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Cruise Trip
Safari
on the Fascinating Mahakam River
The
Fascinating Mahakam River at Indonesia Borneo Island is
a intriguing history of
Sultan Kingdoms and traditional Dayak Tribes, with a wealth of
ecological and cultural treasures that
survive deep within the rainforest jungle of Indonesia ’s
largest island. It's the highway into Kalimantan ’s dense
jungle where you can discover the rich Dayak Culture and their
Longhouses. The grand
diversity of exotic flora and wildlife from black orchids to fresh
water dolphins and orangutans give you an unforgettable trip at East
Kalimantans.
Join us for a once-in-a-lifetime exploration of the Kalimantan Island!
Tour Destination : Mahakam
River, East Kalimantan, Indonesia
Main Interest & Things to do :
Jungle
trek, and exploring the Flora and Fauna which can't be found anywhere
else in the world, as only in along this Mahakam River which is the
second longest River in Indonesia, and Third longest in the World, and
steams from the Muller Mountains into the Sulawesi Sea. Several Tourism
object can be found along the Mahakam River in East Kalimantan as :
Mura
Muntai, Tanjung Isuy & Mancong, as Dayak Benuaq villages with
Longhouses, settled along the Jempang Lake, surrounded with lowland
rainforest and wild life.
Melak,
Kersik Luwai Reserve, Eheng and Ombau Asa villages, at the
middle pasrt of the Mahakam River, Kersik Luwai as a national Park is
famous of it's wild and Black Orchid, Eheng is a Tunjung Dayak village
with a Traditional Longhouse, Ombau Asa has a waterfall as nature
beauty,Melak is a jump off point for further routes into the Kalimantan
hinterland.
Data
Bilang and Rukun Damai, are Dayak Bahau and Dayak Kenyah villages
with traditional Culture and Longhouses, surrounded by tropical
rainforest and jungle.
Long
Bagun is the last village which can reached with public river
transport, and is a transit place for further inland transportation
facilities, from here Longboats here to be chartered, crossing the
dangerous rapids, to move on to the upper Mahakam River area or
trekking cross Borneo to west Kalimantan either to the Apokayan area.
Long
Apari as the last village at the Mahakam River with traditional
Dayak Culture and virgin Rainforest, traditional blow pipe hunting and
forest trekking can be done here.
Recommended visit time for the Mahakam River is 3 till 15 days.
Culture :
Dayak Benuaq, Dayak Tunjung, Dayak Modang, Dayak Kenyah, Dayak Bahau,
Dayak Kayan, Dayak Punan, Kutai
Flora & Fauna : Tropical
Rainforest and Wild life
Tour
Starting Point :
Balikpapan,
East Kalimantan, Indonesia
Tour
Transport Possibilities :
by
public bus or chartered car from Balikpapan to Samarinda and by public
ferry or chartered motor canoe cruising up the Mahakam River
Tour
Ending Point : Balikpapan,
East Kalimantan, Indonesia
Travel
Distance to enry point : 1400 Km
till Long Apari from Balikpapan Airport
Tour
Duration :
Short
Get Through Visit 3 to 8 Days
Accommodation
& Hotels : Simple
Hotels, Local Houses or Jungle Camp
Tour
Grade : Usual till
Challenging
KALIMANTAN
MAHAKAM RIVER TOURISM INFORMATION
Mahakam River
The Mahakam river is 920 kilometers long, running over the Muller
Mountain , which forms the boundary between East and West Kalimantan,
between Indonesia Kalimantan and the Malaysian state of Sarawak. The
river as many tributaries, and in a number of places is 400 to 500
meters wide. With it’s length of 920km the River is the
second largest
river of Indonesia, starting at the Muller Mountians and ending in the
Sulawesi Sea.The muddy river at some places will be up to 2 Km wide and
is the high way in to the interior of East Kalimantan. The lower half
of The Mahakam River is populated by Malay and Kutai tribes, the upper
half by the native Dayak tribes. Your journey will take you through
impenetrable tropical forest and dense undergrowth draped in giant
orchids , mangrove flowers and lianes. Instead that much of the jungle
is secondairy growth or has been clearcut. The wildlife is unusually
diverse, monkeys, gibbons, wild ox, wild cats, flying lemur, martins ,
weasels, fresh water dolphins, orang utans, sun bear, leopard, snakes,
hornbill birds, parrots, parakeets, and crested fireback
pheasants.
Tanjung Lokang
Tanjung Lokang is the village farthest upstream. It is located on the
Bungin river, a tributary of the Kapuas river, which flows through the
neighboring province of West Kalimantan.
Sailing down the Mahakam river from its upstream reaches, we will
come to the Peangei river, a tributary of the Mahakam. There is a path
leading from the foot of the mountains towards the north, to a farmers
settlement. This upstream area is inhabited by Ahoeng or Panihing
Dayaks. Their main source of livelihood is hunting and tilling the dry
fields.
Long Apari
Long Afari is a village far into the Mahakam river's upstream
reaches. It can be reached in two hours from a point on the Peangei
river. The people of Long Apari belong to the Aoheng sub-tribe. Unlike
those of other Dayak settlements, houses in long Apari are not built in
neat rows, but are scattered across the hillside.The village is
inhabited by about 800 people, who live from farming, fishing, hunting
and working in gold mines during the dry season.Some of them make
articles of rattan, Mandau machetes, and pandanus-leaf mats, which they
sell in towns and villages downstream.
Tiong Ohang
Tiong Ohang is the most important village in the Long Apari
district. The village's population has the past decades considerably
swollen to due to migration of people from the surrounding settlement.
