The Bridge in The Sky ; Nine Arch Bridge

The Nine Arch Bridge is one of the most iconic bridges in Sri Lanka. The Nine Arch Bridge also called the Bridge in the Sky. It is located in Demodara, between Ella and Demodara railway stations. The surrounding area has seen a steady increase of tourism due to the bridge’s architectural ingenuity and the profuse greenery in the nearby hillside. This bridge located almost 3100 feet above the sea level. The total length of the bridge is 300 feet and width is 25 feet. The height of the bridge is 80 feet (24.83m). This bridge is built entirely of solid rocks, bricks and cement without using a single piece of steels or metals.

The Nine Arch Bridge is the one of the awe-inspiring engineering marvels of the early 20^th century. The bridge was commissioned in 1921 under the British Government. The bridge was built with the help of a man called Appuhami, who was a famed traditional drummer and devil dancer in the area. One day, while returning the home gloomy as he lost competition, Appuhami was seen by a British official. The officer was extremely frightened by the devilish vision at the beginning but soon become quite friendly with Appuhami. Because of that friendship Appuhami assisted by suppling with labor from the local villages. When the construction reached gap between two hills, the British engineers got worried due to a quagmire at the bottom of this gap. Securely anchoring

the columns of a bridge to ground was issue. Appuhami by this time secured the trust of the engineers by then and requested to hand over the construction of this massive bridge to him. After rejecting the first time, they finally agreed and he has started work around 1913. He has completed the work within about a year and the cost of construction was so low.

The Nine Arch Bridge flanked by thick jungle and tea plantations; this bridge stands proudly across a lush green gorge in the hill country just outside Ella. Calling it picturesque would almost be a disservice, particularly on a misty day when cloud hang low in the valley and the famous blue train passes slowly over the bridge, creating a moody, mystical, captivating scene.

This nine arch bridge looked like a photographer paradise. There is a good weather condition in Demodara area. The daytimetemperature will reach 25^oC and the temperatureis going to dip to 21^oC at night. In this beautiful area there is so many places to visit as a tourist. There are Gotuwala Ella, Ella rock, memodara loop, rawana Ella, Bambaragala Ella and Dowa Raja Maha Viharaya etc. Those all the places located near nine arch bridge.

When someone visit the Nine Arch Bridge the quickest way is to walk along the track from Ella town until you reach a tunnel. After passing the tunnel you immediately reach the Nine Arch Bridge. There is only 4Km from Ella to Nine Arch Bridge. There is 338Km distance from Bandaranaike International airport to the Nine Arch Bride. If you come to visit Nine Arch Bridge remember to carry everything you bring and make sure to keep only your footprints.