Snorkeling in Sausapor of West Papua

reef fish in Tambrauw regency

Sausapor is a small town in the northern coast of West Papua. It can be reached by car or by passenger boat from Sorong town. A few weeks ago, I had the opportunity of snorkeling in the waters of Sausapor. The coral reef in this area is still in very good condition. I saw various species of damselfish, surgeon fish, and nudibranch. I used an underwater camera to shoot them. Here are some of them.
To encourage town dwellers of Sausapor to preserve their coral reef, I and some of the eco-tourism enthusiasts are now promoting it on the internet as snorkeling destination.

Coral reef in Sausapor town

In early August 2015, I successfully brought one tourist from Luxembourg to enjoy snorkeling in Sausapor waters. Although the number of foreign tourists is still small, I strongly believe that this will increase in the coming months.
Eco-tourism will only be successful if local people support the program. The main goal is to provide jobs to local people and at the same time preserve the rainforest and marine environment. It will take some time before the regency can be seen as a major tourist attraction in West Papua but with a hard works, this can be realized.

Where is Sausapor?
Look at the following map. Sausapor is a small town approximately 6 hours by passenger boat or 4 hours by 4WD car from Sorong city. It is the temporary capital of Tambrauw regency. The real capital of Tambrauw is Fef but it is being built at the moment. So, it is not finished yet.
If Raja Ampat is famous for its marine tourism, Tambrauw regency with its huge areas of mountains, rivers, valleys, and tropical rainforest has got a lot of potentials to be developed as an important destination for rainforest tourism.

Activities in rainforest tourism may include camping, trekking or hiking, mountain climbing, swimming in the river, white-water-rafting, insect and butterfly-watching, birdwatching, wildlife and forest tour as well as cultural interaction with local people. There are still other activities that are related to rainforest and the indigenous people.
Visitors who are interested in traveling to Sausapor can combine their snorkeling trip in several coral reef areas of the regency with rainforest trekking, camping and wildlife watching tour in at least 4 days/ 3 nights program.
Please, contact me by email to: peace4wp@gmail.com if you are interested in going to Sausapor town or Tambrauw regency as a whole.

Wildlife Tour in Tambrauw Regency

Sujak river in Tambrauw Mountains of West Papua

I have just returned from my exploratory Wildlife Tour in Tambrauw regency. I went trekking along the bank of a river and then enjoyed snorkeling in the waters of Sausapor the next day.
Tambrauw regency is located between Sorong and Manokwari. Its land is mostly covered with tropical rainforest and its sea waters have got coral reef areas that are suitable for snorkeling and scuba diving. The beaches of Tambrauw are the natural nesting grounds for several species of turtles including green turtle, hawksbill, olive ridley, green, and the leatherback turtles that are now facing extinction.
The capital of Tambrauw is Fef. It is located deep in the remote area of Tambrauw mountains. Fef is the gateway for everybody who is interested in exploring the Tropical Rainforest of New Guinea.

Orange Anemonefish (Amphiprion sandaracinos) in the waters of Tambrauw 

Visitors who are interested in taking a wildlife tour in Tambrauw regency can go trekking in the jungle to see rainforest that is the natural habitat of cuscus possum, wallaby, wild pigs, cassowary, and other various species of birds including sulphur crested cockatoo, Blyth's hornbill, Yellow faced myna, pinon imperial pigeon, and etc.
While walking in the jungle, we can see plants which local people us to make bow and arrows, string bags, and build their houses. There are also a lot of medicinal plants in the jungle which the indigenous people usually use every day.

Anemone and some tropical fish in the waters of Tambrauw regency

Snorkeling
In addition to rainforest tour, the trip to Tambrauw regency can be combined with snorkeling tour along the northern coast of West Papua where its coral reef areas are the natural habitat of such tropical fish as striped surgeon fish, anemone fish, parrot fish,  butterfly fish, turtles, and etc.
Because the coastline is facing the Pacific Ocean, the snorkeling tour can only be done in April, May, June, July, August and early September. Don't forget to bring your snorkeling gear.

Contact
If you are interested in wildlife tour in Tambrauw regency and need me to organize your trip (local guides, transportation, food, accommodation, camping gear, boats and other logistical needs) and be your trekking and snorkeling guide, please, contact me (Charles Roring) by email to: peace4wp@gmail.com

Visiting Sansapor in New Guinea

Sansapor was one of the landing points of US forces in Netherlands New Guinea in their fight against Japanese forces during World War II. From June to August 1944, US troops landed and constructed airfields in the area including in Middleburg island, in Amsterdam island, and in Mar village of the mainland New Guinea. The picture below shows the two islands which are now called Pulau Dua. In Malay or Indonesian language, Pulau means Island and Dua means Two.

