• After a long time it was time to visit the Horton Plains National Park. The weather looked good after all. As the crow flies we live about 20 km away from the entrance of the park. To be honest I don’t go there enough, but that’s another story. We drive via Boralanda to Ohiya and there the road climbs up to about 2100m altitude. Clouds get stuck on the mountains that dominate the landscape, we end up in it, it also brings rain. After a steep climb we arrive at the Main Gate and pay the entrance fee. It is drizzling and the clouds hang low so that the view is limited, it gives a spooky atmosphere to the whole. We drive slowly further passing the Staff bungalows, here we are still in a section with trees and large rhododendrons that bloom with red flowers. The question that comes to my mind how do they get here, I can’t tell. Slowly it changes into grassland, these are inhabited by the illustrious Leopard and the Sambar deer. It happens more and more often that you can see the leopard, as long as you come early. A little later we see the sambars grazing in the grasslands. The rain becomes heavier, a little later we arrive at the Park office. There they check the bags and backpacks for plastic bags, which are prohibited in the park. From there we can choose from two walking routes, the circular route of about 8.5 km or to the mountain top Kirigalpotta which is 7 km away from the park office. Please note that the opening hours of the park are 6 am in the morning to 6 pm in the evening. There are also possibilities to camp but that is limited. We choose the classic circular route. We walk anti-clockwise towards Bakers fall in the drizzle we climb the first paved hill and the path becomes a bit narrower and rougher, good walking shoes are required. The hills are mainly covered with grasses and rhododendrons, also various types of ferns and small wild flowers can be admired. Actually the idea today was to photograph birds, but they hide well. The species were limited today to the cinerous tit and pied buschat and jungle fowl, the lizards were also hard to find, eventually we saw the black cheeked lizard and that is endemic to Horton Plains. We descend to Bakers fall, no one to be seen, normally it is quite busy here, not this morning, it is of course because of the drizzle. I like it this way and to be honest the scene today is special. Low hanging clouds give a different atmosphere here than a clear blue sky, it is also a lot more interesting photographically I think, it gives atmosphere. After a little hour we continue the route towards World’s end, it goes downhill and on the view there is something clear here, the drizzle has stopped for a while. We pass some hikers, who ask if it is still far to the waterfall. In the meantime we enjoy the views. It is very quiet, no birds or animals to be seen here, we walk briskly, the drizzle is back unfortunately. We walk over a small bridge with clear water, sometimes you can see trout swimming here. In the distance we see Belihul Oya river making its way through the hilly landscape. Clouds hang against the mountains here. The view is quite limited on this part of the path. We take some pictures of the wild flowers and ferns. A few minutes walk we arrive at World’s end, this part is the most visited place in the park, it is a kind of plateau that ends with a steep wall, with a great view of the surroundings it looks a bit like a field with broccoli. In clear weather you can see the lakes in the Udawalawe national park in the distance and a little closer the water reservoir Samanalawewa near the town of Belihuloya. Beautiful view. From here the tour continues to Little World’s end. The path further that leads towards the Park office, here is a difficult part of the path very slippery over fantastically beautiful colored stones. A pair of Blackbirds are looking for food and the path continues towards a section with more trees to come out again on the overgrown grassy hills a little later. In clear weather you can see Adam’s peak in the distance, unfortunately not today the view is limited with the low hanging clouds. Our walk ends at the park office, there is also a small museum and shop with useful information, you can also ask questions about the flora and fauna to the park officers, who answer them in all friendliness. A little restaurant with some items is also nearby, also ice cream and limited soft drinks are available. On busy days there are some Sambar deers around to for begging food, they get used to this behaviour. 

The gear:

OM System OM-1 

12-40mm f/2.8 Pro

7-14mm f/2.8 Pro

40-150mm f/2.8 Pro

300mm f/4 Pro

Leofoto tripod and Olympus photo bag.