Ella
Then……and now
The village of Ella, which is 45 km southeast of
Nuwara Eliya, has one of the most spectacular views
in the southern Hill Country (Uva Province). Coming
from the north, the road follows the foothills covered
with thick woodland, which totally obscures the view.
From the village, the way seems barred by an apparently
impassable valley, but you soon come across a ravine
with a rushing stream. All at once there is an extraordinary
sight - a precipice plunging nearly 1000 m into the abyss.
Framed by the cliff of the rock of Rawana and a wooded ridge,
this is the "Ella Gap", giving a breathtaking view over
100 km of the rolling hills which stretch into the distance
and eventually disappear into the pale line of the Indian
Ocean.
With stunning views, a relaxing ambience and a cool mountain
climate, tranquil Ella is a great place either to sit
back and recharge your batteries or to explore the surrounding
countryside on foot. The government rest house and many
of the guest houses are built on the edge of the village,
off the road to the southern lowlands, and so act as
excellent observation points.
In
the local area, you can visit the impressive Rawana Falls
and the mythical Rawana Cave, where prehistoric
remains of human skeletons have been found, walk to
what is locally known as Little Adam's Peak, or, if
you are more intrepid, hike to Ella Rock, where you
will be rewarded with stunning views to the south coast.
The dramatic Rawana (or Bambaragama) Falls are at the side
of the main Wellawaya road, about 7 km south of Ella.
They disappear into a gap, descend the cliff for 9 m,
then flow under the road bridge lower down and into
the valley below. The best time to view the falls is
in the afternoon as the light catches the cascades,
although it sometimes stops flowing during the dry season.
The cave in the massive Ella (Rawana)
Rock can be seen from the rest house, to the right of
the Ella Gap. It is associated with the story of the
Ramayana, in which the demon king of Lanka, Rawana,
imprisoned Rama's wife Sita. The cave, which is of particular
interest to palaeontologists, has a small entrance that
scarcely lets light in and then a long drop to the floor.
It is filled with water from an underground stream,
which has hindered exploration, but excavations here
have unearthed prehistoric remains of human skeletons
and tools dating from 8000 to 2500 BC. The skeletons
are believed to belong to Homo sapiens balangodensis.
For a gentle walk in the Ella area,
head for Little Adam's Peak, as one of the hills is
known locally. The walk will take you off and up into
the hills towards the southeast, where you will be
able to survey the end of the Hill Country as it drops
away over 1000 m below you to the plains in the south.
On a fine day, you may be lucky enough to actually see
the surf as it crashes onto the beaches on the southern
coast.
A more strenuous hill walk will take
you to Ella Rock, which is on the opposite side of the
ravine from Little Adam's Peak, high above Rawana's
Cave. The walk heads along the railway tracks towards
Bandarawela, where you will get a good view of the small
Rawana Falls. After passing over a creek and through
a small hill community, you will come to a woodland,
where the track continues to the top of the rock with
its wondrous views of the area.
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