Orangutans are highlight of wildlife river tour in Bali

Did you know there are five species classified as “great apes”? They are gorillas, chimpanzees, bonobos, orangutans and, of course, humans. I checked orangutans off my list with my recent trip to Borneo.

Getting to the orangutans requires a lengthy flight connecting through Hong Kong and ending in Bali. After an overnight there, a 11⁄2-hour flight took me to Pangkalan Bun, where I began my three-day/two-night river trip to view the orangutans. The boat was a traditional klotok wooden boat with a roof. A captain, assistant and cook were supplied.

Most people elect to spend the nights on the boat. I decided to spend the nights at the Rimba Lodge (A daily shower was a necessary luxury!) Basically, the idea was to slowly float the river during the day searching for the indigenous wildlife.

Twice daily the boat would stop at one of the three orangutan “camps” in the area. Each camp had a once daily scheduled feeding where the jungle rangers would bring in large amounts of fruit and deposit it on a wooden feeding platform. Prior to that a group of tourists would hike through the jungle to the platform and wait with growing excitement for the arrival of numerous orangutans of all ages.

The wooden platforms were about 50 yards from where the spectators stood. The orangutans essentially ignored us as they played and gorged on fruits including bananas, oranges and apples. Depending whether a dominant male was present the number of orangutans ranged from two to 10. The picturetaking opportunities were endless.

As a bonus, numerous other animals were attracted to this often chaotic scene. Macaques, gibbons and even wild boars were commonly seen. As a bonus, while floating down the river, it was possible to see a wide variety of jungle wildlife including birds, turtles and crocodiles. The days passed quickly and it was time to head back. As a bonus I stopped at Komodo National Park to see Komodo dragons. It was worth it as I felt I was immersed in a scene from “Jurassic Park.”

Details: www.adven tureindonesia.com.