We stopped to take a few pics of the morning sky painted with gorgeous colors. The shadows of trees added to the beauty with the contours of the mountains in the distance. I wouldn’t have minded walking along this road at this time as it felt heavenly. However, time was a luxury we couldn’t afford at the time as we had planned something unprecedented even in Nava Mama’s standards. KCC at Deanston was still in darkness and no sign of activity there. It’d’ve been grand if we could be at the mini world’s end when the sun is rising. We could’ve got a super panoramic view towards Ududumbara, Hasalaka and Mahiyanganaya. I had to restrain myself so hard not to venture into the trail without this early and there was no way to get permission.

Passing Loolwatte tea shop made me crave for yet another coffee but we simply wanted to get to Meemure as soon as we could and start on our first hike. We stopped nonetheless at Corbet’s Gap for a few pics of the mountains which were rising majestically to a clear blue sky. From then on, it was a downhill journey along a circular road that entwines the mountains like a giant snake. It’d already gone by 6.30am and we hurried. There were a few places where the road was terrible but we had a somewhat higher ground clearance enabling us to pass without incident. Reaching Kaikawala concrete bridge, we saw a monk who’s going collecting his meals (Pindawatha Wadinawa). He simply stepped out of the road, without even looking back and kept looking downwards till we passed.

There are a few monks who stay meditating in this part of SL as it’s so beautiful and calm. We even came across one such place deep inside the jungle on our way back from Gala Muduna later in the day. Closer to Nava mama’s house, we got the first glimpse of the gorgeous Lakegala. Whoa, what a beauty she is despite being continuously harassed by unforgiving sunlight and intermittent rains.