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SOLO HIKE TO ALAGALLA

By Admin on Wednesday, September 25, 2019

Alagalla mountain is located at the boundaries of Central and Sabaragamuwa Provinces in Sri Lanka, which is popular among the youngsters for the exciting adventures and its enthralling view. This is also known as the ‘Potato Range’ for its shape and is an easy to Moderate level hiking destination standing aprox. 3,740 feet above sea level. So, let’s see how to get into this wilderness!

How to Reach

The mountain has two main entry points.

01. From Ihala Kotte railway station or Gangoda Railway station

02. Via Poththapitiya in Pilimathalawa.

Both these starting points can be reached within two to three hours from Colombo based on the traffic jam and the mode of transportation used for the journey.

01. From Ihala Kotte railway station or Gangoda Railway station

If you are planning a one-day trip to Alagalla, you can get into the Podi Manike Train from Fort Railway station at 5.55 Am. If you miss the Train You can take the Udarata Menike Train at 8.30 Am. Click the below mentioned link to check the train Schedule. You can start the trek either from Gangoda Station or Ihala Kotte station. From Ihala Kotte station there is the clear footpath until you reach the Well-maintained road to Trail head. Don’t forget to get confirmed with the villegers until you reach the Trail head

However, using ihala kotte path might be little bit difficult for a less experienced person since you have to go through the Village, and you have to get confirm the path from villagers every time until you trail head.

01. Via Poththapitiya in Pilimathalawa.

If you’re travelling from Colombo and using public transportation you can easily get into a Kandy train and get off at Pilimathalawa Station. Or you Can get into a Colombo – Kandy bus from Pettah Bus terminal and get off from Pilimathalawa Town. (Buses are available from 3.00 am in every half an hour) From there(From Pilimathalawa) you need to either get a bus to Poththapitiya tea factory or you can hire a tuk which would cost around Rs.500 and reach the entry point of this amazing trek.

So, If you are a less experienced hiker, my advice is to use the Poththapitiya tea factory to begin the hike.

Once you reach the tea factory just walk along the gravel road, passing the village and at some point, you will come across a place to fill your bottles! Walking further through tea plantations, the path will get less clear as you lead to the Alagalla conservation Forest.

As you go on the climb will get steep but still you will love to walk through the maana trees feeling the cool breez of the mountain air in your face! Remember there will be cool spot just before you reach the peak, and this is ideal for you to stop by if you need to refresh yourselves while enjoying the breathtaking views it offers.

The peak!

This is the best way to test your bouldering skills as you need to climb over few boulders to get to the most amazing part of the trek which is the summit of amazing Alagalla! Do keep in mind that this is a bit risky if you’re hiking alone. So, look into your steps carefully to avoid danger. But once you make it to the peak you will never regret the struggle. I could fill up my soul with the blue sky, trees with the mountain breeze and top of all them the view of surrounding mountains including Bathalegala (Bible rock), Devanagala, Ambuluwawa, Knuckles Mountain Range and Hanthana Mountain Range was magical and beyond imagination. So, don’t hesitate to include this adventure to your bucket list and tick it off at your earliest!!

Enjoy the journey. Please minimize plastic and polythene. And try to bring at least one plastic bottle back those have left there by the irresponsible travelers. Be the responsible traveler who saves the planet earth. Travel with less number of people. It will increase your experience and satisfaction as well as it will reduce the bad effects on environmental system.

Travel Tips

How to Rent a Bike in Bali

By Admin on Monday, September 23, 2019

When it comes to travelling around Bali, It’s Not like most of the other countries where they have proper public transportation system. Bali, being an island destination of Main Island Indonesia, it doesn’t have a proper public transportation system. Although there are few Shuttle services operating between main destinations, if your plan is to explore more locations without wasting much time, best and only way is renting a vehicle. Here comes the main issue in renting a vehicle with a driver. It will be expensive and will not be fitting with your itinerary. So, renting a bike is the cheapest way to travel around Bali. When You hit bali, you will understand the number of bikes running in Bali. The roads are full of hundreds may be thousands of Bikes.

01. Your Experience and confidence with Bikes.

You Might have ride bikes in your country. But It requires good Confidence and experience to ride a bike in a foreign country because you must adapt to an entirely different environment and road system within a short period of time . Attitudes, Riding pattern and nature can be entirely different from your own country. How people obey to road rules can be differ when comparing with your own country. So, you Must have good experience and confidence level to Ride a bike in a foreign soil. . If you don’t process that confidence level and experience, please forget about renting a bike in another country. It will Make your Vacation a good one rather than renting a bike and stepping into so much Troubles. If you have that courage, Confidence and experience, then move into the next point.

02. Do you have International Driving license?

Here I’m Not going to emphasize about the local Driving license (In your Country). I think no one will be a fool to rent a bike in a foreign country without processing local driving license. Some might advise you to rent a bike without processing International Driving license.

But in most of the countries they will require your international Driving license when on the process of renting a bike or while you travel by bike. It better to carry an IDL for you to avoid any inconvenience during the trip. Every country has a relevant organization where you can obtain IDL.

I have mentioned below the link to the article – How to obtain international Driving License in Sri Lanka

03. Do a Proper Study About the Driving rules and regulations of the desired country and also not forgetting about the Road System of the relevant Country.

Most of the countries have similar road rules applicable. But it;s better to have an idea before you hit the road.

Bali is full of motorbikes. It’s not difficult to ride in remote villages. But when it comes to city areas such as Kata, Sanur, DPS situation gets critical with so many bikes on the roads. In the city area you will be able to see a priority line for motor bikes even in the toll ways.

