Trekking Sri Lanka: 13 days on foot in the hills
Sri Lanka is not thought of as a walking country and it should be. Between about 3,000 and 7,400 feet there is a compact highland of cloud forest, open moorland, tea estates and villages connected by footpaths, with a pilgrimage mountain in the middle of it and the sea two hours away in any directio
- Duration
- 13 days
- Pace
- Active
- Hotel changes
- 6
- Best months
- Jan, Feb, Mar, Apr
- From
- $2,275 per person
This route walks four distinct landscapes: the Knuckles range, which is wet forest and terraced valleys; Adam’s Peak, climbed overnight with the pilgrims; Horton Plains, which is high moorland and behaves like Scotland; and the ridges around Ella. It finishes at the coast, because after nine days of walking you should end up in the sea.
Who it suits: walkers comfortable with four to seven hours on rough ground, and with one night climb of around 5,500 steps. No technical skill required, reasonable fitness essential.
Your specialist: your named Sri Lanka specialist, with our Delhi office and our trekking guides in the hills.
Day by day
Day 1: Arrive, night at Negombo. Twenty minutes from the airport. Nothing scheduled.
Day 2: To Kandy. Around three and a half hours. Afternoon on the Udawattakele forest paths behind the Temple of the Tooth, a gentle two hours that gets your legs moving at altitude. Evening puja at the temple.
Day 3: Into the Knuckles. Two to three hours by road into the Dumbara range, so called because the ridgeline looks like a clenched hand. Afternoon walk to Corbett’s Gap and along the ridge for the first view over the range. Night in a simple lodge or village homestay: the accommodation in the Knuckles is basic, and we would rather you knew that than be surprised by it.
Day 4: Knuckles, the long day. Six to seven hours through cloud forest, cardamom plantations and grassland, with a river crossing or two. This is protected forest, so a permit and a registered guide are compulsory and we arrange both. Leeches are normal after rain and are dealt with by socks and a little patience rather than by anything dramatic.
Day 5: Meemure. A shorter day, four to five hours, walking down into Meemure, a village that had no road until recently and still has very little of one. Lunch in a house, then back over the pass or by jeep, depending on the group.
Day 6: Knuckles to Hatton. A long transfer day, roughly four hours around the northern hills into the tea country below Adam’s Peak. Afternoon off. Early dinner and an early night, because tonight is short.
Day 7: Adam’s Peak. Awake at two, on the steps by half past. The climb from Dalhousie is around 5,500 steps and takes most people between two and a half and four hours, to a summit at 7,359 feet (2,243 m). You climb in the dark with pilgrims, past tea stalls, to be on top for sunrise and for the shadow the peak throws across the plain behind it. Down by mid-morning, and the descent is harder on the knees than the ascent is on the lungs. The rest of the day is for sleeping.
Day 8: Tea country on foot. A recovery day that is still a walking day: five or six miles of estate paths between bungalows, past plucking lines and through a factory, ending with a proper tea tasting that explains why the grades on the box mean what they mean.
Day 9: To Nuwara Eliya and the high country. A short transfer, then the afternoon on Single Tree Hill or Pidurutalagala’s lower slopes for the view over the town. Cold after dark at 6,200 feet, around 50°F (10°C) and lower.
Day 10: Horton Plains at first light. Leaving at half past five to be at the gate when it opens. The loop is about five and a half miles (9 km) across open moorland to Little World’s End and World’s End, where the escarpment drops around 2,900 feet (880 m), then back past Baker’s Falls. Three hours at a steady pace. The mist usually arrives between nine and ten and closes the view entirely, which is the whole reason for the alarm. Afternoon transfer to Ella, about two hours.
Day 11: Ella Rock. Up before dawn, along the railway line and then up through eucalyptus and tea, three to four hours return, with the Ella gap opening below you. The path is unmarked and has several convincing wrong turns, so we send a guide. Afternoon at the Nine Arch bridge and Little Adam’s Peak if your legs are still cooperating.
Day 12: Ella to the coast. Two and a half hours down to the south coast. Swim, eat, sleep. The last day is not a walking day.
Day 13: Departure. Two and a half hours to the airport on the expressway.
What is included
Accommodation with breakfast including two nights in the Knuckles, a tea estate bungalow and a coastal hotel, all Knuckles and Horton Plains permits, registered trekking guides on every walking day, a private air-conditioned car with a licensed chauffeur guide between regions, the Adam’s Peak climb with a guide and a support vehicle at the base, packed lunches on the long days, all entries, and a WhatsApp group with your consultant and our local representatives.
Honest notes
Adam’s Peak has a season. The pilgrimage season runs roughly from the December full moon to the May full moon. In season the steps are lit, the tea stalls are open and there is a queue on the busiest poya nights that can add an hour. Out of season there are no lights, no stalls, and the summit is usually in cloud, so we do not build this itinerary between June and November. If your dates are outside the season we will tell you and offer a different mountain.
The Knuckles accommodation is simple. Cold water in places, limited power in others, and the food is home cooking rather than a menu. The walking is the reason to be there.
Leeches. In the Knuckles and anywhere wet, they are part of the day rather than an incident. Long socks, and check your ankles at breaks.
Horton Plains is a walk, not a hike, and it is still cold. Near freezing at the gate at dawn in January and February. People turn up in shorts and regret it.
The train. This route uses the road rather than the hill country train, because the walking days sit where the train would go. If you want the Nanu Oya to Ella leg we will fit it into day 10, and it means an earlier finish at Horton Plains. Reserved seats open only 30 days ahead and sell out fast, so tell us at the proposal stage rather than later.
What we cut. Sinharaja rainforest is the obvious addition and we leave it out of thirteen days, because it is a long transfer for walking that is slower and wetter than everything above. On a longer trip it earns its place, and it is the best birding on the island.
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