The Untamed Wilpattu

Wilpattu (Land of Lakes) National Park is a park located 26 km north of Puttalam (approximately 180 km north of Colombo). The unique feature of this park is the existence of "Willus" (Natural lakes) - Natural, sand-rimmed water basins or depressions that fill with rainwater. Nearly sixty lakes (Willu) and tanks are found spread throughout Wilpattu. Wilpattu is among the top national parks world renowned for its Leopard (Panthera pardus kotiya) population. The Mahavansa records that in 543 BC Prince Vijaya landed at Kudrimalai Point (Horse Point), married Kuweni and founded the Sinhalese race.

Date : 16 October 2010
Crew : 8
Transport : Public Transport (Bus)
Activities : Safari
Weather : Excellent
Route : Colombo -> Puttalam -> Wilpattu


We started our journey from Colombo Fort on Friday midnight. We took a Vavniya bus which travels through Puttalam and it left Colombo at 12.30 am. After a four hour ride we reached Wilpattu junction and we were picked up by our previously arranged Safari jeep there. We rested till the sun rises and started our the safari very early. From the park entrance a guide joined us. You can take your own vehicle if you have 4WD but you should get a guide from the office before entering the park.

Wilpattu is one of the largest parks in Sri Lanka. According to our guide in order to visit all the areas you need at least 3 days. So even if we had a 12 hour safari from 6 am to 6pm we could cover one third of the park. So if you are planing to go there at least try a full day safari. There is also a half day safari too. The guide said its not a good idea to go on a half day safari because in order to see animals we have to go deeper into the park.

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The board shows the places inside the park and the distances from the office. The main attraction of the park is the Kudiramale point or the Horse mountain. It is said that Prince Vijaya landed here. The unique reddish color of the soil would have been the reason why the place is called "Thambapanni". According to our guide Wilpattu was once under sea thousands of years ago. That's the reason why there is lot of sand on the ground. Also corals and fossils of sea creatures can be found in Kudiramalei area, proving the above theory. After Kudiramale we went to see the ruins of a very old structure which is beleived to be the Palace of Kuweni. These areas are not yet explored by Archaeologists and lot of research to be done. There's a lake called Kali villu (Lake of Kuweni) too. Then we visited a place called Kokmote. There's a bungalow at Kokmote owned by the forest department. It's still under construction but it'll be opened to the public very soon. It will be a perfect place to stay and relax, far away from civilization. After having a river bath we had our lunch there. Wilpattu is world renowned for its Leopard population. But unfortunately we couldn't see one. We did manage to see a giant sloth bear on the way back. 

-The End-