THE REMARKABLE OF WAIN RIVER FOREST

The Wain River Forest – a primary rain forest in the middle of Balikpapan city

The Wain River Forest is in the northern part of Balikpapan, East Borneo. Stretching through the middle of Balikpapan, it’s the only miniature primary and secondary virgin forest located in Balikpapan City

Of the many protected natural forests, the Wain River Forest is the last primary forest area close to the city in East Kalimantan. It was designated as a closed forest by the Sultan of Kutai in 1934 covering an area of ​​10,025 ha and later became the name the Wain River Protected Forest.

It’s a conservation and research area with diverse life forms and extraordinary tourism potential. This is a lowland forest with three forest types: marsh forest, dipterocarp forest, and riverine forest. The forest area was first designated a “covered forest” by the King of the Kutai kingdom in 1934. Then in 1983 the 3,925 hectares area surrounding the Wain River Forest was declared a protected forest by the Minister of Agriculture.

The Wain River Forest still has various types of flora and fauna which are relatively easy to find, including 80 tree families such as Bangkirai (Shorea Laevis), Ironwood (Eusideroxylon Zwageri) and Gaharu (Aquilaria Malaccensis) which are still abundant in this area. Apart from these types of canopy trees, this protected forest also has a 4 types of pitcher plants and 12 species of ginger, one of which is called Balikpapan Ginger (Etlingera Balikpapanensis), one of the new species of ginger plants that until now has only been can be found at Wain River Forest.

There are 9 orders of 88 species of rare and endangered mammals, such as the sun bear (Helarctos Malayanus), orangutan (Pongo Pymeaus), red langur (Presbytis Rubicunda), white-browed langur (Presbytis Frontata), tarsier (Tarsius Bancanus) and slow loris (Nycticebus Coucang). Uwa-uwa (Hylobates Muelleri), Long-tailed Macaque (Macaca Fascicularis), Beruk (Macaca Nemestrina).

Meanwhile, from the Aves classification there are 234 species of birds, of which there are 12 rare endemic species such as the Kalimantan Pygmy Peacock or Borneo Peacock Pheasant (Polyplectron Schleiermacheri), Kalimantan Tiong-Batu or Bristlehead (Pytiriasis Gymnocephala), Blue-headed Paok (Pitta Baudi), Pomegranate Paok (Pitta Garnatina), Borneo toctor (Carpococcyx Radiatus), and 6 types of hornbills and others

The orangutans that inhabit this forest were released back into the wild by Borneo Orangutan Survival (BOS) gradually starting in the early 1990, at least around 80 individuals in all.

Exploring the Wain River Protection Forest

Explorations began with smooth jungle trail, start from their base camp, which is a house made from ironwood. There are footpaths and in some areas wooden bridges have been made to make it easier for visitors to cross. Usually the area is covered with water when it rains, which was build a wooden bridge. And that’s not all, this area is very friendly for children.

The Wain River Forest display a view of a large, calm reservoir, which immediately transfer from the noise and pollution of the city. This reservoir provides the clean water supply for the Pertamina housing complex and the oil refinery in Balikpapan, derives from two rivers. The Wain and the Bugis river, which flow through the Wain River Forest area. The fresh air and the panorama of the forest are very relaxing and the bird songs further enhance this feeling.

There are 400 meters long trail along a wooden bridge that runs past the Wain River reservoir into the forest to start the trek. The dense forest is full of large trees to observe and study. Some ants passed into large group nest in a large moss-covered tree and saw many small, rare creatures. This particular trail has a wide variety of trees and if you’re lucky you can see larger creatures, such as proboscis monkeys and macaque.

The sing of the bird is everywhere. The forest is so dense that it’s very easy to get lost if you’re not accompanied by a forest ranger. This 8-kilometer trail takes five or six hours and takes you through a large part of the Wain River Forest ecotourism area, so with all the creatures inside of the Wain River Forest, it’s a time to challenge your-self. Come to Balikpapan and explore the Wain River forest.

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