- Location: South Sangatta, East Kutai Regency, East Kalimantan 75683, Indonesia
- Area: 1 986 sq. M. km
- Foundation date: 1982.
- Working hours: daily 18: 14-14: 12, Wednesday - closed
The nature of Indonesia is known for its richness and diversity, so it is not surprising that there is a huge number of reserves, marine parks and other nature conservation areas . One of them is the Kutai National Park, located about 10-50 km from the equator line.
Geographical location of Qutai
The territory of the national park extends on a flat terrain near the Mahakam River, the water of which is fed by more than 76 lakes. The largest lakes of the Kutai Reserve are:
- Danau-Mao;
- Santan;
- Besar;
- Siran.
Next to the national park are the cities of Bontang, Sangatta and Samarinda. In addition, in the territory of Qutai there are traditional settlements of Bugis. This ethnic group is the most numerous ethnic group of South Sulawesi .
History of the Qutai
The territory on which the reserve is located, has been protected by the state since the 1970s. However, this does not prevent local enterprises from engaging in logging, because of which the area of local forests is reduced every year by tens of thousands of hectares. In an attempt to prevent further deforestation of this locality in 1982, the Kutai National Park was established.
Until now, woodworking enterprises continue to destroy forests along the eastern border of the park. The process is also affected by the activities of mining companies and constant fires. The largest of them occurred in 1982-1983. To date, only 30% of the forests in the territory of the Kutai Park remain untouched.
Biodiversity of the Kutai Park
The flora of the national park is represented mainly in the form of a diptekarp, tropical, mangrove, kierangas and freshwater marsh forests. In total, 958 species of plants grow in Kutai, including:
- 8 species of diptekarp trees;
- 41 species of orchids;
- 220 species of medicinal plants.
Dense forests have become habitats for 10 primate species, 90 mammal species and 300 bird species. The most famous inhabitant of Kutai is orangutan, whose number decreased to 60 individuals from 2004 to 2009. To date, their population has increased to 2,000 monkeys.
In addition to the orangutans, in the Kutai National Park, you can find a Malay bear, a marble cat, Müller's gibbon and many other kinds of animals.
Tourist infrastructure of Qutai
In the national park there are two tourist zones:
- Sangkima , located between the cities of Bontan and Sangatta. It can be reached by car or bus. In Sangkim, there are several old office buildings and a large footpath. Due to the proximity to the cities and easy access in this area of Kutaya there is always a large influx of tourists.
- Prewab , located along the Sangatta River. To get to this area, you need to sail 25 minutes along the Sangatta River or drive by car through the peak of Kabo. Due to the remoteness and inaccessibility in this region the Kutai jungle is still in good condition.
How to get to Qutai?
In order to assess the biodiversity of the national park, you need to go to the east of the island of Kalimantan . Kutai is remote from the capital of Indonesia for almost 1500 km. The nearest major city, Balikpapan, is located 175 km from the park. They are connected by the road Jl. A.Yani. Following it to the north, you can find yourself in the Kutai Nature Reserve in about 5.5 hours.
From Jakarta to Balikpapan, you can get both by car and by planes from Lion Air, Garuda Indonesia and Batik Air. In this case, the whole journey takes 2-3 hours.