Building their houses on the other side of the river, those people till
the dry field for a living. School and public health centers are
available in this village, and life does seem to be better here for the
newcomers.
Long Pahangai
Long Pahangai village is divided into two parts, Long Pahangai I
and Long Pahangai II, each led by its own village head. The two parts
are separated by road running parallel to the river. It is a division
caused by religious differences between Christian, Moslems and
Followers of the old animist belief.
Long Tuyok is not far away from Pahangai. Dangerous rapids are
found in the river nearby.Past the rapids, further downstream, is Batu
Kelau a beautiful village with the hills in the background. It is
always covered by fog in the early morning.One has to negotiate several
rapids when going to Long Bangun, sailing downstream. Long Bangun is
also a base camp for loggers.
Long Iram
Long Iram is more like a small town. A boat service connects the
village with Tenggarong. Small lodgings are available.
Barong Tongkok
Barong Tongkok is a nice village and good for spending the night.
Several small waterfalls are found in its surroundings. There are
lodgings, shops, and motorcycles to take visitors to other Dayak
villages. Linongangmapan is 300 meters aside from the village road
between Barong Tongkok and Tering. An ancient megalith site is found
here. To reach the location, one must walk for a distance of about 40
kilometers, starting from kersik Luway.
Melak
Melak is a rather busy little town and the capital of a district.
It can be reached from Long Iram in about 30 hours or from Tenggarong
by motorboat. The inhabitants of Melak are dayaks of the Tunjung
sub-tribe. Lodgings and a modest restaurant are available in Melak and
it has an old longhouse (betang). Local handicrafts can be bought here.
Kersik Luway Nature Reserve
Kersik Luway is nature reserve between Melak and Barong Tongkok, 18
kilometers to the south. The "Black Orchid" (Coelogyne pandurata) which
blossoms between April and December, grow s on shrubs in this 5,000
hectare reserve. Many hundred of other orchid species also grow in this
forest. The reserve is located 170 kilometers from Samarinda and can be
reached in 32 hours by boat. Other tourist spots in this regions
include Jentur Gemuruh waterfall and Kersik Kerbangan, a forest known
for is wild orchids. Visitors usually stay at Sekolag Darat village.
Tanjung Isuy
Tanjung Isuy is a settlement of the Benuaq dayak. There is an
original traditional longhouse in the village which welcomes visitors.
Woman can be seen weaving ulap doyo, the traditional free-fiber cloth
typical of the area.Visitors can also see the guardian statues and the
grave of a Benuaq king.In this area, 149 kilometers from Samarinda via
Muara Muntai, we can see floating houses on Lake Jempang .There is a
grand old longhouse in Mancong, 15 kilometers from Tanjung Isuy. Also
visit the lamin ( Longhouses ) of Pentat and Lembunah, on the Ohong
River. Various species of birds, iguanas, and bekantan (Proboces
monkeys) live in the forest along the river .
Muara Muntai
Muara Muntai is not far from Lake Jempang. It is a convenient stop for
visitors traveling into the hinterland.
Lake
Melintang
Lake Melintang covers a surface of 10,000 hectares near melintang
village, 150 kilometers away from Samarinda. The scenery here is very
beautiful. A unique sight is that of buffaloes living in pens built on
the water at Lebak Singkil, on the lake. The animals wade through the
water, which is more than one meter deep, while looking for food.
Lake Semayang
Lake Semayang lies at the other side of Lake Melintang,and covers a
surface of 13,000 hectares. Many villages are found in its
surroundings.There are several beautiful small lakes in the vicinity,
such as Manggah, Barambai, Rabok, Tempatung, Kedang Mubung, Wis and
Siran.
Muara Kaman
Muara Kaman is a small district town consisting of 11 villages,
inhabited by about 15,000 people. Muara Kaman can be reached by water
taxi from Samarinda. There is a place by the name of Bukit Berubus not
far from Muara Kaman, which is presumed to hold the remains of the
ancient Mulawarman kingdom.
Muara Ancalong
The forest scenery around Muara Ancalong is arresting. This area is
good place for hunting wild boars. Exhibitions are often held in the
Lamin Datun, of the Kenyah Dayaks, in Muara Ancalong and Muara Wahau.
Various kinds of crafts are made in this region. Stone statues were
found in Kombeng Cave, Muara Wahau district. Remains of Buddha statues
can still be seen in Tabang. They are believed to be related to the old
Mulawarman Kingdom. Many giant bengris (Rasamala) trees grow in the
forest of muara Kaman.
Tenggarong
Tenggarong is 39 kilometers away from Samarinda. It is the capital
of the Kutai regency, and is almost two centuries old. Up to 1960, the
regency was know as the special District of Kutai. The remains of the
Kutai Kertanegara Kingdom are found in this town. The old palace is now
the State Museum of Mulawarman.The center of the Kutai Kingdom is
presumed to have been in the vicinity of Muara Kaman. Due to fear of
foreign incursions, it was moved upstream , to Jembayan village. The
King acting on divine advice given to him in a dream, later again moved
the Kingdom's seat of power, to what is now the town of Tenggarong.
Pesut Mahakam ( Water dolphin )
If one is lucky, one might see a pesut Mahakam (orcela fluminalis),
fresh water dolphin, during the trip. The species is also found in the
Mekhong river in Cambodja and in the Amazon. In the Mahakam it usually
surfaces towards sunset in the vicinity of Loangkang.The RASI
Information and Rehabilitation Center at Muara Pahu can tell you
more.Another animal indigenous to East Kalimantan is the Bekantan
monkey (Nasalis larvatus), a big monkey with a long nose and reddish
brown fur. Bekantan monkey can be seen in the trees alongside rivers.
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