As an Australian adventurer, I found myself navigating the remote waterways of Sarawak, perched on a creatively modified plastic chair in a traditional longboat. The scene unfolding before me was nothing short of breathtaking – a vast expanse of water surrounded by dense tropical rainforest that felt worlds away from my home Down Under.
Journey to Nanga Sumpa Longhouse
This remarkable landscape forms part of the Batang Ai reserve in south-central Sarawak, bordering Indonesia's Kalimantan. Though man-made, having been flooded in 1985, the area possesses a wild beauty that's hard to match. The creation of the dam displaced local communities, but as I discovered, the resilient Iban people have maintained their connection to this land.
Many Iban families chose to remain in the area despite relocation efforts, preserving their traditional way of life just an hour by longboat from modern civilisation. I travelled with Borneo Adventure, a Kuching-based company with deep roots in the region, to reach the Nanga Sumpa Longhouse settlement along the Delok River.
The longhouse community comprises 43 families, with 20 living in the traditional adjacent dwellings connected by a common veranda known as a ruai. The remaining 23 families reside in nearby concrete and wooden homes. The current structure represents resilience – it was rebuilt in 2015 after a devastating fire destroyed the original longhouse on May 13, 2014.
Conservation Through Tourism
Borneo Adventure began supporting this community in 1987, pioneering tourism as a conservation tool. The Iban people, while welcoming visitors, preferred not to have tourists staying directly in their homes. Instead, they agreed to have a lodge constructed nearby.
The Borneo Adventure Lodge has evolved from basic beginnings into comfortable accommodation featuring large ensuite rooms with spacious toilets and beautiful wooden furnishings. Built in stages between 2014 and 2016, the lodge incorporates traditional Iban and Orang Ulu motifs and uses recycled materials, including a veranda added in 2019 that offers stunning river views.
Here, disconnected from phone reception, time moves to the rhythm of flowing water and buzzing insects. The only comparable accommodation in the area, the Hilton Batang Ai resort, closed shortly after changing management in 2015.
The Elusive Red Apes
The primary reason many visitors brave the journey to Batang Ai is the chance to encounter wild orangutans. A 2013 survey estimated that 200 to 3000 orangutans remain in wild Malaysian habitats, with approximately 200 calling Batang Ai home. Conservation efforts suggest this number should have increased over the past decade.
Borneo Adventure developed the challenging five-day Red Ape Trail to increase chances of sightings, trekking through prime orangutan habitat along the upper Delok River. However, experience revealed that the ginger apes have shifted their preferred territory to the south-eastern area near Nanga Jambu, the region's last longhouse.
During my visit, we crossed the river by boat and walked a section of the Red Ape Trail. Almost immediately, we spotted what our guide initially thought was a common hornbill but turned out to be the much rarer wreathed variety – an exciting start to our wildlife search.
We continued to the tomb of Pengarah Jimbun, a renowned Iban chief and headhunter who chose to stay and fight during the Konfrontasi war between Malaysia and Indonesia from 1963 to 1966. His final wish to be buried here was granted on December 24, 1968, and his grave remains marked by tuak bottles and traditional Iban daggers.
As we walked, we discovered numerous abandoned orangutan nests in the trees and partially eaten fruit on the ground – clear signs the creatures had been present recently. However, the combination of rainy season conditions and intense heat meant sightings weren't guaranteed.
We consoled ourselves with a visit to a hidden waterfall and a traditional meal prepared by our guides. The feast included chicken barbecued over a campfire and ayam pansuh – chicken stuffed into bamboo stalks with jungle leaves and cooked by the fire. The authentic flavours provided some compensation for our unsuccessful ape spotting.
Our plans to walk the Lalang trail to the rustic Kasai Lodge in search of orangutans were thwarted by torrential rain that forced us to retreat to our accommodation. The following day, despite returning to Nanga Sumpa at daybreak with eyes peeled for any ginger movement in the canopy, the orangutans remained elusive.
In typical Murphy's Law fashion, the sun emerged brightly as we began our journey back to civilisation. As the beautiful water-level scenery surrounded me, I couldn't help but imagine a family of orangutans relaxing near Kasai Lodge, undisturbed by human presence.
While I didn't spot the red apes I'd journeyed so far to see, the experience of immersing myself in Iban culture and witnessing conservation efforts firsthand felt like its own victory. Sometimes in wildlife tourism, the true win lies in simply being present in these remarkable environments and supporting the communities working to protect them.
