Kumana national park, Sri Lanka

One day chosen from our 4 day safari adventure. We visited Kumana for the second time and here are some facts. Kumana was previously known as Yala East National Park, but changed to its current name on September 5, 2006. 

It borders Yala with the Kumbukkan Oya River, which forms the imaginary border between the two parks. Kumana National Park is on the route of the traditional annual foot pilgrimage to the Hindu temple at Kataragama. Both Tamil and Sinhala communities participate in this pilgrimage. The morning starts with a early rise at 4 a.m., we have a small breakfast for ourselves with tea. 

The safari jeep arrives at 4.45 a.m. It takes about an hour to reach Kumana from Panama, the 14 km is along a dirt road full of potholes. The park is open daily from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. You will of course encounter animals and birds along the way, from wild boars to elephants. At sunrise you can also see some birds in the sky and on land and in the water.  After a few stops for taking some photographs, we see a family of jackals with 4 or 5 puppies looking for food. We reach the entrance of the park. We pay the entrance fee which is all together with jeep and driver 1040 rupees.

And many ask or think what are you doing all day in a safari jeep ?  Of course watching and try to capture some beautiful shots from the wildlife.

Many also think that there is an animal or bird to spot within every meter, which is disappointing and of course you drive off-road on unpaved roads full of potholes or swampy off-road stretches. But that should not spoil the fun.

Fortunately, Kumana is very diverse in landscape of open plains, forest areas with trees and low shrubs with shrubs that bear fruit and flowers. Then there are also areas of wetland with salt and fresh water. The main attraction for most is the elusive leopard. To this day we have never found one in the morning, usually after 03.00 p.m. we saw a few. Elephants, spotted deer, monkeys, wild boar, sambar deer and buffalo appear at any time of the day. Jackal, mongooses are also present and if you are lucky, but very rare to see is the black bear. There are always birds from small to large, the sound you hear all day long accompanies you. many remain invisible to the eye and camera, others fly up and still others remain where they are. The bee-eaters are remarkably easy to photograph, which for me are also the most beautiful bird species in shape and color. In Sri Lanka, drivers are required to take an afternoon break of at least one hour for lunch and rest. In the afternoon we continue the search for the various animals and birds, and with success. Visiting nature is a great pleasure, the richness of what you observe, it is a kind of meditation, it brings you peace and makes you happy in a way. You focus on that and what you are trying to capture with your camera, always from the jeep to the most beautiful point of view or composition possible for the situation at that moment. Of course, things sometimes go wrong, your reaction is too slow or  your subject is fast, it’s part of it. All in all the day flies by and it is actually 06.00 p.m. We leave the park back to Panama village. To be continued in part two.