Horton Plains National Park
Description
Horton Plains National Park is a national park in the central highlands of Sri Lanka that was designated in 1988.
Horton plains National Park is situated just 32km from Nuwara Eliya (190km from Colombo), the Horton Plains National Park montane grassland and cloud forest located in the Central Highlands with photo opportunity and rich nature creations. It is on a plateau at an altitude of 2100-2300m and was declared a national park in 1988 due to its biodiversity and geographical importance. It is a popular tourist destination consisting of several tourist hot spots such as World’s End, mini World’s End, Bakers Falls and the peaks of Kirigalpoththa and Totupola Kanda.
The top sight at Horton Plains National Park is World’s End, where this highland plateau comes to an abrupt halt and a yawning drop of around 1,000m opens up before you. Close by is Mini World’s End, where the drop is a mere 300 metres. Catch the view before 10am and you are most likely to be rewarded with something quite spectacular. Arrive late and the mists might have rolled in, leaving you gazing into whiteness, particularly in the wettest time of year from May to September. A small viewing viewing area is fenced off, but not sticking to the approved path carries obvious risk when you approach the cliff edge. Also worth a visit for the energetic is an extension to nearby Baker’s Falls, one of the finest waterfalls in Sri Lanka. This involves a fair deal of scrambling up steep slopes and is only recommended to those fleet of foot. The walk to World’s End along flat terrain is 4kms, with a demanding loop to Baker’s Falls (2km) and another 3.5km back to the entrance). The entire 9.5km round trip takes a leisurely three hours.
