The Elephant Gathering + Hidden Trails

‘Elephant Gathering’ + Hidden Trails – 2 night safari or 3 night safari

2 nights/3 days or 3 nights/4 days

• See the world famous 'Gathering' at the Minneriya National Park
• Water based safari on a hidden elephant trail
• Visit the largest National Park in the island renowned for it's Big Cats-Wilpattu National Park
• Bush breakfasts, Bushwalks and sunset drives on hidden elephant trails of the North Western Province, Sri Lanka

Hidden Trails + 4 National Parks - 1 week safari

• See the world famous ‘Gathering’ at the Minneriya National Park
• Water based safaris to see Elephants on islands in the Gal Oya National Park
• Visit the two top Big Game Parks in the island – Yala and Wilpattu National Parks
• Track elephants on foot at sunset in the North West of the island
• Bushwalks and sunset drives on hidden elephant trails across four provinces in Sri Lanka
• Overnight on a tree-top hide experiencing what farmers do to protect their crops from wild elephants
• Night drives on lake-bunds to photograph mammals in the dark

Dates: Only in July, August, September 2013
For Rack Rates, Itineraries & Enquiries: info@ayuinthewild.com
(Discounts off the Rack Rate please register your email address on our blog)

No matter who you travel with or how you choose to witness the magnificent world famous spectacle of the annual 'Gathering', keep in mind that the wilderness belongs to the wild. We are mere intruders and  need to respect the fact that nature really belongs to it's original inhabitants.

We're excited! Just four months and a bit more to go, for the largest mammals on our island to start making their annual trek from  hidden corridors into open grassland in search of food and water. Herding together in pockets of jungles  - some areas, like Minneriya and Kaudulla, well known among Elephant enthusiasts; others, known only among just a handful  of us who have explored off-the-beaten path for decades.

INCLUDED

• Accommodation & meals
• Exclusive use of open-sided 4WD safari jeeps
• Guided by community based Guides who live with the wild
• Exciting activities including bushwalks and sunset drives off-the-beaten-track on hidden animal trails, safari drives in National Parks
• Park fees, cost of safari jeeps and all service charges
• Transfers and English-speaking chauffeur

EXCLUDED

• International airfare/visas to Sri Lanka/Domestic flights
• Items and expenses of a personal nature
• Gratuities for Guides and drivers
• Travel insurance

See our blog page ‘Hidden Elephant Trails 2013’ for more details.

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Collard Scops Owl and her young, Wilpattu, Sri Lanka

The inspiration for our logo and a beautiful specimen. 

 Images taken inside the Wilpattu National Park, Sri Lanka. 

To make it even more exciting, she happened to be babysitting her young in the tree-hole just beneath her! Will never forget the wide eyed looks of the youngsters....

Our safaris are not just about what wildlife you see...
It's how you see life in the wild.

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Lord of the Carnivores, Sri Lanka Why do they mesmerize us so?

It's true. You never tire of them. A single sighting can cause a complete system shut-down. Tripods don't balance. Fingers fumble with camera settings. You even forget that your camera offers any advanced settings!

Even more exciting than getting a great Leopard photo is traveling with a great guide who actually knows about their behavior.
The 'sawing' sounds they make. Their stealth and craftiness when stalking hapless prey. Tracking their pug marks on soft sand during the day and checking their after-dark stalking tactics on night drives. Identifying them by the markings on their forehead. Why do they give birth at a certain time of the year? How do siblings behave? Walking off-the-beaten-paths and maybe, just maybe coming across their scat and checking out their diet!  

Safaris that help you learn about the Lord of the Carnivores www.ayuinthewild.com 

(Specials for registered enquiries from the blog)

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Misty mornings in Wilpattu and a trail off-the-beaten-track - October and December 2012

There's something about the 'first light' on a misty morning that makes you feel so alive! Is it the play of light on a grey-ish landscape? Such indescribable beauty that no camera can do justice to. 

A bush walk on a community trail off-the-beaten-track and a safari drive inside the stunning Wilpattu Park. Two really, really cold misty mornings in the months of October and December 2012. Worth dragging ourselves out of our cozy slumber and a hurried cup of tea, before dawn. Some of our friends think we're insane, well ok, maybe just a little bit...but we do love our photography as much as our wildlife. www.ayuinthewild.com

Our safaris are not just about what wildlife you see...

It's how you see life in the wild.

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Bushwalks, boat trails and grub in the jungles - Wilpattu & Kaudulla December 2012

There is something about having a meal by a river in the thick of the jungles, which cannot be explained. The thrill that you are actually grabbing some grub 'in the wild'. We were blessed with great weather. Little did we know that monsoons and floods were a few days away. For three nights we slept in jungle enclosed safari lodges, took an idyllic boat ride  in calm waters where purple herons rested among tall reeds, walked along a lake studying the hurried flights of butterflies. And then there were those Asian giants. Elephants at Kaudulla. Well past the 'season' for the world famous 'Gathering', yet over two hundred of them: several generations, majestic matriarchs and the mischievous babies...could have stayed there forever.....www.ayuinthewild.com  

 

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