Travel Lathugala
To me, this is what "The village in the jungle" might have been – a small village at the edge of the forest, where people exist, any which way they can. But in today’s connected world, whenever the need for money arises, the allure of work in the construction industry is the answer, as there is an overnight bus right into Colombo, even from here!
There are many chena cultivators of old, who have told me tales of yore, of old “Raja Kalay” tanks and remains of temples and palaces, possibly much exaggerated, but nevertheless the remnants of the occasional pillar is there larger than life – nothing would surprise me in a country with more than 250,000 places of archeological interest.
For the folk of these interior villages, a trip to the nearest hospital costs 1,000 rupees in a three wheeler, which they can ill afford, while electricity supply come this far, there is hardly any mobile coverage.
I was told that there is an old footpath that goes all the way to Maha Oya at the edge of the Maduru Oya National Park, through forest land and the occasional chena cultivations and disused tanks along the way. The journey is not for the faint hearted, as poachers have placed traps in places – this is another reason why fewer people now traverse this route on buses that operate on this from this remote village.
For the right price, one can negotiate with two experienced guides in the village to take a group along these paths, traversing across brooks and streams, many of them dry for most of the year, to appreciate some of the last frontiers of rambling in the woods in the Sri Lankan dry zone.
In all these cases, for those unfamiliar with the terrain, I will always test the ground and the ability of one’s guide by restricting the journey first to a day trip, which was all I was game for initially, and test the terrain and the lay of the land before venturing further, as the path to Maha Oya takes two days to complete. For those who wish to experience something others have not, and have the training of scouts as I have had over 50 years ago, where we were taught, long before protection of the environment was even an issue, to leave a place just as you find it, not leaving anything behind, or taking anything from there either, except perhaps memories and photographs to share with others.
The Scout’s motto of Be Prepared always applies in these circumstances where you attempt the unrecorded, like explorers of the past. Basic essentials, to prepare a fire to cook a meal, a flashlight for emergencies, as well as plenty of water, should be taken, though there are springs along the way from rains. The most important part of this is to let someone know where you are going and when you are expected back, so they know what to do if you are out of contact. There are sporadic pockets of mobile coverage, and in that sense it is the battery power or the back-up that one needs today, but in case you twist your ankle, falling into a hole you did not see, you need to have a back-up crew who can call for help. Of course binoculars and a good camera is useful to enjoy the scenery and watch the beauty of nature, but remember almost everywhere you go, there are hills you either can go over, or circumnavigate in forests, and it is no different in this area. There is nothing called completely flat land for a trek in Sri Lanka.
It is said that in today’s travels, it is the experience that matters, not tourist sites that all go to see, and often one can no longer enjoy a time of peace and quiet in these places. So if one is game for experience, and likes adventure and does not fear the unknown, this is for you.
The biggest challenge is to find a local person who is willing to take you, as the adventure spirit of the locals has not passed down through generations, as today’s youth aspires to a motorbike and the lifestyle associated with that, even in such remote places. Ironically, the opinion I have formed from my forays is that, if this kind of forest guiding, however infrequent, is determined to be of financial benefit, then there will be people willing to make themselves known to take teams of people on such journeys. It can help retain the wildness in man we are losing! Sri Lanka lends itself more than most places on earth, due to the likelihood of discovery, particularly of old habitation, to excite the explorer in you. If we don’t tap the last remaining village elders, who used to walk for days into the forest for bees honey, or medicinal herbs, this knowledge that they possess and the spirit of adventure they have, will somehow disappear never to return. It’s your call, be patient, be sensitive to local feelings, respect your guides, empathize 
with their world, and follow their directions, without taking undue risks, and pace yourself by being realistic on how much distance you can cover in a day, and you are assured of a time of your lives you will be able to relate over dinner, that few can confirm or deny! Mark Zuckerberg this is for you.
RH
