Trip to Tanjung Datu Nationalpark

This beautiful nationalpark is located on the Cape of Sarawak directly on the border to Kalimantan. You have to go to Semantan (2 hrs by car) and take a boat there.

There are 3 possibillities: You could organize a pickup from the headquarter with the touristoffice in Kuching. You can use the irregular local boat service to the Kampong (Village) Serabang or hire a boatsmen from the Semantan jetty to bring you there.

You can also stay in the house of the village chief if you like. In the head itself quarter is one little room. They also provide a lot of open raincovered shelter with matts, blankets and mosquitonet. There is a camp site too and enough trees for your hamock. You have to bring all your food to the HQ, they have a kitchen with cooking facilities frigde and mineral water. Its is much easier to go back to Semantan than getting there. It is possible to buy very simple food in the village nearby.

The water is mostly clear, the coralreefs are medium but worth to see. Depending on the season you can see dolphins and turtles and passing by under water. At night you may spot the sea turtles landing and laying eggs on the beach. You are not allowed to use torch light on the beach at night couse it could desturbe them. Near to the headquarter are some controlled nesting areas where you can may see small turtles running around in the morning.

There are 3 different trails around the head quarter.

The Belian trail will lead you almost up to the Summit of Gunung Batu Datu (536 m) direct to the border of Kalimantan. There is a spot where you can see the Raflesia and a nice waterfall with many ponds for bathing on the way back.

Another trail where you can see a huge diversity of trees and plants leads north to the Cape Dato and will end on a beautiful beach. You will cross many rivers, see some smaller caves and may spot lots of wildlife like 3 species of monkeys, monitor lizards, different deers, civits, wild boars and much more.

There is also a path to the village Serabang, but this is a bit difficult to follow.

It is worth to do a nightwalk with the chief of the headquarter. You probably will see mouse deer, barking deer, sambar deer, civit cats, slow loris, bearded pigs, macaques, gibbons and many other mammals. And of course, there is also a wide varity of interesting insects and reptiles to observe.

On daytime you can see lots of birds (also hornbills and peacocks), monitor lizards on the beach digging for turtle eggs, different spezies of squirrels and different bats (also white ones) hanging on the little cave right hand of the headquarter.