Life along the railways of Uva (Badulla to Ambewela)

The map – Click Map to Enlarge

It was end of the monsoons and everywhere seemed to be flooded. I did have few free days in hand but couldn’t think of a better thing to do other than a rail hike. Since I dint get a chance to do a long distance hike after last year’s 90km “Pada Yathra” I thought of walking 70km along the railway backwards from Badulla. Usually many hikers do not do the Badulla – Haputale stretch because nothing much to see but you won’t believe, there are plenty to see around. During this hike I experienced how the life flows around the hill country railways. Though I have mentioned Railways of Uva few parts of it belongs to Central province but up to Ambewela there are parts belonging to Uva province too.

Day one I took a bus and went towards Badulla though I hadn’t planned to start on that particular day I thought of finishing off few Km’s to reduce the burden on my next two days and at last my decision did pay off. At around 1.30pm after having lunch I reached Badulla station which seemed very quiet, the long walk was initiated and my target was to get to Demodara if time permits. After passing the 290.5km post I came across the last tunnel of the railway track which is tunnel No 43. The rail road runs parallel to Badulu oya almost up to Demodara and most of the time one can note the Badulla- Colombo road winding around the hills. This stretch was not much scenic but at some places the turbulent Badulu oya was creating some stunning images. I did come across a mini bridge across the Badulu oya where I spent few minutes gazing around. There were plenty of people using the railway to get to their homes or desired other destinations so I never felt lonely. After 1.5hours I reached Hali ela station which had an antique look which I really loved. After Hali ela I came across a 795 which was the goods train crawling towards Badulla.

My starting point was actually where the hill country rail road ends

lonely Badulla station

left away

Tunnel No 43 the last one

life!

the foot path and the rail road

පියා සහ පුතු

Badulu oya

a bridge over badulu oya

paddy

turbulant

hmmmmmmmmm

ancient looking hali ela station

give way please

Dogs and cats were everywhere and they did stare at this lonely traveler on many occasions but never barked or growled. Just before reaching Uduwara I came across few guys smoking some illicit drugs on a bridge. This incident reminded me that I need to be caution while hiking alone. Not so far from these guys there was a flock of beautiful parrots which I have never seen. A friend of mine later clarified that these were plum-headed parakeets. Actually walking along “Silpara Kotan” was bit difficult because they were placed close by but later I found out that these wooden bars were better than the two types of iron bars and concrete bars and out of those the worse were the curved iron bars. Within half an hour I reached Uduwara station which was a very small station and from here onwards the skies seem to be getting clear and providing some stunning scenery. It is very interesting to see how the railway has been part of some citizen’s daily lives. I did come across two who were reading the newspaper leisurely on the railway while heading towards Demodara. I also came across a 785 heading towards Badulla just Before Uduwara Falls which cascades very close to the rail track. One can even visualize this waterfall from the Badulla road too. The setting sun did light up the “mana” to create some stunning scenery just before crossing the Badulu river. I had reached Demodara loop and the starting point was at Tunnel no 42(there is a short cut to the station from this point). I was clueless that I was winding around a hill until I reached Demodara station to understand what I went through for 1.1km’s. To view the whole loop one needs to get to Uduwara tea factory and that seemed beyond my limitations on this particular hike. After the 14Km warm up hike it was time to find a place to rest unfortunately the closest guest house was at Uduwara where I had to go back and plan my next day which was supposed to be the toughest.

they were watchful

the ones who were smoking ගංජා

minor obstacles

Plum headed parakeet a beauty isnt it

Ceylon Lorikeet

life between සිල්පර

Uduwara

life has been always around the rail track for this person

what a place to read the news paper lol

path created by years of usage

the sky cleared off

peeping through the bushes

Uduwara falls

colourful surrounding

First sight of Ella rock just before Demodara

Really love this!

