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Jaffna
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The Forgotten Island — Wild Ponies, Dutch Ruins & Ancient Baobabs at Delft

Delft Island — known in Tamil as Neduntheevu, meaning ‘Long Island’ — lies at the southern edge of the Jaffna Archipelago, separated from the mainland by the shallow, turquoise waters of Palk Strait. It is the largest of the archipelago’s islands, but it is a small island by any other measure: roughly 13 km long and 4 km wide, largely flat, swept by wind from every direction, and sparsely inhabited by a community of a few hundred people whose lives are shaped by the sea, the palmyrah palm, and a landscape that has changed very little in centuries.

What makes Delft extraordinary is its collection of improbabilities: things that should not be here but are, each one a thread in a history of human movement across oceans. The wild ponies are perhaps the most remarkable. Descended from horses brought by the Dutch in the 17th century for use in colonial administration, they have roamed freely on the island since the colonial presence ended, adapting to the sparse scrubland, the brackish water, and the wind. Today there are several dozen of them — small, tough, and surprisingly unbothered by human presence — moving across the coral-paved tracks and palmyrah groves in a sight that carries a strange, dreamlike quality.

The Dutch fort is a ruin of some drama — its coral stone walls partially collapsed but its footprint clear, standing on the island’s northern shore with the ocean visible through its gaps. The dovecote nearby is an extraordinary survival: a circular tower of stone in which Dutch colonists kept pigeons for communication between the mainland and the island, its interior corbelled walls still bearing the nesting niches used for three centuries.

And then there are the Baobabs: massive, bottle-trunked trees of unmistakably African origin, growing in a cluster on Delft’s northern shore. They were carried here — it is believed — by Arab traders using the island as a waypoint on the Indian Ocean trade routes, centuries before the Dutch or Portuguese arrived. They are the oldest living things on the island, and possibly among the oldest in Sri Lanka. Standing beneath one — a trunk so wide four people cannot link hands around it, branches spreading to catch the wind — is an encounter with deep time.

The journey to Delft is itself part of the experience: a ferry from Punkudutivu across shallow water so clear you can see the sandy bottom, through a sea scattered with small islands and the silhouettes of fishing catamarans on the horizon.

Highlights:

Cross by ferry through the shallow, glittering Jaffna Lagoon to the remote island of Delft
Encounter wild ponies descended from Dutch colonial horses — roaming freely across white coral roads
Explore the atmospheric ruins of the 17th-century Dutch fort and the colonial-era stone dovecote
See giant Baobab trees — African giants carried to Delft by Arab traders centuries before Dutch arrival

Day 01 :

Crossing to Delft — A Full Day on the Jaffna Archipelago's Wild Island

Morning — Hotel Pickup & Drive to Punkudutivu Your guide collects you from your Jaffna hotel after breakfast and drives south through the Jaffna peninsula — through the flat palmyrah-lined roads of Chavakachcheri and Punkudutivu — to the jetty at the island's southern tip. The drive takes approximately 60 minutes and offers a vivid picture of everyday life on the peninsula.

The Ferry Crossing Board the government ferry at Punkudutivu and cross to Delft. The 45-minute crossing travels through the shallow northern waters of the Jaffna Lagoon — often no more than a few metres deep — over a seabed clearly visible through the clear water below. Small islands and rocky outcrops dot the crossing; fishing catamarans move in the distance. The crossing itself is one of the most peaceful and atmospheric travel experiences in northern Sri Lanka.

Arrival at Delft — The Dutch Fort Disembark on Delft and begin with the Dutch fort on the island's northern coast — a short walk from the jetty. Your guide explains the fort's construction in the Dutch colonial period, its role in controlling trade routes through the Jaffna Strait, and its gradual decline after the British replaced the Dutch as colonial power. The coral stone walls, though partially ruined, are substantial, and the site commands a view of the sea that makes the fort's strategic logic immediately clear.

The Colonial Dovecote A short walk from the fort stands the dovecote — a circular stone tower of extraordinary preservation for a structure of its age. Your guide explains how pigeons were used for communication between Delft and the Jaffna mainland during Dutch administration, and points out the individual nesting niches still visible in the corbelled interior walls.

The Wild Pony Habitat Move inland across the island's scrubland to the areas where the wild ponies range. Your guide knows the grazing patterns and the most likely locations for encounters — the ponies tend to cluster near the island's few water sources and in the shade of palmyrah groves during the middle of the day. Approach quietly and observe at close range: small, self-sufficient, entirely undomesticated animals that exist nowhere else in Sri Lanka.

Packed Lunch Break in a shaded spot on the island for a packed lunch — rice, curry, and fresh fruit. The midday quiet of Delft is total: no engine noise, almost no human sound, just wind and the distant sea.

The Baobab Garden After lunch, find the Baobabs on the island's northern shore — a cluster of enormous African trees that stand in complete defiance of their geographical context. Your guide recounts their likely origin in Arab trading routes and the centuries they have stood here. Stand beside the largest — its trunk wider than most rooms — and let the scale of it register.

Return Ferry & Drive to Jaffna Walk back to the jetty for the return ferry, crossing back to Punkudutivu as the afternoon light turns the lagoon golden. Drive back to your Jaffna hotel, arriving in the early evening carrying the specific atmosphere of an island that exists completely on its own terms.

Delft Island Day Tour

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The Forgotten Island — Wild Ponies, Dutch Ruins & Ancient Baobabs at Delft

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