THE MIGHTY MAHAKAM RIVER- East Kalimantan, Indonesia PART 1

.....previously in Kalimantan....

The undisputed highlight of our trip to Kalimantan was the 3 weeks where we undertook an incredible trip up and down the Mahakam River- one of the longest rivers in Kalimantan. For travellers, the river is an easy and relatively cheap way to experience a little bit of what life must have been like here many years ago, with public ferries (kapal biasa) plying the waters every day, and stopping in at most villages, big and small. Many dayak (original inhabitants of Borneo) people reside along the river, and it is one of the few places to see some of their culture.

After thoroughly checking out which boat went where at the harbour in Samarinda, we decided on the easiest option of a public ferry boat upriver to the end of the line to a small village called Long Bangun. We were extremely lucky that the boats to the far reaches of the river had only begun with the monsoon weather about a week before. Visiting communities further upriver from Long Bangun is possible, but as there is no access by public ferry, prices for chartering small motorised canoes are high.

Ferry boats in Samarinda port

We turned up at 6.00 am, were shown to the spacious, organized and rain-proof sleeping quarters, with fans, mattresses, pillows, and windows that opened (always a bonus in Indonesia!) by the shyly friendly crew. A look around took in the large kitchen (complete with food bubbling on the stove, a fridge with cold drinks, snacks, drinking water, and table and stools), clean toilets, and a large, open downstairs area for people on shorter journeys to sit or lie. We settled in for a long wait as people and their possessions boarded, and were very surprised when the boat began to pull out at the actual departure time of 7am!

Lower deck

Upper deck

Kitchen

Toilet/bathroom

The journey could not have been more different to our preceding ones in Kalimantan. We knew we had two days and two nights aboard, so we settled in, found a great place to sit up the front of the boat, made friends with the lovely crew, ate rice soup, and slept when we were tired in our extremely comfortable beds.

Captain

Richard amusing himself

Contemplative Rich

Our sleeping space

Sal on poop deck

For the first  two days, the scenery was a mixture of industry (first huge coal barges up and down along side us, and then logging tug boats towing vast rafts of hundreds of logs) and towns filled with precarious stilt house over the river, women washing clothes, kids playing in the river, and mosques wailing in the background. We loved sitting up the front and watching all this life and activity.

Coal barge

Logging boats

Scenery out of Samarinda

Life on the river

Goods waiting to board

But when we woke up after the second night, we found we had mostly left the industry behind, and had entered a narrower part of the river, where the forests and mangroves came down to the river side, the captain had to negotiate rapids in the river, giant limestone cliffs filled with graves loomed over us, and the villages became smaller and more rustic. This remarkable part of the Mahakam is only accessed by boat, and it was what we had come to see.

Forested river banks

Mahakam River scenery

Dramatic sky over river

Typical river dwelling

Sunset from back deck

Misty morning

River life

Canoes on the river

Giant cliffs

Having read a bit about this river trip on travel forums, it appeared to be the number one attraction that brought tourists to Kalimantan, and we were expecting a much more touristy experience than what we encountered. Apart from the crew not sure what to make of us, the passing boats and people on the banks of the river stared at us with the wonder we are now used to, and many of our fellow passengers approached us to see how much info they could pump out of us with our limited Indonesian.

• SIDE NOTE- The top 10 questions asked of us by most Indonesians we have just met (in order):

• 1.       Where are you from?
• 2.       Where are you going?
• 3.       Do you speak Indonesian?
• 4.       How old are you?
• 5.       Is that your husband/wife?
• 6.       Do you have children?
• 7.       How long have you been married? (This is in confusion to us not having any kids)
• 8.       What is your name?
• 9.       What is your religion? 
• 10.  What you doing in Indonesia?

....the next part of our Mahakam River adventure, Part 2......