Angammedilla National Park

Angamedilla National park is run by the Department of Wild Life Conservation and is to the North of Wasgamuwa Park. In fact it is separated by Wasgamuwa by the Amban Ganga. Bordered on the East by Parakrama Samudraya, the Angamedialla Canal which carries water to Parakrama Samudraya starts just a few hundred meters away from the Wildlife Department office within the park boundaries. It is called the 'Raja Bemma' (රජ බැම්ම) and creates a great spot to have a nice bath (some places could be a bit rough and dangerous).

It is a nice place to chill and relax; very peaceful. Non of the rush and Jeep traffic you'd see at the entrance of Yala, or any kind of traffic for that matter. The reason being there isn't much wild live to observe. However, it is well worth the trip.Specially if you want to get some peace and quiet.

Raja Bemma

 

Getting to the park from Colombo, you could either get on to the Kandalama Road (B615) from Dambulla or go through Elahera. To go through Elahera you'd have to turn off from Kurunegala (on to B264) or a few kilometers passing Kurunegala on to B409 and find you way to the A9 road. Either way you'll come to Bakamuna, and take the Elahera Road thereonwards. This road is a Beautiful road that goes parallel to the Elahera Minneriya Yoda Ela and is an Awesome road to drive along.You'll have to turn off to the right from where it is shown in the map below. The roads there-onwards is a bit confusing but you can seek help from Google maps and locals. And as I mentioned before once you enter the park boundaries you'll still have to travel about 2KM to reach the Wildlife Office.

Elahera Road

Angammedilla Wildlife Bungalow

 We stayed at the Bungalow closeby to the entrance. The entrance itself is a couple of kilometers into the park if you come in Eastbound from the Dambulla side. There is a camping site a few kilometers in to the park which is on the shores of a beautiful small reservoir. We traveled from the bungalow to the camp site with 7 people packed in to a Toyota Caldina (affectionately known as Ted). But ofcause the Caldina has good ground clearance and is a very hardy vehicle. Cannot guarantee that a normal car would survive such a trip without damage. However, I doubt this would be possible in rainy season when the park gets muddy.

 

Near the Camp Site

At the Camp Site

 

Another great way to make the most out of a trip to Angamedilla is to take the road which falls along the bund of the Parakrama Samudra to enter the Pollonnaruwa Ancient City from its back doors. This is a well worth trip to make since you'll get the chance to see some Iconic Ancient monuments including the Pothgul Viharaya.

Parakrama Samudra

 

Ekgal Oya Camping

This sites operated by the Forest Department is a mesmerizing place to spend a holiday at. Situated on the bank of the Ekgal oya reservoir, it has a breathtaking view and provides the ideal calm and quiet getaway.

It has several sleeping options such as Tree houses, rock caves with bunks and cabins built on top of rocks. It can accommodate 20 people, additional persons cost 1000 each (this is at the time of our visit, this could change in the future)

 

 

Where is this Ekgal Oya ?

At first we were confused about this place and visited the Wild Life Department for bookings. However, we found out that the department of Wildlife operates only a bungalow near the site, and the Camp site is managed by the Forest department.

Ekgal Oya is easily confused with Gal Oya. The truth of the fact is that this is a smaller Reservoir about 22 Kilometers east of the Senanayaka Samudraya (which is a part of the Gal Oya national park) along the A25 road.

Now there is a good possibility that when you visit the Forest Department in Battaramulla (Ethul  Kotte) they'd ask you to go to Ampara office to make the booking. However, as informed to us by officials at Ekgal oya they can make the call from Colombo to the said Ampara office and facilitate the booking. So if you visit the Forest Dept regarding this try asking them about that possibility.


There is a paddling boat, another raft and some other contraption that floats which is all at your disposal. So are the Life Jackets and Tires. So please make sure u wear the life jackets b4 you set out paddling or going too far deep into the lake since it's always a better precaution to use them since they are there.

 














The staff are very friendly and will assist you with what ever you need. There is a cook on site, you have to take your own supplies and hand them over.

Hint: Before you go, preferably the day before you go or early in the morning call them up and tell them to buy some fish. You can get lake fish and get them to prepare it for you. Better notify them early.

Traveling: 

Turn off from the A25 road when you see this rock on the side of the road:

Now what'll sometimes throw you off track is the next sign:

If you go right as instructed here you would encounter a rocky road with more obstacles and you will have to park about 75 meters away from the site in the jungle. The reason they have shown this route is that the other route (which is to the left) gets flooded during rainy season. However, if it is not flooded it's a perfect route with less obstacles and better sceneries which allows you to take your vehicles right upto the site.

Mode of Travel: We traveled in 2 cars. A Caldina and a Civic ES8 and had no problems. Since the roads were not flooded we did not encounter much resistance. However, if your vehicle has low ground clearance be very careful. And also in rainy season it could get muddy. But you may have the option to park at the office which is very close to the main road if the road up to the site is not good.

-- Have all the fun you desire, but please treat places like this with respect. Don't litter, throw polythene and harm the environment --