KANDY, Sri Lanka’s hill capital stronghold of the Sinhala kings, repository of culture, religious center is Sri Lanka’s most beautiful town. Focal point of this city is the Dalada Maligawa, were the sacred Tooth Relic of the Buddha is enshrined. Highlight of the year is the Kandy Esala Perahera, when a replica of the relic casket is paraded in the streets, accompanied by exotically costumed dancers, drummers and anything from eighty to a hundred gaily-caparisoned elephants, for ten littering festival nights. Once in Kandy you can’t miss the lovely artificial lake built by the last Sinhala king, Sri Wickrama Rajasinghe, in 1806.

UDAWATTAKELE is a Buddhist sanctuary and there is a temple in the vicinity. Vegetation comprises fairly dense forest, mostly plantation and secondary formations. About 80 species of bird have been recorded from the area

The history of the gardens goes as far back as1371. The gardens is a horse-shoe-shaped peninsula round which flows the chief river of Sri Lanka, the Mahaweli. The total area is 147 acres containing more than 4000 plant species.

SCHEDULE
• After breakfast proceed to Kandy.
• Lunch at a hotel or restaurant in Kandy.
• Evening bird watching at Udawattakale Nature Reserve.
• Dinner & night stay at Kandy. Value – Gem Inn or similar / Standard – Suisse Hotel or similar / Deluxe – Earls Regency or similar.

Photographic opportunities: very beautiful landscapes in the Knuckles range, different vegetation types, rare species of flora and fauna

HORTON PLAINS NATIONAL PARK is undoubtedly one of the world’s best nature reserves. It is characterized by a beautiful landscape of rolling hills, covered in upper montane forest and wet patana grassland. In general, the forests are seen on the hilltops or upper slopes the grasslands in the valleys and lower slopes, eventually giving way to wetland habitats. Spanning approximately 10,000 hectares the park is also home to a wide variety of flora (57 species, 29 endemic to Sri Lanka) and 24 species of mammal such as elk, deer, giant squirrel, wild boar, wild hare, porcupine and leopard. For bird enthusiasts, there 87 species (14 of which are endemic), including many migratory birds. The Plains also feature many interesting attractions such as ‘Bakers Falls’, ‘Chimmini Pool’ and the famous ‘World’s End’ (a 3700 ft sheer drop that offers fabulous views of the tea estates below and all the way out to the distant southern coastline).

SATAN’S STEPS TRAIL STARTING FROM THE HORTON PLAINS ENTRANCE.
You have two options where you can travel in the vehicle for about 6 km up to “Udaweriya” estate junction & then start trekking or start the trek from the gate entrance itself. Distance to the Bambarakanda Falls from the junction is 14km. Along this trail you will cover Kingslyn estate, West Haputale estate then Bambarakanda Falls. From the falls you can either trek for another 6km & get in to your vehicle at Kalupahana to be driven to River Garden or get in to the vehicle near the falls itself.

BAMBARAKANDA FALLS
Within a majestic basin-shaped valley bordered by huge steep rocks and dark green forests of pines and tropic trees the highest waterfall of Sri Lanka [240.8m] plunges with two silver ropes over a vertical dark grey wall from the green saddle between Mt.Welihena and Mt. Bambaragala into a deep pool only 500m walking distance from the trail.

BELIHULOYA is a very picturesque and romantic hamlet situated about 160km from Colombo in the historical “Sabaragamuwa” province. This zone is a climatically transitional area linking the wet & dry zones and the hill country & the low country. This very important location has made it one of the places in the country with the highest bio-diversity.

EVENING - RIVER BATHING IN THE NATURAL ROCK POOL IN “BELIHULOYA”.
This is a unique place where two streams namely “Belihuloya” and “Galagamaoya” meet together creating a natural bathing area with clear unpolluted water that flows down from “Horton Plains”, 2200 meters above the sea level.
There are three varieties of lizards located here including the horned lizard.

SCHEDULE
• Leaving to Belihuloya via Horton Plains.
• Trekking inside Horton Plains park.
• Lunch will be provided at a suitable location.
• Continue trekking through Satan’s Steps to Bambarakanda.
• From Bambarakanda trekking to Ohiya, & then the guests will travel in a vehicle to Belihuloya.
• Night dinner & stay in Belihuloya. Value – Luxury Camping / Standard – Cottage or similar / Deluxe – Eco Lodge or similar.

Photographic opportunity: Elk coming out from the forest during dusk, wild boar, birds, Leopards, Rare Flora & Fauna.

SINHARAJA RAINFOREST is a world heritage site, which can also be described as a Tropical Lowland Rainforest or Tropical Wet Evergreen Forest. Whatever its ‘technical’ name, it is undoubtedly a rich treasure trove of nature with a great diversity of habitats and a vast repository of Sri Lanka’s endemic species found nowhere else in the world. Bird Watching in this ecosystem is particularly interesting because it is home to 95% of the endemic birds of Sri Lanka! Named as a world heritage site in 1989, this lowland evergreen rain forest is steeped in deep legend and mystery. The word ‘Sinharaja’ means, Lion (Sinha) King (Raja), and it is popular belief that the legendary origin of the Sinhala people is from the union between a princess and the lion king who once lived in the forest!

