Wildlife Tours in Rainforest of Sorong

I offer birding and wildlife watching tours for visitors who are interested in hiking and exploring the tropical rainforest of Sorong city. These tours are suitable for tourists who want to take land tour before or after their diving/ snorkeling tour in Raja Ampat. The duration of the tour can be customized into 1 day for day trip to 3 or 4 days adventure in tropical rainforest. We have prepared basecamp in the forest. There are cooking and eating utensils too. We provide these things so that visitors do not need to carry heavy things to explore the rainforest.

See the biodiversity of plants and animals in rainforest

Rainforest in Sorong regency of West Papua

We will explore the forest to see butterflies, beetles, and a lot of other insects,  birds, lizards, cuscus possum. Tropical rainforest of West Papua is a rich environment. There are a lot of species of trees, shrub and creeping plants, as well as wild flower plants that can be seen in the forest. Visitors will be able to see the scenery of the forest while walking along the ridge of the savanna hills. As we walk deeper and then down the slopes of the hill, we will be able to reach a river whose bed is covered by big granite stones.

Day Hiking Tour

Tropical Rainforest in Sorong regency

Most tourists request day hiking tour. I highly suggest that visitors go in a group of at least 4 people or even more to share the cost. We can start in the morning and then return in the afternoon.

How to get to Sorong city
Sorong city is the gateway to Raja Ampat islands - the most important tourist destination in Indonesia for scuba diving and snorkeling. Here is how to get there:

• Take an international flight from your country to Jakarta (the capital of Indonesia).
• After that, take a domestic flight, by Garuda or Batik Air or Sriwijaya, to Sorong city. I could meet you in Sorong and organise your trip to the forest.

Flight Route to Sorong city

Booking
To book your rainforest wildlife watching tour, please, contact me (Charles Roring) by e-mail to: peace4wp@gmail.com or by whatsapp to: +6281332245180.

Birding near Sorong city

Olive-backed Sunbird

This is the picture of Olive-backed Sunbird (Cinnyris jugularis) that I saw in a forest near Sorong city. For tens of years, this city has become the main gate to Raja Ampat islands for tourists who to spend their holiday scuba diving, swimming and snorkeling. However, there are also a lot of tourists who want to enjoy hiking, birdwatching and nature watching in general.

Birding Tour
As a tourist guide, I offer this tour. Because this forest is near the city, visitors can start the tour early in the morning and then return to their hotel before dark. From a short hiking and birdwatching trip, I saw Helmetted Friarbird, Olive-backed Sunbird, Coconut Lorikeet, and Yellow-faced Myna. I also saw some birds flying very fast in front of me making it difficult to identify them. I guess they were Black Lory, and Hooded Butcherbird.

In addition to birds, visitors who take this tour will be able to see savanna hills, terrestrial Spathoglottis orchids, butterflies, grasshoppers, and unique tropical plants of Papua.
We will walk along the ridge of Savanna Hills and then down to tropical rainforest of Sorong that is still in very good condition. The shortest trip is one day, but we can organize multiple day hiking, camping and birding tour that lasts for 3 to 4 days. There are several sites in the forest where we can use to build our basecamp. Because organizing a multiple day tour in the forest needs more logistical supplies, we will bring tents, mattrasses, cooking and eating utensils.
What to Wear and What to Bring

To take this trip, please, wear sport/ hiking shoes with socks, long pants or short pants, apply insect repellent lotion, t-shirt and hat. During rainy season, bring raincoat.
To enhance your birding experience, bring a pair of binoculars such as the Swarovski EL 8.5×42, spotting scope and tripod as well as birding camera such as Nikon P900 or Fujifilm HS50EXR.
Booking
If you are interested in hiking and birding in Sorong forest, please, contact me (Charles Roring) by email to: peace4wp@gmail.com or by text message to ,y whatsapp: +6281332245180.

Also read:

• Bird viewing and snorkeling in Raja Ampat

Wildlife Tour in Lowland Forest of Sorong regency Indonesia

Male Lesser Birds of Paradise

This is the photograph of male Lesser Birds of Paradise (Paradisaea minor). I often see the birds when I guide visitors in lowland forest of Sorong regency. It is a city which has been the main gate to Raja Ampat. As a matter of fact, Sorong has got huge area of tropical rainforest that is home to a lot of species of birds, mammals, reptiles, and insects. There are a lot of plants that grow in the forest such as iron-wood tree, matoa tree, and huge pandanus tree.
Visitors spend between 3 to 4 days hiking and watching wild animals in the forest. From my previous wildlife tours in this environment I saw deer, northern cassowary, wallaby, ulysses butterfly and beautiful wild flowers.

