Trek & Trees

Buffer Zone Trek (2-Day Tour)

Meeting orangutans, planting trees & supporting villagers: Our new Sumatra EcoTravel tour is a real Eco-trek and perfectly suits our adventurous guests with the environment in mind! At our “Buffer Zone Trek & Trees Tour” we offer the unique combination of jungle trekking in Gunung Leuser National Park followed by a trail along the Landak River and an overnight stay on a campsite at the edge of the rainforest. The next morning our EcoTravel guests will plant trees together with villagers of the Ranto Panjang Landak River area to minimize local-wildlife conflicts in the “buffer zone” between rainforest and farmland. We like to describe this tour not just as an outdoor adventure but also an educational and ecological experience!

Duration: two days
Intensity level:
average
Tour price: 125 EUR per person
Group size: minimum 2 people, maximum 7 people
Start: at 08:30 am – Fridays only

Tour description

DAY 01: This unique EcoTravel trek will start at the entrance of Gunung Leuser National Park in Bukit Lawang und take you to the famous orangutan viewing area around the old feeding platform which is still highly popular with a lot of semi-wild orangutans. Afterwards you will continue your trek through the rainforest with unforgettable scenic viewpoints. If you are lucky, many gibbons, Thomas Leaf monkeys, pigtail macaques, flying squirrels, Sumatran peacocks or hornbills might cross your path. Then your guide will take you away from the “tourist area” to the peaceful Landak River, where you will take a break for a swim and have a delicious lunch. Afterwards you will learn about forest reproduction and see how rubber is harvested by trekking on secret back trails along the „buffer zone“, the border of the national park. You will spend the night on a basic camp at the Ranto Panjang Landak River area. At this amazing hidden spot you can also observe many kinds of monkeys like Thomas Leaf monkeys, longtail macaques, silver tail macaques, honey bears, wild boar, gibbons and also wild orangutans. On top of that a lot of birds will join you there. Your evening meal and your breakfast will be cooked on an open campfire.

DAY 02: Although regular “visits” from wildlife around the campsite may make our EcoTravel guests happy, this behaviour also damages or even destroys the local harvest. And it leads to a permanent fight of the villagers against “fruit thieves”, sometimes resulting in a bloody battle. Our EcoTravel team and our partners from local organisation “Nature for Change” made it our goal to protect the buffer zone at Ranto Panjang Landak River and minimize the conflicts between farmers and wildlife through a detailed and well planned tree planting program. So after breakfast you will join villagers from this area to plant small native trees as Durian, Rambutan, Mango, Jengkol or Petai – supported by our EcoTravel guides and members of NFC. Wildlife and local communities alike will benefit from more trees because there will be plenty of fruits to share for all! After this activity you will have time to relax or swim. You will have a delicious lunch together with the villagers and get a deep insight into local culture. Afterwards our EcoTravel team will pick you up and take you back to Bukit Lawang.

Gallery: Trek & Trees