Knuckles Mountain Range

The Knuckles take their English name from a ridge that from Kandy looks like a clenched fist, and the range holds a compressed sequence of habitats from lowland forest through montane cloud forest to open patana grassland within a few kilometres, which is why the endemic count is so high. It is one of the three components of the Central Highlands of Sri Lanka, inscribed as World Heritage in 2010, along with Horton Plains and the Peak Wilderness.

What you actually see

• The cloud forest - montane forest hung with moss and epiphytes on the upper ridges.
• The patana grassland - open grass on the higher slopes above the tree line.
• The endemic species - amphibians, lizards and plants restricted to this range.
• The ridge profile - the knuckle-shaped crest that gives the range its name.

When to go

January to April and July to September fall between the two monsoons and are the driest. The range is wet in any month and leeches are constant. Cloud covers the ridges most afternoons.

Honest expectations

Guides are compulsory on most trails and this is enforced; the range has claimed lives from people getting lost in cloud. Leeches are relentless and socks are essential. Access roads are rough and slow.

Nearby

Riverston is on the northern edge, and Meemure is deep inside the range.