evening dip

contrast

Badulla rd and Badulu oya running paralleled to the rail way

a waterfall formed by badulu oya close to Demodara station

Demodara loop

closing in on the station

after 7.87km i reached Demodara

young looking station master

good for the museum

having a chat after a heavy day perhaps

Day two my plan was to start early from Demodara since I had 31km’s to finish off and I knew this would be a tough task. At 6.30am the new S12 Udarata Menike from Badulla met the night mail from Colombo at Demodara station and I set on foot after witnessing this meeting. The new S12 has replaced the old train after school teachers and other office workers have sent a petition saying the old train has caused them to reach their work places delayed daily due to its inability to climb up towards Haputale without difficulties. From Demodara onwards the railway was full of Homo sapiens who travel daily to work and school. It was a wonderful sight to see them walking along the railways with a smile. At tunnel no 41 I saw two school boys vanishing in to the darkness of the tunnel and that sight simply sums of their lives. The railway was misty all the way producing some stunning scenery. After walking for about 4km’s I reached the famous Demodara 9 arch bridge which is said to be done by our fellow countryman Mr Appuhamy. Please read this article for further information. I didn’t have much time to waste around so couldn’t wait till the next train arrived and I had about 27km more to walk so off I went through tunnel 40 towards Ella. Throughout the whole journey I met “Lines men” who were traveling up and down doing their job properly ensuring the safety of others. Ella station was my next stop and the bushes had been trimmed saying “Welcome to Ella”, the beautiful blossoming flowers were like welcoming bouquet. From Ella I proceeded further crossing the Ella – Wellawaya road until the giant like Ella rock was standing in front of me. Few hundred meters away Ravana Ella proper was cascading in a pure white veil and the view of Ella gap from this point was stunning as always. My next station was Kithal Ella which was 2.5Km away from Ella.

parking lights were on (podi menike)

searching for signals

you can go now

limit your speed

for us it is a rail hike. for them it’s their life( as said by kasun)

happy faces

chatting along the rail road while going to school

බාප්‍පයි සහා පුතා

on the way to the Chena along the rail rd

gloomy path

hill tops

oh i wish i had this experience when i was a kid

last smile before they went in to the dark

a near by cascade

misty scenery

සැළලිහිණියා

curves

9 arch bridge of Demodara

I was there but this was another one.

in case a train came (tunnel no 40)

a mile post

mist always creates fascinating scenery

lines man

blossoming

through the pines trees

Welcome to Ella

7.28km from Demodara

beautiful

rusty parts

I love this sign board

Ella rock seen from the rail rd

angle of the slope

slow down there is an unprotected crossing

මෙහේ එනවා

Rawana falls proper

Ella gap

this one was very busy

this one looks like a foreign species

From Kithal Ella to Heel oya there was not much to see around except people working hard in their lands. The Heel oya stretch also didn’t provide stunning scenery except few mountain tops around Bandarawela. A landslide along the rail way was a common sight and all of these places were cleared off. From Heel oya I proceeded towards Kinigama where I met my friend Priyanjan and Prashastha who had brought me some roti and lime juice knowing that I was hiking in hunger we had a half an hour chat before I said good bye to them, promising to crash in at the latter part of the day.

Yellow Eyed Babbler hiding between bushes

Kithal ella

farther and son having a chat

men at work

move away

6.25km from Ella

land slips cleared off

wild but beautiful

loving the warmth of the rail road

hard life

Tunnel no 39 was very close to the railway station and from there onwards it was a half an hour walk up to Bandarawela. At Bandarawela I sat on a bench waiting till the Goods train from Badulla to leave but since it was getting late to do so I started to march towards Diyathalawa. While I was walking towards Diyathalawa 783 and 788 decided to overtake me while somewhere close to Tunnel no 38 a 785 came steaming in where I had to jump out towards a safety area. Just before Diyathalawa Bandarawela town and Foxhill was clearly visible to the railway. When I reached Diyathalawa I was exhausted and knowing that I had 5 more Km’s to go was not helping the cause in any way. So after resting a bit it was time for me to conquer the final stretch for the day. Not so far away from the station Tunnel no 37 is located and just after passing the tunnel I met the 784 engine rushing towards Badulla with passengers on a rail bridge. The 5km walk was very difficult and the gloomy weather was not appealing at all. If it was a clear day there would have been some stunning scenery but unfortunately it was not so. After reaching Haputale at around 3.30pm my legs started complaining to me immediately who forced me to go to a restaurant and have some lunch while my legs had a break. The look out from Haputale was the perfect medicine for me to end my day. I was lucky in the sense that there was not much of mist around so I could capture few landscape pic’s. From Haputale I got in to a bus and went towards Bandarawela to spend the night at my friend’s place where he treated me with great hospitality as usual.

