Kanneliya Forest Reserve

The Kanneliya, Dediyagala and Nakiyadeniya forests makes a complex which is a very important part of the forest cover of the South-western part of Sri Lanka. These three forests form a single block of lowland rain forest, commonly known as the KDN Complex. Kanneliya forest reserve out-stands from all due to its uniqueness and is located 35Km North-east of Galle. It lies between 6⁰ 09’ – 6⁰ 18’ N and 80⁰ 19’ – 80⁰ 27’E in the first and second peneplains in the wet zone.
Kanneliya forest patch covers a total area of 5,305.9ha and comprises a dense forest cover of 5,108.2ha, sparse forest cover of 168.4ha and a plantation forest cover of 29.3ha. The area belongs to the Southern lowland floristic zone and the major natural vegetation type is wet evergreen forest, which is a climax forest formation.
The area receives an MAR of about 4,445mm mainly from the South-west monsoon. The MAT is around 27⁰C. Kanneliya forest plays a very important role as a watershed as it supports headwaters and leading streams of several tributaries (eg. Kanneliya ela, Nannkitha ela and Udugama dola) of the Gin ganga. The main peaks located within the reserve are Kondagala, Kabbale kanda, Katukithulgala kanda, Kospalaketiya kanda, Lawalwaruwa kanda and Thiruwana kanda.
This forest has been subjected to selective logging from 1940 to 1987. Therefore, the Forest Department has developed plans for management and development of the forest. Today, Kanneliya forest harbors a unique assemblage of flora and fauna, which includes many endemics and several relicts.
Access
If you are coming from Colombo you have to first come to Galle, from Galle, take the Udugama road B129 to Udugama.Continue towards Hiniduma and the turn-off to Kanneliya is after the 3Km post on the B429.
There is another route from Hikkaduwa, Baddegama, Nagoda to Udugama. If you are coming from Colombo this is much closer than going to Galle and return if you are using a private vehicle. entrance to KDN Complex is in Udugama-Hiniduma road. Either by getting to Udugama or Hiniduma you can easily come to KDN Complex.