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TEA TRAIL HATTON – 3rd LAP - FROM THE TEA CAPITAL TO BADULLATea Trail Hatton is the phrase I preferred to use to take you beyond the Tea Capital of Hatton. It is the first major railway station after Nawalapitiya. Once a sleepy little town, today Hatton is one of the busiest cities in the hill country of Sri Lanka. By all means it can be called the Tea Capital of Sri Lanka as it is the central point for most upcountry tea growing regions such as Maskeliya, Talawakelle, Bogawantalawa and Dickoya.
There is an interesting story behind the name "HATTON'itself. When a medium-sized tea plantation was initiated in this area during the British era, the planter at the time had a habit of leaving his hat on a walking stick in the tea field. He then went about doing other work, but the laborers were deceived that their boss was somewhere around and they continued with their work un-supervised. It is said this is how the name came to be and interestingly the Tamil name too was a direct translation of it, called “Thoppi Thottam.”
Passing Hatton railway station, the train goes through the longest Rail Tunnel of Sri Lanka; named Singamalay (Lion Hill) immediately followed by a 60 foot bridge and lush tea plantations. The real beauty of the hill country comes into view after passing the tea trail Hatton tunnel. We cannot miss the cool, fresh air flowing from the green hills filling our lungs and the cold mist slowly starting to embrace.
Just like surroundings of Hatton, we are mesmerized by the panoramic scenes of the mountain range of Talawakelle, St Clair Water-falls and St Clair Tea Factory from an entirely different angle.
A massive hydro-electric project is going on at present with a dam, bridge and housing project at Talawakelle. It is to be noted Talawakelle is the next major town to snake through the Tea Trail Hatton. Passing Talawakelle, the line goes through a tunnel and suddenly turns a full circle to form a complete ‘loop.’ (See full story in Watagoda Loop by following the link below). After Watagoda the line reaches Nanu-oya – the railway station to the health resort Nuwara Eliya. More beautiful tea gardens come into full view. • It had taken 40 years to complete the construction of Nanu Oya to Badulla line, which was by then undertaken by the Ceylon Government Railway with its own work force. Passenger transport commenced in 1924. Ambewala is the station after Nanu Oya. Due to its ideal climatic conditions, it has become a booming vegetable growing area plus large dairy farms.
Pattipola station follows Ambewala and is the highest point in the country’s railway network. It is 6201 feet above sea-level and the peak point is marked with a sign-board.
The line now reaches Ohiya, home of the Horton Plains and World’s End. Numerous rail tunnels between Ohiya and Haputale are great attractions on this line especially for the kids who love to hoot every time the train passes through a dark tunnel.
At one point the entire length of the train passes through three short tunnels at the same time. Some of the tunnels act as barriers against rock slips.
Idalgahinna Station has its own unique features. For details, see the link below.
Passing Idalgashinna we go through Haputale, Diyatalawa and Bandarawela with panoramic surroundings. However, there is something very interesting at Demodera station. See link below for the incredible "Looping on Loop' of Demodera.
After Demodera, the train reaches the last stop of the Upcountry Main Line at Badulla.
My Train Partner - Thilak Alahakoon (Ex Gemunu Watch – Sri Lanka Army), who assisted with a load of information from Kadugannawa to Bandarawela. He had been travelling through the Tea Trail Hatton for decades.
Beyond TEA TRAIL HATTON - Follow Tea Trail link to Watagoda Loop
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