Tangkoko Nature Reserve – Sulawesi, Indonesia

by Justin Delaney on

Sulawesi is the type of place that looks exotic even on a black and white map. Located just east of Borneo and shaped like a mythical beast from some old world coat of arms, it jumps out at you from the Indonesian archipelago, begging the intrepid to visit. The island’s most interesting nature reserve, Tangkoko, is located at the northeastern tip of Sulawesi. Several rare and bizarre creatures call this reserve home, from the Mimic Octopus to the Tarsier. It is a wild place, more National Geographic than Conde Nast.

Tangkoko feels like the end of the world. A gigantic volcano looms over the park, perpetually draped in thin narrow clouds. The dark beaches are scattered with crushed sea shells and Crested Black Macaques foraging for snacks. The dense rain-forest spreads out across Tangkoko, draping the park floor in a constant shadow and bumping up against the beaches that meet the savage sea. The waters surrounding the park hold a vast array of marine life. Sea gypsies live just offshore in stilt homes built around the reefs, dependent on the ocean’s bounty for sustenance. It is a land unchanged by modernity.

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The animals of Tangkoko are a derelict crew. From carnivorous primates that live inside trees to Red Knobbed Horn-bills with wings like pterodactyls, the creatures are a menagerie of the curious. Among the most unique are the Tarsier, the Crested Black Macaque, the Giant Civet, and the Sulawesi Bear Cuscus. The Tarsiers live in family units inside gigantic trees, and hunt for insects under the cover of night. Each eyeball is the size of their entire brain. Perhaps most strangely, the carnivorous Tarsier cannot be kept in captivity, or it will commit suicide. The crested black macaque is a promiscuous old world monkey endemic to northern Sulawesi. They live in massive tribes of about twenty and spend their day foraging along the forest floor. At night, they retire to the rain-forest canopy. The Giant Civet is the largest mammal in Tangkoko, reaching about three feet in length. The medium sized cats have been known to ambush massive horn-bills on branches high in the cloud forest.

Getting to Northern Sulawesi is simple on Silk Air from Singapore. Silk Air flies the Singapore-Manado route nonstop on Monday, Wednesday, Friday, and Saturday; it typically costs around 300 USD. It is also possible to fly to Manado from Bali on Garuda Air, though you must stop in Makassar en-route. Manado is the largest city in North Sulawesi and has many accommodation options. If you want to stay near the nature reserve, Pulisan Jungle Beach Resort provides basic beach-side bungalows with a great view across the water towards Mount Tangkoko. Utilize your guesthouse to make arrangements to visit the park. Other activities in Northern Sulawesi include climbing volcanoes, visiting the floral highlands around Tomohon, and diving the Lembeh Straits or Bunaken Island – two of the top dive sites in the world.

Video explains a climb up Everest

by Kraig Becker on

At 29,029 feet (8848 meters) in height, Everest is the tallest mountain on the planet, and a significant challenge to any high altitude climber. For years, the mountain has held sway over the general public as well, despite the fact that most of us have no idea what it actually takes to reach to the summit. The video below helps to put it all into perspective however, demonstrating the process that climbers go through on their expeditions.

Scaling the highest mountain on Earth requires a significant investment in both time and money. Mountaineers will spend in the neighborhood of $50,000 for the opportunity to possibly stand at the top of the world. But perhaps more surprising than that, they’ll also spend upwards of about two months on the climb as well. Due to the extreme altitude involved, they must take time to acclimatize before making their summit push. That process can take several weeks at least.

This video demonstrates that process very well by showing the path that most climbers take when climbing from Nepal’s South Col Route. The mountaineers begin in Base Camp, which is located at about 17,600 feet, and proceed up the mountain to a series of high camps. They’ll usually shuttle gear to those pre-set locations, then spend a night there, before descending back to lower altitudes to rest and recover. All the while, their bodies are slowly getting use to the much thinner air.

This video was created by climber Alan Arnette, who will be attempting Everest for the 4th time this spring. Everest is just another challenge on his 7 Summits for Alzheimer’s expedition however, during which he hopes to climb the highest mountain on each of the continents to raise funds for the Cure Alzheimer’s Fund.

