Jungles of Gaya to bright lights of Labuan

After stopping for a few supplies, and all the luxuries of the Sutra Harbor marina (shhh, we sneaked in for a swim) we headed out to Gaya where despite the best attempts by the staff at the Police Beach resort to turn us away due to dangers in the jungle we managed to find the elusive & exclusive canopy walk.

We also found the start of the national parks walk which is what we were really looking for. Some of the wildlife was trickier to spot then others however we weren’t attacked by bearded pigs and green vipers which is what the resort management lead us to believe.

Our next stop saw Amanda kicking a sharp stick and by the time we got to Snake Island she was pretty well boat bound. The fishermen were asking for water which made a nice change from beer.

I did manage to convince A to take Sloop for a walk while Maria learnt the fine art of Oyster collection. Don’t step on the puffer fish.

After  a big 4 mile day we anchored off  Tiga where a survivor series was filmed and you can swim in the mud pools. With more than enough entertainment provided by the locals, there was little need for me to get covered in the sticky mud and walk 2.5km back through the steamy jungle!

At the north end of Labuan it’s possible to walk to the bird park and one of Labuan’s big attractions the chimney. I’m still mystified as to why it’s such a big hit as nobody knows what it was built for, by whom or when exactly? Maybe that’s it.

After some duty free shopping and more supplies we headed over the  Klais river in search of the rumored Proboscis Monkeys and hornbills.

Thirsty in Dinigat

With no information on the area except the vague arm pointing from some people in the drunk town we flipped a coin and deiced to head north. The chart showed a long finger that looked to be a good anchorage. There we found two ladies fishing one of which spoke English. Once they had finished inquiring if we had come for the treasure she said that the owner of the land (Peter) could guide us to a lake and cave nearby the next day. The whole family and a puppy turned up in the rain with breakfast the following morning and once that was over with we set off. When inquiring about Peter it transpired he was long dead and was guiding us in spirit. That’s not Tanduay Robins drinking with a sprite chaser at 10 in the morning.

The whole area is Lava rock… very sharp Pontus. It made for great exploring with caves everywhere some we could drive the dingy in and others we had to swim in. Any with dirt in them appeared to have been excavated. Fishermen in the area told it was foreigners looking for the treasure.

With so many good spots to explore our travel time each day was not more than a couple of hours. Plenty of time for monkeying around.

After 3 days we found a pond that we could just squeeze into amongst lots of small rocky islands to anchor in. The chart showed us well onto the land.

Most of the islets had small huts on them where the fishermen stay.

This so far has been my favorite anchorage in the Philippines. There were heaps of places to explore. We only allowed a week for the area and have decided to come back next year to spend more time here. That’s the only thing that made me feel good about lifting the anchor to head back to Leyte… and the need for a Red Horse.

Why was there no beer in Dinigat?

In 1965 Ruben Ecleo founded the Philippine Benevolent Missionaries Assoc (PBMA) on Dinigat Island. After his death in the 80's his son, Ruben Jnr who followers believe is the reincarnation of Jesus Christ continued leading the Assoc receiving an estimated $35m in entrance fees from the million or so followers.

In 2002 Ruben Jnr was accused by Police of murdering his wife placing the body in a bag and throwing it from a cliff in Cebu. He fled Cebu to hide out in Dinigat. When Police attempted to arrest him for questioning his house was surrounded by PBMA followers ending in a shoot out which killed 17 before he gave himself up.

Apparently the PBMA has healing powers. Also it's believed Jesus Christ was baptised in the lake we visited. Try listening to that with a straight face!

Still to this day the island is largely governed by the movement resulting in alcohol and cigarette restrictions. We did however get to taste some underground local palm spirits - strong stuff!

Rinjani the Final Push

After a ½ nights sleep in the confines of an Indonesian sized sleeping bag, I awoke at 2.30am to Full wanting me up and Amanda wanting my sleeping bag and bedroll. One bag wasn’t cutting the mustard. Being unable to get up she had become the 40% of our party who was not going to make the final assent. After a coffee we got underway with torches in frozen fingers. Just as well it was dark.


In my mind I was looking for excuses to turn back. Maybe it was too windy or there was too much cloud. It was windy but not too windy and as the cloud dispersed and the summit came into view I accepted my fate. I would make it eventually.



After a lot of sheltering behind rocks and a packet of biscuits (the final 300 meters taking 1 hour to scramble up) the summit was mine.




The trip back to camp took 1/6 of the time and after some breakfast we headed off.


At one of our rest stops Amanda headed off into the bushes for a toilet break only to come skidding out 5 mins latter on her backside, pants still around ankles. Apparently a monkey heard her taking the plastic off the toilet roll and thought she had biscuits. He decided maybe he could fight her for them as she looked about his size in her position.


Walking down hill also had its problems with toes jammed into the front of shoes (for those who had shoes). Amanda having no pack had galloped off like a pony on the home straight at the cost of a lot of black toenails. Today Full showed us magic mushrooms that could be purchased at most restaurants around the area in the form of omelette’s or a shake. Finally we approached civilization again with the locals giving us funny looks probably due to our smell. At least Sloop was glad to see us.

Sea to Sky Day 2

The day started with a 6am rise which suited me fine as it was to cold to sleep, breakfast and on the track by 7am. Lim was left behind to pack up the tents, do dish’s etc but somehow passed us after only an hour. Full kindly pointed out to us this evenings camp site… way off in the distance on the opposite rim.



