Sangkimah, Kaba Bay boast ecoappeal

By Mikael Onny Setiawan

BALIKPAPAN, East Kalimantan (JP): If you love traveling and want sometime away from the rat race, you should definitely consider going to Sangkimah and Kaba Bay.

This part of Kalimantan's tropical forest has ample to offer tourists or anyone interested in the beauty of nature.

Sangkimah and Kaba Bay, located in the Kutai National Park (TNK), are good representations of Indonesian tropical rain forest as they still have a host of plant and animal species.

Some plants like the ulin (Eusideroxylon zwageri), black orchids and the rhizophora mangroves are endangered. Many plants are priced for their healing properties and are used as traditional herbal remedies.

The orangutan (pongo pygmaeus), proboscis monkeys (nasalis larvatus), payau (cervus unicolor), white-headed eagles and hornbills (anthrococeros coronatus) are common here.

Some studies have show that there are about 75 species of mammals inhabiting Kutai National Park.

Sangkimah

To reach Sangkimah, you could take a bus from Bontang to Sangata. It takes about 40 minutes from here to reach Sangkimah where you will be welcomed by forest rangers who will process your visiting permit. They also serve as tourist guides.

In fact the fun begins from here. There is a one-kilometer boardwalk behind the rangers' post to reach the ulin tree which is more than 300 years old.

The boardwalk is suspended a meter above the ground. It is connected to a wooden bridge (about 100 meters from the ranger's post) which is seven meters above the Sangkimah river. The rest of the boardwalk stretches uphill and downhill into the jungle.

The boardwalk is partly damaged. Therefore people have to watch their steps and fallen branches of trees often block the way. For many, walking on the boardwalk is already an adventure.

The scenery along the boardwalk is breathtaking. You can enjoy the sounds of birds singing and insects chirping.

Then we finally arrive at the huge and old ulin tree. The diameter of its trunk is approximately the length of seven adult stretched arms.

Much of Kutai National Park and its inhabitants were destroyed in conflagrations in 1992 and 1998. Sometimes leaf monkeys (presbytis rubicunda) are sighted on the Bontang-Sangata road passing the area.

Kaba Bay

The road to Kaba Bay is rugged, so it would be better to use a four-wheel-drive vehicle to get there. Many sections of the road have large potholes. Just like in Sangkimah, the journey into the wilderness begins from the forest rangers' post.

Kaba Bay is situated on the Makassar Strait coastline. It offers a different view: mangroves and the Sambar deer (cervus unicolor) are sights that visitors can enjoy from a wooden watching tower built near the rangers' post.

A boardwalk has been built for visitors to enjoy the scenery of the swampy mangrove area.

At the end of the boardwalk is a quay, built for boats to load timber collected from the forest. Logging was allowed here before the forest was declared a National Park, protected by law.

The breathtakingly beautiful park is still threatened by logging activities and fire despite the local government's efforts to preserve it.