Location: Kumai River, Borneo, Indonesia
Breakfast was served at 6:30 this morning so we could be picked up by four riverboats to start our voyage to the orangutan reserve. At 8 o’clock sharp, we departed and started our 4/4.5 hour ride down the river. Our boat ride provided tea and biscuits before lunch as we began winding through the river, looking for crocodiles, monkeys, and, of course, orangutans. The water changed from a murky brown to a clear dark brown. The cloudy, murky water was unsettled water from the coal mining, but as we turned off the main river, the color became clear. By lunchtime, we made it to our first stop. We had an amazing lunch and ventured to the orangutan feeding station. On our way, we came across the old king of the jungle. He recently lost the fight to his son. He suffers from gashes on his forehead, and we were told he had a broken leg. The feeding station was filled with extremely friendly orangutans who often took our water bottles to drink themselves. After watching them eat bananas, drink milk, and swing from tree to tree effortlessly, we made our way down the river to our sleeping spot. We all rafted and had dinner on the same boat as the rain started. We slept on mattresses in our mosquito nets and fell asleep to the sounds of the local rainforest (the second most biodiverse place in the world next to the Amazon). An unforgettable way to spend our day in Borneo.