World Rivers Day and Adventure Holidays in Sri Lanka

World Rivers Day and Adventure Holidays in Sri Lanka
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World Rivers Day

Today is Sunday, September 26th 2021. Every year since 2005 the last Sunday of the month of September has been celebrated as World Rivers Day to highlighted the many values of the waterways in the world.


Actually, the first human civilizations around the world were all being based on the banks of rivers. Ancient Egyptians were based in the Nile River. The fertile crescent on the Euphrates and Tigris rivers formed the Mesopotamian civilization. The ancient Chinese civilization was based on the Yellow River and the Indus valley civilization also known as the Harappan Civilization was formed in the Indus river valley.

River-based Human Civilization

The main reasons for attracting first civilizations to rivers are probably they get the steady supply of drinking water, availability of fertile lands for growing crops, easy transportation of goods and people, the opportunity to catch fish in the rivers and hunt animals came to drink water and those who get lost in the wildness can easily find their civilization by travelling upstream or downstream along the river. Since the start of humankind rivers are critically influence the survival and the development of human beings. Around the world, there are hundreds of thousands of rivers that fed billions of people today. 


The pattern of settlements in the pre-historic times in Sri Lanka clearly reveals that our earliest ancestors also chose river valleys to settle down. The cultivation of paddy began in the 6th century BC around the Malwatu Oya, Deduru Oya and Mahaweli River and soon spread throughout the country.

Hydraulic Civilization in Sri Lanka


Sri Lanka has brilliant hydraulic civilization and unbelievable manmade irrigation systems in the ancient past. That magnificent irrigation systems were destroyed or ignored due to foreign invasions and various other reasons after the 13th century AD.  After the independence in 1948 major development projects were again based on rivers. The GalOya development project commenced in 1949 and the Mahaweli development project commenced in 1972 are two such mega projects. Interestingly, the engineers were able to found ancient Maduru Oya sluice at the exact place where the present sluice of Maduru Oya Reservoir is being built under the Mahaweli Development Project. According to Carbon dating that ancient sluice has belonged to the 1st century BC.


Rivers in Sri Lanka


Sri Lanka has blessed with a well-organized system of natural river basins. There are 103 distinct natural rivers in Sri Lanka. The rivers of Sri Lanka originate in the central highland mountain massif. From there they radiate in all directions towards the sea, covering 90% of the total land area of the island. Most of the rivers, however, are arid during the dry season and only a few have permanent flowing water. The south-western region's "wet zone" is characterised by numerous perennial rivers and many of the dry zone rivers are seasonal. According to the ancient nomenclature a distinction is made in naming seasonal and perennial rivers; seasonal rivers are given the suffix “Oya“or “Ara”, while perennial rivers are given the suffix “Ganga”. 


Most of the rivers in the country start in the high mountains and are un-navigable in their higher reaches. They flow swiftly and turbulently through highly eroded passages to the plains below. The lower reaches are prone to seasonal flooding. The diverse river basins are heaven for the endemic aquatic plants, bivalves and fishes. There are about 90 freshwater fish species and 21 crabs found in Sri Lanka.


Mahaweli River

Mahaweli River is the longest river in Sri Lanka with a length of 335 km. It is started at the Horton Plains National Park and flows to the sea at Trincomalee. During this flow, it has covered one-fifth of the island. 


Malwathu Oya

It is the second-longest river in Sri Lanka with a length of 162 km. Malwatu Oya has strong historical significance due to the ancient capitals of Sri Lanka including Anuradhapura are located on the banks of the Malvathu river. It is started in Ritigala mountain and flows to the sea at Arippu in Mannar.

Kala Oya

 Kala Oya started in the Omaragolla hills in the Melsiripura area and flows to the sea at the northern end of the Wilpattu national park. It is the third-longest river in Sri Lanka with 148 km in length.

Kelani River 


It is the fourth-longest river in Sri Lanka with 145 km in length. Kelani River started Sri Pada Mountain flows to the sea near Colombo. It provides approximately 80% of the water supply to Colombo the commercial capital of Sri Lanka.

River-based adventure activities


The beautiful rivers in Sri Lanka with amazing natural landscapes and unique ecosystems create aesthetic appeal and a wealth of attractions that draw visitors from around the world. Some rivers and their locations are dedicated to different adventure activities. White water rafting is one of the most famous activities you can do in Sri Lankan rivers. Canoe ride in the Kalu River is another amazing experience. A boat ride in Madu Ganga or Bentota river is ideal for observing a variety of fauna and flora associated with a wetland environment. 

White water rafting


Three Sri Lankan rivers of Kelani, Mahaweli and Kotmale Oya have the required terrene for White Water Rafting. The locations, rivers and the grade of the rafting are as follows:

Among those Places, Kitulgala is the most famous and safest place for White Water Rafting. Other places are suitable for the experienced rafts-men.

PlaceRiverGradeDuration (hours)
KitulgalaKelani2-3 rapids2
SitawakaKelani3-4 rapids2.5
Between Nuwara Eliya and HattonKotmale Oya4-5 rapids6 (started at just below St. Clair fall)
Between Ulapane and GampolaMahaweli3-5 rapids3 - 3.5 (started at Ulapane)

More adventure activities in Sri Lanka:

https://www.fantasiatours.com/rootcategories/view-to-do/1

Adventure holidays in Sri Lanka:

https://www.fantasiatours.com/itineraries/view-itinerary-base/15



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