TikaWeeks #18/2023: Sri Lanka update
Posted by John on 2nd May 2023
The financial crisis in Sri Lanka is still on many potential visitors’ minds. The political and economic mire that left Sri Lanka in a parlous state last year has passed, thankfully, and a much needed IMF intervention has boosted the island’s economy. The Government took the unprecedented step of slashing fuel prices at the end of March this year, and an international consortium of Sri Lanka’s creditors recently launched an initiative to restructure the country’s debt. Things are definitely looking up…
The IMF approved a US$2.9bn bailout for Sri Lanka in March 2023 that will pave the way for the release of funds and kicks off a four-year programme designed to shore up the country’s economy. This is in response to last year’s catastrophic financial collapse when the economy shrank by a record 7.8%, the largest contraction in the island nation’s 75 years of independence, and inflation hit 80%. Not all Sri Lankans are happy with the IMF loan, however. Sri Lanka unions staged a strike to protest against the IMF bailout plan, and public sector workers demanded the government roll back high taxes imposed as a precondition to unlock the loan.
The Pekoe Trail – Stage 5: Kumbaloluwa to Watagoda
Generally considered a moderately challenging stage of The Pekoe Trail, this 11.7-km section should take around 4 hours to complete.
This stage starts at the intersection leading up to the hydroelectric project with the Thawalanthenna to Thalawakele road and there is a temple adjacent to the intersection, which is an obvious landmark. The trail descends sharply over the following 1.2 km, losing 200 metres in elevation on the way down to a river crossing before zig-zagging around a village and crossing the occasional patch of paddy field.
From the village, the trail meets the main road and, at 1.4 km, crosses the Pundaloya River where there is an attractive waterfall cascading down the mountainside reminiscent of a scene out of The Jungle Book. This is the lowest elevation of the stage at 787 metres, close to the village of Wewahena.
Continue on the main road for another hundred metres and then fork right, beginning a gradual ascent on the Pundaloya to Palawatte road. The narrow tarmacked village road takes you through quiet neighbourhoods before a dog-leg right at the intersection beside the small bridge at 2.7 km sets a new course south in the general direction of Thalawakele. This takes you around the mountain, slowly gaining elevation over the Kotmale River gorge for approximately 5 km. The road is mostly uphill on a moderate but continuous gradient, passing emerald green paddy fields and forested areas as well as a number of small guesthouses and homestays along the way.
You will see the Dimbula Hills to your right across the river, which is one of the most important and historically significant tea-growing regions on the island. In fact, Dimbula was one of the earliest districts to be planted and the beginnings of the true heart of the tea country.
At 7.4 km, take the road to the right of a small school as you enter the lower divisions of the Meddecombra Estate north of Watagoda, gradually ascending towards the tea factory. After 8.2 km, leave the Elpitiya Elders home on your right and keep walking through the estate on tea trails until the 10-km point, where the trail departs from the factory path on your left for the last 2-km push up to Watagoda, the end of this stage.
If you look back you will see an enormous ‘wall’ following a north-south trajectory to your right. This ‘wall’, like the real-life Great Wall of China or the fictional northern ice wall in Game of Thrones, is seemingly insurmountable and the view is breath-taking. Beyond the ‘wall’ is the Pundaloya Valley. There is a tea estate that sits on the very top of the ‘wall’ which is one of the most photogenic regions of the tea country, especially when observed from a higher elevation.
At 10.5 km, the trail takes you over a small dam then three short and sharp zig-zags before entering Watagoda after 11.3 km, a small but lively village with all the usual shops and kades. Watagoda railway station marks the end of this stage.
Categories: News, Sightseeing, Sri Lanka, Travel tips
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