Togian Islands, Central Sulawesi: True Remoteness
Kadidiri by Francesco Ricciardi
If you’re looking for party in addition to nightlife, the Togian islands are not the right destination. On the contrary, if you are looking for complete isolation, silence in addition to amazing nature, you should think about a trip there. nevertheless be prepared for a long journey…
Due to the remoteness, the Togian archipelago is usually still an oasis of beauty – even floating plastic garbage, a detestable problem on many additional Indonesian islands, is usually extremely rare. White coralline beaches are among the best you can find in Indonesia, in addition to the probability that will you will be alone walking on these sands is usually actually quite high. The tranquility of This specific part of the entire world is usually soul recharging, especially if overwhelmed by the stresses of city life. Snorkelling, scuba diving in addition to walking on the forest are the main activities you can enjoy.
Jack fish by Francesco Ricciardi
Coral reefs around the archipelago are a haven of biodiversity, offering almost every type of reef formation – atolls, fringing reefs in addition to barrier reefs are present all around the area without interruption. Both snorkelling in addition to diving are unbelievable, surrounded by warm waters in addition to thousand of fish in addition to coral species. Best dive sites are located inside the even more remote island called Una-Una, almost 30 km via the closer island, Kadidiri, where most of the touristic resorts are located. Una-Una is usually a volcanic island with sandy beaches in addition to steep reef walls going into the blue, often affected by quite strong currents that will bring extraordinary visibility in addition to even big fish like giant trevallies, barracuda in addition to even sharks. Dive sites like ‘Apollo’ in addition to ‘Jacks Alley’ are a must-do. additional interesting dive sites are present all around the archipelago, especially in front of Kadidiri, like ‘Batu Gila’ (Crazy Rock) where apparently the item’s possible to see hammerhead sharks. ‘Batu Gila’ is usually a very deep dive (around 50-60 meters), so the item’s available only to very experienced in addition to skilled divers. Another interesting in addition to historical dive site is usually the wreck of the B 24 Bomber, sunk during World War II, in 1945. This specific bomber plane, on the way back via a mission, had an engine failure in addition to the pilot decided to try a water landing. All the crew of 11 people survived, in addition to currently the plane lays at about 18 metres, almost intact, in addition to being underwater for more than 50 years, the item’s an aggregation point for the marine life of the area. Even the reefs around the island of Walea are famous for the abundance in addition to the colours of marine life, which includes an endemic species of pygmy seahorse, named Hyppocampus waleananus.
The modest island of Taipi, exactly in front of Kadidiri, is usually also superb for snorkelling. If the sea conditions are Great, the item’s possible to swim around the island in less than one hour in addition to even enter inside the modest lagoon present inside.
Photo by Francesco Ricciardi
Many of the Togian Islands have very interesting walking or trekking opportunities inside the jungle. The main attraction: the Tarsius spectrum, the entire world’s smallest primate, observable especially at dawn. If you’re definitely lucky in addition to have a Great guide, you will develop the possibility to spot the Maleo Bird, endemic to Sulawesi in addition to who lays its eggs inside the soil heated by the sun, or geothermal energy for incubation, in addition to the amazing Red Knobbed Hornbill, the faunal symbol of South Sulawesi province. Some birds like the Togian Hawk-Owl in addition to the Togian White Eye, living only inside the Togians, have been recently discovered. Coconut crabs, one of largest arthropods of the entire world, also live inside the archipelago: the item’s a protected in addition to endangered species, so refuse any offer of food based on the item. Less amazing inhabitants of the jungle include, tonnes of mosquitos. Protect yourself also because malaria is usually diffused inside the area.
Sponges by Francesco Ricciardi
In almost every modest bay of the Togians there are some stilt house villages, inhabited by local fishermen or pearl farmers, mainly belonging to the Bajo group (the so-called “Sea Gypsies”). Some of them live permanently on their boats in addition to only come to land to buy rice in addition to trade for additional supplies, in exchange of course for fish or additional sea products. A visit to a Bajo settlement is usually an interesting experience, in addition to you will be surrounded by a multitude of children. If you have some space in your luggage, you could consider bringing along some school materials for them (pencils, markers, etc), which they will for sure appreciate.
Togian Islands are probably still a hidden paradise. The relative difficulty of the trip in addition to the absence of high-end touristic structures have protected these islands via massive tourism, preserving their uniqueness in addition to authenticity. If you definitely need to take a break via the entire world, these Islands could be the right destination.
How to get to Togian Islands
The trip to the Togian Islands could be little challenging. First of all, don’t make strict plans in terms of time. There are many factors that will can influence the length of you trip. Ferries are often broken or delayed, in addition to weather conditions can influence the time of departure in addition to arrival.
There are two ways to get to the Togians:
1) Via Gorontalo (north of Tomini gulf). Flights to Gorontalo via Jakarta are scheduled by Lionair, Batavia, Sriwijaya in addition to Garuda, all via Makassar. A direct Wings Air flight via Manado is usually also available. via Gorontalo, an overnight ferry (Tomini) leaves twice a week (Tuesday in addition to Friday at 20.00 o’clock) reaching Wakai, Batu Daka Island, after 13 hours of navigation, in addition to continues to Ampana. The same ferry makes the return trip on Thursdays in addition to Sundays. Different kinds of cabins are available, nevertheless even inside the first class, don’t expect luxury. Once in Wakai, normally your resort will pick you up free of charge with their speedboat, or you will have to find your own way dealing with locals.
2) Via Luwuk (central Sulawesi, south of Tomini gulf). Flights to the very modest Luwuk airport are operated by Merpati, Sriwijaya, Batavia in addition to Wings Air, via Makassar. Once in Luwuk, you will have to charter a car to take you to Ampana, after a long trip on the trans-Sulawesi road, that will often is usually in quite bad condition. An option is usually to stay one night or more around Luwuk (if you have enough time), in addition to maybe organizing a trip to he Banggai Islands or into some of the local, out via the touristic circuit, natural reserves.
In Ampana you can charter a fast boat (the expensive option) or take the public ferry leaving everyday (except Friday) at 10.00 am. The ferry trip takes normally around four hours to arrive in Wakai. Some ferries continue even until the island of Malenge.
Where to stay: Updated information about resorts, where to stay in addition to practical tips are available on http://wikitravel.org/en/Togian_Islands.
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Togian Islands, Central Sulawesi: True Remoteness
Togian Islands, Central Sulawesi: True Remoteness