Nine Arch Bridge

 The nine-arched building was erected at Gotuwala between the two railway stations of Ella and Demodara during the British colonial period.  Located at a height of about 3100 feet above sea level, this 99.6 feet high bridge is known in Sinhala as the "Bridge of the Nine Sky".  When one looks below it, one can see the 'nine heavens' through the nine arches.  Hence the Sinhala name is used.  This bridge is also known as the 'Bridge of the Sky'.

 Types of liquids used - stone, brick and cement

 Total length 300 feet (91.44 m) [1]

 Width 25 feet (7.62 m)

 80 feet (24.38 m) high

 Arches- Number9

 This massive bridge is made entirely of stone, brick and cement without a single piece of steel.  The bridge was finally opened in 1921.

 Legend has it that when the construction of the bridge began, World War I broke out and the steel stockpiled for the site was seized and used for war-related projects.  When the work stopped, the locals came forward and built the bridge out of stone bricks and cement without steel.

 A story about the origin of this bridge was published in the Mawbima newspaper.  According to this article, the construction of this bridge was carried out by P.K.  It is believed to have been carried out by a man named Appuhamy.  He is said to have lived in a village called Keppetipola Melimada.  According to one of his sons, who now lives in the house, P.K.  Appuhamy was born in 1870 and is a popular drummer and devil dancer.  One day he lost another drumming competition to a drummer at a party and returned home in traditional devil costume.

 The railroad was under construction at the time and the British man who saw him in his clothes was horrified to see him near the Ohio train station.  But a connection was later established between them, and Appuhamy assisted in the construction of the railway by supplying labor to Britain.

 As the construction approached the gap between the two mountains, British engineers became alarmed by a square at the bottom of the gap.  Safe anchoring of bridge towers was a problem.  By now Appuhamy had won the confidence of the engineers and asked them to hand over the construction of this huge bridge to him.  After being rejected for the first time, they finally agreed to hand over this massive task to Appuhamy.

 He started work around 1913, and he took his men and built brick towers on these rock beds until large boulders filled the bottom to fill this gap.  He had been working there for about a year and the British had doubts about the structural integrity of the bridge as construction costs were very low.

 On the first train ride, Appuhamy confirmed that he was lying under the bridge, and he is said to have fulfilled that promise when the railroad first opened.

 It is said that the English later paid him the balance and took the silver coins from four carts from Colombo, where he fed the villagers of Parabedda and Puranwela for two days and gave them one silver coin each.