5/5 Harshan E. 6 months ago on Google • 49 reviews
The
magnificent
129
m
tall
horsetail
fall
Lakshapana
Ella,
also
spelt
Laxapana
Ella,
is
one
of
the
top
10
waterfalls
of
Sri
Lanka
concerning
height.
Lakshapana
Falls
is
located
9
km
west
of
Norton
Bridge
by
road,
which
is
a
village
at
the
road
from
Ginigathena
Pass
to
Castlereigh
Reservoir.
The
Lakshapana
waterfall
belongs
to
the
village
of
Kiriwan-Eliya
in
the
Ginigathena
Division
of
Nuwara
Eliya
District.
The
small
settlement
situated
closest
to
the
waterfalls
is
simply
known
as
“Laksapana
Gama”,
which
translates
to
“Lakshapana
village”.
There
is
a
guesthouse
available
in
the
village.
Not
surprisingly,
its
name
is
“Lakshapana
Rest”.
The
montane
region
is
known
as
Ambagamuwa
Korale.
Lakshapana
Ella
is
situated
at
an
elevation
of
660
m
above
sea
level.
The
eye-catching
series
of
peaks
of
the
“Seven
Virgin
Mountains”
are
not
far
from
the
Lakshapana
Falls.
A
stairway
of
several
hundred
steps
leads
from
the
car
park
to
the
pool
at
the
base
of
Lakshapana
Falls.
It
is
possible
to
walk
to
the
top
of
Lakshapana
Falls,
too.
There
are
various
hypothesis
concerning
the
origin
of
the
uncommon
name
“Lakshapana”.
The
name
is
presumably
derived
from
the
Sanskrit
term
“laksha”
with
a
long
vowel
“a”.
In
Sanskrit,
this
originally
means
“red
varnish”
or
“red
lacquer”.
In
a
figurative
sense,
this
became
a
term
for
reddish
ferrous
stone
in
many
Indian
languages.
That’s
why
the
name
Lakshapana
may
refer
to
the
obvious
presence
of
iron
ore
(laksha)
in
the
cliff
of
the
waterfalls.
But
“Laksha”
or
“lakh”
with
a
short
vowel
“a”
is
a
common
Indian
term
for
hundredthousand,
referring
to
the
vast
number
of
rocks
and
cascades
above
the
main
horsetail
fall.
Another
hypothesis
is
that
the
name
is
derived
from
“Lassana
pahana”,
which
means
“beautiful
lamp”
in
Sinhala.
An
old
Sinhala
name
of
Lakshapana
Ella
is
“Wedahiti
Ella”,
derived
from
“Wedda
Hiti
Ella”
and
meaning
“waterfalls
were
Wedda
people
live”,
Veddas
being
the
indigineous
tribes
of
Sri
Lanka.
Much
larger
amounts
of
water
of
the
Maskeliya
Oya
once
flowed
over
Lakshapana
Falls.
But
the
construction
of
a
dam
has
reduced
the
flow.
The
Laxapana
Hydro
Power
Station
was
Sri
Lanka’s
first
hydro-power
plant,
the
power
station
is
located
at
the
old
Waggama
village.
It
originally
to
generated
50
MW
of
electricity
and
was
upgraded
to
100
MW.
The
waters
of
the
Maskeliya
Oya,
a
tributary
of
the
Kelani
river,
rise
from
forests
south
of
Fairlawn
Estate.
Similar
to
the
legends
of
Kirindi
Ella
and
Bopath
Ella,
there
is
a
local
belief
in
a
hidden
treasure
in
the
bassin
below
the
Lakshapana
Falls.
The
local
legend
goes
that
in
times
of
severe
droughts,
a
golden
receptacle
appears
in
the
deep
pool.
As
soon
as
this
phenomenon
can
be
seen,
rain
will
be
sent
by
the
gods
to
protect
the
treasure
again,
it
will
come
in
torrents
inundating
the
areas
below
the
falls
in
a
devastating
way.
Another
typical
Sri
Lankan
legend
is
that
there
are
tunnels
hidden
behind
the
waterfalls,
connecting
Lakshapana
with
the
Aberdeen
Falls
5
km
further
north,
as
the
crow
flies.
The
Aberdeen
Falls
are
situated
in
the
neigbouring
valley
of
the
Kehelgamuwa
river,
another
Kelani
Ganga
trivutary.
There
is
a
belief
in
a
labyrinthic
tunnel
system
from
prehistoric
times
connecting
all
major
caves
and
waterfalls
of
Sri
Lanka.
Again
and
again,
there
are
claims
that
archaeological
research
confirmed
the
existence
of
the
tunnels.
But
until
now,
nobody
reached
Aberdeen
Falls
starting
at
Lakshapana
Falls
via
a
subterranean
way.
A
more
specific
popular
tale
has
ist,
that
Buddha
mended
his
saffron
robe
at
Lakshapana
Falls
when
he
was
visiting
the
Siri
Pada
mountain.
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