Headwaters of the Kapuas

I woke early again around 0600 and was downstairs at a cafe for breakfast at 0630.  I checked out and walked to the nearby Kuching Sentral station after and checked-in for my bus (which really just means having the bus registration place number disclosed to you so you can board).

It was a brief wait for the 0730 departure.  The bus left the station bound for Sibu rather empty.  Looks like many people fly or take the boat to Sibu.  But when we reached Serian an hour later, it filled up quite a bit more.  We took a few short hop-on passengers for short rides thereafter.

There weren’t many settlements on the main road except for Lachau.  Four hours after departure, we pulled into a small area with an eatery and toilets.  This was Jelukong where I’d hop off to await my pickup truck to the border.

I had rang the numbers given to me to ensure they knew I was coming.  After a snack, pit-stop and rest, I hopped into the truck as the only passenger heading towards Lubok Antu.  I asked how the bus company makes any money from organising this route, since they have to charter the entire truck for me.

The driver explained that this they’re trying to test the market and they certainly don’t make money with just one passenger, they break even with two and with three, they would profit.  The fare at MYR100 is a double that for a similar duration within Sarawak.

As we past Lubok Antu and headed to the border, I saw the police station with two skyscraper apartment blocks in the background.  I couldn’t believe my eyes.  The driver said that there’s only a couple of dozen policemen there.  The buildings were built by certain parties with connections for the government who profited greatly from the deal.

About 45 minutes from Jelukong, I was at the Malaysian immigration checkpoint.  It was new, quite nice decorated with Dayak motifs.  There was a short delay as the officer had to turn the computer on.  I was the first person today that was heading beyond the border town; the other people didn’t need to be entered into the system properly.

Across in Badau on the Indonesian side, their immigration complex was jaw-droppingly gorgeous.  Contemporary, light, airy and tastefully decorated with much more Dayak motifs.  It was a friendly and simple entry formality.
 

I had less than five minutes wait when the DAMRI bus from Nanga Kantuk turned up and I said goodbye to my truck driver.  My truck driver paid for my bus ticket and I was off to Putussibau at 1200 Badau time or 1300 Malaysian time, with estimated travel time of 4h.  There were boxes in the aisle together with a gas cyclinder.  The bus isn’t just for people but also for cargo.

Leaving the immigration checkpoint, I saw lots of chalets and a tourist market had been built.  All very tastefully designed and the surroundings very nicely landscaped as well.  The Indonesians have high hopes for tourism here but I don’t see who might be coming here.  It is 4h from the nearest big city Kuching!

After about an hour, the drivers took a lunch break at Lanjak.  I saw on Google Maps that we were near the Danau Sentarum National Park where there were some lakes.

There was an uphill portion soon after lunch.  The air-con went warm and humid.  Fortunately, that was temporary and the rest of the journey was cool enough.

We arrived into Putussibau around 1600.  I asked to be let off near the hospital to avoid a 15 minute walk back to the guesthouse.  Ringing the guesthouse, they came by motorbike to fetch me to save the short walk.

They were kind enough to have turned the air-con on in advance of my arrival so it was cool when I reached my spotlessly clean room and a bathroom with plumbing that didn’t leak.  The latter seems to be something that one cannot take for granted in rural Indonesia.

The guesthouse is called Penginapan Mutiara and contactable on WhatsApp (in Indonesian language, using Google Translate if you need to I guess) on +62 813-5220-3637.  My AC room with TV and bathroom was IDR270K per night.

After a rest, I reviewed the longhouses that were around, including the Bali Gundi one which I saw from the bus, which was just off the main road.  I decided that I would try to go to Ariung Mandalam which was quite authentic and Bali Gundi which looked modern but built in traditional wooden materials.  They’re both located in the same direction north of town.

The young man at reception was available to take me by motorbike tomorrow but didnt’ want to give a price.  Instead, he wanted me to name my price.  He gave me the estimated travel time, and suggested total time to do the two longhouses as around 6h (including time spent there).  This seemed too long for the distances involved.

Being tired, I ate a simple meal of fried rice in-house  before heading for a short walk to the river and back.  The town of around 13000 people is near the headwaters of the Kapuas river, Borneo’s longest, running for 1143km and exiting into the sea at Pontianak.  Incidentally, Putussibau is closer to Kuching than to Pontianak.

The people are a mix of Dayaks (Taman, Kayan), local Malay (surprising for a usually coastal people), transmigrants (people from the other 17000 islands in the republic) and Chinese (Hakka and Teochew).

Back at the guesthouse, it was time to seal the deal for tomorrow’s sightseeing.  Based on full-day trips on bikes on previous trips before, I offered IDR200000.  He suggested IDR300000 which was half the price of doing it in a car, supposedly.  I took him up on the offer just to make things easy.

As it had been a big day, I was in my room soon after and called it a day.