CLOCKWISE FROM TOP: Freedive
Raja Ampat, home to Indonesia's best
coral reefs; Cradled close to heaven,
Mount Kelimutu's Tiwu Nuwa Muri Koo
Fai; A 5-hour return trip is all it takes
to reach Mount Sibayak's sulphurous
summit; freediving in Indonesia's most
pristine coral reefs.- FREEDIVE RAJA AMPAT
West Papua, Indonesia
Faraway on the very tip of Indonesia’s West Papuan coastline,
Raja Ampat is famous for its dreamy limestone seascapes and the
great swathes of pristine coral that lure divers under the sea.
When the equatorial squalls abate each November, live-aboard
boats and foreign yachts arrive to glide with manta rays in the
plankton-rich currents, and immerse themselves in truly great
ecosystems of turtles and unf linching fish, safe and unhunted
within the sanctuary of Raja Ampat’s protected zones.
It’s not just the astounding diving that lures intrepid water
babies so far off the beaten track. The wallpaper is out of this
world: sheer, towering limestone outcrops, weathered and
severed from the West Papuan coastline and topped with a
hundred ragged, lime-coloured palms. There are pitch black
caves full of blind crabs to spotlight through, hidden lagoons
nestled deep within the limestone, and tree house lookouts to
climb to for sunset views that never end.
Raja Ampat’s dynamic drop-offs, drift dives and immense,
fringing coral gardens are equally mind-blowing, but it’s the
colours of these waters that lap each deserted, sandy cay —
cobalt, teal and turquoise — that will make you swoon and book a
trip.
The essentials: Liveaboard trips leave from Sorong (and nearby
Waisai) on the West Papuan coast, an easy plane ride from
Jakarta. If liveaboard experiences are not within your budget,
base yourself in a homestay near Frewin Island or sign on as crew
with a cruising yacht (from around $40 a day, crewbay.com). - CLIMB TO KELIMUTU’S TRICOLOURED
LAKES
Flores, Indonesia
It’s said that when children die in the mountain village of Moni,
their spirits soar high towards Mount Kelimutu, settling in the
warmest and bluest of the volcano’s sacred, tricoloured lakes.
Cradled close to heaven, Tiwu Nuwa Muri Koo Fai studs a scene
so spectacular and so surreal that travellers brave wildly winding
mountain roads far inland on the Indonesian island of Flores,
and climb the volcano by torchlight just to watch the day begin
above Moni.
Rugged up against the high-altitude chill, perched on the
sheer-drop edge of the lakes, we shift restlessly in the dark at
1,640m until the sun finally reaches this sea of jagged volcanic
peaks, painting Mount Kelimutu’s trio of multi-coloured crater
lakes with intensifying, dazzling hues.
The Turquoise Lake is the most captivating by far, and close by,
Tiwu Ata Polo (the Brown Lake where good-hearted elderly souls
go to rest) provides a remarkable contrast. Black, cold and
desolate, Tiwi Ata Mbupu is a sinister sight; a resting place for the
wicked and the only summit lake whose colour never changes
with the seasons.
When the spectacle is over, tackle the trail that loops back to
Moni the long way, descending around rice paddies to hot springs
and waterfalls, and finding your way to the ancient spiritual
Customs Houses that make Flores famous.
The essentials: Moni is located on the Indonesian island of
Flores, a 3-hour drive from Labuan Bajo (of Komodo Island
fame). From Moni, take a 4am taxi to Kelimutu National Park,
and hike back to town (pack drinking water, a torch and
swimmers).
TOP 10 ASIAN ADVENTURES
76 / Outdoor