Udawelawe to Tissamaharama

Morning Safari in Udawelawe National Park

From our room at Peacock Villa we hear animals in the night. I love that.

We are up before dawn at 5:00am. It is surprisingly cool and Nalaka (our host and safari guide) suggests I put on something warmer. I am glad to take his advice. It is chilly.

We are in the park at 6am. The horizon has a rosy glow and it doesn’t take long for the burning ball of sun to rise.

A herd of water buffalo are grazing near the entrance. Peacocks are still fast asleep, outlined against the sky as they perch at the tops of trees.

Today we see many peahens on the ground, at work early as their counterparts are awaking.  The loud calls of the peafowl echo in the early morning.

We often drive through elephant poo. We are told they sleep only four hours a day and they eat for the majority of their awake time. No wonder they poo so much.

We see two female elephants with a baby sleeping between their legs. Apparently adult elephants usually sleep on their feet.

We spot many Bee Eater birds and some brilliant blue Kingfishers.

Breakfast on the Lake 

We are taken to a lake filled with numerous white waterbirds including pelicans, egrets, storks and more. Nalaka pulls out a table, two chairs and sets up a Sri Lankan breakfast which his wife Shivanti prepared for us. It is all so beautiful.

More Spottings in the Park

For the rest of the tour we spot eagles, a Sri Lankan jackal, grey Langor monkeys, Sri Lankan Jungle Fowl, Red Wattled Lapwing, Brahminy Kite and a Monitor lizard.

We watch a White Bellied Sea Eagle picking at something in the brush. Probably a snake.

We are back at the Peacock Villa Resort by 10:10am. We say goodbye to our host family with hugs and Shivanti gives us some snacks and a keychain for the road.

White Lotus Yala

At 10:30am, our driver whisks us away to our next accommodation at Wild Lotus Yala near Tissamaharama. John informs me that this is our “splurge” place. Its about an hour drive.

We are greeted with cold damp cloths and fresh fruit juice. The manager, Roshan,  gives us a tour of the resort while our room is being prepared.

We have a delicious Thai lunch before they take us to our three bedroom villa (the one bedroom bungalow was already booked). The property is gorgeous and big with a 360° lookout tower, pool, trampoline, large swing, fish pond (with intermittently visiting crocodiles), chicken and goat pens and a walk to the lake without crocodiles but lots of other wildlife.

The kitchen and bedrooms are gorgeous but the showstopper is the bathroom with its huge stone tub and outdoor shower flanked by small lily ponds filled with live fish. The other bedrooms all have their own bathrooms like that. There is a slide beside the steps coming down from the second floor bedrooms. Also, we have a personal chef.

Afternoon Safari in Yala National Park

At 1:30pm our safari guide, Bindu, picks us up for our late afternoon safari in Yala National Park. It’s a beautiful 30 minute drive through vibrant green rice fields, pretty towns, temples and a lake.

We see many water buffalo when we reach Yala. And there are lots of peafowl. The area is so beautiful with small water lily lined lagoons.

We see lots of water buffalo, deer, elk, crocodiles, all manner of birds  and even a rabbit. We spot a Crested Hawk and I am thrilled when we see Rose Ringed Parrots.

Bee Eaters in Action

There are lots of Bee Eaters birds but we witness one that has caught a bee in it’s beak (and it is a huge bee). The bird holds the wiggling bee  and keeps whacking it against a branch until the bee is dead or stunned then swallows it whole. Click here for a short video.

Sundown in Yala National Park

Nearby a crocodile glides ever so slowly, sinking completely out of sight before reappearing  just as silently. He’s a big dude.

As sunset approaches we search for the elusive leopard. So far no luck. Despite this park being known for its wild leopards, sightings are pretty rare. We do see toucans, a tortoise and a baby crocodile.

Evening at Wild Lotus

Safaris are dusty, so very dusty. We get back to our villa at 7:00pm and the Roshan greets our jeep with iced cloths again. A sand blaster would be better suited to wash this grime off our bodies.

I am ready for a shower. My hair has so many knots in it from driving in the open air jeep that it takes me over ten minutes to comb through…and I think I left half my hair in the comb.

Finally cleaned up, we have a romantic dinner on our villa deck and go to bed since we have to get up at 5:00am for one last safari.