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How to Go Hiking in Kandy Without Any Hassles

An adventurist’s holiday!

By canecias muhandiramgePublished about a year ago 3 min read
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Knuckles Mountain Range | Image by Dylan Shaw via Unsplash

Sri Lanka offers a diverse mix of things to do and see. The upcountry, with its beautiful lofty mountain terrain, offers many hiking opportunities. Kandy, an upcountry destination, is the cultural capital of Sri Lanka. There’s always so much to see and do, and hikers fall in love with the mountain ranges that envelop the city. If you’ve decided to hike in Kandy, know that you are going to get a glimpse of Sri Lanka’s varied climate and biodiversity in addition to the thrill of hiking.

Best time for hiking in Kandy

Sri Lanka is a tropical destination; there’s hardly any bad time for hiking in Kandy. However, the country sees two monsoon seasons: May to July and October to November.

Kandy experiences the most amount of rain from October to November, making the gorges and slopes a little slippery and quite dangerous for hiking. So, the best time to visit falls outside the monsoon season between December and April. During these months, the weather is dry and pleasant, and the surroundings take on a bright green after experiencing months of rain.

April is considered a summer month in Sri Lanka, but Kandy, being an upcountry destination, offers mild climate conditions.

May to September brings the most amount of rain to Kandy, so the hiking trails become quite treacherous.

Accommodation in Kandy

Kandy is one of the most visited cities in Sri Lanka, so you have a broad range of accommodation options from budget to mid-range to high-end. You are here for hiking, so you should consider choosing a place within close distance of hiking trails. This is easily done as Kandy is served by the likes of Hunas Falls.

If your budget allows it, find a place that caters for hikers and adventurists.

Best places for hiking in Kandy

There are several hiking trails in Kandy, all leading through the two main mountain ranges in the city:

  • Knuckles Mountain Range
  • Alagalla Mountain Range

Knuckles Mountain Range

This is an expansive mountain range that stretches over Matale and Kandy. Recognised as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, Knuckles Mountain Range is a magnificent sight to behold. Rivers, tropical forests, and beautiful flora and fauna are some of the hidden secrets of this gorgeous mountain range; you’ll also come across a number of wild animals.

There are two popular hiking trails within the mountain range; they also feature numerous campsites.

Hunasgiriya Route:

The trek covers an area of 12 kilometres and includes the hike to the Mini World End. Surrounded by the gorgeous scenery of lakes, tea estates, and forests, Hunasgiriya Route will give you a scenic hiking experience. The trek to the Mini World’s End is easy enough, but it takes on a steep ascent afterwards.

The difficulty level is medium, and the entire trek will take about seven hours of your time.

Rangala Route:

If you want some hardcore hiking, take Rangala Route to the top of the mountain range. You will hike through a terrain of absolute natural beauty; the trail is dotted with forests, streams, lakes, and tea plantations. This is a difficult hike and requires you to be energetic. You will need a sturdy pair of hiking shoes, a hat, plenty of water, and maybe a hiking staff to make navigating easier for yourself.

The length of the hike is 26 kilometres; the difficulty level is hard, and you need at least six hours to complete the hike.

Alagalla Mountain Range

A famous hiking terrain in Central Sri Lanka that’s popular with locals, Alagalla Mountain Range offers medium difficulty. There are two points for you to enter the mountain range. The first one begins at Ihala Kotte railway station, and the other one starts from Pilimathalawa; Ihala Kotte railway station is the more difficult one.

It doesn’t take any longer than two hours to get to Alagalla Mountain Range from Colombo.

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