Komodo Trip, Part 3

Our third day on the boat started bright and early, because as soon as the sun is up, the birds and the crew are awake, and the day gets going.  The nice part was that after dinner, we were so tired that after a game of cards or a show on the ipad, we were all ready to get to bed.  Some of us still tried for a few extra minutes of sleep, though!

I loved the quiet mornings on the deck with my coffee.

On this particular morning, I watched a pair of eagles hunting while the sun rose and the fishing boats headed out.

The village looked beautiful in the morning light.

We had one brief shower that morning - the only rain we experienced during all of spring break.  We were so fortunate!  It was close to the end of rainy season so the weather could have gone either way.

Our first stop was Loh Liang visitors center on Komodo Island.

Komodo was quite different from Rinca.  It was lush and green with lots of bird life.  Our guide was showing us all kinds of new birds and listening for different calls.

We really enjoyed seeing wild cockatoos...haven't seen them since Australia.

At the watering hole, we found our first komodo dragons of the day.  These guys were BIG. 

This one in particular got a lot of space and respect from the rangers so he must mean business. 

Here's a better idea of what it's really like visiting the komodos.  Nothing we did anywhere was crowded but you knew if people were gathered anywhere they were gawking at something interesting.

The obligatory monster photo from the guide!

We spotted this one creeping through the woods and gave him his space because he was young and obviously on the hunt.

This poor komodo deer had obviously met a dragon sometime in his past but lived to tell his tale...his little nose was hanging by a piece of skin.

As we hopped on the dinghy to get back to our boat, we found one last guest on the beach!

The very best part of living on the boat was that every time we moved to a new place, all we had to do was rest and relax.  We all took multiple, blissful naps every day.

Our second stop for the day was Karang Makasar, otherwise known as Manta Point.  We jumped in the open water anxious to spot some mantas for the first time.  It was deep but really clear.

The first time we spotted one was a moment I won't forget - these guys are incredible!

They seem to just float by effortlessly.  I'd say many of them were about 6 feet wide but we saw a few guys that had to be more like 10 feet in wingspan.

The current was really strong so the boat would drop us off, we would float with the current until we didn't see any more, then we'd hop back in the boat and watch the surface of the water for new mantas coming by.  Most were swimming into the current so we would meet them face to face.

A black shadow at the surface with little wingtips breaking the water meant it was time to jump in and go again!

Such an amazing experience!  We have snorkeled several places hoping to see them in years past but this was the first time it worked out.

The open water snorkeling was quite a workout so we were ready to take a little break.  Nearby, the kids had spotted a tiny sandy island and asked if we could stop there.  The nice part about having a private boat was that it was on our schedule!

We claimed it as Kirkham Island - Population: 4 (for about half an hour until a few other boats joined us)

At the end was an even smaller island.  The kids were happy to claim that they have likely visited the smallest island in Indonesia.

Total paradise!

Such perfect water...

Our final stop of the day was Gili Laba, off the northern coast of Komodo Island.  I loved these coves because we could just jump off the boat and swim or snorkel to our hearts' content.  It was the most populated place we visited our entire trip, and we ended up moving one cove over to spend the night...not because of the noise and lights from the other boats, but because the crew wanted better cell service to text their friends :)

Later in the afternoon, Shawn took us up to the best overlook to catch the sunset and enjoy the views.

We saw lots of Komodo deer grazing around.

Alex and Shawn had lots of fun taking pictures together.  It took several tries but Alex finally managed to get in a panoramic picture three times!

Enjoying our last evening on the islands.

The view over Komodo only got better as the sun went down.

 

We got great views of Sangeang, the volcanic island we'd seen from the plane.  It's apparently pretty active and I enjoyed seeing the smoke rising from the peak.

What a gorgeous evening!  Such a perfect final sunset for our trip.  By this point, we'd experienced everything we had hoped to see and do, so whatever else lay ahead was just icing on the cake.