Rocky Shore The shoreline is as wild at Hot Springs Cove in Maquinna Marine Provincial Park as is it around the rest of Clayoquot Sound, BC.
Once upon a time, if you came upon Hot Springs Cove very quietly, “hippies” could be spotted under the full-moon, frolicking nude, like faeries in the woods. Isolated and wild, the cove shelters geothermal hot springs, where the waters – naturally heated to a glorious 50°C – are pumped out at a rate of over five-litres-per-second.
These hot springs, at Sharp Point on the Openit Peninsula on the rugged west coast of British Columbia’sVancouver Island, have always been isolated. There are some small un-incorporated communities in the area, but the only access is by boat or seaplane. Traditionally Hesquiaht(Nuu-chah-nulth First Nations) territory, most of the peninsula is now part of the Maquinna Marine Provincial Park. The park, which is named for 18th century First Nations Chief Maquinna and his descendants, includes a number of Nuu-chah-nulth First Nations cultural heritage sites.
Isolated though the hot springs may be, they are far from deserted. This popular tourist attraction is only an hour and a half north-west of Tofino by motor boat, or 15 minutes by sea plane, and a number of tour companies offer daily trips: cruising the 26 nautical miles up the rugged coastline through UNESCO listed waters to the Maquinna Provincial Park and the still-popular Hot Spring Cove where people from around the world enjoy the reputedly healing waters.
If you set off early enough (which we didn’t) there is a chance of spotting bears. The area is also home to cougar, mink and wolf – none of which we were likely to spot from our noisy, but comfortable, 30-ft aluminum cabin cruiser. Bald eagles and tufted puffins are regularly spotted and the waters are said to be full of Gray whales, orcas, and humpbacks, as well as the more common Stellar and California sea lions, dolphins and porpoises.
We packed our swimmers, towels, and some rugged water-proof shoes for the rocks, and set off.
Cleaning Fresh Fish Tour boats and fishing boats keep the working dock down from our hotel busy. Tofino is a working town: mining, logging and, of course, fishing. The young man’s tee shirt is a reminder that we are in the Pacific Rim, and therefore in tsunami territory. I remember watching the news about the Great Alaskan Earthquake of 1964, which resulted in 131 deaths up and down this sparsely populated coastline.
Tofino Waters … and into the Clayoquot Sound Biosphere Reserve.
Window on the Waters Even from inside the boat, there is a good view of the magnificent coastline.
Tofino Waters I prefer to be out in the fresh air, leaning over the rails of the boat, watching the waters go past.
Bald Eagle (Haliaeetus Leucocephalus) If you watch carefully, you can spot Bald Eagles in the trees…
Bald Eagle (Haliaeetus Leucocephalus) … or soaring in the air.
Skipper Our skipper and guide keeps up a running commentary on the area, and answers any questions.
Clayoquot Sound Waters Water, trees, mountains… and just a touch of snow in the distance.
Motors Even with a pair of big motors…
Travelling North … it’s about an hour and a half to Government Dock at Hot Springs Cove, …
Nasal Opening – Humpback Whale … especially when we slow down for animal sightings, like this massive humpback whale, hiding in the navy waters.
Bald Eagle (Haliaeetus Leucocephalus) with Fish
Hot Springs Cove We cruise past where the hot springs empty into the ocean. Unlike the old days, swim suits are no longer optional.
Changing Rooms Aside from toilets and some changing cubicles, the actual hot spring area has been left completely undeveloped. It is, however, easily accessible from Government Dock via the well-maintained 1.2 km boardwalk.
Das Boot There are some small communities around the area – locals get in and out by boat.
Government Dock Our boat ties up at Government Dock for a couple of hours…
Into the Woods … so that we can make the 30 minute walk through the Temperate Rainforest (Coastal Western Hemlock) to the hot springs.
Stump The coastal regions of the park are home to Western Hemlock, Western Red Cedar, Amabilis Fir, Western Yellow Cedar, Sitka Spruce, Pine, Douglas Fir, Yew and Red Alder. To me, it’s just “woods”.
