UJUNG KULON JAVAN RHINO TOUR

 

Duration : 7 - 10 Days
Star - Finish : Carita - Jakarta
Price : Start from US$3500,- per person 2 Pax and US$2.750,- per person 4 Pax

 

Tour Itineray A

DAY 01 : JAKARTA -  UJUNG KULON

Explore the rugged forest of Ujong Kulon NP in Java and become some of the first people ever to specifically look for the critically endangered Javan Rhino

Introduction : We are specialists in tailoring wildlife watching all over the world and we have a great range of wildlife tours which focus on some of the world’s rarest wildlife. These trips are specialist and are run more like expeditions than your conventional wildlife holiday. This particular trip heads to the far western tip of Java, Indonesia and the forested park of Ujong Kulon. This is the last home of the critically endangered Javan Rhino, which is the rarest large mammal anywhere in the world.

The park is very dense and we will hike from the entrance to a little known river deep inside the park. The rhinos are mostly seen in this river and so most of the wildlife activities will be canoeing silently up and down this river in the early morning and late evening. We head into the park with a team of porters and spend the entire time camping in the forest. Throughout the trip you will be guided by local park rangers and a zoologist guide (where available), and people with an intimate knowledge of the wildlife and habitats you will be visiting. This is a ground breaking tour that is unique in the world, we have negotiated special rates for the scientific permits that are needed to access the core area of the forest. For anyone who wants a chance of seeing this incredibly rare species you have to get in touch with us and we can provide more information about our group tour.

Price Includes : Everything mentioned in the itinerary is included. Including three meals per day (breakfast, lunch and dinner) where mentioned (all cooked in our camp in the forest). There will be boiled or bottled water available for each guest each day. We have our own private air conditioned vehicles with an excellent driver for all transfers and porters to carry our food, camping equipment and personal baggage to and from the campsite and entrance to the park. Where possible we use two brilliant guides; first a professional zoologist (when available) who will escort you on all your excursions and we also have very knowledgeable local rangers who have many years of experience working and guiding in Ujong Kulon National Park. Your zoologist or naturalist escort is an expert in wildlife biology and behaviour and will be able to help you identify the different species as well as interpret you what behaviours you are seeing. The local rangers have spent years searching out the best wildlife watching locations and have an unrivalled knowledge where we are going to visit in order to maximise our chances of seeing Javan Rhinos. We also include all park entrance fees and the special Simaksi permit needed to enter the core area of the park. We include more time spent in the field searching for wildlife per day than any other tour operator around. A comprehensive species list (which states the relative chances of seeing animals based on past tours) is included in the pre-departure pack. There is also a reference book library available for your use throughout the trip as well as some documentaries on the wildlife that you are likely to see which are available to watch throughout the tour (subject to availability of a zoologist guide).

Seasons : We focus this trip during the dry season (June – Septembert) each year as this is when the rhinos spend more time around the river and any of their mud wallows are easier to find and more commonly used. The weather at this time of year will be hot and humid, with temperatures around 22-32oC in the day and night. There should be little rainfall at this time of year, however being a rainforest there is always the chance of rain at any time of year.

Why Choose this Tour:

• All of our wildlife watching holidays are guided by an experienced zoologist or naturalist as well as local rangers, drivers and also scientists or researchers where possible, this not only gives you numerous sets of trained eyes to find the animals but also gives you the chance to understand the behaviours and habits of the wildlife you’re watching.

• We can also offer further wildlife watching activities if they present themselves whilst on the trip. For example our local guides keep their ears to the ground and have many contacts and if and when a new location of animal is known and reliably seen we can head there to experience it. The main wildlife activities on this trip will be early morning and evening canoe trips up and down a commonly used river by rhinos. We will also have a hide where we can set this up nearby a mud wallow or along a trail and see if a rhino comes by.

• Other than a basic forest guest house on the final day of the trip as we have left the forest and where you can shower and freshen up before the journey back to the city of Jakarta; we will be camping throughout the rest of the trip.

• Spend as much time as you wish to looking for Javan rhinos throughout the day, with special focus in the early morning and late afternoon as these are the peak activity periods for Javan rhinos. • All the above reasons give this, our expedition for Javan Rhinos a great success rate. We have an unrivalled network of experts and local guides at Ujung Kulon so that we can try and find and observe animals such as the Javan Rhinos and other endemics on the island as well as many more species throughout the rest of the Ujung Kulono. Please inform us if you wish to receive more information about any of these locations and booking a safari. • Unlike many tour operators we are willing to run this tour for a single person (on request). Fitness Level: Whilst the long hike to and from the campsite in the forest will be with porters who will carry the bulk of our food, camping equipment and personal baggage and therefore is not overly strenuous; the temperature and humidity can make hiking hard for people who are not used to walking in the heat. The forest is very thick and the trails are poor or non-existent. We also require some canoeing, which is done at a slow and steady pace along a still and calm river. All in all we would require a reasonable level of fitness but it is not an overly demanding trip. Equipment: When you book onto the tour we will send you a comprehensive pre-departure pack which will include a full packing list of recommended equipment; the equipment list will vary from tour to tour and from location to location so it is best to contact us or wait until you receive the pre-departure pack after booking.

