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Sri-Lanka safari at Yala National Park: Luxury leopard spotting

By Anthony Dennis

August 4, 2017 — 9.00am

At a rather pointedly-named place such as "Mating Rock" you could surely expect a certain modicum of privacy. But, alas, no. Here at Yala National Park, located in Sri Lanka's delectable deep south, it's the safari equivalent of peak hour. Or, judging by the mood of the guides and drivers, make that pique hour.

The road running below Mating Rock, a common location in Yala for spotting of leopards, immediately reminds me of the congested, frenetic streets in and around the Pettah Market area of Colombo, the one part of Sri Lanka that can most resemble its big brother to the north, India.

Bull-bar to bull-bar, Jeeps (and an assortment of Indian brand four-wheel drives), converted for safaris for elevated seating at the rear, are queued, this way and that, in a frantic, oft hopeless, effort to glimpse a pair of magnificent Sri Lankan leopards basking atop the rock in the late afternoon sunshine.

A leopard keeping watch in Yala National Park.Credit: Alamy

Our driver has miraculously managed to manoeuvre his Jeep with a perfect view of the leopards, one of nine sub-species of leopards around the world. He remains impervious to the abuse from other drivers, with an eye on the size of tips from their guests, directed at him, further down the line.

But while I may be slightly dismayed, if not a little amused, by the undignified behaviour of the drivers, the two leopards appear entirely unfazed by the spectacle below them. Yala National Park is the inevitable starting point for visitors to Sri Lanka seeking a safari experience.

Safaris, or game drives, like this one have long been a feature of many a holiday to this nature-drenched teardrop-shaped island. Rich in biodiversity, Ruhuna National Park – as Yala is formerly known – consists of a series of semi-deciduous and thorn forests, sandy beaches, grasslands and freshwater and marine wetlands.

It's home to a total of 44 mammals and boasts one of the highest-density leopard populations on the planet. But the mammal population is dwarfed by the bird equivalent with Yala hosting no less than 215 resident and migratory birds, including the ubiquitous peacock, as well as dozens of reptiles including turtles, crocodiles, flying snakes and fan-throated lizards.

As Sri Lanka rapidly evolves into a major destination, destined to give even the likes of Bali a nudge, following a brutal three-decade-long civil war, the aspect that has been missing from the Sri Lankan safari experience has been the style of accommodation that characterises the African equivalent. That is, at least until now.

I'm staying at the Sri Lankan-owned Uga Chena Huts, built among the sand dunes above a beach where sea-turtles nest and elephants have been known to wander. It's located just outside the boundaries of Yala National Park and from here the dunes give way to low-lying tropical jungle studded with rocky outcrops and dusty, half-full waterholes that teem with birdlife.

Water Buffalo are seen in front of Elephant Rock.Credit: Alamy

The lodge-cum-resort features 14 thatched-roofed "huts", inspired by the traditional shelters of poor local farmers, scattered around the dunes and connected by meandering boardwalks, are actually luxurious, five-star private cabins complete with plunge pools. Inside the cabins, the safari theme, without mimicking Africa, is subtly emphasised by log-style furniture and other rustic touches. Each of the spacious cabins include living rooms, free-standing outdoor showers and shaded decks overlooking the plunge pool.

But while Uga Chena Huts represents Sri Lanka's only safari-style lodge, that claim to fame is only temporary. The owners of Dilmah tea, perhaps Sri Lanka's most internationally-known brand, have branched into tourism in a big way and are poised to open Wild Coast Tented Lodge close to Chena Huts. Instead of cabins, the lodge will feature 28 luxurious "cocoons" dotted around five waterholes designed to attract birdlife.

Back on safari in Yala, Sri Lanka's oldest nature reserve, those splendidly lithe leopards have moved on and so have we as our driver extricates his Jeep from the gridlock below Mating Rock. So popular has Yala National Park become that as many as 200 Jeeps can queue outside the gates of the park from the early hours of the morning before the opening time of 6am. The fiercely-competitive drivers are always eager to be among the first to secure the first unobstructed glimpses of coveted wildlife such as elephants and leopard.

The cabins at Uga Chena Huts are inspired by tradition but ooze modern luxury.

On this afternoon safari, the time, just like the sun, is already slipping away for us, what with a strict deadline for all vehicles to vacate the park by 6pm. Those drivers of safari vehicles who aren't out of the park by night are liable to fines or suspension.

We've spotted nary a single elephant though we've encountered a host of other wildlife on our game drive such as crocodiles, water buffalo, spotted deer, toque macaque monkeys, mongoose and an array of exotic birdlife including a species of stork with orange beaks, pink legs and black and white plumage.

So far this afternoon, elephants prove elusive but I'm philosophical, having been on enough safaris to know that nature isn't Netflix, something that can be switched on and off on demand. However, suddenly, as we pass an expansive wetland plain, the Jeep comes to an abrupt halt, kicking up a cloud of dust from the unsealed track.

Leopard, Yala National Park.Credit: Alamy

Elephants have been spotted in the far distance, drifting across the edge of the plain before it becomes jungle. I notice that my guide, Kasun, and for that matter, the driver, seem unusually excited to have spotted these pachyderms. The reason for their enthusiasm, as he peers through set of binoculars, is a simple one: these elephants we can see are "tuskers", a relatively rare sight in Sri Lanka since only seven to 10 per cent of the Asian elephants species here bear tusks.

We linger for as long as we're able watching the group of tuskers drift across the plain only to be enveloped by the jungle. But there's a deadline – the animals need their peace – and by the time we reach the exit of the park, there's a long queue of vehicles. The collective red brake lights are the only illumination in the descending early evening gloom with the trees and rocks of Yala rendered stark silhouettes as the hot Sri Lankan sun fully dissolves.

Yet even though we've left Yala behind us, in this part of Sri Lanka there's no escaping wildlife, even among the dunes of Chena Huts. As I sit at a candlelit table at the lodge's restaurant, sitting down with a "jumping monkey" and a "leopard hunter" (cocktails from the bar list, if you will), a family of water buffalo nonchalantly wander up from the nearby beach and straight down into the encampment where they proceed to tuck into the vegetation as we tuck into dinner.

Huts are decorated in a natural, elegant style.

TRIP NOTES

traveller.com.au/sri-lanka

TOUR

The Sydney-based Classic Safari Company can arrange a complete touring itinerary for Sri Lanka including accommodation and an experienced English-speaking driver-guide and vehicle. Yala National Park is located 315 kilometres from Colombo and is best reached from Galle or Tangalle as part of a tour of the island.

STAY

Doubles at Uga Chena Huts, which can be booked as part of a Classic Safari Company itinerary, start from $US846 and include breakfast, lunch and dinner and selected drinks at the resort, morning and afternoon game drives in customised viewing vehicles, park entry fees and more. In addition to its Yala National Park establishment, Uga Escapes operates a number of other resorts across Sri Lanka. See ugaescapes.com

FLY

Singapore Airlines operates daily fights between Sydney and Melbourne and Colombo, Sri Lanka's largest city and main entry point, via its Singapore hub. See singaporeair.com