Published on Jun, 2023
The safaris were amazing! Our driver, Yashara, was fantastic! He was super knowledgeable about the animals, the parks (especially Yala), and the terrain. Ask for Yahsara by name!
We were picked up at our campsite (checkout the Mohoora Tent Safari!) at 4:30am so we could be at the Udawalawe park when it opened.
When we got to Yala, Yashara was able to locate a cheetah lounging in a tree at least 300 yards from the road. He knew that sightings of cheetahs in that tree had occurred in the past, so he took us there, and we were able to see it (via binoculars).
He also had a reference manual for the various fauna in the parks, to help us not be bored by the birds!
Throughout the safaris, Yashara was networking with other safari drivers and park employees and was able to help others find the cheetah we saw. And, when he heard there was a bear sighting elsewhere in the park (a fairly rare event), his knowledge of the park, the side roads, shortcuts, washouts, etc... all came together to help us get to where the bear was in time to see it it and watch it for a few minutes before it wandered off in to the jungle.
In between visiting the two parks, Yashara took us to a local restaurant, where we enjoyed the local cuisine. The stop at the elephant orphanage was also very memorable! Definitely worth seeing!
We saw many elephants, water buffalo, hyenas (or were they jackals?), the one cheetah mentioned earlier, various types of monkeys, crocodiles, lots of beautiful birds, antelope, lizards, anthills taller than the safari truck, and some very stunning vistas!
Our tour of Yala ended at stunning beach where we could dip in the water for a bit or just lounge on the beautiful sandy beach.
On the drive home, Yashara made sure to pick up a colleague to help him stay awake (he'd been up since 3am to make this happen for us!) and get us back to our camp safely and in a timely manner.
It was a FANTASTIC trip! Thanks Yashara and the Shehan Safari team for everything!