Meemure

Meemure sits in a bowl in the Knuckles with the Lakegala rock rising above it, and until recently the only way in was on foot. A road exists now but it is bad enough that the journey still takes hours from Kandy. The village of a few hundred people farms terraced paddy and kitul, has no bank and until the 2000s had no electricity, and it appears in Sri Lankan writing as the standard example of the country's remote interior.

What you actually see

• Lakegala rock - the sheer peak rising directly above the village.
• The terraced paddy - rice grown on the valley floor and slopes.
• The kitul tapping - palm sap tapped for treacle and jaggery in the village.
• The road in - a journey that is half the experience, through the Knuckles.

When to go

January to April is the driest and the road at its best. The monsoons make the track difficult and sometimes impassable. Nights in the valley are cool.

Honest expectations

The road is genuinely rough and takes three hours or more from Kandy; ordinary cars struggle. Accommodation is homestays with basic facilities. The village is small and there is little to do but walk.

Nearby

The Knuckles range surrounds it, and Riverston is north.