Day 1
Friday 24th July
Brisbane to Jakarta
A new adventure begins! Over the next 25 days, we’ll be exploring one of our closest neighbours—Indonesia.
As with many great holidays, day one was all about the journey. We started with a domestic flight to Sydney, where we managed to squeeze in an hour at the business lounge. Fine dining might be stretching the truth just a little, but it certainly beat airport food and was a relaxing way to begin the trip.
Soon enough, we were boarding our Qantas flight to Jakarta. At just under eight hours, it was an easy, uneventful journey—the best kind of long-haul flight. A couple of movies, a leisurely late lunch, and before we knew it, we were descending into Indonesia, ready to begin the adventure.
We landed in Jakarta and breezed through the airport in under an hour. Frank had already taken care of the visas so everything went smoothly. A quick taxi ride and we were checking into the Ibis Style airport. We basically just slept the night before returning to the airport for a 6 am flight to Borneo.
Day 2
Saturday 25th July
Jakarta to Tanjung Puting National Park
24-32 degrees, humid
4am wake up call! We had a 6am flight on Batik Air to get to Pangkalanbuun in Kalimantan (Indonesian province in Borneo). It would have to be one of the worst flights I’ve ever been on! Ninety minutes never felt so long. The cabin was a sensory overload—an unfortunate mix of overpowering body odour, constant announcements that never seemed to end, and a group of Spaniards enthusiastically competing to see who could shout the loudest! By the time we landed, I felt like I’d survived something rather than simply flown. Travel memories, right?
That behind us, our lovely guide Vanessa met us at the airport and whisked us off to Kumai Harbour where we boarded our wooden klotock boat to cruise to Rimba Ecolodge. Before setting sail we enjoyed a nice home cooked breakfast of eggs and toast, followed by fresh fruit. A klotok is a covered, open-sided houseboat. Boats can be small, with space on deck for a couple of mattresses, a table and a viewing area, or lavish, with air-con cabins and hot showers. Ours was definitely of the first variety, but then there was just the two of us.
Kalimantan is the largest province in Indonesia. We were in Central Kalimantan – 80% of which is forest, mangroves and swamps. Tanjung Puting National Park is the most popular tourist destination in Kalimantan, as visitors are nearly guaranteed to encounter magnificent orangutans as well as other primates. It was a two hour journey along the winding waterways of Sungai Sekonyer, lined with Niphah palm trees on either side, to our lodge.
A little excitement on the way as we saw a large male orangutan swinging in the trees and feeding on the inner shoots of the pandanus plant.
Just before midday we checked into our accommodation. Rimba Orangutan Ecolodge was established following the 1991 International Conference on the Great Apes, which promoted conservation and research of Asian and African great apes. Rimba is one of the few places on Earth where visitors can observe orangutans in the wild. Located in Sekonyar Village, the ecolodge provides sustainable ecotourism. This protected area is home to nine primate species, including the Bornean orangutan, proboscis monkey, and tarsier. Accessible only by traditional river boat, the ecolodge offers a truly immersive jungle experience.
After a quick orientation we settled into our wooden lodge which was surrounded by lush tropical greenery and calming nature sounds. We had a little explore and even met the resident pit viper!
After lunch we took a short ride on our klotock to visit Tanjung Harapan Station. Tanjung Harapan is the first orangutan feeding station. It’s a 700m walk through the forest from the boat dock. The apes who come here at around 3pm in the afternoon, are mostly semi-wild orangutans who have been rehabilitated and released in Tanjung Puting after being in captivity. The feeding station is a wooden platform loaded with sweet potatoes and bananas, and buckets of soy milk, separated from visitors by a rope. At 2.30 pm, we saw the surrounding trees shaking as the apes were getting ready to approach. The alpha male, Roger was first on the scene. He sat and ate for around forty minutes. It was interesting watching the other apes as they were hesitant about encroaching on his space. He obviously was the boss!
Most of the other apes were mothers with an infant clinging to them, and maybe another one of their older offspring. It’s easy to see the similarities between orang-utans and humans. The bond between a mother and her young is among the strongest in the animal kingdom, with infants staying with their mothers for seven years as they learn how to survive in the rainforest. The juveniles were having fun swinging in the trees keeping us entertained for almost two hours.
Reluctantly we left the feeding station, only to enjoy a lovely sunset cruise. There were more primates to be seen – the Silvery Langur and the Proboscis monkeys. All busy swinging from tree to tree in their groups. The male proboscis monkey certainly has an unforgettable nose!
It was dark at 6pm, just in time for our night walk through the jungle. Wearing head-torches, and following the guide, we had a truly illuminating experience viewing the nocturnal wildlife. We encountered another very venomous Borneo pit viper – high up in the trees, while on the forest surface we saw grasshoppers, spiders, and giant forest ants. We were extremely lucky to spot a tarsier – the smallest primate with enormous eyes, who feeds off insects and spiders.
We had a bit of a change in plan due to our flight tomorrow being cancelled. Instead we were flying out this afternoon. We would miss one feeding station, and a night sleeping on the klotock. Mind you, I had decided sleeping on the klotock wasn’t for me anyway!
Feeling very grateful for the days’ sightings, we returned to the Ecolodge for a much needed shower, dinner, and an early night.
Day 3
Monday 27th July
Sunday 26th July
Tanjung Puting National Park
24-31 degrees
We departed Rimba at 7am, and had breakfast on the Klotock whilst enjoying more of the scenic waterways. Our destination this morning was Pandok Tanggui, the second orangutan feeding station.
I must mention getting off the klotok at each stop is interesting. All the klotocks are parked up next to each other so it becomes a case of using each boat as a stepping stone. There were some big steps and a lot of hand holding involved!
