Just Me Travel

Just Me Travel

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Month: February 2021

WHAT IS THE MISSING TRUTH ABOUT CLIMBING SRI LANKA’S LITTLE ADAM’S PEAK?

Who Said Climbing Little Adam’s Peak Is An Easy Walk?   Dear Meg, Hello from Ella in Sri Lanka. While here, I decided to walk up Little Adam’s Peak. The…

Who Said Climbing Little Adam’s Peak Is An Easy Walk?

 

Dear Meg,

Hello from Ella in Sri Lanka.

While here, I decided to walk up Little Adam’s Peak. The walk from Ella to Little Adam’s Peak’s summit is approximately 4.5 kilometres (return) and said to take about 45 minutes each way. The walk was described in four guidebooks as an easy, mostly flat walk, with a small amount of climbing at the end.

The hotel’s reference to Little Adam’s Peak summed up the experience:

This walk is unlikely to make you break out in a sweat, and the entire round trip can be completed in about two hours. The first part of the walk is quite flat … some climbing is required to reach the summit. The view from the top is more than worth the gentle exertion though, offering a splendid panorama of Ella Rock and The Gap.

 

Well, they were all wrong! All the guidebooks lied.

  • It was uphill all the way. There was no ‘flat’, and there was nothing ‘easy’ about the walk.
  • I did break out in a sweat – big time.
  • The walk was two hours one way.
  • ‘The small amount of climbing at the end’ was not just uphill; it was more than 300 vertical steps.
  • As for ‘gentle exertion’. There was nothing gentle about the blood pounding in my head when I finally reached the summit. This was heart attack material!

 

Having reached the summit (at the height of 1,141 metres), I was too exhausted and out of breath to appreciate the ‘splendid panorama’. And I thought I was fit! There is nothing ‘little’ about Little Adam’s Peak.

I didn’t feel a sense of achievement but just felt jilted by the guidebooks. In hindsight, I should have stayed in Ella drinking coffee, and left the walk up to the others to complete.

Walking up Little Adam’s Peak would have to be one of the worst experiences of my life. Well, perhaps not, but it sure felt like it. I left the others at the bottom of the mountain and took a tuk-tuk back to the hotel. It cost me a lot of rupees, but it was worth every one of them.

Tropical bush framing a mountain peak

View of Little Adam’s Peak – still a long way to walk

 

Disclaimer: This post contains no affiliate links. All views and opinions are my own and non-sponsored. All photos are my own and remain the copyright of Joanna Rath.

 

Comment below to share your thoughts on this blog post. Tell us about a climbing challenge you have faced. What was the outcome? Did you feel a sense of achievement or not?

 

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To read more on what to see and do in Sri Lanka, click on the links below:

WALKING THE RAILWAY LINE FROM ELLA TO DEMODARA, SRI LANKA

FIRST 24 HOURS IN GALLE FORT, SRI LANKA

A PHOTOGRAPHIC TOUR OF GEOFFREY BAWA’S GARDEN

WALLAWWA – a tranquil luxury boutique hotel in Colombo City

ULTIMATE SRI LANKA ITINERARY – The Best of Sri Lanka in 20 Days

 

Author’s Note: Please check the latest travel restrictions before planning any trip and always follow government advice.

 

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