Travel
to Sri Lanka and make your dream Holiday come true!
Holiday in Sri Lanka is ideal if you're looking
forward to have fun, enjoy the sunshine and frolic
in white sandy beaches. If you want to do bird
watching, see wildlife paying a visit to Ceylon will
be a holiday you'll never forget. If you want to try
out eco tourism, Sri Lanka is a marvelous place to
spend your vacation. Sri Lanka is one place where
you could be in harmony with nature like in no other
place. By spending your holiday in Sri Lanka you'll
get so much of entertainment.
A Holiday in Sri Lanka means that you'll have loads
of fun, experience a unique culture
& heritage at www.lanka-travel.info
Lanka Travel Directory is the web site giving the
most comprehensive information on Ceylon. So if you
are thinking of a Vacation in Sri Lanka you have
come to the right place!
Horton Plains National
Park is in the highlands of the country belonging to
central province. This is the highest plateau in the
country. This was declared as a National Park in 1988.
The park area is 3160 hectare.
The second & third highest mountains of the country
namely Kirigalpotta & Thotupola respectively are found
within the borders of the park. Park receives rainfall
from both northeast & southwest monsoons as well as
inter-monsoonal rains. Frequently occurring mist and
clouds are one main source of precipitation. With annual
precipitation of about 5000mm Horton Plains is the most
important catchments area of the country. Three major
rivers of the country start from this area namely Kelani,
Walawe & the Mahaweli the longest river of the country.
There is a slight dry period between January to March.
Due to altitude the area is comparatively cold. Mean
annual temperature is around 15?C and during colder
months it will go down further where it is cold enough
to create ground frost.
Park consists of montane cloud forests embedded in wet
montane grasslands. Horton Plains has rich biodiversity.
Most of the fauna and flora found in the park are
endemic and furthermore some of them are confined to
highlands of the island.
t
Though this was one of the best elephant habitats in the
country they are locally extinct due to poaching &
sports hunting occurred during the British colonial era.
Leopard and Sambhur & wild boar are the most common
large mammals in Horton Plains. Endemic Bear Monkey,
Rusty- Spotted and Fishing cats, Otter, Black napped
hare and Giant Squirrel are among other mammals. Many
species of endemic & threatened rats & shrews are also
found in the park. Diversity & endemicity of reptiles
(Lizards) and amphibians are remarkably high.
Though this is cold highland plateau the bird diversity
is very high. More than 70% of Sri Lanka’s endemic birds
are found here.
How
to get there
Horton Plains can be reached from Nuwaraeliya or
Talawakale easily.
Worlds End
The famous `Worlds
End' is a major attraction within the Park. Endemic
slender loris and endemic purple monkey are among the
important animal species that could be seen in addition
to sambhur, a member of the cat family etc. There are
some endemic avifauna also found within this Park.
The Plains also feature
many interesting attractions such as 'Bakers Falls', 'Chimmini
Pool' and the famous 'World's End' (a 3700 ft sheer drop
that offers fabulous views of the tea estates below and
all the way out to the distant southern coastline
ily.
