Exploring Duwili Ella of the Knuckles Mountain Range

Duwili Ella is a gorgeous waterfall that is located deep in the jungles of Knuckles Forest Reserve/Mountain Range. It is known to be one of the most difficult places to access partly due to the steep terrain and the track which leads to Duwili Ella involves walking for almost 30 km through forest territory with no human habitation. 

The two main routes to Duwili Ella are through Attanwela and Rambukoluwa the latter being a deserted village infested with wild elephants. Most people usually take the easier route which is through Rambukoluwa even though the threat of elephants exists. This route follows the Kaluganga River and is 3-4 km shorter and with fewer mountains to tackle. Along the way, you pass through pristine jungles hardly touched by human interventions and climbs up to the top of the kaluganga source. 

The series of waterfalls on the way is really beautiful with Dumbara Ella being one of my favorites. The grand finale of this epic hike ends near a topmost waterfall with a cave behind and the roots of an ancient ficus tree with dust like water spraying down.The trek can be done without a guide but help from a local is definitely a massive stress reliever. The sorry state of rubbish management in the Duwili Ella cave area is a huge concern as there were many empty bottles and cans and even a 5L empty water cans were thrown into the falls below. Please make an extra effort to leave no human impact throughout the trek.