“Sri Lanka safari.” This phrase is confusing to some, who associate the word safari exclusively with the African continent. To those in the know, however, Sri Lanka offers an incredibly rich safari experience. Poised like a tear drop southeast of India, Sri Lanka is a jewel of biodiversity. In size, Sri Lanka is slightly larger than West Virginia. It has been recognized by Conservation International as one of 25 biodiverse hotspots on the planet. Going on safari there is one of the top tourist activities.
Sri Lanka Safari – The “Big Four”
African safaris often tout the “Big Five” – lion, leopard, elephant, rhino, and Cape buffalo. Sri Lanka has its own “Big Four” – leopard, elephant, sloth bear, and wild water buffalo. The nocturnal leopard is the most elusive of these creatures, and Yala National Park has the highest concentration of this beautiful creature. So we flew into the capital of Colombo and spent six hours driving to reach our rustic accommodations outside the main entrance to Yala National Park.
Accommodations
Rustic is the perfect description. There are luxury safari camps and hotels near Yala, like the one owned by Cinnamon, Sri Lanka’s domestic air carrier. Instead, we chose an open-air cabin called Back of Beyond that was listed on AirBnB. We knew we were in a remote location when our driver turned off the dirt road onto a smaller dirt road to get to our cabin. The fishing village at the end of the dirt road consisted of 3-4 shacks on the beach. The herds of water buffalo crossing the road slowed us down. We had to coax a frog out of the toilet several times. The first night, my imagination ran wild when I woke up at 2 a.m. to hear what I thought were elephants wandering through the cabin’s front yard. Since the only thing between me and the elements was a mosquito net, I was relieved the next morning to discover it had just been cows. We did come back to the cabin one evening to find that langur monkeys had taken over our dining room. Despite all of this (or perhaps because of it), my kids loved this place. The food prepared by the cabin staff was the best food we ate in Sri Lanka.
In Search of Leopards
Our Sri Lanka safari kicked off at 5:30 in the morning when our jeep picked us up. It wasn’t a jeep, of course, but a Toyota Hilux modified with stadium seats welded into the truck bed. Our AirBnB host, Dewan, had packed breakfast for us – shredded chicken sandwiches and bananas. We drove all the way to the entrance to Yala National Park. We picked up a guide named Gayon from the park. He was part guide, part park ranger. All safaris have to have a park ranger onboard.
Most safaris are either morning or evening since the animals are less active in the sweltering midday heat. A couple of quick hits gave us early successes, as we saw a crocodile and some birds. Boars, buffalo, monkeys and elephants all wandered past us on their way to watering holes for breakfast. But what everyone comes to see is the leopard.
We played leopard tag with about 20 other safari vehicles for about an hour. I think we were all chasing the same cat as it moved from one open field to another. At one point I lost my hat during a high speed run down the dirt road. My sons enjoyed the high speed chases but I was sure that this top-heavy Hilux would topple over on one of the hairpin turns. Finally we told our guide to quit chasing the leopard and we went off to more remote parts of the park to look for other animals. We ate lunch and went swimming in the river, a hundred yards downstream from a massive water buffalo cooling off in the muddy water.
After lunch, we came back later around noon and found a leopard. The undisputed king of the Sri Lankan wilderness strolled across an open field next to our vehicle. We collectively held our breath and snapped picture after picture. I’d like to think the safari would have been worth it even if we didn’t see a leopard but I’m glad we did.
Sri Lanka Safari – If You Go
Fly to: Colombo International Airport (CMB)
Stay at Back of Beyond, Kirinda (rustic) or Cinnamon Wild Yala (luxury)
Safari with: Shehan Safari
All travel involves risk and travelers are advised to make their own inquiries and investigations before contracting with any organizations listed. For more information, check out our Terms of Service.