Year 2- 13th October 2025 – Borneo-Kalimantan – Our 3 Day Tour

There was a slight delay in posting this blog as I was out if signal for a few days.

 We had a reasonable night’s sleep but I seemed to have come down with the Delhi Belly that the others had which was really annoying. We were being picked up at 8.30am by our tour operators and we had to get everything ready to take with us. We also had to close all hatches and lock the boat as instructed. I turned off the small fridge to conserve power.

 The tour people came at 8.30am and ferried us and our luggage in two lots to our boat (they call them Klotok) for the next few nights. It was quite a low flat boat but had two layers built on top. The main hull had the engine and galley which meals are prepared. You then went up some stairs to a half deck which had a bedroom and two toilets – western toilets and then you went up some stairs to a full deck which is where the dining room table and seating area was and then finally you could go onto the roof for viewing.

 Once settled we headed off into the Sekonyer River and they gave us breakfast. I thought I would not have any but they served scrambled eggs with some toast so I thought I would have that. We meandered up the river which was beautiful and lined with palm trees. It was brackish and flowing slowly with the odd palm tree branch or a clump of reeds drifting down from time to time. This journey took us about two hours to the Pesalat Camp being the beginning of orangutang sanctuary.

 We moored up and lunch was served but I did not have any. A guide pointed out a snake swimming across the river just to remind us of what is around. After lunch we went ashore for a short walk around the camp which had an information centre which was interesting. This had information about the sanctuary which had first started in about 1976 and since then it has developed and gained recognition over time.

 The orangutan which is what we have really come to see and it is the largest arboreal mammal endemic to Borneo and is now protected. There are also Proboscis Monkeys which are native to Borneo Island and males have long and bulbous noses that droop down over their mouths. The Bornean White-bearded Gibbon which is endemic to Central Kalimantan. They have dark brown hair with white eyebrows and cheeks. They also have slivery Lutungs and long tailed Macaques, pig tailed Macaques all of which are various monkeys. They have spiders and snakes etc etc.

 Orangutans are the largest arboreal mammal in the world. They have red wiry hair and the male is 8 times stronger than a man and the female 4 times stronger. The female is the slowest breeding mammal only giving berth every 5-8 years. The gestation period is the same as humans – 9 months. Females give berth in a nest and for the first two years of its life the infant is totally dependent on the mother. An infant will suckle to the age of 5 and from the age of 3 the infant will try its mother’s food and may start to forage on its own. Adolescence begins between the ages of 5-8 and they will then start to become more independent making and sleeping in their own nests and foraging for their own food.

From 15-20 years male orangutans start to develop cheek pads and bulk out. Adult males can weigh more than 120kg while adult females weigh around 50kg. They can live well into their forties.  

 At about 2.00pm we got off the boat and walked through the jungle to a feeding station which was a platform. Whilst they put out food it is not their only food and it is just a supplement really. The walk was about a kilometre and there was some seating. All was quiet and there was no sign of an orangutan. The ranger made a whoop type noise every now and then and then suddenly a large alpha male appeared and climbed up some trees behind the feeding station as if to view what was going on around him and he was also watching us. The rangers came and put out some food – bananas, sugar cane or something like that and the male made a range of noises which it was explained was to warn other males away.

 The male then made his way to the feeding station and began to feed. Over the next hour or so many females came to feed bringing their young. The young were playful and played in the trees and many held on to their mother. They seemed subservient to the male and would come and get some food and then retreat back into the trees. It was lovely to see them and they are magnificent creatures.

 After an hour or so we walked back to the boat and motored on and stopped to see a number of Probiscis monkeys up a trees which was fascinating and some of the crew made their noises. We then went on to another village where the guys went ashore. They apparently saw a viper snake in a tree, a tarantula, a huntsmen (both spiders) and various stick insects. They saw birds in the trees curled up in balls asleep- yellow, purple, red and white. I did not feel well enough to go so stayed on board and they put up my bed which was a mattress with a mosquito net around it. I climbed in and tried to rest. They came back and had supper and then their beds were out up.

 I had a bit of a restless night and there was rain most of the night with lightning and thunder. However, we were warm and dry. I hope I will feel better tomorrow. 

The picture of the day is of a male orangutan at the feeding station.