Feeding at Pandok Tanggui starts at 9am, with the platform reached via a 1km walk through the forest. The orangutans approach from all directions, usually by descending from the trees – you are certainly aware they are coming with all the noise and movement of the branches.
The alpha male of this group, Atlas, has not made an appearance for four months, so the dominant role has been filled Monty, a 40 year old grandmother. Monty made sure she had her fill of the soy milk and sweet potatoes before anyone else approached the platform.
The next orangutan to join the platform was Mandolin with her ten week old baby, Merlin. The families are named with the same letter. Another 6 or so came for a feed. Monty even came back for a second drink, and some take away potatoes. Once they have eaten, they climb the nearby trees to keep an eye on who is eating next.
Back to the klotock for a delicious lunch – chicken, egg and noodle soup, with potato cakes, the obligatory rice, and fresh dragon fruit and rockmelon. The ice cold washer each time we returned to the boat was very welcome. It is humid – can’t imagine what the wet season would be like.
As our klotok headed towards Camp Leakey, the final stop on tours of the park, the Sungai Sekonyer narrowed dramatically, the water colour changed to its natural inky black and the jungle closes in. Now there are primates all around -chattering macaques foraging along the riverbanks and proboscis monkeys jumping from tree to tree.
Camp Leakey is the original research station in Tanjung Puting. It is named in honour of the late palaeoanthropologist Louis Leakey, whose assistants included famed primatologists Drs Jane Goodall, Dian Fossey and Biruté Galdikas, who established Camp Leakey in 1971. The camp is a collection of wooden buildings, with the feeding platform located a 1km walk from the boat dock. Feeding time is 2pm. This part of the park is where the orangutans have been released to the wild so the numbers are smaller here, particularly in the fruiting season which it is now. Sadly no orangutans turned up today. We actually didn’t mind as we were extremely lucky to see the numbers we had seen in the last 24 hours.
We stopped to plant a tree each – a programme to help the reforestation of the national park.
After visiting Camp Leakey, all the boats turn around – not an easy manoeuvre when the river is so narrow and jammed with klotoks – and head downriver. We had the pleasure of seeing two pairs of Oriental Pied Hornbills fly across in front of us, plus several gorgeous Stork Billed Kingfishers. Also spotted were the Malaysian Blue Flycatcher, a White Throated Kingfisher, and a Back Dwarf Kingfisher. The other highlight was a fresh water crocodile – just the eyes poking out the water. So many long tailed macaques and proboscis monkeys getting ready to settle down for the night.
Back at the lodge was a yummy dinner waiting for us – carrot soup followed by chicken satay, a beef and black bean dish, corn fritters, stir fried vegetables, and banana compote for dessert. Must mention the banana fritters and coconut juice we had for afternoon tea on the boat – delicious!
Day 4
Monday 27th July
Tanjung National Park
23-31 degrees, humid, short midday shower
We had a bit of a change in plan due to our flight tomorrow being cancelled. Instead we were flying out this afternoon. We would miss one feeding station, and a night sleeping on the klotock. Mind you, I had decided sleeping on the klotock wasn’t for me anyway!
This morning was a canoeing trip down one of the little side streams. The canoeing part was easier than I was expecting- we were simply the passengers, no paddling involved! Easy! It was ever so peaceful and serene floating along the stream through the depth of the jungle. The occasional long tailed macaque was seen leaping from tree to tree.
Back to the lodge for a quiet hour before lunch – we watched a movie, “From Orphan to King” telling the life story of orphaned two year old orangutan Kudasi. He was taken to Camp Leaky, but escaped, survived on his own for two and a half years, returned, then eventually fought his way to the top and became king of the jungle. It was a lovely documentary, and highlighted the atrocities of animal poaching (his mother was killed to gain access to the baby), and the damage of palm oil farming and the negative effect it has on the rainforest and the orangutan habitat.
After lunch at the Lodge, it was time to board our klotock for the last time and travel two hours back to Kumai Harbour. A Silvery Langur and some Proboscis monkeys, gave a friendly sendoff on our journey.
Checked in problem free- was expecting some sort of issue seeing as we had changed flights. And a good flight – no noisy Spaniards! Once we landed in Jakarta, we circumnavigated the airport twice – the first time in the aircraft, then in the bus to get to the terminal. That almost took longer than the flight!
We were met at the gate by our guide who took us to our hotel in Jakarta – an hour’s drive in heavy traffic! Welcome to Jakarta!
The Hermitage Hotel was simply stunning, part of the Marriott group. Everything about it was exceptional, except for the air conditioning- which was set to freezing! Not sure why!
After satisfying our hunger at the restaurant at the hotel, we went up to the rooftop bar to thaw out, and enjoy another drink whilst admiring the night lights of Jakarta. Wine is very expensive here, as we find in most Asian countries, but the cocktails are quite reasonable, and most enjoyable!
Checked in problem free- was expecting some sort of issue seeing as we had changed flights. And a good flight – no noisy Spaniards! Once we landed in Jakarta, we circumnavigated the airport twice – the first time in the aircraft, then in the bus to get to the terminal. That almost took longer than the flight!
We were met at the gate by our guide, Jeffrey, who took us to our hotel in Jakarta – an hour’s drive in heavy traffic! Welcome to Jakarta!
The Hermitage Hotel was simply stunning, part of the Marriott group. Everything about it was exceptional, except for the air conditioning- which was set to freezing! Not sure why!
After satisfying our hunger at the restaurant at the hotel, we went up to the rooftop bar to thaw out, and enjoy another drink whilst admiring the night lights of Jakarta. Wine is very expensive here, as we find in most Asian countries, but the cocktails are quite reasonable, and most enjoyable!
Glammy Goes Global 