When you travel along Kandy road passing Kadugannawa area, look across the valley to witness a peculiar shaped rock at the distance. The shape reminds you of the famous rock fortress Sigiriya but it is in fact “Bathalegala” or “Bible Rock” as the British named it. As a child, It confused me enough to think it was Sigiriya until someone was kind enough to correct me. By the look of it, seems like it is a tough climb right? But the looks indeed can be deceiving. Read along to find out. About the rock The height of the rock is stated as 797.7 m in the survey map. The breadth spans a whopping 710 m across the rock surface. The surface is mostly flat covered in mana and some woods here and there. If you are starting from the trailhead, the elevation gain would be around 150m. You can also start the hike from Hathgampola town. In that case, the elevation gain would be around 500m. How to get there? Bathalegala is located close to Aranayake. Whether you’re coming from Colombo or Kandy, turn onto Aranayake road at Mawanella. Follow the road until Gevilipitiya, turn right at the junction and drive about 2km to Hathgampola town. From there you’ll have to turn right to a narrow road (Bathalegala road) with a signboard “to the Bathalegala road” Following this road, you’ll reach a junction where you should turn left to a narrower road which runs past the trailhead. After driving 2.5 km on this road, look towards your right to notice the starting point. There is a signpost so it is hard to miss. Parking space is available but limited.

Bible rock also known as bathalegala rock is an attractive hill in Sri Lanka. This is located in the kagalla district. There are two paths available to reach the top of the hill. Road 01- From Hathgampala You have to reach Hettimulla-Gewilipitiya (B136) road. From 2.3Km away from the gewilipitya Junction to Hettimulla there is a Junction (7.174772, 80.437167) called as Hathgampola junction. Once you turned that junction You need to go further 2.5-2.8 km for the entrance. you can easily find the path with the help of signboards. There is a small shop in front of the entrance. You can park your vehicle at a small cost. (Rs 50.00 for a bike). Can be reached the entrance easily via bikes & three wheels and for the cars and vans seems to be difficult because of the slope of the road. Road 02- From Aranayaka Police station This road has to find out. I heard it is a beautiful path where surrounded by a lot of trees. There are some places available at the top for camping. Unfortunately, if you are planning to camp you have to carry every item ( Wood, Water). Especially water isn’t available nowadays at the top of the hill. This is a forest reserve. So Please don’t destroy anything. Please carry woods for Campfire. When you take home with memories of this place, take back the polythene you brought with you. Stay safe! Stay Green 🖤🌳

Great hiking experience. 🐾️🌾 Suitable for beginners because it is an easy hike. First you have to come to the Mawanella bus stand. Then you have to take Aranayaka bus to Gewilipitiya. Then you have to take another bus - Debathgama bus. Get off from the bus at way to Bathalegala. If you don't know the place ask from the conductor & he will guide you. There are direct buses to Debathgama from Mawanella. There is a concrete road for the bottom of the mountain. There is also a board which is confirmed it's the way to Bathalegala. Walk about 2.5km. Then you will reach to the bottom of the mountain. You can see nature trails in the forest. Go through it. You can easily reach to the top. As I mentioned before it's a very easy hike & you don't need a guide. The upper view is so beautiful and amazing. You can see Alagalla mountain range, Dolosbage mountain range, Ambuluwawa, Aranayaka area & Mawanella area from the top. You can find two ends on the top, north end and south end. From north end you can see Dolosbage mountain range, Ambuluwawa, Mawanella area & Alagalla mountain range. From south end you can see Uragala mountain, Aranayake and Hettimulla area. If you look carefully you may find the land slided areas of Samasarakanda. There's a small temple also. There are two small cave near the temple There is another way which is going through the forest form the top to Gewilipitiya town. If you a beginner don't use it becase it is little bit tough rather than to the other way. Great experience for your day today busy life. Come here, enjoy the environment. Feel the natural beauty. Don't ruin it. Don't throw garbage. Don't disturb to the balance of the nature. 🍃🐒🥀🦎🌱

Bible rock / Punchi Sigiriya / Bathalegala is a mountain range with a height of 2780 feet above sea level, located in Kegalle Aranayaka area. It is popular among tourists due to its easy climbing and natural beauty of the ecosystem. When you reach the top, you will be able to see a large area spread over Uthuankanda, Alagalla, Urakanda, Ambuluawa, Samasara Kanda as well as Kegalle, Mawanella, Gampala, Kadugannawa areas. Bathalegala is a suitable place for night camping ,and it is customary to get permission from the temple. It is also possible to see a wonderful sunrise in the morning from above the cloud level. Enjoy the nature... save for the future 🍃

A small hike. Its shape like Sigiriya rock so Sri Lankan call it "Punchi Sigiriya".In colonial era, English people call it Bible rock as its shape. At the top of the rock , there is a plane. So it is very good to camping specially night camping.You can get fabulous experience.Not hard to go top even child can go there.Climate and environment is very fine.

Bible Rock is a mountain near Aranayake in Kegalle District in central Sri Lanka. It is known as the "Bible Rock" as its surface resembles a book/bible. Due to its prominent flat top surface, it resembles the more famous Sigiriya citadel located more north of it. Bathalegala road to the trail-head, the road is pretty narrow and fairly steep. Only bikes, three-wheelers and small cars can reach the starting point. But the view on the top is amazing

Surrounded by a lovely Forrest you get to start the hike up the mountain to the view point.. the view is breath taking.. Ideal for camping and 1 day hikes.

Summary : It's an easy hike that takes about 30 minutes (depending on the person) to climb from the trailhead. It takes approximately a 3 hour drive with moderate traffic from Colombo. Don't climb Bathalegala if there is even a small shower cause stepping rocks can be extremely slippery. There are two clearings for camping on the top. Details: Bathalegala aka Bible rock is a mountain located in Aranayaka, Kegalle. This has an elevation of 700m above sea level. The top surface is mostly flat and spans several hundred meters. It took a three hour drive with moderate traffic for me to reach the trailhead (I live in Borella). The route I took was Kandy rd to Kegalle then Kegalle-Karawanella rd then Gewilipitiya-Hettimulla rd then I took a concrete road that is a left turn from Hathgampola town. Just setting Bathalegala as your destination in google maps is alright. This concrete road is a narrow rough approx. 3km road so you need a vehicle with a moderate ground clearance and a smaller wheel base might be handy. Fyi I drove this road with no passengers in a toyota aqua but I scratched my underfloor panels few times. There's paid parking (abt 100 rs) at the end of this concrete road. The hike takes about 30 minutes and I would say it's easier than climbing Sigiriya. There are no water sources in the peak so taking a water bottle is necessary. The trail is pretty clear so there's no need to worry about getting lost. There are no leeches in this area even in the rainy seasons. At one end (South) of the peak there's a small stupa and on the North end you can see Kabaragala, Sri pada, Asupini ella, Ambuluwawa, Rakshaca, Samasara and Urakanda mountains if there's no mist. Views can be pretty good at the sunrise and the sunset so don't miss!