Sri Lankas Little Gem...
It's on the road to Delhousie and would have made for a very nice panoramic photo if I had been sitting on the right side! So, today's mission is to go and find that lake and take a few decent photos. It's not far from Hatton, well, didn't seem like it from the bus.
Starting from the town bus station and following the road east leaving the hustle and bustle firmly behind. Pretty quiet actually, well it's is Sunday morning with significantly less traffic on this road which happens to be the only road out!
Just a few minutes and the aroma of tea fields suggests hill country approaching, of course it is, Hatton is surrounded with tea fields!. Tea bushes right to the roads edge as a stream gurgles below as the hike continues under a bright blue sky with just the odd passing cloud. More in the way of meadows here, probably water meadows during wet season. Those now all too familiar ramshackle dwellings dotted around the valley below before a more organised comminuty of concrete and corrugated tin come into view, just as I reach the village of Dickoya. A mosque, the new Town Hall and a collection of shops interspersed with those bakery snack stops all along the one single road - that's all Dickoya is. There is the surrounding Dickoya tea estate and according to a sign just out of the village there is some kind of tea trail, several kilometres off to the right. The Dickoya tea processing shed is here - strictly no visitors is the sign above the door, but I get a smile from the doorman at least.
Just about 20 minutes further along and the scenes begins changing to something, well, very English. Pines and brackens with forgetmenots along the verges, oh and dandelions - could be Thetford forrest around here! So, tea fields towering above on the left and pine woodlands descending into the valleys below, that's the picture right now.
Another tea processing shed, this time belonging to the wanarajath estate, and again no visitors. Peaking through the door though and sacks of tea leaves are dumped there soon to become black tea.
An hour or so of hiking is taking its toll, time to rest, just around this next corner and that lake can't be far away. A church here, looks typically British is my first thought - definitly not a native design. Yes, it's a church built by the British during the colonial era. An attached grave yard containing the graves of both English and local tea workers, quite a poignant few moments of history. The lake is here too, quite a distance down via an obscure track going from the grave yard - umm yes, I know what your thinking, I will be careful.. Tea bushes leading almost to the waters edge, and it's quite a scramble down over some loose rocks.
Walking around these tea trails is revealing some spectacular scenery. The blue lake with mountains for the backdrop, the greenery of tea fields, paddy fields and hillside vegetable gardens all make this place I suspect one of Sri Lankas hidden gems. It's very quiet, calm and sereen, except for the occasional dog bark echoing from the opposite side. Not a single tourist has been seen, just the locals, who seem find a tourist something of a novelty, wandering around their comminuty. Of course there are cries for money, they are very poor people in the main. I wave, walk on and smile, they smile back - its a fifty fity game, and i'm sure very occasionally they win, but not this time.
Having seen, snapped and experienced this little gem of a place, time I was getting back to Hatton. The climb upwards is a gentle one and this time sticking to the official road. Passing locals who have intelligently harnessed the power of mountain streams to thier advantage. They wave, the girls giggle as the torrent of water splashes over them, and the boy, well he just politely nods. Top of the drive, after about a 20 minute hike from the lakeside. Chances are a bus will come by since tea workers seem to be the majority of passengers on these rural red rattlers. 10 minutes and it's the Delhousie to Hatton railway station, struggling up the hill belching fumes. Better signal otherwise they will just drive on! 10p back to Hatton and some of that good grub from the Meena Hot cafe. Tonight's dinner, 86p including 2 cups of tea. The place is popular, quite a heavy turnover of food as I observed when picking on this place. Not suffered any ill-effects to-date.
A really good, memorable day out, not just for the scenery but the quaintness of that little church perched on a hillside high above the lake. Reading the names on the grave stones certainly made for a poignant, if not sombre moment as a little bit of British colonial history is right there, looking at me.
It's on the road to Delhousie and would have made for a very nice panoramic photo if I had been sitting on the right side! So, today's mission is to go and find that lake and take a few decent photos. It's not far from Hatton, well, didn't seem like it from the bus.
Starting from the town bus station and following the road east leaving the hustle and bustle firmly behind. Pretty quiet actually, well it's is Sunday morning with significantly less traffic on this road which happens to be the only road out!
Just a few minutes and the aroma of tea fields suggests hill country approaching, of course it is, Hatton is surrounded with tea fields!. Tea bushes right to the roads edge as a stream gurgles below as the hike continues under a bright blue sky with just the odd passing cloud. More in the way of meadows here, probably water meadows during wet season. Those now all too familiar ramshackle dwellings dotted around the valley below before a more organised comminuty of concrete and corrugated tin come into view, just as I reach the village of Dickoya. A mosque, the new Town Hall and a collection of shops interspersed with those bakery snack stops all along the one single road - that's all Dickoya is. There is the surrounding Dickoya tea estate and according to a sign just out of the village there is some kind of tea trail, several kilometres off to the right. The Dickoya tea processing shed is here - strictly no visitors is the sign above the door, but I get a smile from the doorman at least.
Just about 20 minutes further along and the scenes begins changing to something, well, very English. Pines and brackens with forgetmenots along the verges, oh and dandelions - could be Thetford forrest around here! So, tea fields towering above on the left and pine woodlands descending into the valleys below, that's the picture right now.
Another tea processing shed, this time belonging to the wanarajath estate, and again no visitors. Peaking through the door though and sacks of tea leaves are dumped there soon to become black tea.
An hour or so of hiking is taking its toll, time to rest, just around this next corner and that lake can't be far away. A church here, looks typically British is my first thought - definitly not a native design. Yes, it's a church built by the British during the colonial era. An attached grave yard containing the graves of both English and local tea workers, quite a poignant few moments of history. The lake is here too, quite a distance down via an obscure track going from the grave yard - umm yes, I know what your thinking, I will be careful.. Tea bushes leading almost to the waters edge, and it's quite a scramble down over some loose rocks.
Walking around these tea trails is revealing some spectacular scenery. The blue lake with mountains for the backdrop, the greenery of tea fields, paddy fields and hillside vegetable gardens all make this place I suspect one of Sri Lankas hidden gems. It's very quiet, calm and sereen, except for the occasional dog bark echoing from the opposite side. Not a single tourist has been seen, just the locals, who seem find a tourist something of a novelty, wandering around their comminuty. Of course there are cries for money, they are very poor people in the main. I wave, walk on and smile, they smile back - its a fifty fity game, and i'm sure very occasionally they win, but not this time.
Having seen, snapped and experienced this little gem of a place, time I was getting back to Hatton. The climb upwards is a gentle one and this time sticking to the official road. Passing locals who have intelligently harnessed the power of mountain streams to thier advantage. They wave, the girls giggle as the torrent of water splashes over them, and the boy, well he just politely nods. Top of the drive, after about a 20 minute hike from the lakeside. Chances are a bus will come by since tea workers seem to be the majority of passengers on these rural red rattlers. 10 minutes and it's the Delhousie to Hatton railway station, struggling up the hill belching fumes. Better signal otherwise they will just drive on! 10p back to Hatton and some of that good grub from the Meena Hot cafe. Tonight's dinner, 86p including 2 cups of tea. The place is popular, quite a heavy turnover of food as I observed when picking on this place. Not suffered any ill-effects to-date.
A really good, memorable day out, not just for the scenery but the quaintness of that little church perched on a hillside high above the lake. Reading the names on the grave stones certainly made for a poignant, if not sombre moment as a little bit of British colonial history is right there, looking at me.
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