Kuragala monastery complex can be sighted following a 2.25 km distance from 14th mile post in Balangoda-Uggal Kalthota route. This is a Buddhist traditional heredity which has seen the light and developed synchronous to archaic monasteries like Vessagiriya, Ritigala, Dimbulagala, Sithulpavuwa and Mihinthalaya.
Among the few caverns, which are famous in relation to their religious, national, cultural and historical value, this cavern holds an inimitable place second to none. According to folklore, the old name of this massive rock is “Kuharagala”, not “Kuragala”. Though this place is called Kuragala in common, actually there are two rock-apical namely Kuragala and Hituwangala, which is named by dint of its natural site with a natural concavity in the east slope of the rock. This rock concavity is 5-6.5 m deep and large enough for two people to go in at once.
Before reaching Kuragala one has to climb the old stair case made picking the rock and in a 100 m distance there is an annular cant. Thence from left the cave complex in which antecedent Brahmi letters inscribed can be accessible. Hituwangala cave is situated at the right side of this.
According to the Haputhale map, Kuragala can be described as the highest vertex in the precipice that spreads as a sloppy dyke in between 150-450 m contour lines directed to south and south-east. Following the map this precipice is long about 16 km from Bellangala Mountains that stretches to north-east and south-west directions to Diyainna, Kapugala and Bambaragala. This range of Rocky Mountains can be considered as a dense deposit of charnockite or “granite migmenise”.
When observing the vicinity of Kuragala, the sight from south direction is the hydro-merge of Chandrika Wewa and Udawalawa that resembles horizon. From south-east, two massive reservoirs namely “Bindinu Mankada” and Hambegamuwa can be sighted. From north-east direction, Haputhale range of mountains and Koslanda plateau add colour to the attraction.