Boardwalk The 1.2 km boardwalk from the dock to the hot springs is maintained with the help of planks sponsored by boats who have anchored in the cove.
Rainforest Ferns
Steam Rising Rainwater seeps about 5 kilometres into the faults in the ancient igneous and metamorphic rocks, and is thermally heated to over 109°C before being forced back to the surface, and flowing through the rain forest …
Hot Springs Falls … and cascading down a small cliff into a series of five natural layered rock pools: …
Nature’s Spa … each one slightly cooler than the one above it.
Knotty Trunk Too soon we have to make our way back to the the boat, …
Proposal … pausing to admire an ingenious proposal. (I hope she said “Yes.”)
Coast We head back south, rugged coastline to the east of us, nothing but water to the west between us and Japan.
Whale and Rock We come across a number of humpback whales – who disguise themselves as barnacled rocks in the wild waters.
Rhinoceros Auklet (Cerorhinca Monocerata) All types of sea birds fish in the rich waters.
North American River Otter (Lontra Canadensis) A lazy otter welcomes us back to Tofino waters …
Back in Tofino … where we dock, early evening, in time for dinner.
A walk in the woods, time on the ocean and a soak in a natural spa –
Honouring Spirits and Ancestors The traditional woven roof of a Karo Batak house is topped with buffalo horns, Petseren, North Sumatra.
It’s a different world out there…
In this day and age where travel is relatively quick and easy, and when communication is virtually instantaneous, it is amazing to me how much diversity still exists. Some ethnic groups have managed to resist the influences around them and to preserve their age-old traditions.
Sumatra is just one of the 13,000 incredibly varied islands that make up Indonesia. And North Sumatra is just a small part of that one island.
And yet, North Sumatra is home to around five million Batak people: one of the largest of Indonesia’s over three-hundred distinct ethnolinguistic minority groups. They are thought to be descendants of people who migrated from Taiwan and the Philippines through Borneo and/or Java about 2,500 years ago.
But, the Batak are themselves not one ethnic homogeny. They can be divided into six (or nine – depending whom you believe) separate groups with different (but related) languages and customs.
Driving from Berastagi to Parapet early last year took us through the Karo Regency in Bukit Barisan Mountains; that is, through Karo Batak country.
At the Petrol Pumps Our drive starts with a fill-up in Berastagi, where we have spent the night. I am so used to self-serve that it is a pleasure to sit in the car and watch!
Petseren Village Before long, the “modern” tin rooftops of Petseren come into view. The village is also home to a few traditional Karo houses.
Stylised Designs Karo Batak houses can be distinguished from other Batak styles by their hipped roofs. The colourfully woven roof patterns have magic symbolic meanings.
Village Petseren House Rising up on low stilts, Karo Batak houses are built of wood, bamboo and straw – without the use of nails. Access is by a bamboo ladder, which can be taken in at night.
Inside a Karo Batak House Inside the house was impossibly dark; I cranked up the ISO on the camera and shot on manual focus, hoping for the best.
Young Karo Man I often wonder how long the old ways will last when the younger generation has access to the rest of the world via television and internet.
Fixing Lunch Karo Batak houses are “open-plan”, with no internal walls. Mats and blankets suggest areas and work-spaces. I was never sure where to step, and felt large and clumsy next to the people inside.
Old Woman The longhouses are communal, housing up to eight or twelve families. The “kitchen” area is visible behind grannie.
Kids Playing Back outside in the bright sunlight, children play in the dirt…
Doing the Washing … and a woman does her laundry.
“Modern” Housing The old-style longhouses are no longer being built. The modern replacements are pretty basic.
Karo Batak House Some of the old houses have stood for up to three hundred years.
Plants on the Roof The straw roofing collects moss and even ferns.
Guarding the Grain Animals find cubby-holes under the floors.
Sipisopiso Waterfall Our next stop was at the northern end of Lake Toba – at the site of Indonesia’s highest waterfall. Sipisopiso Falls starts at a small underground river in the Karo Plateau, and tumbles 120 metres into the caldera that forms Lake Toba.
Mists and Fire The area around Sipisopiso is well-tended agricultural land.
