Mannar - Unpoluted Beauty

Mannar is located in Mannar Island in the Indian Ocean & 312km from the International Airport.

Mannar has one of the best beaches in Sri Lanka that is unpolluted & unexplored.

The medium sized island is surrounded by many small islands. It is also believed to be once a part of India connected to India by the Adams Bridge, the natural sand bunks formed along the Gulf of Mannar.

Mannar Island has Sri Lankas oldest Dutch fort & port (1560) also the only place in Sri Lanka where the famous African dry zone tree Baobab tree is found.

The bio diversity of Mannar is a Hidden treasure to be discovered. 

 

Dutch fort & portBuilt on the island of Mannar by the Portuguese in 1560, it surrendered to the Dutch on 22 February 1658 and was rebuilt by the Dutch in 1696. On 5 October 1795 the Dutch surrendered to the British. The fort has four bastions and it’s still in good condition although the building inside the fort have not been properly maintained.Currently the Sri Lankan Police occupy this fort.

Baobab trees
The baobabs in Sri Lanka is believed to have been brought by Arabian Traders. According to a study done in 2003, there are about 40 Baobab Trees surviving in Sri Lanka, out of which 34 has been identified and measured in Mannar. Most of the trees were calculated to be 300-400 years old. The tree is also referred in Sri Lanka as the Ali-Gaha ( Elephant Tree) since the bark of the tree resembles a skin of a Elephant and the Tamils refer to it as ‘Perukka’.

Thirukketishvaran Hindu temple, Rameshwaran Hindu temple
an ancient hindu temple overlooking the ancient period Tamil port towns of Manthai and Kudiramalai, the temple has lay in ruins, been restored, renovated and enlarged by various royals and devotees throughout its history. The temple has been administered and frequented by Sri Lankan Hindu Tamils. Its famous tank, the Palavi tank, is of ancient antiquity and was restored from the ruins.

Adams Bridge
Adams Bridge, the natural sand bunks formed along the Gulf of Mannar. The bridge is 18 miles (30 km) long and separates the Gulf of Mannar from the Palk Strait. Some of the sandbanks are dry and the sea in the area is very shallow, being only 3 ft to 30 ft deep. It was reportedly passable on foot up to the 15th century until storms deepened the channel: temple records seem to say that Rama’s Bridge was completely above sea level until it broke in a cyclone in 1480 CE.

(Photo credits - Wikipedia)

Fisheries
Fishing is a major contributor to the local economy of Mannar District. The district has a marine coastline of 163 km, fresh water area of 4,867 ha and a brackish water area of 3,828 ha. The marine fishing area in the district stretches from Thavenpiddy to the north to Mullikulam in the east and Talaimannar to the south. In addition, although the majority of anchorage facilities are damaged or destroyed, there are 29 separate, small fishing harbours spread around the coastline.

Boat riding

With its beautiful coral reefs mannar is the ideal place for Snorkeling, Scuba diving, Coral exploring (cup corals & pearl oysters)
Sanctuary of Madhu and the churches are great places to visit for those who wants to vitness the great architecture of the dutch and the Portuguese.The ancient Madu Church is one of the ancient churches in Asia and located near Murunkan.
Wild horses are truly amazing and a beautiful sight at any time of the day

Marine life

Gulf of Mannar is known to harbour over 3,600 species of flora and fauna, making it one of the richest coastal regions in Asia. 117 hard coral species have been recorded in the Gulf of Mannar. Sea turtles are frequent visitors to the gulf as are sacred sharks, dugongs, and dolphins.

Last few years Mannar was discovered as one of the best birds paradises in Sri Lanka specially the migratory birds & with some rare resident birds, recorded only in the northern part of the country.

According to the Ceylon Birds Club records during the migrant season, some lagoons around Mannar, more than 1000 flamingos are spotted in a flock which will be a breath taking view & a great attraction. At the moment these attractive birds can be seen only in Mannar & Jaffna during the migrating period.  

  

Ferrier services to India will be starting soon. Oil excavation projects are also taking place in mannar.