Directions

Our latest entry always comes up first...

Click this link if you want to start at the beginning of our trip from
South Carolina (where we bought the boat) to Lake Ontario Click this link:

If you want to see the story of our 2 1/2 year project getting
Blowin' Bubbles ready for our life on board click here:
FIRST "REFIT" BLOG ENTRY - March 2011

If you want to start at the beginning of our trip:
START OF TRIP - July 2014
2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019

Tuesday, October 2, 2018

Komodo National Park (Rinca Island)


At the very west end of Flores Island is a thriving town called Labaun Bajo.  It was here that we picked up some much needed provisions.  It was also here we visited an awesome resort (Thanks Amy & David on S/V Starry Horizons).  The manager was most welcoming and we enjoyed a great lunch and a relaxing swim in their lovely pool.




 Everything in the three pictures above and soft drinks - $25 Canadian (including a $4 tip)..


 You know we have been out of the first world a long time when we got really excited over linen napkins....  They also use ONLY bamboo straws... How cool is that??



The next morning we made our way the short distance to The Komodo National Park on Rinca Island.  We anchored in about 45' and were surrounded by local tour boats all day and night...  It was loud and busy, but lots of fun.  These guys know how to handle their boats....



We arranged to make an early morning tour in the park and settled in for the night.  This morning at 6:30 we arrived on the island and we met by Mathues our young 61 year old ranger who does a minimum of 4 - 2 hour hikes every day for 10 days in a row before returning to his family in Flores for a well deserved 10 days off...




This was the first Indonesian "MUST SEE" on our list.  It did not disappoint.  There are some 1500 dragons in the park who are left to fend for themselves in their natural habitat eating water buffalo, deer, and an occasional wild bore or monkey.  There is not one single animal in captivity and the rangers are diligent with the thousands of guests each year to keep the ecosystem in balance.  That said, once in a while some tourist thinks they know better and get themselves eaten by a Komodo Dragon...  (Clearly, Darwin was NOT wrong)...





Here are a few of the other creatures that call Komodo National Park home....









Matheus took us on a 2 1/2 hour adventure where we saw an example of everything that lives in the park.  By smell he knew when we were near an area where dragons were feeding.  Less than half the size of a water buffalo, the dragons sneak up on  them (usually near a waterhole) and bite their leg.  With over 60 horrible bacteria in their mouths. Once bitten the water buffalo (or other critter on the dragons menu) quickly gets sepsis and within hours or days, dies.  The dragon follows his victim until it dies then enjoys the spoils of his labors...  Komodo dragons do not hunt together, but will consume a dead animal as a group leaving nothing but a skull and a few big bones....
Ok, it sounds a little gruesome, but I assure you, in this hostile environment I am amazed they ever get to eat...









 There is Blowin' Bubbles waiting for us to return....


Shelley posing for her mandatory "tourist" photos...  If you ever met her mother, these pictures make perfect sense...
 

After our hike we returned t o Blowin' Bubbles and made our way to our next adventure....  As we left the bay a small pod of dolphins played in our wake long enough for Shelley to get some fun pictures...




Yes, this guy is swimming on his back!
More soon....
Cheers!

2 comments: