Scenic Way to See the Simple Things in Life (August)

(Below is a feature on Nature Odyssey that appeared in the local weekend newspaper The Sunday Times)

An up-close and personal encounter with the wild bunch, a scenic ride through the village on the best four-legged transportation around, walking through a chena cultivation, helping fishermen cast their nets at dawn, a scrumptious barbeque by the lake….many Lankans may consider such things as mere tourist attractions. But how many of us can actually say we’ve taken the time off to experience the simpler things in life that we’ve long since taken for granted? We’re all eager to travel abroad to see the many wonders of the world, but what about the wonders here in our own little world?

That’s where Nature Odyssey (a sister company of Walker’s Tours of the John Keells Group) has taken it upon themselves to offer all their clients (local or foreign), a truly “timeless experience”!

Our date with Nature Odyssey was at Chaaya Village, Habarana and we were greeted by a troop of monkeys as we turned into the driveway, followed by a more official welcome by the pleasant hotel staff. After a quick coffee it was off to a picnic breakfast in the forest! As we piled into the van at the starting point of the trek, we had with us a mix of snake, bird, butterfly and elephant men! Quite a wild bunch you could say! Trekking through the peaceful village to the shady grove, which was our picnic spot, I never realized how much better food tasted when had outdoors. It seemed almost as if time just stood still and nothing else in the world mattered. After breakfast it was straight on alongside the riverbank to the chena cultivation, where farmers were hard at work. The watch hut beckoned and with the kind help of two of the wild bunch I made my way up the ladder.

Our ride back to the main road where our vehicle was waiting, turned out to be a quite a surprise! As we came out from within the last stretch of brush, there were four bullocks, munching lazily nearby. After we climbed aboard the cart, the bullocks took off with the greatest of ease at quite a healthy pace on the bumpy gravel path ahead. Initially ducking under stray branches in our way, we soon discovered an easier, rather picturesque way of both avoiding the branches and enjoying the countryside. We just lay on our backs staring up at the bright blue sky, taking in all nature’s wonders.

Later that day, it was off to the Minneriya National Park to interact with the majestic beasts of the wild. We entered the park with the naturalists relating countless tales of past close calls with elephants and how there were two elephants in particular at Minneriya we were told to watch out for……Kanehila and Waligekota! We were told that the former cow elephant’s had been knocked down by a vehicle two years back and therefore, she would more often than not attack a vehicle if agitated. (This is apparently a well known fact amongst all jeep drivers and trackers of the area).

The first group of elephants we came face to face with (quite literally) was in fact Kanehila and her ‘gang’! we joined two other jeeps that were parked and watching the elephants, when without any warning the jeep in front of us revved the engine and sped off within inches of Kanehila. Obviously agitated, she gave chase, but stopped halfway and returned all hot and bothered to her herd. Within seconds the other jeep took off, agitating her further, leaving us behind. Having nobody else to vent her anger on, she turned towards us. No matter how hard our team tried to stop her (including our fearless driver) she walked right up to the jeep and head butted it! (I had already envisioned my funeral arrangements at this point…). However, the wealth of experience among the group in the jeep, somehow, steered us out of harm’s way.

Soon after the adrenaline-pumping incident, one of the naturalists pointed towards the water hole saying “Look at the painted storks!” we all burst out laughing almost hysterically at his desperate attempt to distract us. But the sight was simply breathtaking!

A tad weary but hardly tired of reliving our little adventure, we arrived back at the hotel only to be received with a wet towel and the most refreshing drink I have tasted in my place. Ambarella juice that gives life to a weary safari goer! Later that night fire torches paved our path to a sizzling barbeque by the lake, with the cool breeze in our faces and a sing-song to work up an appetite.

Having literally ‘sung (together with the energetic team) for our supper’ we then sat down to a relaxed meal meal around the table, hearing more stories that left us dreaming of elephants, snakes and crocodiles!

The next morning we put up at the crack of dawn to join the fishermen drawn in their nets. Usually, you also get the chance to join them in casting their nets on the previous evening. Paddling along in our little oruwa it was quite a scenic sight to behold, with lotuses floating on either side, elephants waling along the opposite bank and villagers busy with their daily chores. Having drawn in the nets, we returned to the shore to an outdoor breakfast of kola-kande and juggery, followed by a gala breakfast buffet of course!

