Wilds of Lanka — Volume 2
Wilpattu National Park, Ritigala, Thanthirimale, and Mannar
AngryPages Book
No reviews yetFour chapters of firsthand travel writing through Wilpattu National Park, the Ritigala forest monastery, Thanthirimale temple, and the Mannar coast — leopard and elephant encounters, war-era history, and centuries-old archaeology, told by a lifelong visitor to these places.
Understand the book quickly
- Four chapters and roughly 306 pages covering Wilpattu National Park, the Ritigala forest monastery, Thanthirimale temple, and Mannar and Thalaimannar.
- Firsthand wildlife encounters — leopards, sloth bears, elephants, a python, and a crocodile — alongside the park's war-era history and its archaeology.
- Personal photography from two decades of travel, including sightings the author has waited years to see.
Pages4 chapters · 306 pages
GenreIllustrated Sri Lankan wildlife, travel, and history writing
CountrySri Lanka
PublisherAngryPages Inc
PublishedAvailable Now
LanguageEnglish
Meet the author
Read full bioChapter 1
Wilpattu National Park
Silva's account of the park he calls his second home: the villus, the archaeology at Pomparippu and Kolankanatte, the legacy of park warden Percy De Alwis, and the terrorist attacks and landmines that shaped the park's closure and reopening.
Includes a leopard caught hunting toads in shallow water, a python and a juvenile crocodile killed by speeding safari jeeps, and photographs taken inside the bungalows the LTTE occupied during the war.
Chapter 2
Thanthirimale Temple
A visit to the ancient temple and its reclining Buddha statue, with a personal account of the crowds, the cave paintings, and a research detour into the site's prehistoric rock inscriptions.
Chapter 3
The Ritigala Mountain
A climb through the stone monastery paths of Ritigala's Strict Natural Reserve, local folklore about the mountain's demons and lights, and a near-disastrous collision with a water buffalo on the drive home.
Chapter 4
Mannar and Thalaimannar
The Old Mannar Road through Wilpattu to the coast, a jeep swept off a flooded causeway and pulled out by the Navy, the ruins of the Doric Bungalow and Arippu Fort, and the history of Mannar's pearl fisheries.
Includes a first visit to Mannar in 2002, during the civil war, and a night spent awake to gunfire near the guesthouse.
Inside Wilds of Lanka — Volume 2
A Leopard Hunting Toads, a Python on the Road
The Bungalows the War Left Behind
Percy De Alwis and the Wardens of Old
A Buffalo, a Wrecked Vehicle, and the Ritigala Monastery
A Night of Gunfire Near Mannar
The Ruins the Sea Is Taking Back
Inside Wilds of Lanka — Volume 2
Book offer
Buy the AngryPages book
Wilds of Lanka — Volume 2 — the complete digital reader edition, in Shaminda Silva's own words.
Digital reader edition · $10.00 · One purchase, permanent access.
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Sign in to write a reviewWhat this book is about
Four chapters of firsthand travel writing through Wilpattu National Park, the Ritigala forest monastery, Thanthirimale temple, and the Mannar coast — leopard and elephant encounters, war-era history, and centuries-old archaeology, told by a lifelong visitor to these places.
A firsthand feel for Wilpattu and three connected historic sites across two decades of the author's own travel, wildlife sightings, and research.