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Thursday, March 15, 2018

Snorkeling in Raja Ampat Islands

Uninhabited island of Raja Ampat
Snorkeling in Uninhabited Islands
I often organize snorkeling tours to Raja Ampat islands. Visitors prefer  remote beaches and uninhabited islands to famous sites around Dampier strait. Here is the picture of Isanak beach which is one of the snorkeling spots that is rich of marine life. It takes approximately two hours ride by motorized boat to reach the island. Visitors can enjoy swimming, sunbathing, snorkeling and freediving as well as exploring the plants and animals in little forest of the uninhabited island. During the tour, I will bring tents, drinking water and food materials so that visitors will be able to spend one or two nights in the island before going further to a nearby village or continue hopping to another uninhabited island of Raja Ampat.

Jungle Tours for watching Birds of Paradise
Diagonal sweetlips in Raja Ampat waters
I can organize tour into the forest of Waigeo island for visitors to enjoy birdwatching. Early in the mornings, male Red Bird of Paradise dance in trees to seduce their female birds. If the female birds are impressed with the courtship dance of the male birds of paradise, they will mate. It is a good way to start a day. Birds of paradise have got more than one sex partners.
To enjoy watching the paradise birds, visitors need to bring their own binoculars, telephoto camera or spotting scope. We can spend one more night in the forest.

Village Tour and Birding Tours 
There is a village that is not far from the lek of birds of paradise. After watching the birds, we can go to the village to take a shower, meet local people and have lunch. We could also do village tour to see and meet local people in their daily activities. Another night in the village will enable us to explore the forest at the back of the village. We can easily explore the forest because there is road. Birds that become our target are Papuan Hornbill, Sulphur Crested Cockatoo, Palm Cockatoo, Eclectus Parrot, Olive-backed Sunbird, Lowland Peltop, Pink-spotted Fruit Dove, Pinon Imperial Pigeon, and etc.

Island Hopping
We will continue our snorkeling Tour to another uninhabited island of Raja Ampat. Here, in addition to snorkeling, we can enjoy fishing. Local villagers can catch some fish aand we can grill these fresh fish for our lunch.  Reef fish such as Grouper, Damsel Fish, Anemonefish, and Striped Surgeonfish can be seen at the depths between 1 to 3 or even 5 meters. Sometimes hawksbill turtles and black-tip shark could be seen in the waters too. We can make a visit to a sand strip in the middle of the sea to take pictures of the blue ocean and its marine environment.

Fish Lagoon
More exploration of pristine nature of Raja Ampat will bring us to Fish Lagoon where will will enjoy the beauty of the islands that form the lagoon. A short hike to the top of the island will present us the magnificent view of the lagoon. One more night in the nearby village is a good way for us to interact with local villagers.

Getting to Raja Ampat
Raja Ampat is a regency in the western most region of West Papua province, Indonesia. As of today flights to this archipelago can be carried out to Sorong city. Here is how to get there:
  • Fly from your country to Jakarta (the capital of Indonesia)
  • After that take a domestic flight to Domine Eduard Osok (DEO) airport of Sorong city. There is direct flight served by Garuda - the Indonesian national flag carrier. Batik, Sriwijaya, Nam, and Lion Air
  • I will meet you at the airport or the hotel where you stay and organize your adventure tours to Raja Ampat
Getting to Raja Ampat can also be done from cities in Indonesia when you are already inside this country. For instance, if you are in Manado city, you can fly to Sorong city. If you are in Manokwari coty, you can take PELNI passenger shop to Sorong city. You could also fly to Sorong from Rendani airport of Manokwari.
Booking
I offer this tour to anybody who is interested in exploring the natural beauty of Raja Ampat islands. It is important to have several participants (3 to 5 or 6 people) to share the cost. Please, contact me (Charles Roring) by email: peace4wp@gmail.com or by whatsapp: +6281332245180.

Visiting Fish Lagoon in Raja Ampat
Snorkeling and Watching Birds of Paradise in Raja Ampat
Snorkeling and Hiking in Raja Ampat
Tour to Uninhabited Islands of Raja Ampat

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