Follow Me: Sri Lanka
When I was in Sri Lanka, one of the biggest attractions in the country is the incredible safari tours they offer in Udawalawe. I’m sure a bucket list of most, is to be able to experience 12000 pound creatures, who have the ability to crack your ribs with the swing of their trunk, up close and personal. Although, my experience in Udawalawe with the Elephants was probably unlike most peoples.
Our safari tour guide, Hashan, was different from most of the other tour guides. Hashan had a small guesthouse to which he calls, Chill House Safari Resort. I, of course, stayed in this house and was offered the experience for a fairly cheap price.
On the morning of the Safari we woke up at 5 am to be one of the first guests at the safari park. Of course, we didn’t actually wind up leaving until 6am and by that time, there was a bit of a line before we were let in the park. So as Hashan went inside the office to secure our tickets, my friends and I began to eat our breakfast, which was so kindly packed for us by Hashan. However, on either side of our safari car, their were two stray dogs sitting so adorably and patiently.
We thought, well I guess we’re not that hungry… and shared our breakfast with the pups trying to be discrete because they frown upon this at the national park. And maybe about 15 minutes later, we found out why.
As Hashan started up the safari car and we began to head into the park, the two dogs followed behind us. As we got closer and closer to the entrance we began to worry if the dogs were actually allowed in the park. We brought it to Hashan’s attention and he laughed.
Assuming it was okay, we entered the park and saw a group of 6 elephants right away. Hashan told us that this is extremely rare for visitors to see elephants right at the beginning of the park. And we were beyond thrilled.
A fews minutes later, our two favorite little friends were directly in the center of an elephant hustle. The sand from the park kicked up in the air and the elephants trunks curled up to their mouths and swung forward with full force. These massive creatures were not so happy about our furry (and hungry), friends invading their space. The elephants charged towards the dogs, ultimately causing a few of the safari cars having to book it in reverse so their trucks weren’t tipped over. And after teasing the elephants and frolicking through the national park for almost an hour, the dogs did make it out of the park safely.
And that’s the story of the time I caused a war in the Udawalawe National Park.