After a long drive through beautiful central Sri Lanka passing tea and rubber plantations and the highest peak of the country, we arrived at Yala in the south-east to visit the national park. We took two safaris, one in the afternoon (from 2:30-6:30p.m.) and one the next morning, beginning at 5:30. Just the two of use in the vehicle which was comfortable. The driver knew the place well and out on board guide was very good at spotting animals for us. The park is nearly 400 square miles in area and we saw quite a lot of it. There are over 200 species of bird. We saw hornbill, bulbul, spoonbill, stork, bee-eater, pelican, eagle and kingfishers galore, plus many more.
The mammlas and reptiles we saw included buffalo, spotted deer, dozens of crocodiles, a jackal, a cobra crossing the track in front of us, troops of athletic langur monkeys, elephants and, glory be, a leopard lying in a tree. It was dusk and I could not get a decent photo of it with my low end compact! Alas, we did not see a sloth. The elephant below was just about to cross the track for a drink.
Our accommodation was great. It was quite a way from the 'hotel' bar and restaurant and at night we had to be escorted two and fro by camp staff. On the 2nd evening there, we were on our way back to our room with our guide when a very large male elephant came walking silently towards us. We quickly hid behind a bungalow! It was surreal seeing such a large wild creature amongst the domesticity of holiday cabins.
Our cabin seen from the beach.
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