Hanthana range the perfect outlook point of Central hills (1300m)

The map = path in green, Hanthana 1 & 2 in stars – click to enlarge

Hanthana is one of the well-known hiking destinations in Sri Lanka especially among university students. There are two points named Hanthana 1 & 2. Altogether there are about seven peaks, Hanthana 2 comprise of first and second peaks with towers which we had to skip due to permission issues. Rest of the range belongs to Hanthana 1 where the highest peak of Katusu kanda (Ura kanda) is located. This mountain range located in Central Sri Lanka lies right in the center of the central hills and been isolated by all other prominent peaks make it one of the best view points of central highlands.

I have done many hikes but Hanthana was never in my list so it felt like a piece of a jigsaw puzzle was missing. This time I was committed and I was privileged to be joined by few of my Lakdasun friends. Harinda did arrange a van so we could get to Kandy and return back leisurely without worrying about the transport problem from Kandy. We arrived at Peradeniya at around 7.30am where Nishan joined us. Then we proceeded towards Uda Peradeniya and from there to Upper Hanthana guest house. The last bit of the ride was through a typical mountain forest and we wished we had time to walk that distance. At Upper Hanthana the security guard showed us the trail head and we were on our way in no time. First part was through the mountain forest and after crossing a stream we reached the pines plot. The path was a clear one and been marked at many places by university students. Next was leech country, the tall mana was causing many problems but having a path was a great relief. With a small ascend we reached a tea estate where we removed the leeches and started marching up. The views were splendid so we did have a mini break appreciating landmarks. The tea estate ended at the base of the main range where we had to cross a stream and proceed through the forest. The forest patch was a small one and within no time we reached the range. The clear foot path took us towards the third peak where almost all the Hanthana hikers end up. It was sunny plus windy but the on and of cloudy nature made it a pleasant stay. From here Kandy city, Peradeniya University and many landmarks were seen clearly. I would go in detail later on the landmarks.

starting to march through the forest

Pines

leech country

first glimpse of kandy

ambuluwawa seen on the way

gampola town

Peradeniya campus

through the tea estate

yellow

will never miss out on these

crossing s stream

green velvet

I had plenty of ambul pera

what a path

shiny mana

towards the famous peak

the rays which filter through the clouds make things perfect

3rd peak

view towards Uduwela

hanthana range

Peradeniya

first and second peaks

we explored all of this later

clear path

From the 3^rd peak we wanted to get to the other end of the Hanthana range and end our journey. So we started climbing further up and entered the forest patch on the edge of 4^th and 5^th peaks. There were foot paths at some places but most of those weren’t used frequently. We did come across some interesting terrain and some flora which was totally alien to us. Walking on short mana was also tricky but we had no other option on many occasions. The path we took was parallel to the edge so we came across few sheer drops with splendid viewpoints. The 5^th peak was totally an awesome walk with many splendid lookouts. On and off we came across few water streams but those may dry out during extreme dry periods. Flowers were the main attraction but the winds never allowed us to take clear shots. Katusu kanda was our end destination but to get to it we had to climb through a forest patch and to make things worse there were these trees with long roots hanging from branches obscuring our path. Squeezing our bodys through these tough roots weren’t easy at all since those were very rigid. After battling our way we reached the Katusu kanda range (6^th peak) and a small climb bought us towards a ridge where we took some group snaps. From here it was a small hike towards Katusu kanda where we spent about one hour. There is cave below the hood where we had lunch without been disturbed by the winds.

From Hanthana range one could easily appreciate Kandy and Peradeniya towns, Alagalla, mountains at Mawathagama, Hunnasgiriya, Etipola of mathale, Wiltshire, Hunnasgiriya peak, Gombaniya, Knuckles, Kalupahana and other knuckles mountain peaks, Meda mahanuwara peak, Vicoria reservoir, Digana town, Hanguranketha area, Kukulagala, Galaha, Delthota and whole of Piduruthalagala range, Pussellawa, Peacock hills, Kabaragala, Dolsbage peaks, Aranayake region, Ura kanda, Gampola town, Ambuluwawa, Geli oya town, Uthuwankanda, Peradeniya university and mighty Mahaweli river were few landmarks I could recall.

and no path

Alagalla

the pines patch we tackled

kabaragala at the backdrop of gampola

pano towards Peradeniya and galaha road

through the forest patch

the gap we crossed

window view

life in the shade

lovely isnt it

common finding

burnt trees gaining some life

sheer drop

capturing

looking back

Kandy town

Kukulagala of rikillagaskada seen far away

peacock hills of pussellawa

hunnasgiri peak touching the clouds

plenty of these

found a nelu flower too

more to go

Geli oya and galagedara

Pano towards Digana

Katusu kanda

enjoying the drop

wow

a shelter

the group of hikers

mahaweli river and paddyfields

and another drop

wow

washed away with time

these were one of kind (tackling these was not easy at all)

difficult terrain

looking backwards from katusu kanda

knuckels mountains seen far away

something new

closing on katusu kanda

medamahanuwara peak and randenigala reservoir

drop towards digana side

group picture minus me

katusu kanda

on top of it

towards galaha

flag post

through the cave

piduruthalagala range

paddyfields

mountain tops

pano towards galaha

After having lunch we started descending directly downwards towards Upland watta of Hal oya. First path was along the short mana and later we were tackling 45 degree sloped rock surfaces and at last a hectic stretch through tall mana which drained all our energy before we reached the line houses down below. From here we took shortcuts and reached Sarasavi gama where we were united with our van driver. The nearby stream helped us wash away the mana before saying good bye to Hanthana range. While Nishan and I stayed at Kandy that day others took off towards Colombo with many happy memories. anthana 1 and 22222

the slope

getting down

what a landscape

flat sloped rock

the last and hectic mana patch

looking back towards katusu kanda

Thanks for reading!