Monarchy of the Swimming Titans

The Gal Oya National Park is an untouched, lush green reservation between the hill country and the east coast of Sri Lanka. Spread around the Senanayake Samudra reservoir the evergreen forests and open savannahs thrive around the calm waters. Gal Oya National park was built to protect the main catchment area of the Senanayake Samudra reservoir, the largest and one of the most iconic reservoirs in Sri Lanka. Once an enormous valley with a thriving indigenous community (that has since been relocated) lies the Senanayake Samudra reservoir scattered with little islands.

These little islands are what remains of the high points of those valley mountains and are teeming with life. It’s home to 32 species of mammal including the langur, toque macaque, leopard, sloth bear, wild boar, water buffalo and deer. Furthermore, around 150 different species of birds grace these skies above, calling its many islands home. Which undeniably makes this a paradise for animal enthusiasts, bird lovers and photographers. 

Gal Oya National Park’s most famous resident is the Asian elephant. Elephants in Gal Oya National Park are excellent swimmers thanks to adaptation and evolution to their aquatic environment. You’ll see them swimming across islands with the same grace as any animal that lives in water. The elephants swim out of necessity in order to reach diverse feeding sites on several islands. However, it can also be a solo or small-group social pastime on occasion – an unbelievable but fascinatingly live site to watch!

The unique location of Gal Oya National Park enables it to be the only National park in Sri Lanka to conduct boat safaris – giving you a truly unique perspective of nature’s majesty and mystery.

Source: ASTL