The Story of Pidurangala Rock

Pidurangala Rock used to be the site of a Buddhist monastery hence, at the base you’d see the Pidurangala Sigiri Ramaha Viharaya Temple. Halfway through the hike you’d come across the Pidurangala Temple or The Royal Cave Temple, home to a giant reclining Buddha made from bricks and is 12.5 meters long. You won’t be able to hike Pidurangala Rock without passing by it. 

On the day of our climb, we got up at 4AM and made our way to Pidurangala Rock. It was around 25 minutes from our hotel. It’s best to check the time of the sunrise so you can time this well. I was admittedly apprehensive as it can be difficult to hike in the dark, but we just brought our phones and used it as a torch. If you prefer to have your hands free then perhaps bring a headlamp, it would help as the path is really dark. 

Once we reached the top, we were rewarded with the view of the first few glorious hues of violet, pink, light yellow streaks of sunrise. We just tried to find our own spot in the massive rock with a good view but expect to share it with others. 

After enjoying the view, we then set out to find our “instagram spot”. We found that the whole top felt a bit crowded but we headed down to the right side of the rock —right, if you are facing Sigriya and there it was less crowded. We stayed there and took our pictures, chatted a bit until it was time to head back as we had to still pick up the rest of our group and head to Sigriya. 

No matter what time of the day you go, once you reach the top, you’d be rewarded with a gorgeous view of the countryside, the jungles beneath, and various rock formations.  It might be good to visit during sunset too, but unfortunately, I wasn’t able to try it. This definitely gives the best view Sigriya Rock.