Itinerary
Day 1

Transfer by 4wd car from Sorong city to Klasow valley (1.5 hours)
Walk along the path from the main road to jungle village (1.5 hours)
Arrive in the village, take a rest, birdwatching around the clearing area of the village.

Day 2
Wake-up early in the morning at 04.00. Have tea or coffee and make preparation At 04.30 leave the village for the birdwatching site of Lesser BOP. Arrive at 06.00. Watch birds until 09.00. Walk back to the village. Have lunch. Take a rest. Jungle walk again to watch birds and other wildlife.
After dinner, we could do night walk to see wallaby thats comes out at night to find food and mating partner.

Day 3
Wake up in the morning to birding site of Twelve-wired Bird of Paradise. After that, we will continue to the birding ground of King Bird of Paradise.
After lunch we will go hiking to a hill behind the village. Back to the village, we still can enjoy birdwatching in the clearing area of the village

Day 4
Morning walk to the river in the west of the village. Visitors can enjoy swimming or exploring the surrounding forest. Back to the village. After lunch, we could walk slowly back to the main road again and then back to Sorong city by car.

Booking your rainforest tour
Please, contact me (Charles Roring) by email to: peace4wp@gmail.com or whatsapp: +6281332245180.
I need information such as name, country of origin, date and time of arrival and how long you plan to do the rainforest tour.

Idea durvillei Butterfly

Idea durvillei butterfly in Waigeo island of Raja Ampat

Idea durvillei is a large black and white butterfly that I see in Mansinam island of Manokwari; Waim islet and Waigeo island of Raja Ampat. They live in coastal forest. I have never seen it in higher montane forest such as Arfak mountains and Tambrauw Mountains. The wings are white decorated with black lines. The abdomen of this beautiful insect is white. From my personal observations, the butterfly likes to find nectar of flowers early in the mornings. In the afternoons when the temperature is high, the butterfly prefers to take a rest on a green leave of shrubs under the shades of big trees. Actually, there are a lot of species of butterflies that we can see when we go hiking in lowland forest including cruiser butterfly - Vindula arsinoe, Silky Owl Butterfly - Taenaris catops, and  the Blue Mountain Swallowtail - Papilio ulysses.  The best months to watch butterflies in West Papua are during dry season June to early December.

Most of my tours are related to birdwatching. However, it does not mean that I don't pay attention to other animals. written by Charles Roring

Birdwatching Binoculars

In my previous post Wildlife Binoculars, I mention about Swarovski SLC 10×42 WB which is a very sturdy optical device for field use. Actually, there are a lot of other brands that can also deliver clear and crisp images of birds and other wild animals that we would like to watch especially in a distant tree, beach or in the sky. I personally have got some Chinese made 10x 42 mm roof binoculars. They are not the best in the market but they give good quality images. I often bring them into the forest when I guide birdwatchers.
Bad Binoculars

Several years ago I thought that binoculars with higher magnification were better. In reality I was wrong. I used to buy a pair of binoculars from a shop in my town without checking its performance in the field - a Chinese made Papillon 12-36×70 binoculars. The next day, I brought the binoculars to the field when I guided a French couple on a 3 day/ 2 night riverwalk and birdwatching tour in lowland forest of Manokwari. When I tried the device, I was very disappointed with the image quality it produced. My old binoculars with lower magnification gave me sharper and clearer views of birds, scenery and trees.
Characteristics of High Quality Birding Binoculars

From that day I decided to read more information on the internet about binoculars. I spent more time reading about technical aspects of binoculars, here are some of the features from the binoculars which birdwatchers must know.

• Brand name and long tradition in binoculars manufacturing - Companies that have manufactured binoculars for tens of years have got more experience and expertise in making high quality binoculars. Zeiss, Swarovski, Leica, and Nikon are some of the manufacturers that have created high precision optical products including binoculars.
• High quality binoculars are made of high definition glass lenses such as Extra-low Dispersion glass and Bak4 prism.
• In tropical rainforest, the frequency of rainfall and humidity is high. Binoculars have to be sealed with waterproof O-ring and filled with dry nitrogen. 
• To ensure the production of clear and sharp bird images, every surface of the lens in binoculars have to be painted with anti reflective compounds. 

Swarovski EL 8.5×42 binoculars

One example of an excellent binoculars is the Austrian made Swarovski EL 8.5×42. I used test the product when I went birdwatching in Arfak range. The image quality it produced was sharp and clear. I highly recommend this device. Birdwatchers cannot be separated from their binoculars particularly when they go into the forest, the beach, lake, or walk along the banks of a river. High definition binoculars will definitely enhance birding experience. Bad quality binoculars can ruin the whole birding experience of an avid birdwatcher. So, before buying binoculars, make sure that the device has got at least four important characteristics that I mention above. written by Charles Roring
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