[Photo credit: Pavel Novak via WikiMedia]


Discovery Adventures travel company debuts 2011’s Discovery Channel-inspired trips

by Laurel Miller on

Armchair traveler red alert! Discovery Adventures is offering eight new Discovery Channel-inspired cultural trips for 2011, including Greece, Turkey, Italy, France, Japan, and East Africa. Explore archaeological sites near Athens, visit wineries in Tuscany, safari in Kenya, or soak in hot springs in the Japanese Alps. Trips are limited to 16 people, and run from eight to 15 days. Accommodations range from boutique hotels and inns with local character to eco-lodges.

Discovery Adventures has teamed up with adventure travel industry leader Gap Adventures and non-profit Planeterra to offer travelers more opportunities to positively impact the lives of communities around the world. Each trip provides travelers with an opportunity to visit destinations (often traveling by traditional modes of transport such as rickshaw or elephant) and interact with local people in an ecologically-responsible manner. In addition to your guide, you’ll be accompanied by local historians, archaeologists, artisans, and naturalists. Time to get off that Barcalounger!

[Photo credit: Flickr user Arno & Louise Wildlife]

Buzkashi – goats and gladiators

by Justin Delaney on

In central Asia, men play a strange game on horseback. Instead of a ball, they use a goat carcass. Instead of goals, they must ride until free of challengers. Instead of minutes, the game can be measured in days. This is Buzkashi – goat grabbing.

Long established as the national sport of Afghanistan, Buzkashi is polo’s drunken uncle. The sport is also played in Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan, Pakistan, and Kazakhstan. It is a sport of the Stans – where the masters have ridden for centuries, gloriously along the steppes they call home. The game starts with the placement of a goat carcass in the center of a horse circle, and from there, the riders stare each other down while gripping tightly wound whips in their gleaming teeth.

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During the Taliban reign in Afghanistan, the sport was outlawed, but today it has seen a resurgence as the national pastime. Two variations are played, Tudabarai and Qarajai. In both versions, the field is separated into two teams. Tudabarai is the simpler more traditional form of the game. To win, a lone rider must carry the goat until free and clear of all other riders. The riders use their boots and whips to discourage any sort of advance, though horse tripping is strictly forbidden. Qarajai is the more complex version of the game, and requires players to take the goat around a marker and then place it in the team’s designated scoring circle.

The winning team receives a bevy of prizes, from televisions to fine turbans to camels. Games have been known to last for days, and it is a rough demanding sport. It is said that only the masters of the sport, called “Chapandaz,” are truly adept at retrieving the carcass and absconding with it to glory. Unlike a running-back in the NFL, these masters do not hit their peak until much later in life. Most are well over 40. They have spent a lifetime training, and their horses are equally prepared. A good Buzkashi horse must train for five to ten years and can fetch over ten-thousand dollars. This amount is 25 times the average laborer’s yearly wage in Afghanistan and would be comparable to paying $1,000,000 in relative terms in the United States.

Since Afghanistan is a war zone, it is best to catch a game of Buzkashi in Uzbekistan or Kyrgyzstan. In Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan, it is possible to catch games during the late August Independence celebrations. Community Based Tourism arranges a number of tours in the region.

flickr images via U.S Embassy Kabul Afghanistan

GadlingTV’s Travel Talk – Thailand Part 9: Hellfire Pass

by Stephen Greenwood on

Gadling TV’s Travel Talk, episode 39 – Click above to watch video after the jump

In the first half of Travel Talk’s grand Thai expedition, we’ve tamed elephants, explored Bangkok’s temples, eaten scorpions, taken in a Muay Thai match, and witnessed a train running directly through a bustling market. Now, we’re taking you to explore a lesser known province of Thailand for a closer look at the culture and traditions of rural Thai life.


In order to supply their expansion into Burma during WWII, the Japanese built the so-called “Death Railway,” which claimed over 100,000 lives from the Asian labourers and Allied POWs forced to work it. We get to experience the memorial at Hellfire Pass- the most grueling section of this infamous railway, then take on some hellfire of our own with the spiciest food Thai cuisine has to offer!

If you have any questions or comments about Travel Talk, you can email us at talk AT gadling DOT com.


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Hosts: Stephen Greenwood & Aaron Murphy-Crews
Produced, Edited, and Directed by: Stephen Greenwood & Aaron Murphy-Crews
Special thanks: Tourism Authority of Thailand, Trikaya Tours

Travel Talk took Thailand by storm on invitation from the Tourism Authority of Thailand. No editorial content was guaranteed and Aaron & Stephen were free to openly share all adventures that they embarked upon.