Kumai River
Sea Topaz
Duncan Briggs
Wed 7 Nov 2012 13:20
|
02.44.485 S 111.43.976 E
Getting up the Kumai River to Kumai town took longer
than we though and it was tricky with not much water in places. But with the
various way points we were given we managed to get to the anchorage without
going aground. We were planning to do a trip by Klotok up river to the Tanjung
Puting National Park to visit the orangutan rehabilitation stations. By the end
of the day we had made a booking and were set to go the next morning. That was
yesterday. We had a security guy staying on Sea Topaz while we were away for two
days and one night. A Klotok is a sort of house boat that we lived on for the
duration. We had a cook, a guide and a captain, all very friendly people. We
arrived at Camp Leaky in time for the three o'clock feeding, having pottered up
the river slowly, relaxing and taking in the scenery.
At the feeding station we met "Tom" a huge male
orangutan as well as many others. It was fascinating watching their behavior and
antics swinging in the trees. Overnight we stopped in a quiet place on the
river. The meals were great and the sleeping arrangements were very
comfortable.
The next morning we made our way back to Kumai and
stopped at another station to see the orangutans there, Again very interesting.
All in all we saw mothers with babies, Tom the dominant male, teenagers and
children and young males.
We also saw proboscis monkeys, macaca's and lemurs. Also
some beautiful birds like hornbills and kingfishers.
We got back to the boat this evening, all was well and
we are now working on getting ready to leave tomorrow for Belitung, where we
will check out of Indonesia.
|