Entrance to Rumah Bolon Our next stop is in Simalungan Batak territory, where we visit the Rumah BolonPalace Complex near Pematang Purba. An arched entrance leads into the grounds.
Rumah Bolon Longhouse Now a museum, the complex was home to the Simalungan Batak chiefs until 1947, when the last one died.
Pillars The king’s long house was built of solid teak by Chief Tuan Rahalim (r.1886-1921) and stands on twenty decorated poles. All the designs are in white, for the holy spirit; red, denoting the way of life; and black, symbolising black magic.
Inside the King’s Longhouse The long house was divided into living quarters, a cooking area, and sleeping quarters with apartments for each of the chief’s many wives. Later kings were Christian – rendering room for extra wives unnecessary.
Flowers in the Grounds
Rumah Bolon Outbuilding All of the buildings on the complex are beautifully renovated and maintained.
Buffalo on the Roof As is the case with the Karo Batak, in Simalungan Batak culture buffalo skulls and motifs symbolise the power of the chief.
Southern Pig-tailed Macaque Late afternoon, as we got closer to Parapat, we came across a troop of southern pig-tailed macaques (Macaca nemestrina).
Southern Pig-tailed Macaque Thanks to some fruit I had left over from the morning markets, the monkeys sat and posed – keeping a watchful eye on each other.
Family ~ Lake Toba Once we settled into our accommodation in Parapat, we went for a walk along the edge of Lake Toba, where we met a local family taking a break.
Parapat Mosque Most of the Batak people were converted to Christianity in the 19th Century by Dutch missionaries, but they also maintained their traditional beliefs. Today, surrounded by the Indonesian Muslim majority, more are practicing Islam.
Since their arrival in Sumatra, the Batak people have managed to maintain their language and aspects of their culture in the face of external pressures. Indonesian government policies do not recognise traditional religions, so while Batak still maintain many Animist traditions, their identity cards would show them as being Christian, or – to a lesser extent – Muslim.
Batak people are found among Indonesia’s poets and politicians, singers and sports-people. I guess the trick is to find a way to maintain one’s own culture while still being part of – and helping to inform – the larger society around oneself.
[…] the centre of Batak culture. Descendants of a powerful Proto-Malayan people, the Batak comprise “six (or nine – depending whom you believe) separate groups with different (but related… The largest of these related groups – and the most culturally distinctive – […]ReplyCancel
[…] people who probably arrived in the region about 2,500 years ago, the Batak comprise “six (or nine – depending on whom you believe) separate groups with different (but related)… The most populous of these groups is the Toba Batak, centred around Lake Toba – the […]ReplyCancel
Sunburst on the Chhatri Afternoon at Vyas Chhatri, Jaisalmer.
They say you are a long time dead and buried –
Well, unless you are buried in Switzerland, where your plot is reclaimed after 25 years to recycle available land. Or, unless you are in a traditional Chinese cemetery, where your bones should be taken out and washed annually…
In India, honouring the dead can take many varied forms. Although most Hindus are cremated, as I and my companions learned on the Ghats at Varanasi, sadhus do not need burning, for they are deemed to be already pure. They, therefore, are wrapped in a cloth or rug and tipped into the Mother Ganges. Their bodies can be seen, floating in the murky waters.
At the other extreme, the Mughal emperors built elaborate mausoleums so that they, and their families, would be remembered forever. Perhaps the most magnificent of these, the Taj Mahal, stands as a testament to love and to architecture.
The arid, desert landscape around Jaisalmer is punctuated by pagodas, built from the local golden sandstone, on the cremation sites of the wealthy and powerful. Each of the region’s traditional Bhatti (Yaduvanshi) Rajput rulers built a cenotaph to commemorate their reign.
If you read the revues on TripAdvisor etc., what distinguishes these sites today is their dereliction. Although they are advertised to – and frequently visited by – tourists, (especially as places to enjoy desert sunsets) they are neglected and uncared for.
It was, in part, this very dilapidation that added to the eerie atmosphere of quiet that surrounded the Vyas Chhatri cenotaphs close to Jaisalmer when I visited late one November afternoon.
