my first 'dolphins in the wild' experience!!

Departure time:          0346 hours

Departure venue:        Pepiliyana

Travel mode:              Land Rover & Car

Adventurers:              Avanti, Anushan Selvarajah, Devaka Seneviratne, Ishika Perera, Umadanthi Dias,

                                 Christopher Rebert (Jasper and Kreuger - doggies)

We were leaving home at 3a.m. and we still had no idea where we were going, what we were doing, or even where we were spending the night!

So sleeping bags, plenty of water and ‘other substances’ in hand – and after a round of formal introductions, to me – we lay our weekend in the hands of Devaka (playfully nicknamed ‘Thornberry”, after Sir Nigel Thornberry of ‘The Wild Thornberrys’)…known for his spontaneously, unpredictably, outrageously exciting destinations.

Close to five hours of driving, talking, singing and sleeping later, we arrive at our first destination.

15 km North of Chilaw, in the Puttalam District of the North-western Province, lays the Anaiwilundawa Tank Sanctuary. Climatically, located in the Dry Zone, this sanctuary is surrounded by traditional rice fields, scrubland, homesteads, coconut plantations and aquaculture farms, and is popularly known for its unique biodiversity, cultural heritage and functional values. The wetlands (tanks and marshes) are state owned, while the surrounding terrestrial areas are privately owned; and the local communities in the area, which consists mainly of traditional farmers and fishermen, utilise these resources due to the high productivity of this system.

Driving along the narrow stretch of land that circles the sanctuary, we stopped mid-way to enjoy breakfast in the tranquillity of this haven. And after letting the dogs, and ourselves, out to stretch legs we dug into ‘malu paan’, egg buns and leftover Chinese food, while taking in the magnificent sights surrounding us.

Although not all of us were devoted photographers, the sight we were beholding made each of us wish we had one of those high-tech cameras..

Sightings:

- A yellow bird – that excited everyone (though we didn’t know why) the minute it excited Devaka, who ran for his camera only to scare the bird away, and not return (probably until we were long gone)

- Mother duck and ducklings – who were making their way to water in a pond nearby. We assumed the ducklings were first-timers, as they waddled about clumsily

- An exotic bird – though we didn’t realise that it was exotic, it made Devaka call and tell an associate and make him insanely jealous (which made us feel special to have seen it too)

- Pelican-like bird in the water – which made up white spots all over the water, and told us that the water was quite shallow from the lack of rain in the area

In driving out of the sanctuary (slowly!), Devaka and Ishika claim to have seen a hare, snake and another exotic bird, which we car-riders did not see due to our overly-cautious behaviour about the well-being of the car on the bumpy road.

Many bumps, stops and walks after, we were told that we were closing in our ‘designated’ location for the trip – a coconut farm. Hmmm….

However, the coconut farm, aka 'Dolphin Beach', turned out to be a boutique hotel in the making… It belonged to the nephew of the owner of Alakuda Beach – a relaxing, discrete and romantic getaway which offers dolphin and whale watching. Not only were our catering needs taken over by the ‘amme’ who was also cooking for the construction workers at the site, but our "shovels and buckets" were also of no use…!

True to its name, this stretch of beach was popular among locals and foreigners alike for numerous sightings of dolphins. When we arrived there was already a crowd of around eight to 10, who had just got back from dolphin watching, having spotted only eight dolphins.

Arranging ourselves in a proper sleeping order, we spent the rest of the day lazing at the beach, and our own personal “resort”. Although the day was cloudy and gloomy, and the night showed little signs of good weather, nothing was to dampen our spirits as we finalised our plans with other avid photographers – who were to join us the next day.

09-Mar-09 – 7.15a.m.:

Life jackets and sunglasses on, we were ready to head out on time – beer case, high-tech and digi cameras and all.

After specific instructions from our “boat boy”, Thushara, on when to stand and when not to, we pushed off. Devaka, Ishika, Christo, Umi, Anushan and myself in one; and Dhanush de Costa, Dimitri Crusz, Harsha Fernando and Darril Bartholomewz in the other. Visibly the latter was “the photography club” while we were just amateurs, albeit just as excited…!

Sailing the furthest I’ve ever been from shore (with me looking back every 10 minutes to check on land visibility), we soon came upon what the “boat boys” were talking about on shore – a school of around 1,500 spinner dolphins, chasing what seemed to be their breakfast!

I think I barely breathed!

Looking out from one side of the boat, all across the ocean until you were literally looking out the other side of the boat, were spinner dolphins – racing, jumping, spinning and diving in and out of the water… It was the most beautiful sight in the world!

A dolphin field day, where elders and babies alike were enjoying chasing after their meal as one big pack, playing and laughing along the way, is how I would describe it. At one point, the pack separated into two, formed a ‘v’ shape, and closed in on what we assumed to be their prey – hunting tactics.

