The bed of the Mahawely Ganga, Mahiyangana, Sri Lanka.

The distant hills seen from the river bed of the Mahawely Ganga.

The dry river bed from which sand is quarried and taken to places as far away as Colombo.

The part of the river still flowing and serving as a bathing spot..

The waters of the Mahaweli arising from the Adam's Peak area have been dammed and the waters diverted for power generation and irrigation. I took these pictures during the dry season close to the Mahiyangana Chaithya. The vast sandy bed is exposed and the water flowing downstream is still quite significant. The lush greenery, even during the dry season, in the paddy fields of Mahiyangana attest to the success of the irrigation schemes.

Video:-
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BENdWIdFhJ4

The Mahawely Ganga at Ulapane, Sri Lanka.

The four major rivers of Sri Lanka take their origin from the Adam's peak wilderness. The waters which go to form these rivers flow in different directions from the central highland. It is a fact that the Police Station situated at Ginigathena is so situated that the water flowing downhill on one side goes to join the Kelany Ganga and the water flowing on the other side of the hill goes to join the Mahawely Ganga. This picture taken by me on the 31st of December 2010, shows the Mahawely waters at Ulapane, on the way to Gampola from Ginigathena.