Riverston Peak

Riverston Peak Riverston PeakRiverston Peak 

The Riverston Peak in Sri Lanka can be reached by travelling, about 30km away from the Matale town, down the Matale – Girandurukotte Road. This secretive windy road, with its sharp hairpin turns, offers some of the best views to the surrounding countryside; to the extent that it is called the Mini World’s End. Though it is very popular among locals, the area is comparatively unknown amongst mainstream tourists. Therefore the area offers up the natural beauty of Sri Lanka; fresh, green and unpolluted by vendors, tourists, garbage and unsightly buildings.

With climates very similar to the Hortons Plains, where the World’s End is located, Riverston trek also offers two graceful waterfalls Sera Ella and Bambarakiri Ella. Sera Ella also has some conveniently located rock seats from which a visitor can enjoy the refreshing cold spray of misty droplets. The nearby freshwater river, Thelgamu Oya, can be used for quick cooling dip or even just a refreshing splash before or after a long arduous trek.

The trek is about two and a half kilometres one way, and shouldn’t take more than a healthy hour or two at most. It runs a section known as the Pittawala Paththana and leads to the Riverston Peak. The countryside along the trek has views of the terraced paddy fields, unique to some mountainous regions around the world, and that of the beautiful green Central Highlands.

The Riverston Peak features a sheer 300m drop to stunning misty views of the nearby Knuckles Mountain Range and Thelgamu river valley. The peak, with its peaceful and beautiful surroundings, is also a great place to meditate and relax on your holiday to Sri Lanka. The Riverston trek is a great opportunity for nature lovers and photographers who want a few jaw-dropping clicks.

【LK94000713: Text by Lakpura™. Images by Google, copyright(s) reserved by original authors.】

About Central Province

The Central Province of Sri Lanka consists primarily of mountainous terrain. The province has an area of 5,674 km², and a population of 2,421,148. Some major towns include Kandy, Gampola (24,730), Nuwara Eliya and Bandarawela. The population is a mixture of Sinhalese, Tamil and the Moors.

Both the hill capital Kandy and the city of Nuwara Eliya are located within the Central Province as well as Sri Pada. The province produces much of the famous Ceylon tea, planted by the British in the 1860s after a devastating disease killed all the coffee plantations in the province. Central Province attracts many tourists, with hill station towns such as Kandy, Gampola, Hatton and Nuwara Eliya. Temple tooth or Dalada maligawa is the main sacred place in Centrel province.

The climate is cool, and many areas about 1500 meters often have chilly nights. The western slopes are very wet, some places having almost 7000 mm of rain per year. The eastern slopes are parts of the mid-dry zone as it is receiving rain only from North-Eastern monsoon. The Temperatures range from 24°C at Kandy to just 16°C in Nuwara Eliya, which is located 1,889 m above sea level. The highest mountains in Sri Lanka are located in the Central Province. The terrain is mostly mountainous, with deep valleys cutting into it. The two main mountain regions are the central massif and the Knuckles range to the east of Kandy.