04. Finding a reliable place to rent a bike.

This can be identified as one of the life changing point when it comes to renting a bike in a foreign soil. There might be scammers, Frauds in anywhere. So, it’s better to find a reliable and reasonable supplier. You will be able to find a place through internet. There are reputed vehicle renting companies in Bali. But their Charges can be very high due to the service they are providing. Some of them are providing the pickup and drop off services as well. If the rate is fitting with your budget, it’s ok to rent a bike from those companies.

Other best way to find a reliable source is, contacting the hotel where you stay in the 1^st night. They provide the best sources most of the times. For your convenience I have mentioned below the contact details of the supplier where I had rented bikes during my trip to bali. I have recommended this guy for some of my friends as well. He never disappointed me and provided the best service for reasonable rate.

05. Taking the bike under your care

Last but not least, when Taking the bike under your care, there are few points you should consider about.

– Condition of the bike – Who ever the reliable source, at the end of the day you don’t know this guy/company. So, it’s better to check all the damages with the bikes and take photographs or videos.

– Check the Documents – This is one of the best things you should consider about. Some companies do change the year of registration and documents without paying the relevant charges to the government.

– In Bali you can see the license renewed year on the number plate. Compare that year with the year which is mentioned on the document. If it’s outdated or not renewed, you know what to do. Don’t take it or not even take any bike from that supplier.

– Check the Agreement document of the supplier. Make sure to get clarified the unclear points with him

– Check the petrol Level – It’s a must to return the bike with a similar level of petrol to where it was when pick up the bike.

If I have missed any point. Please feel free to comment below.

Happy Ride

Travel Blog

NAMUNUKULA HIKE (SOLO)

By Admin on Sunday, September 22, 2019

Namunukula is one of the giants risen separately from the well-known main mountain ranges in Sri Lanka. It’s a kind of mountain which should be in your bucket list. Namunukula range is situated in the Badulla District in Sri Lanka. It has named as Namunukula with the meaning of “Nine Peaks” and its highest peaks reach over 6600ft above the sea level.

How to reach

The Mountain range can be reached via two main entry points.

– Via Spring valley

– Via Third Mile Post

Convenient way to reach both the entry points is travel via Badulla. There are two ways two reach Badulla by Public Transport.

Reach Badulla By Bus

– There is a frequent bus service from pettah private and Public bus terminal to Badulla. Every hour there is a bus from Private bus terminal. If it’s a long weekend, the situation can be different. There will be huge crowd and you might have to stay 2-3 hours to get in to bus and still you might not be able to catch a seat. Standing 6 hours in the Badulla bus will be a nightmare for anyone. So, for a hassle-free trip. It’s better to reserve your seat early through busbooking.com

– Other most favorite option is getting in to the Badulla Night Mail. In a long weekend situation will be the same as the 1^st option. But the experience is so different because, this is the everyone’s favorite hill country train ride in Sri Lanka. Train Will leave from fort station at 7.30 pm and it will reach to Badulla at 6.30 in the morning

Route 01 – From Badulla Via Third Mile Post

The shortest trail starts from the Third Milepost entry point, which is located on the Badulla – Passara A5 road. The Third Milepost can be reached from Badulla via public/private transport within 30 minutes (approx. 7km). The trailhead is located in an estate called Glep Alpin. A small public bus is available from the Third Milepost to the said estate. From that point onwards it’s a 2-hour hike to the summit.

Route 01 – From Badulla Via Spring Valley

The Spring Valley route is situated in a small village called Memale, passing Spring Valley. This trail is famous among hikers for its rich natural beauty. The village can be reached by public bus from Badulla via the B97 road. The bus nearing the end of its journey turns on to a by-road offspring Valley to reach Memale. That’s where the memale bus route ends. From That point to trail head you have to walk another 1km through the Tamil Houses (Line Houses). It might be little bit difficult to find the starting point because there are so many foot paths those have been used by the villagers for tea plucking. But make sure to get confirmed with the locals (tea Pluckers) those you will meet on your way up. Then you will be on the right path. Once you enter to the Pinus patch, there is a clear foot path. At the end of the Pinus patch you have to enter into the green forest. There is a well-maintained foot path up until the peak (Maintained by Uwa wellassa University students). You will not Miss the path easily.

Note – Some busses and not going to memale. Those are directly going to Spring Valley without turning towards Memale. Make sure to get it confirmed with the conductor or Passenger. If It’ is not going to memale, get off from the Memale Junction. There are around 4Km from there to Memale. It will cost you 400 LKR for a TUK TUK or You can walk towards Memale all the 4Kms.

Route 02 – From Badulla Via Third Mile Post

Camping Sites

The Namunukula summit is a large flat area containing few open spaces for camping. Within those spaces, plenty of room can be found to raise a tent and light a campfire. The hikes from both Spring Valley and the Third Milepost are of moderate difficulty. It is advisable to take an adequate supply of drinking water. There is a well on the top where you can take water for cleaning purposes. But the water is not clean and Not drinkable due to our fellow travelers’ activities. Although setting up camp is fairly easy at the top, the weather can change considerably during the night. So, it is wise to go prepared for cold/wet conditions.

Only place where you can find drinkable water in Namunukula is Pinus patch that you come across before the thick forest patch on your why towards the peak. It’s approximately 2-3 KM away from the peak (Camping Area). You can Camp in the Pinus patch as well. It’s covered with Pinus trees and Wind wont trouble you or your tent. If you want to Fix a Hammock, This area is the best option for that.