Yala (Ruhuna) National Park
| Size |
103,889 hectares
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| Main attraction |
Yala has the world's highest concentration of Leopards
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| Other Wildlife |
crocodile, elephant, deer, sambar, bear, wild bore,
wild buffalo and peacock and may varieties of birds including migratory
birds such as flamingos.
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| |
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Yala was initially started as a Game Sanctuary by the British in 1894 and
was established as a National Park in 1938. Yala covers more than 100 hectares
of wildlife. Yala is divided in to 5 areas. The most visited area is block
one. The road network is much better on this block and easily accessible
even without a four wheel drive. Some areas has been closed for visitors
due to LTTE Terrorist activities (see
www.sinhaya.com) but now most of these area
are open to the public.
It is possible
to hire jeeps at the entrance to the park. The best time to see these animals
(including leopards) are early morning and at dusk. The park of is mostly known
for its dense population of leopards. They are quite used to human presence
and generally will not run away when a vehicle is encountered. Elephants are
the most common sight in the park
Yala West is closed in September and usually part of August and October too.
But when it's open the best way to get there is to catch a bus to the coastal
town of Tissamaharama, and then hire a jeep and a driver. If you have your own
four wheel drive you can just drive up to the front gate and pay the entrance,
insurance and tracker fees.
The park is also covers a number of archeological
sites including the famous “
Magul
Maha Viharaya
” dating back to 1st Centaury BC.
Accommodation
Yala has 8 park bungalows with the sanctuary, which will roughly accommodate
12-14 people. All these bungalows are situated in block I. You need to book
these bungalows from Colombo and getting a free day is quite difficult.
Many hotels around the sanctuary (but outside of it) will be happy to provide
accommodation
Directions
The park can be reached through Matara - Tissamaharama Road. It is 305 kilometers
away from Colombo.
Articles
Photo Gallery
Created December 24, 2005
Updated
May 29, 2011
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