Travelogue Sri Lanka 2010
Ella – Demodara – Dhowa Rock Temple

The next day we start with a short hike along the railway tracks from Ella to Demodara. These tracks are in use, but the train runs so infrequently that the tracks serve as a footpath at other times of the day, and not just for tourists …

a dog balancing on a railway track near Ella, Sri Lanka
… but also for locals, whether on two or four legs.
tunnel of the railway line Ella - Demodara
We walk through railroad tunnels…
Nine Arch Bridge, Demodara, Sri Lanka
… and over the especially worth seeing Nine Arch Bridge. Here you can also see the spectacular green landscape.
heart from railway ballast
Gabi leaves behind a heart of railway ballast.
Oriental garden lizard on odometer of railway line between Ella and Demodara, Sri Lanka
This lizard – I think it’s a Oriental garden lizard – has found a place to sit where it can be seen to advantage and where it also has a good view.
Demodara railway station, Sri Lanka
Our hike ends after six kilometers at Demodara Railway Station. You can see here the strongly curved tracks that belong to the famous Demodara Loop. The train makes a loop around a hill and crosses its own path just below this station through a tunnel. If you’re here at the right time, you can watch the spectacle. We had already met the train in Ella.
Dhowa Rock Temple, Sri Lanka
From the station we take a Tuctuc seven kilometers to the Dhowa Rock Temple. You already know this with the reclining Buddhas.
snake cave, Dhowa Rock Temple, Sri Lanka
Next to the temple there is a cave or the entrance of a tunnel where sacrifices are made to a giant snake. Whether it is supposed to still be there or only to have protected a king who sought refuge from enemies here a long time ago, I unfortunately do not know.
Ptyas mucosa, Indian rat snake, Demodara, Sri Lanka
And then we actually see a snake … Volker’s first reaction in such a case: run up and take photos, the closer the better.
Ptyas mucosa, Indian rat snake, Demodara, Sri Lanka
I felt a bit queasy when the snake moved really fast over the stones and then even up a vertical wall. Today I know that it was a Ptyas mucosa or Indian rat snake and is not poisonous.
butterfly, Demodara, Sri Lanka
Here’s a picture of a butterfly to calm down again 😉

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