinner and went to sleep early as the following day we had a heavy day with a couple of stops.

It was a sound sleep with minimum disturbance and no issues of rain. And we woke up around 5 a.m. hoping to get a good glimpse of the morning sun rise. The climate was wonderful and refreshing. The sunrise was not clear due to the clouds. As the time passed the sky became clear and I went to a higher place from where we were camping.

That was a view that I wanted to freeze in my memories. I was above the clouds. The cool breeze was so energizing.  Except for the noise of the breeze, the chirp of the birds and the sound of other animals it was absolute stillness. A mini world in the world we were living.

The view below was spectacular. It was as if the surrounding was blessing us for a new and awesome day. Then the rest of the gang also joined me at the mountain top. We all were dragged into a magical world that nature had painted to please all our senses.

My only regret is that I was unable to feel these senses naked such that I could feel the intensity in my body to the highest degree.

After spending some time there, we packed our stuff and went straight to the view point of the mini world’s end.

The prominent feature of Madulsima World’s End is, that the visitor can view a vast plain starting at the bottom of the mountain and ending towards the East coast. The elevation is about 1257 feet and is 2300-3400 above sea level. The highest part of the rock belongs to Roeberry estate and the lower part to the Dorapoda in Bibile district. The range of mountains are always covered in mist and has salubrious climate at all times.

There were some who were camping near the view point and I saw a couple of days later that the Madulsima layout was distorted with various writings by visitors. I guess this is what happens when people take everything for granted and do not have the courtesy to protect what is given to them free.

I always believe that as Sri Lankans we should have the freedom to enjoy the gifts bestowed upon us by Mother Nature. But that doesn’t give us a right to destroy it for the sake of fun.

Madulsima is a place that any Sri Lankan should visit, and you can reach there without much difficulty although there is a walk for about 30 minutes. Be responsible and enjoy nature.

Until I come up with another travel piece chao.