KUDAWA’ ECO TEAM CAMP is located on a peninsula in the forest and surrounded by two rivers (deep enough for swimming) and just beyond a tea plantation (where you will see the traditional tea pluckers in action). Even without leaving the camp itself, so much can be seen – so let the nature come to you! The peaceful camp is an ideal location for early morning Bird Watching before a fascinating nature trail through the forest. (Same arrangements as Wasgamuwa camping)

SCHEDULE
• Leaving to Singharaja.
• Arrival for lunch.
• After lunch and a short break & then forest exploration at Singharaja
• Dinner & night stay at Singharaja. Value – Lodge at Singharaja or similar / Standard – luxury camping / Deluxe – super luxury camping.
Photographic opportunity: Mammals, butterflies, endemic flora and birds (A good majority of endemic flora in Sri Lanka is found in Sinharaja)

UDAWALAWE NATIONAL PARK is located approximately 200 km south-east of Colombo city. The 30,821 hectare dry zone game park has an annual rainfall of 1,524 mm and an average temperature of 29.40C. It is most famous for the many elephants that live there (about 400 in total). During a visit, it is not unusual to see whole herds – adults and young, feeding and bathing or playing in the water! In addition to this main attraction, the park is home to many water buffalo, water monitor lizards, sambar deer, monkeys and the occasional leopard, as well as being an exciting location for bird enthusiasts. A 4WD open-top safari is the only way to see all the wonders this protected reserve has to offer, and our experienced and knowledgeable nature guides will make this an unforgettable experience.

SCHEDULE
• Finishing breakfast, a bird watching trail at singharaja
• Then proceed to Udwalawe National Park in time for lunch.
• After lunch & a Short break evening safari at the park.
• Dinner & night stay at Udawalawe / Embilipitiya. Value – Centauria or similar / Standard – luxury camping / Deluxe – supper luxury camping.

Photographic opportunities: Elephants/ Butterflies / Birds / Landscapes/ Camping Experience

Lunch will be provided on your way.

In the evening, it’s a bird watching & wildlife tour in Bundala National Park.

BUNDALA BIRD SANCTUARY.
The high species richness of birds associated with the Bundala lagoons resulted in it being declared as Sri Lanka’s first Ramsar site - a wetland of international importance for migratory waterfowl, in 1990. The park consists mainly of dry thorny scrubland and lagoons. The highlight of Bundala is the migratory Greater Flamingo, which visits in large flocks of over 1000 individuals, from Rann of Kutch- India.

After the visit to Bundala proceed to yala.

YALA NATIONAL PARK lies 24km northeast of Tissamaharama and 290km from Colombo on the southeast coast of Sri Lanka, spanning a vast 97,878 hectares over the Southern and Uva Provinces. The vegetation in the park comprises predominantly of semi-arid thorny scrub, interspersed with pockets of fairly dense secondary forest. Small patches of mangrove vegetation also occur along the coastal lagoons. The park is renowned for the variety of its wildlife (most notably its many elephants) and its fine coastline (associated with beautiful coral reefs). It also boasts a large number of important cultural ruins, bearing testimony to earlier civilizations and indicating that much of the area used to be populated and well developed.

SCHEDULE
• Finishing breakfast, Leaving to Bundala National Park with packed breakfast.
• Visit the bird park.
• Lunch at a suitable location. Then proceed to Yala.
• Evening at leisure.
• Dinner & night stay at Yala / Tissamaharama. Value – Chandrika or similar / Standard – Tissamaharama Resort or similar / Deluxe – Yala Village Hotel or similar.

Photographic opportunity: Elephants & other mammals, birds, waders, Sand dunes /Large Crocodiles / Lagoon sceneries / Sea

Recently there was an excellent 'Natural World' wildlife film on the 'LEOPARDS OF YALA' shot by the well known filmmaker Gordon Buchanan. Yala has well over thirty leopards within the park, probably the highest density anywhere in the world. It is also thought that Sri Lankan leopards are a distinct sub-species from their Indian neighbours as well as being the largest leopards in Asia. Your best chance to see a leopard is generally first thing in the morning and then again at dusk. The male leopards in Yala are very confident animals and they are often seen walking the tracks during the day. Young males in particular seem to have no fear of the jeep, which can lead to some excellent photographic opportunities.
As well as leopards there is a large number of elephants living inside the park and these can be seen bathing in the numerous lakes within the park. You can also see spotted deer, sambar, wild boar, wild buffaloes, sloth bear, jackal and mongoose. The bird life is also fantastic and it is amazing how close you can get to them from the confines of the jeep, you can see Rosy Starlings, Paradise Flycatchers, Crested Hawk Eagles, Blue-Tailed Bee-Eaters and Common Iora's.

BIRDING INFORMATION
Yala is also a very large reserve with rivers, lagoons, saltpans, rocky outcrops, shoreline and forest in the southeast. Birding in Yala is very interesting because of its complex system of forest. SL Jungle fowl, White-bellied Fish Eagle, Grey-headed Fish Eagle, Painted Stork, Black- necked Stork, Lesser Adjutant, Pompadour Green Pigeon and flocks of flamingoes can be seen in this reserve.

SCHEDULE
• Full day at Yala National Park
• Dinner & night stay at Yala / Tissamaharama. Value – Chandrika or similar / Standard – Tissamaharama Resort or similar / Deluxe – Yala Village Hotel or similar.

Photographic opportunity: leopards, elephants, sloth bear and many other mammals. Yala is the best place for leopards watching. You will be taken to places where it is most likely to spot them.