Yala National Park was the destination of choice for the ‘Explorations’ series in Land Rover and Cinnamon Nature Trails partnership. Seven Land Rover vehicles, carrying their owners, set off from Colombo to the wilderness of Yala. The goal was to track and find the reclusive sloth bear during the three-day adventure. Cinnamon Wild Resort was home to the Land Rover owners during this period of time with a very luxurious agenda mixed in with the wild.
The explorations series had a unique itinerary, specially planned by the Land Rover and Cinnamon Nature Trails team, for the owners. They started with a photography workshop, taught by renowned wildlife naturalist Chitral Jayatilake, with an array of high-end DSLR cameras provided by Canon Sri Lanka.
The excursions into Yala consisted of six game drives including a Night Safari where night vision goggles brought to light the amazing sights of the dark jungle. On these game drives, the Land Rover owners managed to garner 14 leopard sightings, two sloth bear sightings and stunning images of Yala’s natural beauty.
“We had a wonderful time with Land Rover and Cinnamon Nature Trails during this wonderful event. Yala and its residents did not disappoint and adding to the many panthera sightings, the icing on the cake was the illusive sloth bear. Just two hours on the Buththuwa main road!” said Senaka Kotagama, a Discovery 2 G4 owner and an avid Land Rover fan.
“Many thanks to SML Frontier and the Land Rover team for a wonderful time in Yala; as always, great company, great visits and great cars, which combined made for a great weekend. Leopards galore! It’s an excuse to come back another time. It really is a family and I am so pleased to be a part of it. Thank you,” said Jonathan Campbell, a Discovery 3 owner from the United Kingdom who flew down specifically for ‘Trailing Bears’.
The trip to Yala National Park was truly an adventure for the Land Rover owners filled with unexpected surprises. The many vivid sightings, within the three-day series, were unforgettable and the participants were thrilled to have experienced such rare and breathtaking moments. On the final evening, cocktails followed by the scrumptious bush dinner organised by Cinnamon Wild Yala concluded the event and garnered unforgettable memories.
“It was a brilliant three days in the jungles of Yala. We saw eight leopards in a single drive. Saw four leopards together, which was a first for most of us. The sloth bear was an incredible sighting; Chitral and his team can really track them down with his experience at Yala. Therefore, we are extremely happy to bring our vehicles and expertise in off-roading, whilst partnering with Cinnamon Nature Trails in this endeavour. Explorations will be a series of adventures unlike any seen before in Sri Lanka,” said Sheran Fernando, Managing Director, SML Frontier Automotive.
The next excursion in the Exploration series will see Land Rover owners head to Trincomalee from 25 to 27 July in ‘Corals and Reefs,’ a chance to explore the natural beauty of the underwater world. Young Land Rover enthusiasts will be given an insight into the conservation of corals and marine life whilst experiencing ‘snuba’ for the first time. Land Rover owners will stay at Chaaya Blue during the ‘Exploration’ basking in the luxury of the partnership between Cinnamon Nature Trails and Land Rover.
Sri Lanka Travel Feneteko