Orangutan Odyssey – Indonesia

Upon arrival at Jakarta Airport, we will be met by our representative and transferred to your hotel. Welcome dinner at hotel.

After breakfast at the hotel you will transfer to the airport for the morning flight to Pangkalan Bun. Upon arrival at Pangkalan Bun airport mid morning we will be met by our guide. We will continue to Kumai, the seaport and the gateway to the  National Park.  Onboard, crossing Kumai river in approximately 15 minutes to reach Seikonyer river, the main river in this National Park.   Cruise up the Sekonyer river, along the way you will experience vegetation around the such as the Nipa Palm and Pandanus along the banks as well as wildlife including the Proboscis monkey – an endemic animal that can only be seen in Borneo.  Lunch will be served on the boat by our own cook.   If times allows we can visit the Orangutan feeding at Tanjung Harapan (at 3pm).  Dinner and overnight in the houseboating.

*Flight Arrangement: Trigana Air: Jakarta -> Pangkalan Bun 09.15 – 10.20

* Schedule only for your reference and can be change anytime without prior notice.

After breakfast we proceed upstream to  Pasalat Camp.  Here you will have a 1km hike.  In this camp, you will have the chance to plant endemic fruit trees for the orangutan (it is also a carbon offset program which supports the national park in planting trees around ex forest-fire areas.    Return back to the houseboat as you head up to Camp Leakey, a  landmark institution you will come to know on this wildlife tour in Borneo.  Camp Leakey was established in 1971 by Dr Birute Galdikas  and former spouse Rod Brindamour. It was named after the legendary paleo-anthropologist, Louis Leakey, who was both mentor and an inspiration to Dr. Galdikas as well as Drs. Jane Goodall and Dian Fossey.  When we arrive in Camp Leakey we can learn about its history and we will trek through the jungle with the opportunity of seeing numerous  orangutans, gibbons, wild pigs and  birds. We will have lunch back on the boat and will head to a feeding platform at Camp Leaky for 2pm (where the rangers will feed the semi-wild orangutans with banana on the feeding platform). At 16.00, back to the boat where we will continue down to Pondok Ambung.  If time permits before dinner we can head out to the forest in search of nocturnal fauna like Tarsiers, tarantulas etc.

After breakfast we will boat down to the second camp – Pondok Tangguy – to see another orangutan feeding station

We visit the feeding for 9am.  After visiting the feeding station to see more orangutan, we will head back to the boat to continue boating down to Tanjun Harapan village to see the Malayan settlement activities.  Lunch is provided on board before crossing into Tanjung Harapan Camp to see the last orangutan feeding at 3pm.  We head further downstream to Nipa Palm where you get the chance to see thousands of fireflies.

(In the dry season you do have the option of a 4 hour trek and camping in the rainforest – please check with us for details).

After breakfast we will pack all our belongings (and collect any rubbish to take with us) before trekking back to the boat  through the jungle.  Once we arrive at the boat we will head down the river to Pasalat Camp where we can participate in an  Carbon Offsetting program demonstrating how responsible travel holidays  can support the environment . Here we will learn about the important work of the Friends of the National Parks Foundation (FNPF) of Indonesia, see their plant nursery and reforestation programme in actions. And our group can plant one tree per person as a contribution to the national park. After planting the trees, we head back to the boat for dinner and overnight.

Overnight Houseboat

After breakfast we will boat back to Kumai and transfer to Pangkalan Bun Airport for our next destination.   If there is time we will be able to the town, its colourful market and one or two key landmark buildings. At the airport you will say goodbye to our guide before flying back to Jakarta.

Upon arrival in Jakarta you will be met by our representative and transferred to your hotel.  A farewell dinner will be served at the hotel to celebrate this wildlife holiday to Borneo and our better understanding of the orangutans (our nearest cousins) and the conflict between their sanctuary and our quest for ever more commercial development, which means that the rain forests in Indonesia are still being destroyed at a rate of the size 300 football pitcher per hour!

Breakfast at hotel, before continuing  for your return flight to Jakarta and international flight home or flight to Bali for a beach extension

End of trip.