Borneo

We are very excited to offer exclusive wildlife safaris in Borneo and tiger viewing opportunities in India by partnering with worldwide safari expert Allen Bechky. 

 BORNEO

Dear Friends, 

I've just finished another wonderful safari to the heartland of the mountain gorillas. I’m sure that those of you who have been to Uganda and Rwanda with me will be pleased to hear that our gorilla friends (and the chimps of Kibale) are thriving.

I’d like to tell you about my safari to Borneo, the home of the other Great Ape – the Orangutan. Orangs have a very different life style than chimps or gorillas. As solitary animals living in the tree-tops of primary rainforests, orangs are difficult to track and study and were once considered the dummies of the ape family. But new research has completely changed our understanding. We now know that orangutans have a much wider range of tool use than other apes and may well be the most intelligent of all living human relatives. Orangutans are truly fascinating animals and highly endangered because of rampant destruction of their forest habitat.   

 

 On the Borneo Wildlife Safari, we encounter orangutans in both sanctuaries and the wild. Members of the last year’s trip enjoyed great close-up observations of wild orangutans in the Danum Valley, where we were able to follow an impressive dominant male for an entire morning. In Danum, researchers track orangutans daily and keep our local guides informed as to their whereabouts, so sightings by visitors are frequent and often spectacular.

Photo by Allen Bechky

Orangutans are only one of the many species of wild animals we see on the Borneo Wildlife Safari. Primates abound. We are sure to encounter at least five species of monkeys, including the proboscis monkey with its hilarious oversized schnoz. We also find gibbons and, with luck, the bug-eyed nocturnal tarsier. We have excellent chances to encounter the rare Borneo Pygmy elephant. Add to these a wide range of mammals including leopard cats, bearded pigs, mouse deer, giant flying squirrels, and the unique gliding colugo. There are also flying lizards, an unbelievable collection of giant (and harmless) insects like the rhinoceros beetle and the blue morpho butterfly. Bird life is spectacular. On the 2010 trip, we saw all eight of Borneo’s wonderful hornbills.

Last year’s trip was great but the 2011 itinerary is even better. It includes visits to the forests below the imposing Mt Kinabalu, where we are likely to see the weird Rafflesia flower, the largest blossoms in the world, and a visit to Labuk Bay for up-close viewing of proboscis monkeys. At the Tabin Wildlife Reserve, night drives regularly produce great sightings of leopard cats, bearded pigs, and numerous civet species, as well as heightened chances to see pygmy elephants.

The Borneo Wildlife Safari will take place April 9 – 22, 2011 . In addition to the main safari, there will be a pre-trip extension to Sarawak, another Malaysian state on Borneo. Here we visit the fabulous Mulu Caves, the coastal Bako National Park, the excellent Semenggoh Orangutan Sanctuary, and the charming city of Kuching, former capital of the colonial “white Rajas” of the celebrated Brookes family.

It is a wonderful safari and I hope you'll come along. You can find out all the details on Borneo by following the links to my partners at Next Adventure in Berkeley, CA. You can also ask them about my Pantanal Jaguar Safari in Brazil in August 3 – 12, 2011 , or discuss options to travel with me on your own private trip!

All the best,

 

Allen Bechky.

 

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