Into the Cenotaphs Strewn with rubbish and firewood, and falling into disrepair, the cenotaphs are a symbolic “mark of respect” to those who were cremated here.
Sleeping Dog A stray dog sleeps – oblivious to the pending onslaught of afternoon tourists.
Cenotaph You can see residential buildings – and other cenotaphs – not so far away.
Pavilion Chhatrisare dome-shaped pavilions commonly used in Rajput architecture to depict pride and honour.
Playing the Algoza The haunting sounds of the Indian double flutes wafting on the afternoon air adds to the atmosphere.
Domes Afternoon light on the domes of the chhatri highlights the delicate carving.
Square Pavilions Just visible in the background is the metal cover over the burning platform which is still in use for Brahmin cremations.
Chhatris and Sky
Playing the Algoza A traditional musician plays for the tourists, hoping to sell CDs.
To the Vantage Point Tourists walk uphill with cameras and tripods to catch a desert sunset.
Playing the Algoza Meanwhile, in another nook, another man plays music, …
Hands on the Algoza … deftly fingering both flutes.
Tourist and Camera Tourists are everywhere – trying to catch the fast-falling light.
November Sun The autumn sun drops quickly in the sky…
Vyas Chhatri Sunset … until the landscape almost disappears.
Pagoda Sunset Last light in the Vyas Chhatri pagodas.
Dusty, dirty, strewn with rubbish and falling into disrepair, true.
But also, atmospheric, mysterious, and alive with history…
Meerkat A meerkat sentry keeps watch at the Durrell Wildlife Park, Jersey.
“There is a pleasure in being mad which none but madmen know.”
– John Dryden, The Spanish Friar (1681)
“There is a pleasure in being mad which none but madmen know.” That is the Dryden quote that opens Gerald Durrell’s first book: My Family and Other Animals.
And an apposite quote it is!
When I first read the book as a young adult, I remember thinking how impossibly crazy was the life that the young Durrell had led in Corfu. Unreal. Like a mad, magical, fantasy world.
The house I grew up in valued discipline and order to the extent that domestic animals – let alone wild ones – were not part of the equation. My friends all had dogs, and cats, and guinea pigs and hamsters… I was heartbroken when my tenth birthday came and went without any sign of the pet rabbit I had convinced myself I was getting. I did once have a glass jar of tadpoles that my aunt had helped me catch; they mouldered and rotted in the putrefying water long before they sprouted legs. An edifying experience indeed. I stopped asking for a pet.
Durrell, on the other hand, at age 10, moved from rainy England to Corfu, with his mother and siblings, four books on natural history, a butterfly net, his dog, and a jam-jar of caterpillars. He began to collect and keep the local fauna as his pets – embarking on a lifelong love-affair with natural history.
Over his lifetime, Durrell travelled extensively and became increasingly aware of problems facing animals – particularly endangered species – in the wild. He believed that by collecting them for zoos and breeding programs, these animals could be protected from extinction until their habitats were no longer under threat. In 1958, with the proceeds from his book sales, Durrell bought Les Augrès Manor, a 17th-century house in Jersey, and turned it into a home for his extensive collection of animals from around the world. Renamed the “Jersey Zoological Park”, the zoo was opened to the public in 1959.
Gerald Durrell (1925-1995) A sculpture of Durrell with his lemurs sits inside the entry to the Durrell Wildlife Park.
Succulent One of the things I like best about well-kept animal parks is that they generally include beautiful gardens.
Meerkat In “Discovery Desert”, the ever-popular slender-tailed meerkats keep an eye on the visitors to the park.
Gorilla Mother and Infant The Critically Endangeredwestern lowland gorillas are a central part of the Durrell philosophy: by breeding the gentle giants in captivity, a safety net is built up against their extinction in the wild.
Female Gorilla We watch as an older mother, who has had several young, feeds on the popcorn scattered by the keepers.
Portrait: Female Gorilla The adults – even the females – look incredibly powerful.
Searching for Food In the wild, gorillas forage for food. In the park, food is scattered so that the animals don’t get too lazy.
Feeding Gorillas have a very long intestine, to help them get the most out of their limited diet in the wild.
