Borneo: Time to Reconnect with Nature
No traffic, the sound of rare birds from deep within the rainforest, a little bit of fog over the calm waters and monkeys that are sitting on top of the trees along the river. Welcome to Tanjung Puting and the jungle of Borneo.
After hearing about this place only in school, back home in Germany, we now had the chance to witness vegetation, climate and of course the wildlife of Borneo with our own eyes and cameras. The king of Borneo was without any doubt the Orangutan which we hoped to see on our two-day tour on our Klotok and on foot. The Klotok is a small and cozy boat that brings outdoor enthusiasts on a several day long tour into the rainforest to disconnect from the busy side of the world and to reconnect with nature.
"Since it is nature and the Orangutans live here freely, I can't predict if and where we will see them". This is what was told by our ranger at the beginning of the trip. But as soon as we got off the Klotok and started walking deeper into the woods, we saw the first Orangutans swinging from one tree to another and taking care of their babies on top of trees.
Because of the different camps, humans seemed to be well known to the monkeys which is why they didn't hesitate to come down the trees and walk past our group of photographers as well. WOW, what a feeling to be THIS close with these animals!
Back on the boat, the kitchen staff knew how to spoil their guests with delicious lunch and dinner on the dock of the camp and in the light of the full moon.
The water got cleaner and clearer as we got closer to Camp Leaky, our final destination after two days. It was so clear that we could see the ground and the crocodiles swimming underneath our boat.
After visiting this last destination, it took us around 4 hours to get back to the port of Pangkalan Bun. We also had some nice heavy rain for about 30 min that cooled down the hot air and provided a different, yet cozy atmosphere on the mattresses that we used to relax.
For every person that loves the outdoor and would like to see a more remote place on this planet, I would highly suggest a trip to Tanjung Puting as this might be a once in a lifetime experience and possibility to be among wild living animals such as the Orangutan, Bonobos and a large number of different and rare bird species.
Written by Marc Bächtold
