![]() |
Copyright Notice: Please obtain permission from the author before duplicating, re-publishing or adapting content of a trip report |
![]() |
Be a responsible traveler! Watch this video before you hit the road! Download Video: MP4|3gp |
![]() |
Do you like to contribute a Trip Report? learn how to or download template and start straight away! |
Year and Month | December 2009 |
Number of Days | Two Day Trip |
Crew | 10 (age between 25 and 65) |
Accommodation | Olu Ella Inn |
Transport | a Jeep and a Double Cab |
Activities | Just driving around to explore the area |
Weather | Clear and beautiful mornings. By noon, rain clouds gathered and the rest of the day it was raining in some form or the other. |
Route | Colombo -> Yatiyanthota -> Malalpola -> Dombepola -> Seeforth -> Nagastenna [2km] -> Rambukpitiya -> B119 (Nawalapitiya – Ginigathhena) -> Ginigathhena -> Yatiyanthota -> Colombo
We also drove up to the Weweltalawa division of Halgolla estate, high up in the mountain from Malalpola. Distance from Yatiyanthota to Seeforth = 23km, from Seeforth to B119 = 14km |
Tips, Notes and Special remarks |
|
Author | Mithila |
Comments | Discuss this trip report, provide feedback or make suggestions at Lakdasun Forum on the thread |
We left Malabe at 8.00 a.m. The destination for the first day was “Olu Ella inn” which is located 15.5km from Yatiyanthota town on the Yatiyanthota – Seeforth road. At around 9.30 in the morning we were stopped by the stunning scenery of the Kelani River at the Karawanella bridge on the A7.
After spending about half an hour on the bridge, enjoying the scenery we continued our drive along the A7 towards Yatiyanthota. Just after crossing the bridge over “WE Oya (Wea Oya)” we turned left towards Yatiyanthota town. From the immediate “T junction” we turned left on to the Yatoyanthota – Seeforth road.
The road was narrow but was in good condition. It winds through rubber plantations and forest patches along the bank of the “We Oya”, a tributary of Kelani River. The drive was quite scenic and interesting.
Enjoying the views, we drove 15.5km from Yatiyanthota to reach our destination of the first day, the Olu Ella Inn. Thanks to the information posted by NG, it was quite straightforward to find the place.
Before lunch, we had a nice cool bath in the river (we Oya) which boarders Olu Ella Inn. There is a extended shallow area with sand bottom right in front of the guest house. perfect place to bath in the river!
As the rain started falling down, we were restricted to the rooms for the rest of the day. So we made maximum use of the “free time” which we rarely get on our “holidays” 🙂
Next day we woke up early in the morning. The rain has stopped and all the signs of a perfect morning were there. We walked further along the main road to see the “Olu Ella” water fall which is apparently the 5th highest in Sri Lanka.
To reach the waterfall, we walked about 500m towards Seeforth from the guest house. The waterfall is right by the road at the 16km post, where there is a wooden bridge over the stream.
we spent some more time exploring the area. The early morning views were stunning. Weather was quite dynamic too. Bright sun lit mountains and clear skies were so beautiful, and suddenly, thick mist encapsulated the whole area for several minutes without any warning!
During the hour or so I spent wondering around Olu Ella inn, I was able to see many species of birds. The highlight of the sightings was an Oriental Dwarf Kingfisher which I managed to observe for quite some time while it was busy hunting on the river bank.
After breakfast we packed our bags and left Olu Ella inn. The planned route of the tour was to reach Nawalapitiya – Ginigathhena road through Seeforth from where we were and then return to Malabe via Ginigathhena, Awissawella.
Before we left, Mr. Naragala, the manager of the Olu Ella Inn, told us about the “Weweltalawa” division situated at a unique plateau on top of mountains which can be reached through the Halgolla Estate. He also mentioned that the same road can take us all the way up to the Yatiyanthota ITN/SLBC broadcasting tower. Perfect! we thought, and we drove about 1.5km from the guest house towards Yatiyanthota where we found the estate road to Wewelthalawa in front of the Halgolla factory.
The track was narrow, but well paved. From the very beginning, it was a steep ascend through the estate. We drove up hills through the hair-pin bends. Every minute the scenery was improving! As we reached upper parts of the mountains the forest was mostly intact. There were notice boards everywhere indicating that the forest is protected as it is a main catchment area of the “We Oya”.
We drove 8km, along the track, gaining about 600m in elevation. Finally the track climbed over the huge rock on the top, and there was a vast flat land in front of us! We had reached the “Wewelthalawa division”. We could see the ITN tower at a distant summit behind the village, but the time was not enough to go all the way there.
By 11.30 a.m, we were back on the main road and started driving towards Seeforth. The road up to Seeforth was narrow but in good condition. There were a lot of interesting things to see too…
As we drove further, at one point, the road condition suddenly became really bad! There were large pot holes and we were driving along stretches where tar is almost absent! A little bit of fact-finding revealed that we have reched “Seeforth” and Seeforth belongs to a different local authority. May be they believe in gravel roads as opposed to the paved ones!
From Seeforth, the road was in really bad shape until we reached Nagastenna Estate. There were several stretched in the estate which were well paved but mostly it was either an unpaved jeep track or badly damaged pavement. By the time we reached this area, the weather has also changed. Rain clouds dominated the landscape. So there weren’t many photo opportunities. The surrounding looked great and would have been quite beautiful in a clear day.
Passing Nagastenna Division, we continued through abandoned tea plots, stretches of pines, bushes and forests mostly with occasional human settlements such as the “Galamuduna Colony” until we reached the B119, where we took the right turn towards Gingathhena and returned home via Kithulgala, Awissawella.