Nine Arch Bridge
A colonial stone viaduct built without steel during the First World War, in the jungle.
Duration
1 hr – 2 hrs
Best time
Half an hour before a train
Open
Every day
Entry price
Free
The Nine Arch Bridge was built between 1919 and 1921, on the mountain railway line. Local legend has it that it was built in stone and brick without steel because the First World War had diverted all steel to the war effort — the explanation is plausible and repeated everywhere, without firm documentary proof.
It is thirty metres high with a twenty-four-metre span, set into the jungle between two tunnels. Trains cross it a few times a day, slowly, and the times are posted in the cafés along the track.
Getting there
Twenty-five minutes on foot from Ella centre, down a path through the jungle that follows the track.
What to bring
- Walking shoes
- Headlamp
Rules on site
The line is in use: do not walk on the bridge when a train is coming, and the whistle is the only warning. Timetables change — ask at the nearest café rather than trusting an article.
