GETTING THERE
All the questions related to “Getting to Meemure” has been discussed below. Take a look and clear out all your doubts before taking off with new adventures!
Until 2004, pack-bulls were the sole mode of transportation in Meemure. A herd of cattle brought goods and equipment to the village. In the decade starting 2010, Meemure attracted locals and foreigners alike. The roads got developed and now, A 28-seater coaster or any vehicle smaller than that can drive along the carpeted road. It is a smooth ride, so reaching Meemure is not difficult at all if you are coming in your own vehicle. If you are traveling using public transport, we can arrange transport for you from Kandy or Hunnasgiriya.
It is quite remote! So, get ready to be offline when you come to Meemure. There are a few places where you will be able to get mobile reception (including near the Karambaketiya campsite), but certainly not always. People in Meemure still live an agriculture-based, simple lifestyle. You can witness it first-hand when you mingle with the locals. If you are traveling using public transport, we can arrange transport for you from Kandy or Hunnasgiriya..
Public transport all the way up to the Meemure village is scarce. If you are getting your own vehicle, nothing to worry about. A 28-seater coaster or any vehicle smaller than that can drive along the carpeted road all the way to Meemure. If you are traveling using public transport, we can arrange transport for you from Kandy or Hunnasgiriya.
Somewhat, yes! You can take a direct bus from Colombo to Hunnasgiriya
(Colombo-Ampara/Mahiyanganaya/Bibila/Monaragala ) or the train from
Colombo to Kandy and then a bus from Kandy to Hunnasgiriya. Getting
from Hunnasgiriya to Meemure is the tricky part!
There is a bus at 5:30 AM from Meemure to Ududumbara town that returns to Meemure from Ududumbara around 2:00 PM. Since this is the only public transport that goes to village, counting on this option as a group will be not the best fit. There is another bus from Hunnasgiriya to Luulthalawa, but from Luulthalawa to Meemure distance is around 12km and we don’t encourage taking this option either.
Therefore, it is better to arrange your own vehicle to come all the way to Meemure. Alternatively, we provide transport from Hunnasgiriya or Kandy using our vehicles.
Yes, it is safe if you are not a reckless driver. The road is not very wide, so you have to be mindful when driving. The road condition is good all the way up to Meemure village from Hunnasgiriya. However, it is better to avoid driving at night since the road is bendy. Since the route goes through the Knuckles area, it is not uncommon to see animals on the roads. Even though there are not many turns, it is better to use maps. You will have mobile reception during your journey, but just to be safe, you can keep an offline map of the area downloaded.
Questions & Answers
Facilities
Worried much about camping facilities and accommodation? Find answers and set your mind at ease!
Yes, it’s true. Be ready to be offline when you come to Meemure. There are a few places where you will be able to get mobile reception (including near the Karambaketiya campsite), but certainly not always.
Yes. In all our packages, two travel guides will be with you at all times. Depending on the number of guests in the visiting party, we will allocate more guides. Specially, if there are children, we take additional precautions.
Both Karambaketiya and Pathana, the two common locations that we use, are campsites. So you will be staying in tents. We have mattresses, blankets and pillows. Washroom facilities are available.
Each package clearly mentions the meals that are included. For full-day programs, all three meals and tea are included.
Yes, it is a good idea to come with family. Meemure can offer something for everyone to do. There is a special family package as well. Children under the age of 12 can find it hard to enjoy. For the elderly, it depends on your physical condition since sightseeing also includes walking a couple of kilometers.
Questions & Answers
Safety
Clear all your worries and doubts related to the safety of adventures before committing so that you can enjoy your journey with a relaxed mind!
It depends on where in Meemure you want to go. If you are roaming around the village, then yes, it is safe. If you want to do water activities or wander into the Knuckles wilderness, doing so without a qualified guide is not advised. All the fatal incidents reported around Meemure so far has happened because of doing risky activities without proper guidance. We are proud to say that after hosting more than 7300 guests over 9+ years, not a single incident has happened in our tours.
Meemure is an isolated village covered by mountains and forests. Since the village itself has the essence of wilderness, venomous trees like “Maussa”, poisonous fruits and plants, and also deadly snakes like “Mudu Karawala” can be found here. Larger animals such as leopards can only be detected in high elevations and surely you will not encounter them during your adventures and there have been no records of leopard attacks in Meemure to date.
But these concerns can be minimalized by following safety precautions. Our guides have years of experience. Guests will be briefed about the risks of each activity and trail prior to undertaking them. Our guides always lead the trails and all the journeys since they know the terrains and patterns of animal pathways and presence. If they come across a new species, they mark them in the records of the journey. All these are done to prevent an incident from happening.
In an unfortunate event of accident, we are prepared to give immediate first aid as we have stretchers and the necessary equipment. Our guides are professionally trained to handle such situations. Besides the carry-on first aids, there are few ‘Weda Gedara’ or villagers specializing in a venom extraction and other basic first aids to seek help from since the Ududumbara hospital is 40 to 60 mins away. For all tours, we provide at least two guides, so if one of the guides meets with any incidents, the second guide will take the party forward. So far we have maintained an excellent record without any accidents or incident history related to guests.
Even though no incidents have happened during our programs, in the Meemure area in general, 8 fatal incidents have been reported. 5 of them were water-related incidents, including four fatalities due to flash floods. All these happened due to traveling without proper guidance, taking undue risks, and not using proper safety equipment.
Yes, we do. Part of our responsibility is to keep you safe throughout the journey. Our guides are professionally trained to provide first aid and handle emergency situations.
We keep guests informed about the risks of each activity and educate them about how they should engage in activities safely.
We carry in hand and provide our guests:
- Ropes
- First-aid kits
- Life jackets for water adventures & activities
- Harnesses, carabines, de-buckles, ropes, helmets, and gloves for rock climbing (e.g., in Lakegala).
Normally the rainy season starts with the north-east monsoon in September second week. October and November months can be very difficult to carry out the water adventures & activities. This condition comes to an end by second week of December. However, even during the October-November timeframe, you can enjoy Meemure if you are not afraid of leeches and have a passion for waterfall hunting. The inactive waterfalls shine during the rainy season. We do not host any water slides or water activities in waterfalls as they can be a bit dangerous. But it doesn’t stop you from witnessing uncommon waterfalls and the natural beauty of Meemure. You are highly encouraged to take part in our adventure packages every other month and season.
We do not conduct any sort of water activities during rainy seasons since there is a high possibility of sudden flash floods. Rainy seasons are ideal for waterfall hunters since inactive waterfalls get their time to shine during the rainy season.
Children under the age of 12 can find it hard to enjoy. For the elderly, it depends on your physical condition since sightseeing also includes walking a couple of kilometers.
Yes. We camp in very safe areas in Meemure. Our Karambaketiya campsite is located in a very safe area and we have fences beside the campsite, and two houses are located near to our campsite making it safer for even families to camp here.
Eventhough we can not fully trust environmental conditions, and natural hazards, with proper guidance and safety measures we do our best to keep our guests safe and so far, we have been successful without any incidents over the last 9+ years hosting more than 7300 guests.
Still having doubts? Reach out to us and we will be happy to assist you!