Back in Manokwari
,we called Yoris who is listed in the LP . Met him and went on a
birdwatching tour with him. He was not , in our opinion,a good guide .
He was expensive and didn't know any of the few birds that we saw. We
were not impressed. To give Manokwari its due, it is the base from which
to explore the Arfak Mountain area which is renowned for its birdlife. I
have just read another report on T Adviser and see a man called Charles
Roring does guiding in that area . Looks as if it would be fantastic
The motto of the story is - if you want to go birding in Papua
with a local guide, set it up before you go, as that is where we came
unstuck. But when we left home in July, we didn't even know if we would
end up in Papua !
Anyway ,we finally made it back to Sorong
after 5 days of flight issues. and got met by a representative of the
Raja Ampat Dive Resort . He took us to the ferry terminal where the boat
was about to set off for Waigeo island - our destination.
The boat trip took 3 hours and then we were transferred to the resort by speedboat.
The resort sits right on an idyllic beach with clear clear water , and great snorkelling right off the beach .
The resort is owned by the government and was not cheap - It cost as
much as if we were divers, but still cheaper than the private resorts.
But the service was shocking - they had no coca cola, or any other soft
drinks - let alone beer . Then when they did get some it was a constant
battle to get them to keep it chilled.
The accommodation was very nice- a big bungalow just metres from the
water. We had resident KusKus in the trees in the gardens and many many
gorgeous birds.
we went out snorkelling a couple of times with the dive boat but
found that the snorkelling was not as rewarding as we had found in other
places. Not because the marine life is not there, it is one of the BEST
dive areas in the world, but the reefs are shallow and have strong
currents flowing across them which makes snorkelling less easy.
Anyway we found there was a road at the back of the resort which
provided amazing birdwatching potential . So every morning for the week
we were there we got up at dawn,5 a.m, and set off . We had some
fantastic finds, like a Red Bird of Paradise pair just feeding
nonchalantly in a tree by the roadside !! We had planned to make a
special boat trip/ trek in search of these while we were there , and
there they were , just for us .
Then we found out from the manager that there was a quite a colony
of Wilson's Bird of Paradise - the little fellow with vibrant colours
who clears a bower ., quite near to the resort. He showed us where and
we sat in 2 different hides, several times and had great sightings of
several birds of the species. It was a fantastic week , and if we were
to go again , same thing applies, - we would find out about a good local
guide , but doubt we would go through one of the expensive tour
companies , because the birds are there, everywhere, and not at all hard
to find .
Our time in Papua was over and we had done and seen more than we had
ever imagined. What a great adventure and still a place untouched by
mass tourism
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