Watching the Gorillas As parents and children watch, keepers give their gorilla talk and scatter food into the enclosure.
Infant Gorilla Keeping an eye on mum, this little one branches out alone.
Young Male Gorilla The young males – or blackbacks – are kept in a separate enclosure nearby – away from the females, infants and the dominant silverback.
African Red River Hogs It seems ironic to call these these bush pigs “river hogs” – as they live in a dry, rocky enclosure.
Playground Nearby, other primate young make use of the climbing equipment.
Sumatran Orangutans Like the western lowland gorillas, Sumatran Orangutans are Critically Endangered. The Durrell Wildlife Park works in conjunction with the Sumatran Orangutan Conservation Programme in Indonesia to protect these “forest people”.
Orangutan and Baby Shortly after we got to the South-east Asian Primates area, the orangutans moved to their inside enclosure for their afternoon feed and some quiet time. Paradoxical, we were able to get closer to these magnificent creatures in the wild, in their North Sumatran home (Meet the Locals).
Lily Pond
Ring-Tailed Lemurs Ring-Tailed Lemurs live in the forests of southern Madagascar.
Alaotran Gentle Lemur Critically Endangered primates, the Alaotran Gentle Lemurs live in Madagascar’s wetlands.
Greater Flamingo (Phoenicopterus roseus) In the wild, these birds are found across Europe, Africa and India.
Feeding the Flamingos
Chilean Flamingos (Phoenicopterus chilensis)
Red-billed Chough Choughs, specialist insect-eaters, died out in Jersey over a 100 years ago. The two breeding pairs at the Park are from Cornwall.
Les Augrès Manor Now the headquarters of the Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust, the site of Les Augrès manor house dates back to medieval times – although most of the current building is 19th century.
“The Gerald Durrell Story” A small museum contains memorabilia from Durrell’s life and work.
Orangutan at the Entrance / Exit
It was wonderful to be reminded of Durrell and his books and TV programs from my youth.
It was also wonderful to “meet” his friends and family.
It was, however, sad to reflect that these creatures are even more at risk now than they were when he first started his collections.
[…] and animal sanctuaries (as regular visitors to these pages will know; e.g.: Potoroo Palace; Durrell Wildlife Park; The Two Tarongas; Gunung Leuser Orangutangs), so any excuse to visit a new one is fine by me. And […]ReplyCancel
[…] for crows, Australia’s choughs were named after the European birds that they resemble (see: The Stationary Ark) but are only distantly related […]ReplyCancel
Indian Rhododendron on the Sumatran Mountainside Overlooking the town of Berastagi in Northern Sumatra, Mount Sibayak – a small volcano – is a popular tourist attraction.
Just two weeks before my husband and I visited the island of Sumatra in February 2014, Gunung Sinabung erupted, killing at least 14 people. The province of North Sumatra is not that big: Mount Sinabung is in the Karo Plateau, only 40 kilometres away from the Lake Toba Supervolcano, and in the general region where we would be travelling. When we arrived at Bukit Lawang, about 50 kilometres north of the mountain, volcanic ash still hung thick in the air, like smoke.
Part of our our itinerary was Mount Sibayak, an inactive (but not extinct) volcano a mere 30 kilometre drive away from the scene of the Sinabung explosion. It is always hard to know, as an “outsider”, whether a visit to a region will do more harm than good when there are problems, but the guides assured us we’d be well away from areas of risk.
Still, it reminded me of a drive we had made, years ago, through flooded and washed-away villages just a day or two after unseasonable rains in East Java, en route to another Indonesian volcano: Mount Bromo. On that occasion, we stopped overnight in Cemoro Lawang, got up around 3am to have a cup of coffee before crossing the cold, dark plains at the base of the mountain on small ponies, and then scaled a rickety stairway up the flank of the cone in the bone-chilling dark of a January morning. I am usually a bit of a mountain goat, but I remember feeling anxious about falling as we carefully picked our way through the crowds gathered around the slippery edge of the crater. When we looked down (never a good plan!), the ponies appeared as small as ants on the ground below, while the heat and the smell of sulphur bubbled up to meet us from the inside vent – alluding to the hellish death that would result from a fall.
