The Sights of Sri Lanka

One of the great things about traveling, and only having a fairly loose agenda, is that it allows for expectation free, spontaneous decision making which can end up taking you to random and amazing places. With the lengthy planning which usually precedes most vacations, we frequently go into each vacation with elevated expectations. With those expectations comes the risk of a vacation that could actually turn into a crushing disappointment. Conversely, going to a destination with only very limited planning, as we did during our trip to Sri Lanka, a scenario exists where every day is an expectation free adventure. The potential for disappointment is far less with this more ignorant version of travel, but it's quite freeing. You do run the risk of missing something uniquely beautiful to a specific region, but if you didn't even know it existed prior to arrival, can you really miss it in the first place?
All of this is long-winded way of saying, we went to Sri Lanka as part of a 7 day eco-trekking adventure. We wanted to do something on our around the world adventure which included some legit hiking, and figured we'd do it in Sri Lanka. We didn't really have anything in particular we wanted to see and do in Sri Lanka, we just wanted to experience the landscape, get some exercise, and have a great time in a country very few Americans seem to visit. It was quite freeing waking up each day and being clueless about what was in store for us. I didn't look up images on Google of the areas we'd be hiking. I didn't research the food. We obviously researched who was going to lead us on our adventure, but that was more or less the only thing I knew about the country prior to arrival. We were very pleased with our guide, Anil, who runs srilankaecotrekking.com. He was our personal guide for the week and runs both set and individualized tours at very reasonable prices. Ultimately, we were blown away by Sri Lanka. It was one of the most beautiful places I've ever been fortunate enough to visit. Jaw dropping scenery around every cliff hugging hairpin turn, exhilarating hiking, delicious food, and enough interaction with locals to get a very good feel for the country as a whole. Sri Lanka is a destination which should be on everyone's radar. It has beaches, spa and yoga retreats, a fistful of UNESCO World Heritage sites, golfing, and eco-trekking. In other words, there is something for everyone. I hope these images plant the seed that Sri Lanka should someday be a future vacation destination. Cheers.

Prelude to a hike in Knuckles mountain range

I see you.

Knuckles

After a few hour hike dealing with leeches and some slick terrain, this was our home for the night. An overhanging cave shielded us from the elements and we enjoyed a delicious campfire meal with the sounds of the forest serenading us.

I see you too.

Sunrise walk on Lake Sorabora afforded views such as this with abundant wildlife as seen in upcoming pictures.

Kingfisher

Heron and Cormorants

Water Monitor

Rice paddies were everywhere. Such a beautiful tropical landscape and a lonely way to make a living. 

We swam at the base of these falls, and by we I mean Sara, Me, and my camera bag. Luckily, the camera survived to take the pictures which follow.

Sigiriya Rock, a UNESCO site. A village/fortress atop a huge rock.

We chose not to ascend Sigiriya, but instead hiked up these stairs to Pidurangala Temple Rock so that we would have views of Sigiriya once we climbed to the top.

A reclining Buddha on the way to Pidurangala

Water Lilly

Giant Squirrel

Atop Pidurangala

Another UNESCO site

Those red faced monkeys always looked like they had the worst of intentions.

Mother and child

This particular UNESCO site at the Golden Temple was a cave with paintings and statues, such as this, dating back thousands of years.

We hiked 7km up Adam's Peak to get these sunrise views. In spite of this picture, sadly, the hike was more effort than it was worth.

Once we completed the 7km back down Adam's Peak we had this view of where we had just climbed. Looks really far away. Can't believe we actually climbed to the top starting at 2am.

One of the many views we'd have while driving through the country.

Horton Plains. The day started off quite foggy, but it cleared in time for us to get commanding views of....

...this valley.

Baker Falls at Horton Plains

This view atop Little Adam's Peak staring down into Ella Gap mesmerized me. The remaining pictures are of Ella Gap.

This was the view from our hotel looking at Ella Gap. Waterfall to the right, and a seemingly never-ending valley below.

Sunrise

The hike to Ella Rock

One of my favorite pictures I've ever taken.

So that's Sri Lanka in a very small nutshell. We've since been to Ireland, Northern Ireland, and are currently enjoying the snowy Scottish Highlands. We recently ran/walked a 5k Santa Dash in Glasgow, and Edinburgh was amazing with the added addition of a fantastic Christmas market. We'll be off to England in a few days, then to Wales, and back into England for the Christmas holiday. Should be a blast. Hope everyone is enjoying the buildup to the holidays. All the best. Cheers.