Liveaboard Boat: Komodo & Flores
- Amy
- Apr 18, 2019
- 5 min read
Updated: Jul 14, 2019
LIVEABOARD BOAT: KOMODO & FLORES
13th - 15th April 2019
13/04/19 - Day 15
We started the day early to get to our live aboard boat which was actually bigger than I expected it to be - a bit of a treat really considering we had to fit 13 people on!
It was a two story boat where the top half was the sleeping area and you couldn’t actually stand up in it. It was very basic with lines of thin mats to sleep on - quite the adventure!
Half an hour into the boat journey the boat broke down... and we all though that was that! But luckily it was fixed and we continued a 4 hour journey to Satonda Island. We saw dolphins along the way that followed the boat...
During the journey we all chilled out on the beanbags that were on the outside part of the upper deck and enjoyed the sun... a bit too much as I managed to get rather burnt!
We finally arrived at Satonda Island where we swam in a natural salt water lake formed from the eruption of Mount Tambora in 1815 which killed around 71,000 people, about 12,000 of which were directly from the eruption. The lake itself was beautiful, and definitely one of the saltiest things I have ever experienced. It’s the true definition of a salt water lake!
We then had a chilled rest of the day and had some amazing food that was cooked on the boat. I honestly still cannot understand how they cooked such a delicious selection of food in a barely there kitchen on the back of a boat!
14/04/19 - Day 16
This was probably one of my favourite days of the Bali and Beyond trip. Apart from the truly awful night sleep because of the boiling hot boat, the loud engine and the constant rocking from the waves, haha!
With hardly any sleep and a partially grumpy attitude (due to the lack of sleep haha), the boat arrived at Gili Lawa for our morning viewpoint. However, little to our knowledge, they had stopped running the hike because a Chinese couple got married on the island, set off fireworks and managed to burn down half of it... well done guys! So that was that ruined for us!!
Instead we went snorkelling to a small coral reef that was jam packed full of marine life. We had to swim quite far from the boat to get there and the beginning by the boat was rather scary, you couldn’t see the bottom, it was just dark dark blue... needless to say I swam rather fast over that part haha!
Although the marine life was amazing, it was sad to see how much plastic was floating on the surface and stuck to different pieces of coral. We literally swam through plastic bottles, bags, forks, you name it. So we urge you to consider to cut down your plastic usage, especially those plastic bags that you definitely don’t need!
After our failed mission to Gili Lawa, we sailed further to Manta Point in the Komodo area and managed to find some Manta rays to swim with! We only saw two (which didn’t compare to Nusa Penida) but was still really amazing to see - some of the group said they saw a small shark swimming next to one of the mantas which I sadly didn’t get to see!
After all the swimming and an excellent lunch, the boat arrived at Pink Beach, located in East Nusa Tenggara. The pink beach is formed from the pure white sand and red coral that has been ground up over years and years. It’s a truly weird experience seeing a beach with pink sand! We swam from the boat to the beach, over loads of coral and marine life and then spent a good amount of time relaxing in the water, enjoying the sand and all the beauty the beach had to offer!
After the excitement of the pink beach and jumping off the top of the boat a few times (because why not), we sailed to one of the smaller Komodo islands that only had 5 Komodo dragons on and did a viewpoint hike. The island didn’t originally have the Komodo dragons on but 5 managed to swim across the large expanse of water to the island... basically no escaping a Komodo dragon!
The local tour guide managed to drop us off on the wrong side of the island (classic) so we had to walk along slippery grass diagonally up the side of a hill. As you can imagine, not too practical of me to wear my Birkenstock’s! It was so hot and we were all sweating so much. None of us were particularly pleased with the situation. We saw one of the biggest spiders I have ever seen in my life though which was cool!!!!! Wouldn’t want that in your bed now would you...
It was definitely worth it though when we made it to the top! I also didn’t pass out going up so that was a perk too!
I think this was my favourite day of the Indonesia trip so far!
15/04/19 - Day 17
The boat was docked all night with the engine off so my sleep was so much better but I still woke up early as the boat began to move.
We started the day with a bang going to Rinca Island to see the Komodo dragons in a national park. It was crazy being so up close and personal with the largest and most dangerous lizards in the world! I thought they would be a lot bigger thanks to our dear friend David Attenborough on Planet Earth, but they were still a descent size and you could see how powerful their tails were. Needless to say, you really wouldn’t want to cross paths with one regardless of its size!
Apparently when the Komodo dragons are young they climb up and hide in the trees so they are not eaten by any of the larger dragons. So there we have it, Komodo dragons can run really fast, swim AND climb... thank goodness we live far away is all I can say!
Komodo dragons have a venous bite as they have two glands in their lower jaw which secret several toxic proteins. They will paralyse the victim so that they can consume them, similar to a snake, all in one. A single Komodo can kill a water buffalo by biting it and allowing the barcteria of the saliva to rot away until the buffalo dies. This can sometimes take up to 2 weeks. Luckily. The only attack they’d had recently on the island was last year when a plumber was fixing some of the pipes outside the main house and got bitten. They have an antidote in Labuan Bajo though so the man survived!
We were taken on a tour around the island that was home to about 1,500 Komodo dragons and were able to see them in their natural habitats! Again, the rangers had their sticks so I felt totally safe (ironically did which was crazy)!
They took us up to the top of the island so we were able to see a beautiful view over the home of the Komodo dragons.
After the tour was over and we were satisfied having gotten up close and personal with the dragons, we headed back to the boat where we had a really chilled out sail to Labuan Bajo, Flores, our last destination!
When we arrived in Labuan Bajo, Flores we got local taxis to the hotel. Our taxi door wouldn’t close so we enjoyed a great journey with the side of the van open - nothing like a good way to finish our time in Indonesia!
It is crazy how quickly this Bali and Beyond trip has gone and we’ve really loved it! Although we’ve loved Indonesia, it’s time for our next adventure to Singapore!
- A
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