Along the West Coast – Mannar & Thalaimannar

The longest long weekend on the 2017 calendar was an eagerly awaited holiday as it coincided with the August school holidays and the chosen destination was Mannar and Thalaimanar.

Trip Highlights:

•  Travel via Wilpattu NP
• Kuweni Palace
• Kudiramai Point
• Doric House
• Mannar – Fort, Bio Bab Tree, Thirukethiswan Kovil
• Thalaimannar – boat trip to Adams Bridge
• Nachchikuda – boat trip to Iranativu
• Oyamaduwa

We left home around 4a.m; took the Expressway up to Katunayake and proceed along Puttalam Road. We stopped at Eluwankulam around 7.30 am for breakfast before entering the Wilpattu NP after crossing Kala Wewa Causeway.

Kala Oya Causeway

Breakfast at Elluwankulama

Entering the Wilpattu N.P we drove along the gravel road enjoying the scenery. We were not fortunate to see much wildlife but the journey itself was satisfying. We passed the old red CTB bus plying along the dusty road making its daily ride from Puttalam to Mannar. The gravel road runs for about 40KM from Eluwankukam to Silavathura across the NP. This was our second time crossing Wilpattu along this road and it was in good shape easily manageable by a SUV.

.	Along the dusty road…….

After about one hours’ drive we turned right from the main road and drove into the jungle in search of Kuweni’s Palace. That was quite a challenging drive and the road was very narrow with trees making a canopy over the road. We passed seven Villus to reach Kuweni’s Palace, and the villus were quite dry except for the largest villu. We witnessed many wildlife including large herds of deer, buffaloes and peacocks. Kuweni’s Palace is marked by large stone pillars and it is said that they would have supported a roof. No proper archeological study has been on this site and I’m sure there should be a lot more to explore.

Kuweni’s Palace

Kuweni’s Palace

We drove back to the main gravel road and after driving a few Kms turned left into the jungle to reach Kudiramai Point – known as “K Point”. That drive was harder than we thought and with disappointment we had to turn back to the main road. We were out of the NP by noon and drove along the tarred road passing Marichchikutti – the village that receives the lowest rainfall in Sri Lanka. We had lunch brought from home at a Navy Camp on the way and from that point we could get a clear view of “K-Point” that we could not visit.

“K- Point” – at a distance

We started our journey after lunch and our first stop was “Doric House” at Arippu. I was saddened to see that parts of the gigantic building crumbling down to the shore. It was my third visit to Doric House and I wondered how long this falling giant would last. No efforts have been taken to restore/preserve this historic building and it is a fading landmark along this coastal route.

Crumbling giant – Doric House

Crumbling giant – Doric House

We drove passing Vanakalai and the famous Mannar Donkeys made their first appearance. The kids were delighted to see them. The shallow lagoons of Vankalai were all dry and there were no migrants to add colour to the landscape. At Thallady we joined the main road coming from Anuradhapura – A14 – and in no time we were in Mannar Town.

Causeway connecting Mannar to the mainland

It was not a good time to explore the town and we headed towards our resting place for the first and second nights – Thalaimannar. It is another 24kms to Thalaimannar from Mannar. We enjoyed the easy drive and we were in Thalaimannar by 4.30. Arrangements have been made for us to stay at a holiday bungalow inside the Thalaimannar Navy Camp and after settling down and a good cup of tea we all headed to the beach for an evening sea bath which washed away the tiredness of our long journey.

Thalaimannar Beach in the fading sun

Thalaimannar Beach in the fading sun

DAY 2
After a hearty breakfast of kiribath we headed towards Mannar and our destination was Nachchikuda – 40kms away on Mannar-Poonaryn Road – A-32. We were planning to take a boat ride to Iranative island from there.
On our way we visited the famous Tirukketiswaram Temple – just 5km away from Mannar Town. It is one of the four main temples dedicated to God Shiva in Sri Lanka. The huge temple complex is adorned with colourful murals and we spent nearly half-an-hour admiring the ancient glory. A large pond situated in front of the temple add serenity to the site.

Thirukkethieswarm Temple

The 40KM drive to Nachchikuda was a treat along the newly carpeted road going to Jaffna via Poonaryn, which is supposed to be the shorted route to Jaffna.

Road towards Poonaryn

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We reached Nachchikuda after an hours’ drive and drove straight to the jetty to board a navy boat for the ride to Iranativu island. Iranative is made up of two islands – Iranativu North and Iranativu South and the entire land area is nearly 6 sqkms and it comes under the Kilinochchi District. They are not inhibited anymore and only a Navy checkpoint is functioning but fisher folk from nearby areas come to the islands for fishing. Iranativu had been a very prosperous island before the war and it had had a number of churches, a school and many other buildings. The villages have fled to India and some to the mainland after
war broke out. The buildings are all in ruins except for one Church – known as “Japamale Church.

Iranative looking green at a distance

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Boat ride to Irantivu Islands

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The boat ride took nearly 45 minutes and we could clearly see the Church at a distance. The island looked green and we could see some cows roaming around –signs of past civilization. We were not allowed to get down for security reasons and we went around the island in our boat.
It was mid-day when we returned to the jetty. After lunch we headed towards Mannar and got caught in the first spell of the North-East Monsoon. It rained heavily with lightening and thundering and driving in that rain was quite a task. By the time we reached Mannar the rain ceased and the shallow lagoon that was completely dry when we left in the morning was filled with rain water. The entire region has come alive after the heavy rains.