As all good things must come to an end, we too had to part company and go our own way. A full stomach, five new friends and a wealth of memories later….I realised it had been ‘a timeless experience’ indeed….

Meet the ‘Snake Man’ (July)

One minute he’s walking beside us in the wilds of Habarana, showing us the scenic beauty all around, the next thing we know he’s picked something out of a nearby bush. And that little “something” is a green vine snake, better known as an Ahateulla.

Once we get over the initial shock, we assume that he has put his ‘green pal’ back where he had found it, only to discover the next morning that it had in fact traveled with us all the way back to the hotel, snug in his pocket!

You may be a ‘dog person’, ‘cat person’, ‘bird person’ and even ‘fish person’, but how often do many of us cross paths with (I shudder at the very thought…) a ‘Snake Man’?

Meet Dilan Peiris, a naturalist working for Nature Odyssey (a sister company of Walker’s Tours of the John Keells Group), the man with a passion for reptiles, particularly snakes. As such, he is an integral part of Nature Odyssey’s Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) programmes, conducting various workshops around the country to build awareness about snakes. The aim of these workshops is to replace people’s age-old fear of snakes with better understanding, ensuring that killings are minimized.

The workshops are conducted for villagers, students, farmers and even hotel staff in areas where snakes are frequently found, such as Habarana, Yala, Anuradhapura, Polonnaruwa and Kirinda.

“It’s very important to conduct such programmes, particularly because of the 96 varieties found in Sri Lanka, 50 are endemic to Sri Lanka, and are faced with the serious threat of extinction, mainly due to excessive pesticide usage, villagers destroying their breeding habitats and killing them out of fear,” Dilan explains. “Therefore, it is paramount that people are better educated on snakes, and how they too have a right to exist just like any other living creature,” he says emphatically.

This, coming from a man who was bitten by a hump-nose viper (Kunakatuwa) just four months ago, and had to undergo a lot of discomfort and pain for about a week as a result, should give an idea of how deep his passion for snakes is.

The programmes have proved quite successful. In many areas, where killing snakes on the spot was considered the first and only option at their disposal, the villagers now don’t even kill one snake, he said proudly. Villagers can now identify poisonous snakes from non-poisonous snakes to a great extent, and are also educated on how best to move the snakes away or catch them, so that they can be set free in the jungle away from their homes.

Along with the preventive measures, they are also told how best to treat a snake bite prior to taking the victim to the nearest hospital, he added.

The Nature Odyssey team also treats wounded snakes they find while on the job, and then releases them back into suitable environments in the wild. Villagers are also now handing over many snakes, which they’ve caught in their back gardens, to one of the team to set free in the jungle, he said.

Having entered the ‘natural’ field in 1992 while he was still in school, the environment and wildlife have always been very close to his heart, says Dilan. He remembers going to the Yala National Park with some friends from school in 1992, where he first met veteran tracker and the man who was to become his ‘guru’ on elephants, Ranjith Samaranayake.

Soon after (also while in school), the Young Zoologists’ Association (YZA) had held an exhibition at his alma mater, Wesley College, where they also had a snake stall, he said. Dilan went on to join the association and having started off in the ‘Mammal Research Group’, later switched to the ‘Reptiles Group’, as his interest in reptiles grew. He has done studies on crocodiles in Yala and Sri Lankan elephants, and also compiled a report on the reptiles within the Maimbul Kanda sanctuary, off Nittambuwa.

After leaving school, Dilan went to the Crocodile Bank’ in Madras, India to follow a course on reptile study, where he learnt the basics on snake handling etc., and also acquired the nickname ‘Snake Man’, he adds laughingly. He has studied Marine Biology in the Maldives and has a Diploma in Wildlife Management and Conservation from the Open University of Sri Lanka.

And how uncomfortable is his wife with his constant dealings with snakes? No problem, he says, confidently as they met at the YZA, and she too is an ardent animal cum reptile lover, even though she had belonged to the ‘Bird Group’!

Animal Rescue in Habarana (June)

A badly injured juvenile Gray Langur was rescued by the Nature Odyssey team in Habarana on Friday, 30th June. Under the guidance of a Nature Odyssey naturalist the animal was transported to a nearby veterinary clinic with the help of some locals. The monkey’s arm had to be amputated; its chances of survival are slim. The collective effort of our team and the rallying round of the local community to save the life of this animal is surely a step in the right direction in the continuing conflict between man and nature.