Sinhalaya Travels

We decided to tackle a trek this time over, so we settled on an 11km long hike through forests and hillsides to a cave full of bats and Potassium Nitrate. We are told this cave was mined for gunpowder thousands of years ago to feed the armies of ancient kings. Either that or it was the secret hideout of a diabolical archaic supervillain. We are inclined to believe the latter as it offers far more incentive to visit the cave. That’s not to say the cave doesn’t look amazing by itself, though.

The trek can be undertaken by anyone who takes regular exercise or is reasonably confident of one’s physical ability. You’ll have to travel nearly 2km up a mountainside on steep gradients. The rest is mostly gently sloping paths. Be warned though, the gentle downhill climb of 9 kms in the beginning turns into a torturous uphill trek on the way back that will take you almost twice as long to cover. There will also be leeches and an oceanload of rain if you go in the rainy season. Best months are from June to September, according to Lakdasun.

The complete trail guide can be found here. Get a few copies of it and make sure you don’t get it wet. Best to get a plastic holder for it. It is essential as it contains the directions you will have to take.

Preparation

Items to get would include sufficient food (make sure to pack glucose and energy bars), plenty of water (the streams are drinkable but few and far between) and some first aid things. If you don’t want to donate blood to less than charitable purposes we recommend you prepare some form of leech repellent. We just used ordinary face wash. Leech socks are also essential. Wear shoes that have a good grip and won’t fall apart when roughed up. You’ll need warm clothing for the start of the trail which starts at a higher, colder altitude. Raincoats are very important.

Last but certainly not least, make sure you have arranged reliable transport. We cannot stress this enough. Make sure you get a vehicle to come and wait for you at a predetermined location till you get there. You do not want to be stranded in the middle of the leech infested road at night with heavy rain and not even a cell phone signal for assistance. Your mobile is better switched off to conserve battery power throughout the hike, as there is no signal anywhere and the constant searching eats into precious battery life.

You’re better off doing this hike over the course of two days. Camp out in a hena if you can. Or book rooms in a number of hotels around Corbett’s Gap. However, if you’re physically and otherwise prepared for some rough down and dirty fun; this is a tremendously enjoyable hike to complete in a day.

As you can see above, it is also a great opportunity to photograph things. Or in the case of Kandy, the lack of things.

Getting There

We took the Friday ‘night mail’ train that leaves Fort for Badulla at 8pm. Switched trains at Peradeniya, and arrived at Kandy at around 11. We hired a van from the station to Corbett’s Rest, a lodge near the trail head. Till the cab arrives good food can be had close by. Eat up.

If, like us, your cab arrived at about 1am, you might want to head straight to Corbett’s gap to start the hike. It is recommended that you get the van to arrive as early as possible and get some sleep. If all else fails, catch a few winks in the van itself. It will take about 2 and a half to 3 hours depending on how the road is. Watch out for felled trees in strong winds.

The drive itself is eerie. The darkness all around makes the hills seem spooky and the few human habitats you will see appear positively haunted at that time of night. Sit on the windows or stand on a seat with your body outside to truly experience the howling wind. The journey is beautiful.

Either way, get to Corbett’s gap around 5am if you wish to see a spectacular sunrise. We saw a very mediocre sunrise due to the entire valley being shrouded in mist, though. Corbett’s gap is the highest point on the Meemure-Hunnusgiriya road. You can recognize the place by the shockingly wild winds and the view out over the valley. There is a cement signboard with a map of the locality. There is also a trail leading upwards to the left.

The Hike; Starting off

Corbett’s Gap is the point at which you will start the hike. All the information you require in terms of direction is well provided for by the wonderful people at Lakdasun, so a laminated copy of the trail guide is essential to get around. The first stretch is along a road that leads down to a village called Meemure, itself a popular tourist attraction, but we turn off after five kms into a rougher jeep track that leads through another rural village.

The trail will alternate from views of panoramic mountain ranges and patches of lush forest. Keep your eyes open for the flowers and butterflies. And whatever you do, do not pollute. Leave only your footprints and take only pictures as the saying goes.

The jeep track leads on through cliff edges and more great views of the mountainside and will wind on through the village and some paddy fields. It’s interesting to note that the entire path leading to the foot of the mountains is kept well maintained. It’s trimmed and mostly level. It is also home to many leeches when wet. Be wary of the critters. The jeep track will eventually peter out into a mere footpath and you will arrive at some hena. This is about the point where the rough stretch of the hike will start.

We took this opportunity to chill on a hena and have some brunch. There are cows and buffaloes grazing near by but they are generally harmless (to those unacquainted with the disposition of farm animals). There’s a great and imposing view of Lakegala and the open sky that we enjoyed while getting slightly high on a well placed rock nearby.

The locals are very obliging with smiles, directions and water. We don’t know if they’d have been obliging with anything else because that’s all we asked for during the trip.

To the Nitro cave

The last stretch of the hike is a vague footpath that winds through jungle for about 2kms, in the course of this you will climb roughly an altitude of about 250 meters, which is not a very easy joke. Make sure you get staffs if required and proceed in a disciplined line. Ensure you have plenty of water.

There is an excellent ‘bathing spot’ right where the climb starts. Its great to have a bath after you visit the cave on the way down if, like us, you venture inside and experience the bat residue in your efforts to see what lies inside. But more on that soon.

The trail may appear to go on forever and there is a point where you may have some difficulty locating it. But keep going upwards and stick to your directions and you will eventually end up at two large, and we mean massive, trees light gray in color. They look like they’ve been put there on purpose to mark the spot. There will also be small milepost-like stones with something between 1-3km written on them along the path. Beyond the trees there are some big boulders and once you pass through them you are confronted with the Nitro cave. Its a sight.

It is located at the bottom of a sheer rock cliff and it is basically a gaping cavernous hole. There is a steep ledge to get over if you want to climb up to the entrance. Beware the bats who will by this time be getting excited by your presence. But they are mostly harmless, we just decided to fall flat on the ground if they tried to ‘attack’ but mostly they only flew above us creating a lot of racket.

Watch out for wasps. But the nests we saw appeared empty so we just risked it. Only four of us entered the caves. And unfortunately none of us had a camera. But we explored the interior of the opening cavern and found that three smaller caves lead off into the dark beyond. There are also various crevices and nooks from which bats kept pouring out by the hundred. Expect to see a lot of excited bats. We were not able to confirm whether this was the site of batman’s first encounter with the flying foxes.

The Way Back

The route you take when starting the hike primarily heads downhill. The lowest point of it is the ‘bathing spot’ mentioned earlier. After that the trail climbs again steeply to the Nitro Cave. What you have to remember is that you have an almost 10km long uphill climb on the way back to Corbett’s Gap. We were almost stranded on the mountain in the rain and the dark, but luckily we received a lift from a passing van. You can also use a jeep to get around up and down on this stretch, but hiking is recommended. Cos It’s more fun that way.