Although the name is not very popular, the Meeyan Ella waterfall is considered to be one of the boundaries that separated the rural areas in the past. However, the Meeyan Ella can be called a waterfall that has not been added to the list of Sri Lankan waterfalls as a waterfall.
The fall is falling from the Alagalla mountain range which is located near the Upper Kotte railway station. It is no secret that Meeyan Ella was a very beautiful waterfall about 100 years ago. It’s because this beautiful waterfall has lost its beauty due to the construction of the upland railway. This is the story of Meeyan Ella Falls which hides many secrets and today it looks like a thin wave of two water flows on the tunnel of 5A.
History Of Meeyan Ella Waterfall
The British started work on the upcountry railway from Colombo in Sri Lanka and opened the railway from Polgahawela to Kandy on August 1, 1867. it was very difficult for the engineers at that time to build the railway through the Alagalla rock which is about 1300m during the construction of the Upcountry railway. So they built the railway around that rock. On this occasion, they found a big 130m height waterfall which had become another obstacle crossing their way.
Then they decided to dig a curtain cut into the rock at the point where the waterfall falls and built a dam above the Meeyan ella fall and made it break into two streams. This fall is now known as Meeyan Ella Waterfall.
However, nowadays we can see two streams instead of the big fall in this station, and instead of the old railway road, we can see a railway through a tunnel. It is considered that the reason for closing the old road and building a new road through the mountain is that Meeyan Ella Falls creates a very strong water flow during the rainy season and makes train accidents often occur at this place.
Then engineers thought to rebuild the railway through a tunnel through the mountain. Accordingly built this new tunnel is 1307 meters long and is the second-longest railway tunnel in Sri Lanka. This tunnel is named 5A.
The reason for this, was after the railway was built from Colombo to Badulla, all the tunnels built on the Upcountry railway were numbered. According to this, two tunnels on both sides of Meeyan ella waterfall are the No. 05 tunnel which is 721 feet long and located near Yativeldeniya Railway Station, and the No. 06 tunnel, near the Makehelwala station which is 104 feet long can be identified. Accordingly, as this new tunnel can not use 5 or 6, it is numbered 5A.
After entering this train tunnel, another small tunnel can be seen from there to the edge where the Meeyan Ella falls. It is not known for what purpose it was built and it can be concluded that the workers who built the tunnel used it to get air in the tunnel and to move the stones out of the tunnel. All these things create very beautiful views and have become tourist attractions.
How to reach Meeyan Ella Waterfall
Meeyan Ella waterfall fall can be seen after coming to Ihala Kotte railway station from any part of Sri Lanka and going along the railway line for about 1 km to the left of the station. For this, the railway station should be informed and should take permission.
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What’s the best time to visit Meeyan Ella?
The best time to visit is during the dry season, typically from December to April, when the weather is pleasant, and the waterfall is at its most magnificent.