Dua islands (formerly called Amsterdam and Middleburg islands near Sausapor town of Tambrauw regency - West Papua

From 18 to 21 May 2015, I made an exploratory trip to Sausapor (as it is called now) and its surrounding areas. My goal was to assess whether the town and its nearby villages could be promoted as destination of foreign tourists. Sausapor has developed from a small village in 1940s into a small coastal town of Tambrauw regency.
My trip to Sausapor was also part of an initial visitation for the annual traditional event of Turtle Calling Ritual that will be conducted on 25 June 2015 at Jamoersba beach of the region. So, if you read this post and are interested in attending the event to watch leatherback turtles land on the beach to lay eggs, do fly to Sorong city before 23 June 2015. I will try to arrange transfer for you to Sausapor town.

US tank wrecks in the jungle of Werbes near Sansapor of New Guinea

During my land tour in the region, I was able to visit the former airfield of Mar that has been reconstructed by the local government of Tambrauw regency for civilian purposes.
I also had a chance to explore the tropical rainforest near Werbes village where local people said that there are still some tank wrecks left by US troops in two adjacent locations of the jungle. In total there were around ten of them. They became a silent evidence of US presence in the region 71 years ago.
Sausapor and its surrounding environment is a suitable destination for tourists who are interested in hiking, camping, snorkeling, birdwatching and wildlife watching.

How to get to Sansapor?

• First contact me by email to: peace4wp@gmail.com or by sending text message to my cell phone: 006281332245180
• Second, fly to Jakarta (the capital of Indonesia) and then take a domestic flight to Sorong city. From Sorong city, you can continue your trip by passenger ship MV. Sunlia or by  MV. Ave Maria from Pelabuhan Rakyat (meaning People's harbor) to Sausapor. The ship usually leaves at night at 22.00 and arrives in Sansapor or Sausapor at 04.00.
• From the town, you can explore its forest, rivers, beach, and the nearby islands?

Sausapor and other villages in Tambrauw regency are not a touristic region. You might find yourself as the only tourist in town or village. So, next time when you plan to have a summer holiday, consider Sansapor as your destination :-) this article was written by Charles Roring, email: peace4wp@gmail.com

Watching Leatherback Turtle in Tambrauw regency of West Papua

Leatherback turtle

Leatherback turtle (Dermochelys coriacea)  is one of the largest turtles in the world. This endangered animal is facing extinction due to continuous hunting for its eggs, suffocation from drifting plastic bag that it considers as jelly fish and other natural predators in its early age.
To raise awareness about the importance of protecting turtles, I offer turtle watching trips to the beach where turtles usually land to lay eggs. This will be a very long trip to a remote region in the coastal area between Manokwari and Sorong city. The name of the beach is Jen Womom. There are also other turtles such as Hawksbill, Green Turtle and Olive Ridley.

How to get there?

• First fly from your country to Jakarta city.
• After getting Visa On Arrival, continue your trip to Sorong city by flying with Garuda, or Sriwijaya Air, or Express Air
• Make sure that you arrive in Sorong city. I will meet you at the airport or at the hotel where you stay and organize your trip to Jen Womom beach.

Other Activities
In addition to watching turtles, we could enjoy snorkeling, swimming, and island hopping in the regency to see coral reef, tropical fish, colorful birds, butterflies, and unique plants of rainforest.
I suggest that visitors bring their own snorkeling gear such as mask, snorkel and flippers.
For birdwatching, a good pair of binoculars and a spotting scope will be useful.
Other important devices that visitors need are camera for land tours and underwater camera for water sport activities.
Torch or flash light will be needed at night. 

Tambrauw regency has got a lot of tourist attraction. Some of them are wave surfing, trekking, and birdwatching.

If you are interested in visiting Tambrauw regency, please, contact me (Charles Roring) by email to: peace4wp@gmail.com or cell phone: 006281332245180

Related post:
Tourist attractions in Tambrauw

Trekking and Watching Tree Kangaroo in Arfak Mountains

I went trekking to Arfak mountains last week. I visited a a hamlet located deep in the jungle with a population of only three families. It took around 9 hours walking up and down steep slopes of the mountain range to reach the hamlet whose surrounding environment was still in pristine condition.

Tree Kangaroo in the jungle of Arfak mountains

At an elevation of 1,000 meters above sea level inside pristine rainforest, the mountain range of Arfak mountains is an ideal place for nature lovers who are interested in watching tree kangaroo. So far there are two species that have been photographed by the tourists but the villagers said there are three species in the jungle. To take picture of the kangaroo, visitors need to bring D-SLR camera with telephoto lenses or a bridge camera with super telephoto capabilities such as Nikon P600, Nikon P900 or Canon SX60hs.

Wild Life
Tree kangaroo is not the only animal that we can see in this pristine forest of Arfak range. There are also other animals such as cuscus possum, and various species of birds of paradise and wild pigs.
If you are interested in trekking Arfak mountains of Manokwari regency of West Papua, please, contact me (Charles Roring) by email to: peace4wp@gmail.com or send text message to my cell phone: 006281332245180.

Trip report:
Trekking and watching Tree Kangaroo in Manokwari