Jungle Camping and Mud Safari

Safari Camp in Wilpattu

Wilpattu, located in the Northwest coast lowland dry Zone in  Sri Lanka, 50km north of Puttalam and approximately 190kms from Colombo, so far  remains one of the  oldest and largest  national parks in Sri Lanka. What makes wilpattu exceedingly chiming and an absolute eye-candy is perhaps the unique driving  experience  along  quiet  sand, trails under a canopy in an immense jungle, or perhaps  the  unscathed  foot prints of leopards  or the mere  fact  that it is  one of  those places not  visited by  many beholding so  many natural wonders. Whatever the reasons are for its unparallel  charm  and  beauty, wilpattu remains  a place, one should absolutely visit  at least  once in their life  time.

The existence of  villas, being  the unique feature of the  park, it is  always recommended for wildlife enthusiasts to  spend  several  days  exploring the wonders of the park and to  perhaps one of  those lucky visitors,  who  get  to witness a herd of  unspotted dear that  gaze near water, a leopard  roaming into the wilderness or a serpent  eagle soaring to the high skies.

Amidst the Wilpattu jungle, there are places, still untrodden by people, our tour company; Glorious travels takes you to the deepest of the wild, enabling travelers to witness the places such as,

• Kudiramale Point

               The historically significant kudiramale point is an ancient seaport which lies in the Western Coast of  Wilpattu National Park. The place is noted as the place where Kuweni ; a queen of Yaksha tribe lived when prince Vijaya touched down Taambapanni. Moreover it is believed that Kuweni and  prince Vijaya started their reign from this region of Wilpattu. Although the geological origins of Kudiramale point are shrouded in mistry, the general conviction is   that it is the region where Kuweni ruled over. Except for that, You can enjoy the paranomic views of Indian ocen while standing on the edge of the cliff of Kudiramale.  

• Galge Viharaya

                Galage Viharaya is commonly known as the collapsed are within the Wilpattu National Park. This temple has been a large Aramaic complex in the past with the ruins covering a large area including a rocky outcrop inside the park here, some clay walls; some broken bricks are still visible for those who pay visits there.

• Ochchappukallu 

               Ochchappukallu is believed to be the largest ancient monastery complex found which can be found within the Wilpattu National Park, There is a well-preserved rock inscription in this site which says that this site belonged to '' Kanittha Issa''  Moreover  there are  some other inscriptions in the nearby caves which say that this belonged to first or second century BC. According to the surveys done by Archeologists, they have found that there were some existence of few buildings including shrine rooms, pagodas a and stupas of  Lord Buddha. The visitors who are willing to visit this place, can see some stone pillars and bricks which still exist.

• Kuweni Palace

               Kuweni who is mentioned as ''sesapathi '' in Mahawansa was a queen in the Yaksha tribe in Sri Lanaka's first recorded king; Vijaya. It is believed that she lived close to the area where prince Vijaya and his followers landed near a Villa called ''Kali ''', a vast amount of ancient ruins which are believed to be some debris / ruins of a palace complex are scattered within the Wilpattu National Park where some stone pillars are still standing and some are buried in the jungle. 

• Pomparippu Burial Site

               Pomparippu burial site is a burial ground covered about 3 - 4 acres of land within the national park which contains around 8000 death bodies of people according to the archaeological surveys which were done by the Mahawansa ; an ancient chronicle of Sinhalese royalty, it is said that the burial culture of North West Sri Lanka has been influenced by the pomparippu burial complex in Wilpattu with the arrival of prince Vijaya.

• Ochchappu Kallu - Kuba Vehera----Other Names Acsha Nagara

               Ochchappu Kallu is located about 8 miles from Kudiramale Point. I visited this site on the 20th of July 2013 and I spent about an hour and a half exploring and photographing the area. The thick scrub jungle is studded with large boulders and the rocky out crops making the area quite different to the typical forests observed at Wilpattu.This is believed to be the largest ancient monastery complex found in the park. It has been identified by its ancient name “Aksha Nagara” by a number of archeologists as indicated in the rock inscription at Tonigala.

               The well-preserved rock inscription found at this site is said to belong to “Kanittha Tissa” and refers to the location as“Kuba Vehera”. There are few other inscriptions in the nearby caves which are said to belong to the first or second century BC. The early archeologists who visited this site write about the existence of a few buildings including shrine rooms, pagodas and stupas of Lord Budda. However none can be seen now as they have been destroyed by treasure hunters. As depicted in the photographs,other than the stone pillars and remains of bricks there is an unusual leaning rock supported by a stone pillar at the center of this location with a drip ledge. Drip ledges are also found on the large caves of this locality.

               Large boulders and rocky outcrops can be observed in the vicinity of this ancient site.The view from the summit is quite pleasing as the carpet of thick scrub jungle is pierced with many large rocky outcrops and impressive boulders. One needs to walk through the jungle for about 500 meters to reach what is left of the ruins. Fresh Sloth Bear droppings were found all over indicating the presence of a good population. Elephants had visited the pool at the foot of the rock and were heard nearby as well. Thus it is prudent to be very cautious when you are on foot at this locality.