WARNING***** Lots of photos…..and I am not a biologist nor am I a primatologist so forgive any misguided labels, descriptions, identification, etc.
Let’s get right into it!!!! Our 202 mile passage from Bawean island to Borneo was pretty uneventful with the exception of the usual tugs/barges and fishing nets/lines….there was not a lot of wind so motoring it was. We have started to reach lighting country and heat lighting has been a constant.
Fishing boat sandwich….Kenobi and Cintana 
Can you see that flag in the water? My point exactly! 
Double tug and barge…
With Kenobi and Cintana in tow (not literally LOL) we all decided to anchor outside the large bay because we wouldn’t make it all the way up the river to the town of Kumai in daylight. Additionally, it would be in our best interest to go up the river at a favorable incoming tide so anchor it was.
We dropped anchor just before dusk and Slow Flight had our deck lights on for Kenobi and Cintana to have a better bearing on our position…but we were greeted by thousands of friends!!!!
I can’t tell you how many there were…what I can tell you is that it sounded like it was raining…bugs! 
Even in the morning we found groups…for about 4 days we were still seeing them! 
One lonely grasshopper…or cricket…
The next morning we headed through the bay and up the river to the town of Kumai. Favorable tide yes….water clarity…NO!
A proper beacon in the middle of the bay…it was a very strong signal on radar… impressive 
Glad we made water before the bay because this was just incredible.
So I had no idea bird nest soup was so popular. As we were motoring up the river, we heard the “songs” of birds….it was astonishing how loud it was. When we went ashore, we heard the “song” again but when I looked up, there were no birds. I asked someone where all the birds were making all the sounds and my response was it was a tape recording…either to attract the birds who make the birds nest for the soup or to detract predators of the birds who make the nests for soup…got lost in translation. Seriously, Kumai is the Bird Nest factory town..who knew? I put a link to a BBC article written in 2011, not so long ago…it’s fascinating…and a bit scary?! https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-pacific-12274825
Once anchored we headed ashore to find an Orangutan tour, check out the market and see about getting diesel. Our days in between our tour consisted of runs to the market, laundry, boat stuff, and get togethers with other yachties.
Getting excited to book a tour
Here is a photo of the river shore lined with bird nest factories… 
and more….
I was intrigued so I went over to watch these women make the traditional roofing. They are sewing the leaves together from the bark of the palm.
The market…. 
a super clean tuktuk…. 
getting filled up….they did it for me since Trevor was working on Cintana helping out Sean…it must be man’s work.
Dinner on Slow Flight with a innocent game of Cards Against Humanity 
Ironically someone pulled this card…. Can’t quite remember which card won…any guesses : ) 
Ol’ Irish Sean couldn’t make it through the game.
Dinner on SV Cintana…..Mar Cea is vegetarian and made a lovely veggie lasagna…Yummm!!!! 
And I met Gypsy aboard SV Cintana for the first time….got my cat fix!
Bucket list item…Organutangs here we come…..CHECK!!!! Kenobi (Stephen and Donna) and us decided to do a 2 day/1 night tour. You live on a openair boat and we were unsure about bugs…but mosquito nets were provided and hung, all meals including snacks were provided. A shower if you wanted it and cold hand towels were presented to us after a hot/humid walk through the “jungle”….it was really a full service event!
Our guide, Edi…he was pretty hilarious and we all enjoyed his sense of humor and answering all of our silly tourist questions about the culture here. 
We have arrived!
Our home away from home…. when it rained they would lower the white rolled up tarps and even had a piece of wood to prop it up with to let the breeze in. The hardest working person there was the woman who cooked and cleaned for us…. we gave them all a good tip at the end of the tour…they all deserved it!
Comfy viewing….. 
Trevor just had to have the princess sheet bed…he called dibs on it first!
The river…these palms are what the roofing is made from 
Further down the river the water looked almost black but was clear when you lifted it from the river 
I thought this milage sign was hilarious
Traffic Jam…. we heard that there can be up to 40 boats a day that come up this river at peak season…thankfully we were at the end of it. Everyone knew each other and there was banter back and forth when we would pass another boat… you would think there would be so much competion and possibly hard feelings…but there were none…refreshing!
