From West Coast to East Coast (Exploring Kumana National Park)

Having never been to the east coast before, we wanted to have a glimpse of the rising sun from the east coast and planned the trip so that we will be at Pottuvil by sunrise. So we left Colombo late night at 10.30PM and drove through the night via the Beragala route. Unfortunately, when we arrived at the Beragala junction the road via Koslanda to Wellawaya was closed for repairs and the detour took us to Haputale, Bandarawela, Ella and then to Wellawaya. We lost a good part of an hour due to this detour and the sun was already rising as we passed Lahugala.

It was a night for the moon	A new day dawns (at 5.30AM)
Basking in the morning light	East coast at lasta??..

East coast at lasta??..

All of us were really hungry after the long drive and as soon as the shops opened we tucked into a hearty meal consisting of a??Kiri Appaa??, String Hoppers, Fish curry and a strange but fabulous coconut sambol which I have never had anywhere else. Then it was time to hit the beach at Arugam Bay. Since we were early the beach was isolated and we had almost the whole beach to ourselves except for the fishing folk who were returning from their fishing trips.

Beautiful Arugam Bay

We had the beach all to ourselves

After a nice bath and fun in the sand later we had a short nap at a friends place nearby before proceeding towards Panama and Okanda. The roads were in excellent condition up to Panama and the views alongside the roads were breathtaking.

Order priligy dapoxetine Heading for the bushes

Towards Panama

At Panama without taking the turn towards Okanda, we proceeded up to the Panama beach amidst sand dunes & bushes. It was like being in a desert full of sand but the beach was spectacular here. Crystal clear water and golden sandy beach makes this a spectacular place which is totally isolated from the world. Unfortunately a drinking party was already on which made us rush away from the place as we did not want any unfriendly situations to occur.

Sand dunes at the Panama beach

Never seen a more beautiful beach than at Panama

Panama beach

It was getting close to the evening when we arrived at the Okanda entrance and along with the guide, proceeded directly to the camp site. On the way we saw plenty of wild buffaloes, birds, elephants, crocodiles and Deers.

Park office at Okanda	All that remains..
In and out of focus	You looking at me?
The lone one	Fast drying out

The thick canopy prevented sunlight from reaching the ground

The a??maha gal amunaa?? camp site is the furthest and probably the best camp site in the Kumana national park. It is located at 6 32 24.19N and 81 39 46.39E.
There were plenty of sandy areas to setup tent and we put up ours in the shade of the trees. There is an actual a??Amunaa?? made up of rocks which is said to be built by a king to take water to the Kumana wewa. The old canal which carried this water is still there to day just behind the camp site.

The Gal Amuna	Soothing..
We got the bonfire going to keep away wild elephants	Moonlight and firelight
Sun rise over the Kumbukkan Oya	Dying out
Footsteps in the sand, signs of visitors in the night	Camp site in the tree shade

We decided to visit a??Bowaththagalaa?? the next morning where we found signs of being an ancient dwelling. There were plenty of inscriptions and remains of an old stupa on top of the rock. It is sad that no proper study has been done on the history of these places. Indicating that this is a roaming place for the elusive kinds, we also found bear footmarks and fresh leopard footmarks printed in the sand.

Bowaththagala..	Inscriptions in the stone
Coming down the steps	Rocks..
A view of the cave	Footprints of a bear
Signs of a leopard??	Perfectly lodged
Kumana wewa, as seen from Bowaththagala	A pond in the rocks
Heavenly wine	A close up
Web of life	At the Kumana Villu

End of life, dead and scattered

Big fish (buffaloes) in a small pond

Looking for something..?

Another type of stork

After seeing many more herds of deer, wild buffaloes, peacocks, birds and elephants we decided to move out and headed to Wellawaya for the nights stay at Don Diogu. This is a wonderful place to stay with a nice family atmosphere and gorgeous food. After two tiring days this was the perfect wind down.

On the way back to Colombo we visited the a??Buduruwagalaa?? statues at Wellawaya and had a peek at the Museum set up near the turn off from the Wellawaya-Thanamalwila road. Even though many people visit Buduruwagala, it is sad to see that not many care to visit this museum which is open on Sunday as well. To me, the place was very interesting as it contained many artifacts recovered from the Moneragala District and a wealth of information from our proud history.

Buduruwagala statues	Blooming for Lord Buddha
Waiting to be lit	Buy cefadroxil online The great compassion
Our heritage	Buduruwagala tank
Well oiled..	The museum of the Moneragala district

We passed the Udawalawe park entrance along the way and as usual there were many elephants lurking close to the road in anticipation of the food thrown in by passers by.

Thanamalwila road..

Please sir, give me some more..

Even though, wild life department has set up boards informing not to feed the elephants, villagers have erased the boards or have taken them down all together in order to make a living by selling bananas to be thrown towards the elephants. It is very sad to see the ecological system of the forest being turned upside down by the acts of a few stupid people who think that wild animals are family pets.

Irresponsible behavior

If only people care more..

Have a nice trip..

Last Updated | November 15, 2010

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