Kinigama tunnel near the station

more to walk

yeah school is over…

keep away this is my resting post

Arial view of the carriage train(783)

shunt engine at Bandarawela station

class M6

a cascade at bandarawela

gloomy scenery

laws of physics

I’m 788

bye bye

the pole has gained new life

give me some room and get out of the rail track, im angry

Diversion

Bandarawela town

after 6km from bandarawela

Tunnel no 37

caught on the bridge

posing

Caterpillar effect

ROFL

gloomy central hills

සලන්ග් ටලන්ග්

do not hit sixes towards Mid on and mid off

after 5.3km i reached haputale the end point on day 2! i know next day i need to be back and start again from here on-wards

scenic haputale

plenty of lakes

after half and hour it cleared off

Day 3 I was accompanied by Kasun who came to Bandarawela by train (night mail) from Colombo. After thanking and saying good bye to Priyanjan we arrived at Haputale by train. And we did not forget to capture some stunning scenery towards southern Sri Lanka. On the opposite side of the rail road Welimada plateau and Nuwara eliya was evidently visible. Hakgala range, Piduruthalagala range, Totupola range was seen clearly from Haputhale on that particular morning. After buying what we wanted and having breakfast both of us headed back towards the railway and started hiking on a sunny day. The 7.5km hike to Idalgasinna was through an open area until we reached the boarder of Thangamale sanctuary. It was nice to see some people who live along the railway also growing flowers on the sides of the rail track and maintaining as their gardens. The rail hike through Thangamale was very interesting and the scenery was simply superb. Just before Idalgasinna we noted how the mist was hitting the railway from Beragala, Haldummulla side while the Welimada side remained perfectly clear. Just before Idalgasinna we came across Tunnel no 36.

day 3 first shot was Namunukula which is the highest point of uva

panorama from Haputale note the lakes towards Walawe basin – Click Image to Enlarge

Panorama from Haputhale towards Welimada plateau – Click Image to Enlarge

Hakgala & Piduruthalagala ranges

Udamala mountain Pattipola

Totupola kanda

misty Haputhale

towards Koslanda

Kuragala

towards sooriyakanda

a motor trolley

245 was the post found at Haputhale

scenic hill country

well maintained

mixed colours

entrance to Thangamale

turpentine

Fox hill zoomed

Ashoka

life on the edge

Towards Bandarawela, note namunukula covered

curving around

towards welimada

art of nature

bowitiya

endless

exiting Thangamale

one side was covered with mist

From Idalgasinna we set on foot towards Ohiya which is 8.85Km away and was the longest stretch which I came across during this hike. First part was through the tea estates of Idalgasinna and next we were entering mountainous forest where plenty of Ashoka trees with flowers can be found. At Tunnel no 35 we came across 25-30 men repairing the railway track within the tunnel with the aid of a generator. After passing two tunnels we were overtaken by Udarata Menike (796) which was heading towards Colombo. For the first time we had to start using head lamps and our torches because walking in tunnels was very difficult in low light conditions adding on to that the slippery nature was making things further problematic. At Tunnel no 30 we met 782 train engine pulling her load towards Badulla. Out of all the tunnels we came across, Tunnel no 26 had a different shape, it was 6/8 of a circle and once you pass it there was a rail bridge where a beautiful cascade flows by. We frequently came across tunnels and turpentine plantations and most of it seemed to be set on fire last year during the dry season. Even the monsoons were coming to an end these forests were still striving to gain some life. We were lucky enough to come across few purple faced leaf monkeys who are found frequently at Horton plains. We also met few researches from Sabaragamuwa University who were studying about “Wehilihini” nest. From Idalgasinna to Ohiya there were 19 tunnels and out of these Tunnel number 28 didn’t have a name board. After getting to Ohiya we decided to have some string hoppers which we brought from Haputale with a nice hot plain tea.

