A journey to experience the greenery; Riverstone

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It's a pleasant way to start the morning - fresh air, birdsongs, and the occasional breeze. Periodically, a gap in the brush emerges and we check in on the vista.

There is no proper trail up Riverstone Gap (a mountain also known as Riverstone Durgaya and Bata Dandu Kanda) - just a private access road that leads to the two telecommunication towers that crown each of the peaks. The path is mostly paved, and winds serpentine up the East face of the mountain through montane forests. The thin air and blustery winds keep the trees' height in check, but the underbrush is still thick enough that our view of the mountains is obscured for the moment. This is a feat in itself, considering the dynamic peaks of the Knuckles Mountain Range, which tend to insert themselves as the backdrop to whatever you're looking at.

As we make our way up, I'm constantly surprised at how different the mountains look each time we stop for a viewing. Sometimes the white clouds offset the lush green trees, but as the sun becomes obscured both land and sky adopt soft, pastel hues of teal and magenta - the sun's presence just a strip of peach separating the two. With a few dozen different peaks and valleys, even a slight change in altitude or lighting makes the whole panorama seem brand new. In no time at all our blue sky has grown moody with clouds, and with it the sun pokes through in dramatic rays, like spotlights slowly scanning the mountains. At certain moments the area's lit like late afternoon.

With A Few Dozen Different Peaks And Valleys, Even A Slight Change In Altitude Or Lighting Makes The Whole Panorama Seem Brand New

The Knuckles Conservation Forest, as well as the Central highlands on the whole, is renowned for the great diversity of both wildlife and weather. The range is perfectly situated so as to bear the brunt of both the Northeast monsoon (December-March) and the Southwest monsoon (June-October). The area's varying altitudes and eccentric weather patterns make it a veritable melting pot of diverse climates. Taken as a whole, the area is like a kaleidoscope of the country's many climes.

We press on as complex atmospheric changes go on above our heads, adding and removing clothes as necessary. 
It's soon sunny again. The higher we get the less encumbered we are by trees and the better our view becomes. We can see the paddy fields down in a valley, and a building under construction, where the red soil from the construction site contrasts with the green that carpets the topography in every direction.

We come across a bend in the trail, and finally the whole view is available to us in its entirety. The sheer scope of what lies before us is almost dizzying - there are so many striking features of the landscape all worthy of attention, ands its difficult for your eyes to settle in any one place. Not to mention how the whole scene is divinely lit by the interplay between the clouds and sun.

One interesting feature of the trail is that no other part of it is ever visible due to the thick brush. It meanders back and forth up the mountainside, and neither of the radio towers are visible for most of the trek. As we make our way past this final bend, the paved trail curves towards the radio tower and terminates underneath it. A dirt path offshoots from the pavement, oriented towards the other peak. Before the trail begins its steep, rocky climb it dips down between the two peaks. Here we can finally see for the first time since we began the hike the other side of the mountain with its own vista of innumerable peaks. Although Knuckles takes its name from the peaks and troughs of a closed fist, it seems to me now to actually refer to a whole crowd of people with their fists raised up.

Here We Can Finally See For The First Time Since We Began The Hike The Other Side Of The Mountain With Its Own Vista Of Innumerable Peaks

After taking in the sights we decide to make our way up the second peak to see what the view looks like from there. It's a steeper climb up a higher peak compared to the first one. Clouds are building again, and we're intent on finding out what views await us at the top of the next peak while we still have a chance.

Though shorter, the climb proves to be more difficult. Rather than wind its way up the mountain, the dirt path is a straight spine across the dip between the peaks and up the dome-shaped summit. We carefully toe for stable rocks to climb and grab on stunted trees to help pull ourselves up.

A breathtaking view awaits us at the top. The increasing cloud cover bathes the view in subdued colours. 
A lake in the valley reflects the morning sun and is a luminous gold. The sun and the quick-moving clouds jostle for dominance, and they never settle on a single lighting scheme or colour pattern to stick with.

And just like that, mist billows over from the otherside of the mountains, the cool clouds passing over and through us. By the time we make it down and back across to the paved trail, the enormous radio tower is barely visible at all. The mist washes over the Riverstone Gap until our visibility is limited to just the trail; the cloud forest lives up to its name and everything changes again.

Riverstone Pitawala Pathana location https://www.google.com/maps?q=pitawala+pathana&source=lmns&bih=553&biw=375&client=safari&prmd=minv&hl=en-GB&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwiBo4L69dzuAhWSFisKHXIiCt4Q_AUoAXoECAAQBA

Sera Ella location https://www.google.com/maps/place//data=!4m2!3m1!1s0x3ae3568ffc3cb947:0xa276f1ea4d00c3bb!11m1!4b1?entry=s&sa=X&hl=en-lk&ved=2ahUKEwiCgaie9tzuAhUBxzgGHSQvAqwQ4kAwCHoECA0QBA

Thelgamuwa River location https://www.google.com/maps/place/Thelgamu+Oya/@7.5725811,80.7657682,10z/data=!4m2!3m1!1s0x3ae359bd021ae987:0x2813b96a20cbaaf2?hl=en-lk