Huddled in the dark, we waited for the sunrise. Unfortunately for us, because of the overcast weather, daylight arrived murky and diffused. It was rather anticlimactic; we climbed cautiously down the stairs and pathway, tired, cold and hungry, and without the benefit of the promised display. Two years later, Mount Bromo exploded, killing two.
We were assured, however, that our climb up Gunung Sibayakwould be far less eventful. After all, it is the easiest and most accessible of Sumatra’s volcanoes, taking less than two hours to walk up.
Start Walking! Although this is still technically a roadway, it gets pretty rough and doesn’t go much further. The rest of the way is by foot.
Dangerous Birdsong High over our heads on the steep path, a bird tied in a cage sang a sad song. The cage owner hoped this would attract other birds, who would then be captured and sold.
Cliffs and Climbing Before long, we left the last vestiges of roadway behind and clambered up a rocky crevice: not an easy feat when you are laden with camera gear!
Path through the Jungle At times, the path – and our guide with it – practically disappeared into the jungle growth.
Guide on the Path He kept his eyes on the surrounds as we climbed up the flank of the mountain.
Indian Rhododendron Back in the open, the mountainside is covered in hardy flowering bushes, like the “Pride of India”(Melastoma melabathricum) …
Pitcher Plant … interspersed with delicate-looking but carnivorous Pitcher Plants(Nepenthes).
Coming Around the Mountain Our guide was continually on the lookout for plants we might find interesting.
Smoke in the Saddle As you come around the hill, the broken sides of the caldera come into view, and the smell of sulphur is stronger.
Smoke on the Mountain Steam rises from the vents; Mount Sibayak hasn’t erupted for more than a century, but it still gives rise to plenty of geothermal activity.
Sulphur on the Rocks The vents produce crystalline sulfur, which clings to the rocks and was once mined on a small scale.
Guide on the Rocks Our guide climbed over the sulphur-crusted rocks, looking for a good vent…
Burning Sulphur … to set a light to. Burning sulfur melts to a blood-red viscous liquid and runs over the rocks.
Graffiti in the Caldera Visitors have taken the time to sculpt designs and patterns on the volcano.
Caldera in the Mist The mountain rises up into the mists of sulphuric steam.
Cairns and Gardens Ferns and mosses take hold in gardens sculpted by visitors.
Ferns on the Wall
Flowers and Berries On the way back down the track, we notice different bushes.
Yellow Flowers Not all of the plants are “pretty”, but they all have their niche.
Thermal Pipes Driving to one of the many hot-spring bathing pools in the Berastagi area for a well-earned soak, we passed pipes boiling over with steam that was heading to the local power station.
There is nothing quite like soaking in a pool of mineral-laden hot-spring waters that have been piped in from the mountain you have just hiked!
Not particularly “eventful”, but interesting, and well worth the effort.
Hi Ursula. Thanks for sharing your experience hiking up to Mt. Sibayak. I’m planning a trip there soon and am wondering how to find a guide. Wasn’t able to find any online. Appreciate if you can give advice on how to find a reliable guide and if there’s any place in particular to stay at.
Hi Tiara,
I arranged our Sumatra trip through Adventure Indonesia and they took care of all the local guides. You might like to contact them.
There are a couple of big hotels and lots of small ones in Berastagi, and accommodation should be easy to find in any price range.
Cheers,
UrsulaReplyCancel
hock -May 23, 2018 - 6:46 am
ya please call/chat +6285270901937 for hike sibayak.ReplyCancel
- Performing the Ganga Aarti from Dasaswamedh Ghat, Varanasi
- Buddha Head from Shwedagon Pagoda, Myanmar
- Harry Clarke Window from Dingle, Ireland
- Novice Monk Shwe Yan Pyay Monastery, Myanmar
Packets of 10 for $AU50.
Or - pick any photo from my Flickr or Wanders blog photos.
A walk in the woods, time on the ocean and a soak in a natural spa –
Great memories & beautiful photo’s
Thanks! Great day out. 😀
Great descriptive blog of the area. Nice photos too.
Thanks, David! Nice to have your visit. 😀