landscaped

yellow pettals

life continues

note one side covered with mist (idalgasinna)

wow

entering the forest

ධක්කුව

men at work

tunnel no 35 & 34

please give me room

suba anagathayak

M=miles C=Chains L=Links

Tunnel no 32

plenty of these were found along the road …pathetic

782 emerging out of tunnel no 30

Tunnel no 28

the only tunnel we came across with this shape

a nice little cascade

greenish tunnel no 25

a wild cat

burnt during the dry season by brainless nut cases

Purple faced leaf monkey who are common in horton plains

more to go

වැහිලිහිණි කූඩුව

8.84km from Idalgasinna

Just before we proceeded from Ohiya it started to drizzle and within no time we were been pounced on by thundershowers and the weather didn’t change a bit even until we reached Pattipola. The 6.4km was very difficult to tackle in these weather conditions which were further worsened with thick mist. We barely saw few feet ahead and we couldn’t hear the sound of the train even. Fortunately we were aware about train schedules and the lines men who we met were a good source to get fresh information from. Despite the bad weather the misty scenery didn’t stop me from clicking on occasionally. I had to take my camera out of the rain coat and capture some mesmerizing scenery while Kasun kept his camera in his bag. Out of all the tunnels Tunnel no 20 was a dead straight one and it seemed like walking towards infinity. Within few seconds after we got out of the tunnel the train entered it and we didn’t see it until less than hundred meters away when the light appeared out of the mist. Next main attraction was Tunnel no 18 which collapsed on 1951, it is well known for the climate change on the two ends of it. On one side it’s the dry Welimada side and on the opposite it’s the cold Nuwara eliya side. This was the longest tunnel (3rd longest in SL) I came across while hiking from Badulla. One kilometer away from Pattipola is the highest point of Sri Lankan railways and Kasun had to take his camera out of the bag despite the rain at this point

last snap before the rains

perfect post card

tunnel vision

never ending tunnel

oh god whats this light

look out its a train

wow like in heaven

bit of history about Tunnel no 18 – Click Image to Enlarge

finally the end of tunnels

lonely it was

Summit point of Sri Lankan railways

horton plains

closing to Pattipola

four flowers

Seen Pattipola station was a big relief knowing that we had only few Km’s to finish off. We waited until 783 passed us towards Ambewela to initiate our last phase of hiking for the day. The stretch towards Ambewela was bordered by civilization at most places and there were plenty of flowers around which made our hike pleasurable. Just after passing the Highland factory the 791 rushed past us towards Pattipola. And within no time we reached Ambewela (219.5km post) where we felt a huge relief and also were delighted with what we achieved. Just before we took the last bus at 4.45pm from Ambewela we said good bye to 782 which was halted at Ambewela. Both of us were hungry and dead tired so after getting to Nuwara eliya we did have an early dinner before falling in to a deep subconscious state. Next day early morning both of us said good bye to each other and disappeared towards our destinations. It was an awesome experience I have ever had and I will do it again when time permits. Hope you enjoyed the rail hike as I did, Thanks for reading!

I’m 783

ghostly Pattipola

few more km’s this way and you can finish it off today

pure orange

Totupola covered with mist

life after the rain

moss	ambewela strtch had many flowers

is this a hydrangea

greased

happily hiking

I’m MR 791

after 71km’s this was the end point

good by Ambewela and 782

dusk over kikiliyamana

dawn over Piduruthalagala