Balikpapan and Sungai Wain

An Oil City Since 1897, With A Remnant Of Lowland Forest Behind It, Proboscis Monkeys In The Bay, Sun Bears On The Road Out And Indonesia'S New Capital Rising Two Hours Up The Coast · Balikpapan, East Kalimantan

Balikpapan has been an OIL CITY SINCE 1897, when the Dutch struck crude here, and it has been shaped by hydrocarbons ever since - a refinery on the waterfront, a working port, and a city that was BOMBED FLAT IN THE SECOND WORLD WAR and stormed by Australian troops in 1945. It is orderly, prosperous and not remotely picturesque, and it is the gateway to eastern Borneo. WHAT MAKES IT WORTH A ROW IS WHAT IS AROUND IT. SUNGAI WAIN, just outside the city, is a surviving patch of LOWLAND DIPTEROCARP FOREST with orangutans in it - the forest type that has been almost entirely cleared across Borneo. There are PROBOSCIS MONKEYS IN THE MANGROVES OF THE BAY and a SUN BEAR SANCTUARY on the road out, which is the only reliable way to see the smallest bear in the world. AND INDONESIA'S NEW CAPITAL IS BEING BUILT TWO HOURS UP THE COAST, which is changing everything here. Sungai Wain has no public gate and access must be arranged ahead; the sun bear sanctuary on the Samboja road needs only a fee; and the proboscis monkeys come to the mangrove edges late in the afternoon, which is when to go out.

Balikpapan and Sungai Wain Protection Forest, East Kalimantan, Balikpapan, East Kalimantan, Indonesia

BALIKPAPAN HAS A MAJOR AIRPORT with connections across Indonesia and is the usual entry point for East Kalimantan; SAMARINDA AND THE MAHAKAM are a couple of hours by road. SUNGAI WAIN IS A PROTECTION FOREST, NOT A PARK - access requires arrangement through the management or a local operator and is limited; do not turn up expecting a gate. THE SUN BEAR SANCTUARY on the Samboja road keeps daytime hours, charges a small fee and is a GENUINE EDUCATION AND WELFARE FACILITY rather than a zoo. MANGROVE AND PROBOSCIS MONKEY TRIPS in the bay are arranged by boat locally, best in the late afternoon. THE NEW CAPITAL, NUSANTARA, IS A CONSTRUCTION SITE and is not a visitor destination. It is hot and humid year-round. Mosquito precautions and malaria advice apply.

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