Sinharaja Forest

When showing my Sri Lanka pictures to friends & family, Sinharaja tends to impress the most, especially for kids. While we didn't venture too deep into the jungle, we still saw plenty of amazing wildlife. A chameleon, flesh eating fish, a poisonous snake, a centipede, ... Sinharaja, even on its outskirts, is full of life.

We entered from the South (Lankagama) and hiked up a set of cascades. After a few meters, the trail turned pretty rough. We were happy to have a ranger accompany us to show us the wildlife and help with the hike.

There is a price to pay though: leeches. It was my first encounter, and I did not know what to expect. I assumed thick socks would shield me. They don't. These suckers are surprisingly competent at getting under multiple layers of clothing for a snack. They also felt like going for a road trip as I removed two of them after we were already back in the car.

Seeing it's been more than 10 years since the last review was written, some comments on past reviews:

• Betty: The ticket booth at Lankagama was staffed. We had no issues paying and getting a ranger. Personally, I don't think it makes sense to enter the jungle without a ranger to guide you. Skipping the ticket booth is rarely popular with locals, so maybe wait next time.

• Allison: You must have entered at the other Southern entry. In …

We arrived via two local buses and a tuk tuk from Deniyaya where we stayed at the comfortable but negotiably priced (we were quoted muchly on-line compared to non bookers)Rainforest Lodge. Local buses are around 60rps and tuk tuk was 400 but we still had a 2km walk on rutted muddy tracks to get to the ticket office which was unmanned. The entry fee was supposed to be 550rps each. We thought to pay at the information centre but 200m along the riverside track, we were held up literally by two hostile fellows abusing us for no paying and demanding we return to the ticket office which was now occupied by a self-righteous woman saying she just stepped out to the toilet and we should have waited. The guide from the Rest House near our accomodation back in Deniyaya threatened us with police action for breaking the law by entering a park without paying. We glady offered to pay and attempted a self-defence of no-one there to take our money but the abuse continued and they insisted we return and pay also for a guide for 1100rps additional to the 1100rps entry fee for two. We did not want the guide who spoke not a word of English nor did we feel the track to the information office was so hard to navigate we needed someone to take us there. We had no intention of going deeper into the forest to the waterfall. I had researched the park and there …

Sinharaja Rain Forest is possible to visit as a daytrip from Galle. We rented a motor bike for 8 USD. Alternatively you can get a car with driver for around 80 USD. Each way took about 3h (access via Deniaya). The road until Deniaya is good, but traffic in Sri Lanka is a challenge (Buses, Tuktuks, etc.). The road to the entrance is a real adventure, due to bad condition. But with a motor bike you can drive to the entrance and avoid the 2km walk. The forest itself is pleasant, but don't expect to see too many animals (in fact I think I saw more animals along the streets and in the cities) but at least some lizards, snakes and the occasional monkey should be possible. I am sure the inscription is justified, but as visitor I cannot distinguish the difference between Sinharaja and other rainforests (Mexico, Malaysia) I visited, that aren't on the list.

I thoroughly enjoyed my visit to Singharaja. We were lucky enough to be guided by Pal of the Singharaja Rest House. He turned out to be an excellent and highly knowledgeable guide that helped us get the most out of our visit.

There is a category of WHS which, whilst being “important” in terms of the criteria leading to inscription, doesn’t actually “repay” a great deal to those who go to see them and I have to place Sinharaja in that group.

At the best of times tropical “rain forests” require time and knowledge if they are to be fully appreciated. Insofar as they contain animals and birds these are usually rather difficult to see – the birds either creep around in the undergrowth or flutter in the canopy giving the observer a cricked neck! Such forests are located where the climate is hot and humid. Often the fact that they have survived is a result of their being sited precipitously or remotely. They are not “comfortable” places to visit! I have been “lucky” enough to visit such forests in the Americas, Africa and Asia. Unfortunately for me Sinharaja added little to the experiences already gained and did not really repay the time and effort even though I have no doubt about its significance in terms of being a threatened and unique ecosystem.

If you are in Sri Lanka and have not previously visited such a forest then it could be “worth a visit” but the logistics of getting there are not really suited for a “quick visit”! It will probably take you at least an overnight and a morning even to get inside it. Most people prepared to overcome the difficulties are likely to have more specific Flora/Fauna requirements …

I visited Sinharaja in April 2005, the rainy season had just started and as expected, we experienced a fair amount of leeches. We approached Sinharaja from the Ratnapura end, I think there are several areas where one can enter, and this was the region closest to us from where we were staying in Avissawella.

It took around an hour and a half to get there by road on a holiday, just one day before the Sinhala / Tamil New Year. I'm not sure how long it will take to reach there with traffic on a normal day. We arrived there around 8:30am after leaving our base in Gettahetha, Avissawella at around 7am.

All of us were Sri Lankans and the rate we have to pay to enter was lower than what a foreigner would have to pay. We paid for our tickets and picked up our guide and headed towards the entrance in our hired vehicle. The road leading up to the entrance was rather bad and it took a bit of time to get there as we had to travel at a slow pace avoiding all the potholes.

Upon entering Sinharaja, we hiked about 1 and a half kilometers and climbed about 350 meters to reach a mountain summit from where we could see all the surrounding hills and valleys, it was really a remarkable sight. I took my video camera along and recorded every aspect of our journey. It took us around 2 hours to get there and …