Hunter by Nature

Salam! Welcome back to Hunter by Nature!

I am posting this update from the Indonesian village of Kamorora, located in Central Sulawesi. Over the past two weeks, we have been camping and staying in a homestay! This has been an incredible experience to prepare me for my future dissertation research!

We left Palu on July 18th to head to our campsite. To camp at this location, we needed permission from the landowner as well as permission from the village head. One of our research assistants, Agus, traveled to meet with both individuals and scouted out a suitable location. On the 18th, we purchased all remaining supply needs and food for the next several days.

We drove about 2 hours to research the site and then unloaded. The unloading process was interesting as we had tons of supplies. Our field assistants drove their motorbikes back and forth carrying a multitude of bags. We set up camp along a river.

Indonesian locals are incredible. During our one week stay at camp they crafted two tables, a bench, and set up tarps to create a roof over our heads. This was all done using just bamboo, plastic rope, and machetes. During one of the mornings, I fell asleep for an hour and a half with one table and woke up with another table and bench.

The first few days were wonderful. I love it here. However, I do miss American toilets and showers. Now we are in the Indonesian rainforest, so rain is pretty common (although it is technically the dry season). On the 20th, we experienced a small disaster at camp. Located alongside our camp was a small stream which flowed into the larger river. Originally, all of our tents and kitchen area were alongside the stream. I’m sure you’re already guessing what I’m going to say, but camp flooded.

We (really just the Indonesian field assistants) managed to move all the tents to higher ground above our previous area. Our field assistants built a quick tarp roof over the newly moved tents. They then moved our kitchen to the slightly raised section where some of the tents were previously. The above image shows the new and improved kitchen area. I would really like to be more helpful, but the reality is that I am just in the way. My uselessness is continuing…

We stayed at camp until the 25th when the group split up. Several members of Team Tarsius traveled to Kamorora and others stayed at camp. We are staying in a homestay run by Raimon, the brother of Lao. This is Homestay Tarsius! Tourists come to this homestay in hopes of seeing Lore Lindu National Park and tarsiers. It’s a beautiful place and a nice change in pace from camping.

On the 28th some of us return to camp for a few days, while others head back to the U.S. We are having a wonderful time, and I can’t wait for the rest of this adventure.

Terima kasih dan selamat jalan!