Tour Itinerary

DAY 01:  Jakarta / Carita / Ujong Kulon National Park

we reccomended you can stay overnight in area one day before the trip) Picked you up at 5am from Jakarta city than drive take approxe6 hours to the western tip of the island of Java and the forest park of Ujong Kulon National Park. arrive than from here we will get into a boat along the coast to the park’s gateway. arrive than We will hike south towards Karang Ranjang, searching for signs of the rhinos along the way, we will have the camp close but not too close to where we focus most of our efforts. Todays hike could be around 5 hours long, on arrival at the camp we will set up and settle in with some dinner. If the light is still good and people still have some energy we can take a little walk around. However we recommend that we are up and ready for the morning canoe along the Cikeusik River at dawn (or pre-dawn) so a good nights rest is a good idea tonight. (Lunch will be served en route to the park and then dinner will be prepared by the camp staff).

DAY 02-08:   Ujong Kulon National Park

For the next 7 full days we will explore the forest as we search for the Javan rhino, we will rise early each morning as we aim to find a rhino as they use the river to bath and browse on the semi aquatic vegetation. In the past this has been one of the most fruitful ways to find and see the rhino. So by using a couple of canoes we will silently paddle up and down stretches of the Cikuesik River (and possibly other rivers nearby) for a while in the hope that we see one. We will come back to the camp for breakfast and then plan the next course of action, we will probably look to cruise the rivers at dawn and dusk and also have the opportunity to set up hides overlooking some of the wallows that the rhinos like to use. This is an option for anyone wishing to do this and of course we can hike around and try and find fresh evidence of the rhinos as they move through the forest. As mentioned this is just an overview of what is possible and the exact day by day plan will change and be discussed and dictated by the rhino’s movements. Alongside the rhinos there are many other species in the park, like all tropical forests there are many species of birds, reptiles and amphibians. Mammal wise there are Javan gibbons and ebony lutungs (both endemic to Java) in the trees, various squirrels around, Javan small-toothed palm civets, bantengs and even leopards in the park. However the leopards have a near mythical status here and the rhinos are seen a lot more often. It is also worth keeping an eye out in the rivers and sea as there are salt-water crocodiles here and so be careful when near the river banks and keep your hands and feet inside the canoe at all times. We will return to the camp for our meals and of course our tents for each night. We estimate that hiking per day will be around 2-3 hours, however some days maybe longer (~6 hours) and others much shorter. (All of your meals will be prepared and eaten at the camp in between our excursions into the forest.)

DAY 09:  Handeleum – Today’s plan is very flexible, it all depends on where we have been camping, we may head straight from the camp back to Laban and catch the speed boat back to Carita from there, or we may get a boat to Handeleum Island. It all depends on how things have gone and what the rhino movements have dictated. If we do go to Handeleum we will take a boat for around 2 hours and on arrival there we could have the chance to canoe the Cigenter River. This was widely regarded as the best place to see Javan rhinos for many years, however many tourists came here (because of its proximity to the entry gate) and seemingly disturbed the rhinos that used to use this river a lot. Since then the sightings here have been very low, but if we are here we will give it a go as you never know. Breakfast will be served in the camp, lunch en route and dinner at the guest house). DAY 10: Ujung Kulon - Jakarta - Return back to Jakarta in the day from Ujung Kulon and you willl be arrived in Jakarta in the evening, we recommend you can spned overnight in Jakarta hotel before return flights home for tomorrow. End the trip.  ,

The Package includes :
- Picked up/drop off from and to Jakarta
- 9 night at Ujung Kulon by land camping (tents)
- Wooden Boat - private charter boat.
- Guide tour Speaking English.
- Entry permit
- Full board meal (Breakfast, lunch and dinner)
- Mineral water, tea, cofee, fruits, juice soft drink and snack.
- Camping equipment.

The Package excludes :
- Alcohol beverage
- Personal expenses (Laundry, phone call etc)
- Tips & gratuities

What you have to bring : Light clothes like T-shirts One small backpack and comfortable boots for jungle treks (additional sandals for for explorer & observation treks) light and warm socks, raincoat, plastic or waterproof bag for your personal belongings, hut, sunglasses, sun lotion, insect repellent, toilet paper, camera, mobilphone and cards, swimming suit and towel ersonal medical kit and recommended medicine like anti diarrhea medicine, dehydration salt, aspirin and antibiotic

Tips for visitors : To avoid the adverse effect of severe heat, smear uncovered skin with sunblock and to protect your health, use antimosquito cream while traversing the forest. Wear muted-color garments while watching animals in their habitat or grazing locations. For safety's sake during a trip, every group of tourists is advised to use the services of a guide. Don't disturb or feed wild animals in the national park, especially long-tailed macaques on Peucang island, which look so tame. Don't throw rubbish in the park, but collect and take it back to the guest house or outside the park. Obey all regulations effective in the national park and also the local customs.