Togean Islands
An Archipelago In The Gulf Of Tomini Holding All Three Major Reef Types Fringing, Barrier And Atoll In One Place, Along With A Lake Of Stingless Jellyfish · Ampana, Central Sulawesi
The Togeans sit in the middle of the Gulf of Tomini, protected from open ocean on every side, and THEY HOLD ALL THREE MAJOR REEF TYPES - FRINGING, BARRIER AND ATOLL - IN ONE ARCHIPELAGO, which is rare enough to be the reason marine biologists know the name. There is a LAKE OF STINGLESS JELLYFISH, as at Kakaban, and a SUNKEN AMERICAN B-24 BOMBER lying in shallow water from the war, and BAJAU STILT VILLAGES built over the reef. WHAT DEFINES A VISIT, THOUGH, IS THE SLOWNESS. There is no airport worth the name and no fast route: you arrive by a long ferry from Ampana or Gorontalo, often overnight, on a schedule that changes. ELECTRICITY IS GENERATOR-ONLY FOR A FEW HOURS EACH EVENING IN MOST PLACES, there are no ATMs anywhere in the islands, and the phone signal is a rumour. Nobody arrives here by accident, and nobody sensible comes for less than a week, because the journey eats two days at each end.
Togean Islands, Gulf of Tomini, Central Sulawesi, Ampana, Central Sulawesi, Indonesia
REACHED BY FERRY ONLY. THE ROUTES ARE FROM AMPANA on the Sulawesi mainland - a few hours - or the LONG OVERNIGHT CROSSING FROM GORONTALO, which takes most of a night. SCHEDULES ARE LIMITED, CHANGE, AND ARE NOT DAILY ON EVERY ROUTE, so BUILD IN SPARE DAYS AT BOTH ENDS - being stuck in Ampana for a day is a normal part of this trip. GETTING TO AMPANA ITSELF is a long road journey from Palu or Poso. GUESTHOUSES ARRANGE BOAT TRANSFERS from the ferry and must be booked ahead. THERE ARE NO ATMS IN THE ISLANDS - bring all your cash from the mainland. ELECTRICITY IS USUALLY GENERATOR-ONLY FOR A FEW EVENING HOURS. Malaria is present. The calmest water is roughly March to November.