One of the trails to the feeding stations 
Another trail to a feeding station
We visited 3 feeding stations and a guided night walk. We would stop along side the river to watch the proboscis monkeys sitting in trees eating fruit in the early evening. It was a jammed packed 2 days but an experience like no other!!!!
We saw the dominate male at each feeding station…. we were told this was a rare event as the males have to do their rounds of their territory and that could take a long time. However, this also could mean there is not enough food for them and so they keep close to the feeding stations….hard to say
Both males we saw placed their hand at the edge of the platform…of course eating in peace with his back turned to us… I don;t know if this behaviour is significant but it was what they both did…exactly the same. 
It was so strange to see the male standing and walking just like us…he was massive!
Lunch for 2…. 
The mamas carry their young for many years….I am exhausted just watching her!
Might I have some more Malt O-Meal? An adolescent grab and go…..
In the tree action…a mother and her 2 young: One holding on to her, the other old enough to venture by himself….. 
Swinging from the trees…moving towards the feeding platform….. 
Not sure what kind of a day she was having…was she mad or tired? Definitely tired…it was a yawn…..
We saw more than just Orangutans….this monkey was super fast but was extremely cautious…as it should be…it was 1/8 the size of the large male we saw at the same feeding station. Any idea what type of monkey?
“ok…looks clear…” 
“one more check and in I go” 
“I’d like a banana with a side of banana” 
“Better get going….” 
“….. higher ground?!” 
“Not high enough….” 
“Whewwww….that was close…I can eat in peace”
The proboscis monkeys were hilarious to watch…sitting in the trees on the side of the river with their incredibly long tails….there would be 1 dominate male with his tribe of women and little ones. Scratching their bums and eating red fruit from the trees. We were told that they like to be “clean” so they sit in the trees and poop….not sure how factual that is but hey….it works for me. The male monkeys have a long nose, which can reach up to 18 centimetres (7 inches) in males. The purpose of the elongated nose helps to attract mates and to amplify the sound of warning calls….did I mention their constant erect red private parts?!
Big daddy! 
In action… 
Does this remind you of the below book…without the hats of course? 
Caps for Sale: A Tale of a Peddler, Some Monkeys and Their Monkey Business is a children’s picture book, written and illustrated by Esphyr Slobodkina and published by W. R. Scott in 1940
We saw other monkeys…the Makak monkeys were all over the docks and jumping from trees….
No words necessary…
And can’t forget to mention all the other creatures, flora and fauna we saw…..
Water lizard….. 
swimming towards another boat…. 
guide tried to grab it…dinner?
Spiders…. 
Squirrel! 
There is a tarantula in there…
Edi caught a grasshopper..but the wings were so pretty 
Grassopper/cricet? 
This was a HUGE ant! 
And Stephen had a friend…this leech got him good…I have never seen a leech in real life….
Pitcher plant….it has toxic fluids that kills bugs..carnivorous plant?! 
No idea what this is but it’s color was so vibrant against the green 
delicate orchids 
Sandalwood trees… partly why there is illegal deforestation happening here. The sandalwood trees makes for a great profit. Edi is burning a little bit so we can smell the scents. 
This “lethal” looking tree had spikes shooting off it’s trunk…serious hardware!
After some research, this is a “bridal veil stinkhorn”. It only last for about 2 days so we are pretty lucky to see it. Supposedly edible, it does not use the wind to spread its spores but it’s smell to attract bugs and bees to carry the spores off. Our guide said he had never seen this type of fungi EVER…. It is just beautiful!
Borneo Dwarf Kingfisher …I think…Supposedly these are shy birds but it allowed us to take many photos of it with a light on. Maybe they only hunt during the day and this guys was trying to sleep when rudely awakened by silly tourists
Not sure what will exceed this amazing adventure in the rivers of Borneo…a truly unique experience. Anyone who can travel here should seriously consider a tour of this fashion. There is so much more to do here on Borneo but it’s time to move on…. time to cross the equator…AGAIN?!
Thanks for sharing your adventure! Truly beautiful!
Great photos, looks like a terrific tour. Maybe some distance relatives ? Dad D.
I hear your voice reading this. If your nose was bigger it would amplify your post?