Walking Sri Lanka's Rainforests: A Guide to the Wet Zone Trails

Walking in the wet zone forests of Sri Lanka is a completely different experience from hiking in the hill country or the dry zone. The air is dense with moisture. The vegetation is so layered and interconnected that the light at ground level is a perpetual green dusk even at midday. The sounds are constant and overlapping. Every surface is alive in a way that makes you aware of how much of the natural world normally goes unnoticed.

The Makandawa Forest in Kitulgala is one of the most accessible wet zone forests for day visitors. A network of trails through primary forest where endemic birds congregate in mixed flocks that move through the canopy in waves of activity followed by relative silence. The forest here is also the location of several large roosting trees used by the Sri Lanka hanging parrot, a tiny green bird that sleeps upside down like a bat, which is as delightful as it sounds.

The villages at the edge of the Sinharaja buffer zone offer guided walks through secondary forest and small-scale agriculture that show how people actually live in relationship with one of the most important ecosystems in Asia. These community-based trail programmes are well-organised, the guides are knowledgeable and are community members, and the walks show you both the forest and the human context of its preservation.

Practical notes for wet zone walking: wear long sleeves and trousers regardless of the heat, because the leeches in wet season are present and persistent. Apply lemon juice to your shoes and socks before entering the forest, which acts as a mild deterrent. Check yourself thoroughly afterwards. The leeches of the Sri Lankan rainforest are painless in the taking and leave no lasting effect, but the discovery of one attached is more alarming than the actual consequence warrants. Be prepared and be fine.