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Travel Type :  Small groups, Family Friendly and Adventurous.
Activities : Orangutan viewing, elephants, wildlife viewing, bird watching and more
Accommodation : Ranging from Camping to Jungle Lodges to 5 star hotels.
Transport : Mini bus & boat .
How this helps Orangutans : Part of your expedition fare will be donated towards the Orangutan Care Centres in this area.

Expeditions - We have recently been on an extensive research trip to these areas of Sumatra and we are really excited about the fantastic Orangutan itineraries we have now assembled, which will cater for families and adventurers alike. There is a wide variety of adventures you can chose to do including mountain trekking, white water rafting and jungle walks.  For details of these trips simply click on an Icon below.

The Gunung Leuser National Park (GLNP) was established in 1980 as one of the first national parks in the privince of Northern Sumatra. The park covers an area of 1,094,692 hectares, 25% larger than Yosemite National Park in the US or equivalent to Tasmania's World Heritage area in Australia. The park along with the Kerinci Seblat National Park and Bukit Barisan Selatan National Park were inscribed into the World Heritage List in 2004 as the Tropical Rainforest Heritage of Sumatra cluster site.

The topography of the park varies from sea level up to mountains, with the highest peak reaching 3404 m asl. The main habitats in the GLNP are mountain forests, alpine woods, primary dipterocarp lowland forest, swamp areas, beach forest and mangrove forest. It is home to 130 mammal species, 380 bird species and up to 4000 plant species.

The GLNP is the only park in the world that is home to the big four Asian mammals: Sumatran Orangutan (Pongo abelii), Sumatran Elephant (Elephas maximus sumatranus), Sumatran Tiger (Panthera tigris sumatrae) and the Sumatran Rhino (Dicerorhinus sumatrensis). The four are critically endangered and need help from the international community.

The GLNP has 86 mountains and 364 rivers creating a stunningly beautiful and rugged environment for other amazing species. These include 7 primate species (Slow Loris, Pig-tailed Macaque and Long-tailed Macaqae, Siamang and White-handed Gibbon, Kedih/Thomas Leaf-monkey and the Griffith's Silver Leaf-monkey). It is also home to Cloud Leopards, the Malay Sunbear, Sambar Deer, 13 Bat species and 17 Squirrel species. On top of this is an amazing plant life including the largest flower in the world, the pungent Raffelesia.

Bohorok Orangutan Centre
The Bohorok Centre for ex-captive Sumatran orangutans was established in 1973 by two Swiss zoologists, Regina Frey and Monica Boerner, with funding originally provided by the Frankfurt Zoological Society (FZS) and the World Wildlife Fund (WWF). In 1980 the Centre was taken over by the Indonesian Government. Since then it has received virtually no outside funding, and it no longer operates as a rehabilitation centre for orangutans.

Since it opened in 1973 more than 200 orangutans have been released. The centre has been closed to admitting more orangutans since 1996. The centre no longer meets modern standards of species re-introduction. Furthermore, the area is already over-saturated with orangutans, and therefore not suitable for releasing more rehabilitants. Releasing ex-captive apes into areas of forest where wild populations exist also risks importing disease. For these and other valid reasons, Bohorok cannot be modified and updated to function again as a rehabilitation centre.

The area remains open to tourists, providing the incredible opportunity of viewing orangutans in the semi-wild on daily excursions to the feeding platform, an experience which galvanizes support for their conservation and well-being, and fuels the local economy. It is essential that visitors refrain from touching or feeding the orangutans as they are susceptible to many human illnesses which their immune systems cannot deal with.

Tragedy at Bohorok 
A tragedy struck the village of Bukit Lawang on November 2nd 2003. A flash flood swept through the resort, killing over 200 people and making hundreds homeless. Two orangutans also died in the flood. The village was leveled and tourists were advised to stay away for the short term. Authorities blamed a combination of factors for the tragedy: natural causes exacerbated by extensive illegal logging in the Leuser Ecosystem.

A new information centre has opened where you can hire a guide for trekking. Park permits are still available from the PHKA office in Bukit Lawang.  Bohorok's staff are currently responsible for supplementing the diet at the feeding platform and for the welfare of the ex-captive orangutans living in the forest surrounding the centre.

Welcome to Tangkahan…

Tangkahan is sometimes mentioned as the HIDDEN PARADISE IN SUMATRA. It is definitely hidden and for many a paradise. It is the perfect place to get off the beaten track, but still have access to nice food and comfortable bungalows. Tangkahan is an interesting place in many ways. Interesting for what it has to offer and an interesting background. The elephants, the jungle, and the clean rivers are obvious attractions. What makes Tangkahan different is that it is a good example on how community based eco-tourism can stop illegal logging, improve livelihood, and develop a sense of pride amongst the locals. This development on the border of Leuser National Park where the bigger river Batang Serangan meets the smaller river Sungai Musam is the hidden paradise of Tangkahan.

• Join the forest rangers on their elephants when they patrol the jungle!
• Float down the clear river!
• Go jungle trekking!
• Soak yourself in hot springs!