Sailing the beautiful Komodo National Park
Komodo NP, Indonesia, 2012-05-03 02:44 by Laerke
Some of the best snorkeling and diving in the world combined with adventure trekking to spot Komodo dragons.

Tucked in between the sultry islands of Sumbawa and Flores in tropical Indonesia lies Komodo National Park. Here green rolling hills jot out of the azure blue waters teeming with colorful fish and coral, and on shore of the islands of Komodo and Rinca you will find the fabled Komodo dragon; this magnificent beast is the world’s largest lizard and it can reach over 3 meters in length and weighs up to 100kg.


Our trip started from Labuan Bajo, the most western town on the island of Flores. Labuan Bajo has a rugged charm, its main street, which lies parallel with the harbor, is lined with ramshackle wooden houses. Behind the main street climbs a steep hill; here several guesthouses takes advantage of the great views.


We find a cheap, and slightly gritty, guesthouse and set off down to the harbor to look for a boat that can take us around Komodo National Park. Boat after boat is lined up in the water, some are fishing boats others have been modified to serve as tourist transportation. A man with a tiny boat tried to convince us that he can fit our family of five in easily, we kindly decline and walk on. After chatting with a few other boat men we get invited aboard one to “inspect” we all like what we see and the captain, a young happy guy, seems really nice. We negotiate the price a bit – and then voila we have got ourselves a cruise through the Komodo National Park set up! So excited!


We set out from Labuan Bajo the next morning aboard our home for the next few nights. We are able to determine our own itinerary, and our captian Ari is happy to oblige and he also suggests a few cool spots we had left out. Our first stop is Rinca Island for our first encounter with the Komodo dragon; some say that the legend of the Chinese dragon is based on this giant lizard. The Komodo dragon is indeed a fearsome creature; they can take down prey much larger than themselves such as deer, wild pig and water buffaloes. They ambush their prey, bite it and wait for the potent bacteria from their mouths to take effect – they have been known to wait and stalk a bitten buffalo for up to two weeks just waiting for it to die before they devour it. A park ranger told me that the Komodo dragon might also lie deadly still under a tree for several days until the monkeys don’t even notice it anymore and then suddenly throw itself at a monkey that gets too close. You pay a small fee for a ranger to take you on a guided walk through the beautiful landscape to spot dragons; it feels straight out of Jurassic Park – especially knowing that a Komodo dragon could lurk around the next bend! The ranger is equipped with a wooden stick (!) to protect you from the dragons, they are however very knowledgeable about the dragons and will happily answer any questions you may have. They also know a lot of good stories; as the one about the Swiss tourist that decided to wander about on his own – they only ever found his glasses! Our ranger had once been chased by a couple of dragons, the thing to do, he told us, is to run in zig-zag and then climb up a tree, here he waited a couple of hours before someone came by to scare off the dragons.

We do a nice trek across the island, it is pretty easy going and no one has any problems keeping up. At one point the ranger hears a wild buffalo in the bush, we all crowd over to where he is pointing but the buffalo is too quick – but we can hear him crashing through the undergrowth away from us. A little later we do get lucky and spot what we came here to see – the beastly Komodo dragon!


When we reached the headquarter there is a whole pile of dragons lazing about, they hang out there apparently hoping for scraps from the kitchen. Upon leaving the island I got the feeling that the whole thing might have been a dream, it is so otherworldly; strange green rolling hills with the tall lontar palms and the prehistoric looking Komodo dragons - it truly seems like a whole other world.


Luckily the underwater scenery on this trip is also turns out to be out of this world, and the sheer diversity of life under the surface is baffling. Our captain stops at Manta Point and gets out his own snorkel and mask to guide us under the water in search of the majestic Manta Rays. There is a few nervous snorkelers on the boat, my mom has never really tried to snorkel before, and she has heard that some rays have poisonous tails. This also feels a bit more scary as we are in the middle of the ocean, not near a nice beach – the water here is deep and dark. Martin, Asbjørn and I go off with the captain and we are soon lucky and spot one, then another, and then one more! This is fantastic! I catch Martin’s eye and we hold hands for a moment, both aware of how excited the other is. I swim back to the boat to try and convince my mom to come in; I really want to share this with her too. Luckily she quickly caves and jumps in, this time we spot a manta ray and a big turtle pretty much at the same time! I think very few people get to have a first snorkel experience like that!! It is a humbling experience to swim above these giant rays seeing them float through the water so elegantly, and it was definitely one of my personal highlights of the trip.

A stop at Pink Beach is also a must, and here we have the most amazing and thriving coral reef right off a beautiful beach. It is an almost meditative experience to snorkel in the silence of the warm, blue water with a whole underwater world unfolding under you; tiny electric blue fish dart around each other before suddenly disappearing down a hole, a parrotfish is busy biting little pieces off a dead coral, fat orange starfish lie at a rare exposed patch, small clownfish are hiding inside a sea anemone while their dad is guarding them - it is easy to spend hours completely immersed in this peaceful little bay.


The time spent on the boat sailing in between destinations was great, read a book on the sundeck or sit at the stern watching dolphins play in front of the boat; with the gentle wind in your hair and the sun on your face it doesn’t get much better than this. One afternoon when we anchored up Ari brought out some super simple fishing equipment, really it was just a hook on a line. We were going to fish for calamari! Everybody gave it a go, but it was only the most persistent; Asbjørnand experienced; Ari that managed to catch any. The calamaris went down fighting and managed to spray the boat, Ari and Martin in ink! But they were delicious when we got them served up for the next meal.


A boat cruise around Komodo National Park is a once-in-a-lifetime experience not to be missed, and it need neither be very difficult nor expensive to arrange – follow the advice below and you should be ensured smooth sailing on your Komodo adventure.
At the end of our trip the verdict was clear – we heart Komodo!

Practicalities:

How to get there:
The most convenient gateway is Bali, thus a trip to Komodo National Park is easily combined with a holiday on Bali. TransNusa flies 7 days a week and Lion Air flies 3 times a week from Bali to Labuan Bajo; a return ticket is around 1,4 mill Rp plus a minor fee if booked through a travel agent.

Where to stay in Labuan Bajo:
Bayview Gardens Hotel, www.bayview-gardens.com, single/double room 400.000/450.000Rp. Lovely cottages with sweeping harbor views and a wonderful garden.

Where to eat in Labuan Bajo:
The Lounge on the main street along the harbor does delicious Indonesian and Western food from 20.000 to 60.000Rp; try the Pepes Ikan or a crisp pizza while soaking up the view.

Boat hire:
A 3 day/2 night cruise in a comfortable and decent sized boat is approximately 2,7 mill Rp for up to 6 people. This includes stops all over the archipelago, all food and water - snorkeling gear and simple fishing equipment can be provided free of charge upon request. A reputable captain is Arifudin, based in Labuan Bajo he can be contacted at +62 081239452702 and +62 038541071. It is also easy enough to take a walk down at the harbor and find yourself a boat and a captain that suits your needs, just ask around and remember to haggle a bit about the price.

Entrance ticket to Komodo National Park:
The price of a 3 day visitor permit includes 15$US per person in conservation fee plus 40.000Rp in entrance fee, this will be collected by rangers upon arrival at Rinca or Komodo Island. Small fees apply for trekking and camera permits.