Trip to Horton Plains, World’s End and Baker’s Falls, Nuwaraeliya

The Horton Plains is a beautiful highland plateau 2200 m above sea level, with some excellent hikes in the high mountains. Sri Lanka’s second and third highest peaks, Kirigalpotta (2,395m) and Thotupola Kanda (2,357m), are located here and three major rivers, Mahawali, Kelani and Walawe originate from Horton Plains.

Hoton Plains Walking trail to World's End [CC flickr image by nazly}

Walk around: In this National Park visitors are permitted to wall on their own. From the main entrance you walk upto “Y” junction, and turn right and walk 4kms to reach Worlds End. If you continue walking in the same trail, you will Baker’s fall and continues back to the entrance. The round trip is 9.5kms, and it takes about three hours at leisurely pace.

World’s End: The plateau comes to a sudden end at World’s End, an escarpment that falls for nearly a kilometer, bringing forth glorious views all around from the edge of the Horton Plains.

Fauna and Flora: Most significant feature of the fauna and flora of Horton Plains is its high endemicity. The grassy plains, which are interspersed with patches of evergreen montane cloud forests, are home to Leopards, Sambur deer, Bear-monkeys and a rich array of birds, including number of endemic species.

How to get there: Horton Plains is 28 km south of Nuwara Eliya, one of the most famous tourist destinations of the island. There is easy access from the other major townships in the central hills, such as Bandarawela, Haputale and Hakgala. the Nearest Railway stations are Ohiya and Pattipola, on the Badulla Railway line.

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Entry Permits: Entry permits can be obtained from the two park entrances, located on the two main access roads from Ohiya and Pattipola. Bungalows can be reserved at the Head Office of the Department of Wildlife Conservation at Battaramulla, in Colombo.