Our final proper adventure of the trip was to North Sumatra, back in Indonesia. You might think we planned this trip a bit oddly, since we already left Indonesia and then came back, but due to the weirdness of international flights it had to be that way. After a brief bit of time travel (we landed in Medan airport 20 minutes before we left, one of a select few flights in the world where that happens), we jumped in a car and headed to Bukit Luwang.
Sadly the time travel didn’t really help in the long run, as we soon discovered it was a 4 hour drive to our destination. Why have we journeyed to an area this remote? (I don’t hear you ask)
Orangutans.
North Sumatra is one of only two areas in the world they live. Andrew had got it in his head during a low point on a night-shift that we had to go and see Orangutans. So there we were, 4 hours later in Bukit Lawang.
Our driver stopped the car in the middle of the road, which was slightly confusing for us. Until we realised we were now meant to jump on the back of some scooters (full backpacks on) to be scootered another 10 minutes to get nearer our accomodation. It turned out “nearer” was in fact where the road stopped, and gave way to a narrow concrete boardwalk just outside the jungle. Our guesthouse was another ten minute walk along it.
We made it to our room in the jungle, after seeing some pretty lovely jungle/river views along the way, and turned in for an early night in preparation for our final adventure – a two day jungle trek.
We met our guide in the morning and headed on in to the jungle. He told us usually there’d be a group of 6, but today it was just us two and him. He seemed emboldened by only having two young and “fit” people with him, and so took us on a route through the jungle that made the Tongariro Crossing look like a walk in the park (which, I guess it technically is).
We were well rewarded for our efforts. We’d barely made it ten minutes into the national park before seeing our first Orangutan.
After getting a bit closer, our guide realised it was a young one, around 6 – which is around the time they separate from their mother. Who it just turns out happened to be around the corner, carrying her new two-week old with her. Apparently they never look after two young at once ‘fulltime’, so our guide thought the 6 year old had just come back to visit her for the day.
After a bit of posing for the camera the mother got a bit annoyed that we were interrupting family reunion time. So she stamped her authority by jumping out of the tree and advancing aggressively. We were more than eager to oblige with her wishes.
Walking a bit further into the forest we noticed a fairly loud hooting sound. Gibbons, our guide informed us. We had stumbled underneath some white handed gibbons in the branches above.
After leaving the Gibbons to their hollering, we walked round the corner directly into a Thomas Leaf Monkey who had decided to come down to the ground.
Clambering over several tree trunks led us to another Orangutan hanging in the branches with her young, the locals have nicknamed her Jackie.
Jackie started life as an illegal pet, before she was rescued by the government and rehabilitated back into the wild, but it has still left her feeling a bit more comfortable than usual with humans. This explains why Jackie decided to get down from her tree to say hello and a mess around, for a really spectacular 10 minutes. We were a bit tentative at first, given our last experience, but she was completely relaxed.
About 3 seconds after this photo things took a turn. Another guide and two tourists walked into the clearing, and Jackie was done with playtime. She made herself big and started chasing one of the unlucky tourists that had just walked in. We all got out of there sharpish, but it was a stark reminder of how quickly things can turn with wild animals, and that they need the proper respect.
To decrease the tension, our guide made a quick stop to construct Andrew a jungle hat, so that he could look like King Julian.
Essentially most of the rest of the day boils down to – we walked up & down steep hills in the jungle and then saw a cool animal. So we’ll put you out of your misery and just list what else we saw.
Plus a host of Long-Tailed Macaque – our monkey nemesis’ from Ubud.
Thankfully they didn’t cause too much trouble this time.
After of all of that fun, we finished off the day with a punishing near-vertical descent to our campsite. After literally absailing down a vine rope into camp (we wish that was exaggeration), we settled in for the evening and jumped in the freezing cold river for a makeshift ice bath for our tired legs.
Following a delicious dinner, the heavens opened up for the evenings entertainment – a thunderstorm. We played a few rounds of Cambio (which Andrew won), found a massive spider and a frog, then had a well deserved sleep.
The next morning awoke to find the biggest monitor lizard we’d ever seen having a swim in the river next to our camp.
We had breakfast watching him, and then went upriver to visit a waterfall, as well as to practice some of the rope climbing we’d observed the day before.
We finished off our time at camp with a fruit platter, and then decided to take the tube home.
That night we had a communal dinner in our accommodation. It turns out the commune was just us two again. Clearly no one wants to be friends with us anymore. We assume it’s because after 4 months the stench is probably catching up with us.
We loved our time in Bukit Lawang, and it was an amazing adventure to end the trip with. The tube down the river marked the point in the trip at which every part of the journey would be towards home. Although we have a few days left before our flight back to the UK, each day is mostly travel. We will post one final blog just before we set off though!
There & Back Again 