Adam's Peak

Arriving back into Kandy on Saturday night I met up with Selina and Holly and heard about their plans for Sunday. They intended to make their way to Adam's Peak which was about 5/6 hours south of Kandy. Overlooking valleys the peak is 5200 steps up and is supposed to have some of the best views in the country. Unfortunately to 'experience' these views one must try to trek up to the top of the peak before the sun rises at 6.30am which means leaving for the trek at 2.30am!

So waking up on Sunday I headed to Kandy bus station to try to navigate my way somehow to Dalhousie which is on the steps of the mountain. Kandy bus station is without a doubt the craziest bus station I have yet encountered in Sri Lanka. Rather than one central bus stand it sprawls over many streets with buses ranging from Leyland buses which look older than my grandparents to super express small aircon buses which wiz from A to B rather quickly by Sri Lankan stands. Unfortunately all the destinations are in Singalese and hence completely foreign to me, so inevitably I end up going round asking people where the bus is to a certain places in English and limited Singalese often with rather mixed reactions.

Sri Lankan Tea estates
Driving to Dalhousie as the sun set over the peaks and surrounding lakes was a beautiful sight indeed. As the heart of the Sri Lankan tea industry the hills are packed with tea growing up the sides. As you pass the estates you can see tea pickers making their way through the fields sampling the buses for the right buds and leaves to bring down to be made into the tea which so many of us love to drink.

Dalhousie
The small settlement of Dalhousie isn't renowned for anything much aside from being the starting point for the trek to the top of Adam's Peak. As I arrived somewhat late, with only a day sack, I headed for the Green House where I knew the girls had rented a room. As I made my way up the small hill to the lodge I found the girls sitting round an immense circular table with a mixture of different characters. After introductions I found we had Australians (a young Aussie couple called Gemma and Luke), 3 Germans, 1 French Canadian, 1 Swiss man, an Englishman and a Scottsman. It turned out that everyone had already eaten so I asked if I could have the rice and curry and found myself confronted by perhaps the largest amount of food and dishes I have ever seen places in front of me. As I attemped in vain to eat the food the others watched me finding the sight of an Englishman, albeit large one, trying to eat so much rather amusing.

2.30am start
Having decided to leave my gear back in Kandy I hadn't reserved a room. The girls said I could sleep on the floor so after 3 hours kip I awoke from the cold floor to begin the assault on the hill/mountain. At 2243m high its twice the height of Ben Nevis in the UK and one hell of a climb to the top!

Ths sight is important for Sri Lankans as some believe that the huge 'footprint' found on the top of the peak is that of St Thomas, the early apostle of India or of the lord Shiva or Lord Buddha. Having been a pilgrimage location for the past 1000 years the season for pilgrims is from December until May. During this time thousands of Sri Lankans of all ages and fitness trek up and down the mountain in hordes. I even recall seeing a man with no feet make his way to the top of the mountain on his hands!

The way up the 5200 or so steps is lit by lights which is just as well as the climb is a tough experience. The climb was tough and extremely painful. As you looked up in the darkness you could see the peak of the mountain lit by the lights far in the distance and almost vertical in the air. At first the steps were gradual and not to difficult but the further onwards we went the highter they became until a ralling was essential to be able to move onwards without falling either backwards or over the side of the cliff.

As we approached the top we could hear the sounds of the Buddhist temple at the top of the mountain with chants echoing down the moutain. The walkways were packed with people going up and coming down which made the trek upwards slow and difficult. However, some three hours after setting off we managed to make our way to the top.

Sunset and Sun-shadow
The dawn could be seen in the distance illuminating the sky and a few clouds in the air in a gorgeous orange glow. The real highlight of the time at the top or its 'piece de resistance' as the LP describes it is the triangular shadow of the peak which is created by the sun which lasts about 15 minutes and races back towards the peak eventually disappearing into its base. Watching the sun rise over the other moutains and lakes was a gorgeous sight and reminded me of my time in Nepal. Their is something magical about mountains which continues to inspire me.

The route back down was probably tougher than going up. Their is something about going down which kills my legs, especially my knee caps. By the time I got to the bottom I was in a pretty bad shape so needed the immense tea and breakfast we got from our host.

Where are the taxi's when you need one
You know its very weird every time you walk down the street in Sri Lanka you get hassled for a taxi but the one time you need one no one will take you. As midday approached we found ourselves in Dalhousie in a difficult position. Out of our small group of 9 four people needed to get to Hatton to get the connecting train in an hour and a half. Unfortunately the bus wasn't coming for another hour. There was an alternative bus we could get where we would need to change somewhere else but we literally could'nt get in it! As I was the only person with no luggage I opted to try to rent one of the many mini-vans where people were sitting in doing nothing much. Most the drivers wouldn't even discuss rental but one decided to chat. At first he said an inflated price but eventually I got him down to 1000 rupees (about 7 pounds) which the 9 of us could share. As the others approached the guy literally saw them and bolted over the road to a cafe were he dissappeared. Feeling like a complete idiot I ran after him and was stopped by the restaurant.

'Where is he' I asked an old man who looked like he hadn't seen a shower in a few months
'Gone for drink and breakfast'
'What do you mean drink and breakfast' I asked, 'we are in a hurry and don't have time for him to sit around and debate the meaning of life as we have to get somewhere'!
The man shook his head from side to side probably not understanding my comment and not particularly caring either 'he will be only half an hour'!
'Half an hour' I was losing my temper 'tell him NOW'. I think my lack of temper had something to do with the lack of sleep or maybe the 7km climb I had just done, you could take your pick really.
I knew by this stage that I wasn't going to get this guy to come out anytime soon. You see in Sri Lanka time doesn't quite work like in the West. No one is ever in much of a hurry and if they are, well then they clearly arn't very Sri Lankan!

So I approached an older lady of another vehicle who to my surprise agree on 1,000 rupees quickly and proceeded to literally chuck out a bunch of Sri Lankans who were sitting in her van so we could drive with her! The trip was quick and easy and only cost twice what we would have paid for a cramped bus trip which would have taken three times longer!

Kandy Tuk-Tuks
Tuk-tuk drivers in Kandy are renowned for being con artists always willing to fleece a tourist out of his cash. As myself and another Englishman called Harry stepped of the bus we approached a couple of tuk-tuk drivers
'How much to Oldie Empire?'
A bearded man in a checkered shirt nodded his head backwards and forewards '150 rupess good price'
'No it isn't mate, 50 rupees' I responded. I was in a right mood at this moment in time due to a lack of sleep and was rather keen to have a bit of a fight with a tuk-tuk driver as they tended to piss me off a lot.
'80 sir no less'
'Mate its 50, i have been here three times, count my fingers' as I lifted three fingers 'three times and the price is 50'
By this time the man had a couple of mates with him and they were all basically laughing at me and my friend who was making a similar effort on another driver
'Sir since Tsunami minimum 80 rupees anywhere in the city' the guy said smilling.
I knew two imporant things now. One he was a complete bullshit artist as the tsunami hit hundreds of miles away on the coast and two he honestly didn't think I was smart enough to know the price
'Mate listen to me' I was angry 'my bag is in the Oldie Empire, look I have a day sack, have been here three times the last week and know the price is 50 rupess'
I said a few words to him I would rather not write down and walked off in the distance.

Another tuk-tuk approached and the driver, an oldish man in his 50's asked me 'how much sir?'
'Hi mate, its meant to be 50 rupees to Oldie Empire but I will pay 60'. The man smiled and nodded as we pilled into the back of the tuk-tuk. Clearly some tut-tuk drivers would rather get an honest decent price than sit on their arses, drink tea with their mates and con the occasional tourist!