After a hot cup of tea in Mannar town we visited the Mannar Fort and the famous Bio-bab tree – the largest in the island – which are the famous land marks in Mannar.

Mannar Fort

Mannar Fort

The Gallows at Mannar Fort

Friends at Bio-bab

Mannar is also famous for its churches. In Mannar 80 percent of the population are Tamil Catholics.

Mannar’s glorious churches

Mannar’s glorious churches

After spending nearly an hour in the town we drove to Thalaimannar to our resting place. On our way we visited “Fourtees Rest” at Thoddavil where we stayed on our last two trips to Mannar – in 2011 and 2013 respectively. Mr.Lawrance, the owner was delighted to see us after years.
We reached Thalaimannar by 5 pm. Though we had a sea bath in mind we were advised not to as the sea was rough. So the kids had to settle with a game of Cricket which the adults joined, after which we called it a day.

Day 3

The main event was to visit the Sand Banks or the Adam’s Bridge. We have visited the sand banks twice – in 2011 and 2013 – when the Navy operated a service with small boats for the public. Due to safety issues that has been stopped. Now only large Navy vessels take visitors there but the large vessels sometimes cannot land because the water is so shallow near the sand banks.

Thalaimannar Pier

Thalaimannar Pier

We enjoyed the boat ride in the scorching sun but we did not see any migrants that we encountered in our earlier visits. After nearly a 40-minute boat ride, to our disappointment we were told that we won’t be able to land on the islands as the water level is very low. We were really heartbroken that we could not visit the magical islands but in a way we were fortunate that we had visited them earlier, but there were some in our crowd who have never been there and for them it was really disappointing.
Anyway I’ll share some fond memories of the magical islands from our previous visit in October, 2013.

Cherished memories of Dancing Islands –  Oct, 2013

Lonely Planet

Lonely Planet

Colourful vegetation

Four years ago on Island No.02

The tiny boat that took us to Dancing Islands

Disappointed this time….

Happily returned last time…….

We returned to mainland in disappointment and really wished that the service with small boats is still in operation.
We left Thalaimanar before mid-day and our destination was Vankalai, a few kilometers from Mannar. On the way we bought crabs and prawns at Pesali Fisheries Harbour at half the price we pay in Colombo. We reached Vankalai for lunch and after lunch we headed towards the beach for a sea bath. The beach was not that great looking with blackish sand like in Pulmudai, nevertheless the kids enjoyed the afternoon sea bath.

At Vankalai

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After refreshing ourselves from the sea bath we started our journey towards Oyamaduwa – our resting place for the next two days. We initially had plans to visit Madu on our way but were too tired to make the journey. We drove along Madu-Mannar road and at Cheddikulam turned towards Oyamaduwa. The evening journey was pleasant but the road was not in great shape. We passed the Thanthirimale temple on our way. It was almost six in the evening when we reached the Navy Holiday Home at Oyamaduwa.

It is a massive building hidden in an isolated place. It has been one of those buildings put up for Deyata Kirula and abandoned later on. But now the Navy has taken over and it is in great shape with a vast garden right around. We could not explore much as it was getting dark and we were really tired after a long day. After dinner we called it a day and went early to bed.

Day 4

Breathtaking view from the Bungalow

Breathtaking view from the Bungalow

We woke with the chirping of the birds and were surprised with the breathtaking view. The dried out lake and the huge leaf-less trees made a picture-postcard view. We decided that we will spend the whole day in this magical place enjoying the scenery and relax.
We had plans to visit Thanthirimale and so on – but we abandoned all plans and decided to let ourselves relax. The kids were playing around the huge garden after breakfast and finally we decided to play a game of Cricket which we all enjoyed.

Enjoying a game of Cricket

Relaxing in the shade

After lunch we all took a nap. After a full day of relaxing we decided to take a walk in the evening. First we visited the Sheep Farm where hundreds of sheep is kept in three elevated sheds. It was my first encounter with a sheep farm but for our disappointment the sheep looked more like goats!!!!

Oyamaduwa Sheep Farm

Oyamaduwa Sheep Farm

We did a short hike along the tank bund and it was fascinating in the fading evening sun. It was almost dark when we reached the bungalow.

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Relaxing walk along tank bund

Relaxing walk along tank bund

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We spent the last night of our five-day trip singing in the moon light and enjoyed a sumptuous meal prepared by the bungalow keeper.

DAY 5

We bid good bye to Oyamaduwa after breakfast and started our journey home. We headed towards Nochchiyagama. At Nochchiyagama we joined Anuradhapura-Jaffna road – A-12. After passing Palugasgama Junction we turned right in search of “Neela Bamma Farm” run by the Navy.  It is an agricultural farm and you find all kinds of vegetables and fruit grown in the arid land. The kids enjoyed the farm and they learnt a lot about growing fruits and vegetables at Neela bamma.

Neela Bamma Govipala

For our return journey we chose the road via Navagathegama. We turned left at Saliyawewa Junction and drove via Nawagathegama, Anamaduwa. We had our lunch on the way at an abandoned tank bund. We joined the main road at Bangadeniya. We reached Colombo by 4.30 p.m. tired, but with our hearts filled with happiness and blissful memories of five days spent in leisure.

Thanks for reading.