Riding alongside them, with a reasonable distance between us, we sailed close to 30km before they slowed down, and let us have a better look at them. Dolphins are beautiful creatures, and seeing them that close was unbelievable…

After watching them for three hours or so (usually, people are only allowed to watch only for 30 minutes), we were finally told that we needed to head back, as the waters were becoming choppy.

As we turned to head back, Christo decided to put out his fishing rod, determined to catch a fish and prove everyone who dissed him wrong. Being an avid fisherman himself, Thushara got excited that we were interested in fishing, and agreed to take us out for a while more – until Christo caught a fish…or something!

Without much delay – and much to our, and his, surprise – Christo’s line soon told us of a hooked fish. Grabbing his line, he reeled in the helpless creature as fast as he could – much to the disgust and pity of the girls. His smile never left his face…

Thushara then pointed out a flock of Eurasian Curlew – a greyish brown bird species, with a white back, and a very long curved bill – that were continuously diving in and out of the choppy sea waters, in a distance. And explaining the reason for it being that there were tuna in the water, he sped us to the site. True to his word, we saw a swarm of tiny splashes of water – the tuna swimming away fast as they could, as the Curlew attacked from above. A bird’s eye view is hard to beat!

Circling the tuna for awhile, we finally decided to head back after Christo’s second attempt seemed futile, and as Ishika was on the verge of throwing-up on an empty stomach, and nature called out to Devaka and Anushan.

What a ride!

Back at our ‘home away from home’, Christo gave over the task of cleaning and cooking the fish over to the ‘amme’, as the rest of us dove into ‘mannokka pethi’, Oreos and chocolate biscuits.

 After a lunch of rice and curry – and Christo’s fish! – we were up for another adventure. Devaka suggested driving upto Kandakuli – a lagoon area, South West of Kalpitiya.Not knowing what exactly to look forward to, and only with assurances of “a place for the dogs to run wild”, we piled into the Land Rover and headed out.

If I ever meet anyone who has not been to Kalpitiya, I would strongly advise it…! I now understand why they call Sri Lanka, ‘A Land Like No Other’ – its because of the Kalpitiya area!

The Kandakuli lagoon area was a narrow stretch of land, around two kilometres, between the lagoon and the sea, half-covered with shells, corals and ‘mother of pearls’ (shells)…

With Kreuger and Jasper going wild, chasing the peacefully feeding birds into the air, – and back down when the dogs were safely in the water – the “photography club” indulged in ‘photo-snapping’ a hermit crab, positioning it in places as though it was its wedding day (Dhanush and Dimitri are wedding photographers).

The others swam with the dogs, while we two wandered around, collecting shells and taking in the breathless atmosphere...

Heading back to “camp”, we were all too tired to move, though stereo music was cheerfully supplied by Kreuger, the whole ride to and back.

And after showering literally under the ‘coconut tree’ (and the stars), we turned in for the night, after a satisfying koththu dinner.

I can’t go a step further without explaining the showers, especially since we unfortunately forgot to snap a picture of it! The said coconut tree was surrounded by dry coconut branches to provide privacy. A hose that ran along the ground (soon to be moved underground), up the coconut tree, and halfway down a coconut branch, truly made it feel (and look) as though the water poured out from the tree…! It was an experience.

Early the next day we bid adieu to our photographer friends, as they rushed back to work…and spent the rest of the day swimming in the sea and lazing on the beach.

Some of us also met up with like-minded friends, who had come to go dolphin-watching that day – although against the wishes and advise of the ‘manager’.Advise given should be heeded; as they came back two hours later, weary from the choppy waters, drained by their throwing-up and disappointed by the zero sightings of dolphins – so much so that they refused to believe we had seen 1,500 just the day before…

After some swimming, and snacks, we finally got around to packing our things, and preparing to take-off. While some of us washed and changed, the others gathered their belongings, with thoughts of going back into the real world creeping up on us slowly.

When everyone was ready, it was mutually decided that we compensate the ‘amme’, two other workers at the “resort” and Thushara; so we split our remaining finances between them, and thanked them profusely. Although we all knew that once this place was built, none of us would be able to afford it, we were cheerfully invited back, anytime… And with sad goodbyes – and promises to return – we slowly backed out of ‘Dolphin Beach’ and started heading home.

With no ‘official’ breakfast, it was not long before we all became hungry again, and decided to stop at a restaurant highly recommended by the others. A small restaurant by the side of the road, named ‘Siedles’, proved to be exactly what the doctor ordered. We indulged in fried rice, white rice, chicken curry, roast chicken, fish curry, fried fish, cuttlefish, prawns, ‘parrippu’, ‘papadam’, salad and such – with the bill coming to a grand total of Rs. 1,400-odd!

Definitely worth making a mental note about this place, for future stops…!

Thereafter it was straight on home, with a short stop to pick up some guavas (which were in season everyday, in that area), curd and watermelon for our families back home…

Back home, first thing we did was mark our trip on Anushan’s Sri Lanka map – “our first official trip together” to Dolphin Beach, Norochcholai, and having spotted 1,500 Spinner dolphins…!