Today’s stories were about the tourists who had died on the mountain in the 6 years our guide had been taking people. A real confidence booster for Amanda. The up shot of it was that if you fall it is better to die than to break a leg as a dead person only requires 2 porters to carry them out where a injured person needs 6. Arriving on flat ground by the lake was a welcome relief.



From here it was only a 10min walk to a hot water fall. This was much needed as we were starting to get a bit stinky. Amanda took the bull by the horns and went in clothes and all.



After our swim we headed back to the lake for lunch and prepare for our 700m near vertical ascent to camp 2. Not long after starting a muscle in Amanda’s leg that was giving problems on day 1 flared up again and as we headed north the clouds closed in.



When the going got real tough, Full and I divided Amanda’s pack up for the 3-hour scramble up to the ridge. Apparently 3 French people have fallen to their death on this part in recent times – the trick is don’t look down. From here the walking became easier but it got really cold again.



Sighting camp was a welcome relief; most of us were unprepared for the cold using our sleeping bags to keep warm waiting for dinner. 40% of hikers intending to reach the summit don’t make it. That doesn’t surprise me, as the last 1,026m requires a 2.30am start with torches in temps of around 5 degrees. And after that you still have to walk 5hrs downhill back to civilization.

Sea to Sky

The morning after anchoring Teluk Nara I found myself at the Internet researching what turned out to be Mount Rinjani and before you could say Jack Rabbit we were leaving the next morning at 5am for a 2-day hike up the mountain. Once arriving at our departure point, Senaru things went even more down hill when the 2-day hike turned into 3 days and the summit, all 3726meters of it appeared on our itinerary.






Anyway being a good sport I saddled up. Amanda, myself, our porter, Lim and our guide, Full hit the trail, with poor old Lim carrying all our food, cooking gear, tents, sleeping bags, bed rolls, axes, water etc, etc, on a bamboo pole.




The day started off pleasant enough walking through the jungle lunching in the shade and taking in the wild life.




However things did not remain this way for long as we had to get from 600m to camp 1 at 2,641m by dark – 9kms uphill. Our porter, Lim disappeared into the clouds ahead as Full told us stories of a large ape that was rumoured to live in the forest eating humans after dark. Giddy up.

Lim who had set up our tents and had water on the boil for coffee or tea greeted us at camp 1. After spending 3 years of temps above 25 degrees the 15 was a shock to the system.

The shock however was lessened with our first view into the crater.

After watching other people’s tents blow away over dinner we were given the plan for tomorrow that basically was go down 641m, lunch by the lake and then climb up 700m. Not good.

Komodo to Lombok

With another forecast of nothing in particular we departed Komodo for Lombok all hands on deck.


One of our stops along our route, an anchorage given to us by Jay off Makani Kai was Satonda Island. We were surprised to see a tourist boat as we pulled in and signs indicating a walk on shore. The following morning found us walking around a crater of an old flooded volcano.

The ranger who looks after the area and relives you of 10,000 rupiah per person also recommended the snorkeling here. $1.40. His offsider is the only person in Indo who we have ever seen pick up rubbish. Lets hope it’s a catchy habit.

Our final anchorage of the north side of Lombok made me nervous as in the distance rose a very large hill. Out of the corner of my eye I could see Amanda’s hungry gaze.

Ambon in the rain

Our trip to Ambon was fairly uneventful, catching no fish again but managing to hook up a floating fishing platform in the dark.
We were greeted by friendly locals, who pointed us in the right direction.


The night of our arrival was a cultural performance put on for the rally boats where cups of tea were served in typical Muslim tradition. My favourite.


We decided that despite the wet season and continuous rain we better check out the sites. The guys off Finale and Aria decided to also come along so we contracted the services of a guide and charted a mini van.
Apparently the beach was the first stop.


We then traveled to the hot springs. After sending in Bruce as our Guinea Pig, the braver ones of our party went in.


By this stage an appetite had formed, so we were taken to the port for lunch before going to see the sacred Eels.


After stopping at the markets for some partridge eggs and local produce, we jump started the van in peak hour traffic.



We finished our day with the war memorial . Thanks Abha and Angel for a fantastic tour of Ambon!


Our last evening in Ambon was marked (permanently) by a scuffle. Thyme and the wharf had a fight with the wharf coming off second best. Let's get out of here and find some sunshine!

Onwards and Upwards

As expected the idea to climb the Volcano was formed. The plan was to contract the services of a guide and head out at 6.00am. Even the local roosters were not up at that time.
Unfortunately our guide was a no show so we charted an up market vessel to cross the channel.


The track was easy to find and a painful 1.5hrs later we were walking through the steam across the hot rocks at the top. Lucky I brought back up thongs.

We meet up with some local students at the top who informed us the last big eruption was in 1988.
After a picnic on the crater rim it was time to start the journey back down.

My thongs only just made it to the bottom, as opposed the Amanda who did half the trip on her bottom.

Our charter boat turned up and after some technical difficulties in the harbour that could not be repaired by diving over the side we transferred to another boat for the remaining part of the trip

With a giant appetite plans were made to have dinner at a locals house with Bruce and Laurie off the boat Aria. Our host kindly arranged transport and we raced in convey up the hill.

After some snorkeling on the reef where the lava had flowed into the sea it was time to pack up and deliver Judith, our friend and crew member to the bright lights of Ambon 140 miles NW for her flight back to Darwin.