Bali Barat National Park

Introduction

Barat Bali national Park

© missindo

Bali Barat National Park covers a large area in the northwestern part of Bali. There are over 300 different species of birds here, and more than 200 species of plants. You can see animals like monkeys, deer, squirrels, iguanas and different kinds of snakes. The vegetation is greenest during the rainy season, and the landscape goes a bit brown towards the end of the dry season. There's an entrance fee to get into the park, and all trekkers must be accompanied by a local authorised guide.

Sights and Activities

The official park trails should be explored with a guide recommended by the national park office. This is actually a rule but it is sometimes 'quietly' ignored. Please do not do this nor encourage the practice, despite the very irresponsible advice given in some printed travel guides to do so.

Bali starlings

© theo1006

The uninhabited Menjangan Island is a must-do for any visitor to Bali interested in marine life, snorkelling or diving. Boats leave from the beach at Labuan Lalang at the northern edge of Teluk Terima bay, and can chartered on the day. Groups of tourists often club together at Labuan Lalang in the mornings for that very purpose. Any boat charter must be accompanied by a guide, and you must purchase a permit (Rp 25,000 per person) from the national park office in the main Labuhan Lalang car park. Many of Bali's dive operators based in the southern tourist regions offer dive excursions specifically to Menjangan. The snorkelling here is probably the best on Bali with good clear water and calm seas.

There is a notable temple on Menjangan called Puri Gili Kencana which is certainly worth a visit. You can walk around the whole of Menjangan in about 1 hour and 15 minutes. If you take it slower though there is plenty of natural coastal beauty to absorb.

Gilimanuk Bay snakes into the south western tip of the Prapat Agung peninsula, and the park office can arrange a guided boat trip for you in a traditional outrigger. Expect to pay about Rp 300,000 per hour including guide fees. The bay is quiet and supports a rich diversity of marine life. There are some notable areas of mangrove forest fringing the bay, and these act as a natural nursery for the diverse fish life in the area.

Flora and Fauna

One hundred and sixty species of bird have been recorded in the park, including the near extinct Bali Starling, Bali's only endemic vertebrate species, and a key reason why this national park was created in the first place. By 2001, as few as six individuals were thought to survive in the wild, all of them in this park. Since then captive breeding and re-introduction efforts have continued apace, but poaching pressures are a large problem. With that in mind, a second re-introduction programme was started in remote regions of Nusa Penida in 2004. Keen birdwatchers can find a checklist of likely species and their status here.

Mammals found inside the park include Banteng, a species of wild cattle from which the familiar Bali cows are descended. Java Rusa and Indian Muntjac deer are quite widespread, and Menjangan Island is in fact named after these (Menjangan means deer in Bahasa Indonesia). Wild Boar and Leopard Cats are both quite common but seldom encountered.

A Bali Tiger (a full sub-species of Tiger) was shot here in 1937, and despite rumours to the contrary, that is the last ever confirmed sighting of an animal considered extinct since that moment.

Opening Hours

The park is open year-round. Only a small percentage of the total area of the park is open to visitors, and this rule must be respected. There are two key ways to explore the park: either hiking the trails or concentrating on marine aspects.

Walking the trails must be done with an official guide from one of the national park offices (most normally the one at Cekik). Boat trips to Menjangan and around Gilimanuk Bay can be organised in advance (ask at your hotel), or by charter on the day you arrive.

Cost

Permits and obligatory guides are available at the park headquarters at Cekik and the office at Labuhan Lalang. The official permit charge is Rp 25,000 per person. The cost of a guide is negotiable. Use your common sense and do not be tight. A sensible range would be about Rp 50,000 to 100,000 for a half to full day.

Getting There

Most visitors to the park arrive along the north coast road from Lovina (about 90 minutes) or Pemuteran (about 15 minutes). Others come from the south via Gilimanuk (about 15 minutes)

All visitors should check in at one of the two park offices (PHPA) for information, and to purchase permits and arrange guides. The headquarters is at the village of Cekik just south of the Gilimanuk in the west. The other is at Labuan Lalang on the north coast from where boats to Menjangan Island depart. The main ranger station is on the road between the two offices at Sumber Klampok.

The park staff are welcoming, helpful and will arrange guided tours for you.

Eat

Aside from the Waka Shorea luxury resort there is nowhere to eat inside the national park, so bring food in with you.

If you arrive along the north coast road, there are lots of hawker stalls at Labuhan Lalang. If coming from Gilimanuk there are many restaurants, small shops and hawker stands in the town, and around the national park headquarters at Cekik.

Drink

There is nowhere inside the national park to purchase any drinks, including water. Bring in ample water with you.

Sleep

There is one official high end resort inside the boundaries of the national park on the Prapat Agung peninsula. There is no other accommodation inside the park. Visitors on a lower budget day trip the park from Gilimanuk, Pemuteran or Lovina where there are ranges of accommodation to suit all budgets.

There is popular budget accommodation about two km north of the Cekik park headquarters office on the road to Gilimanuk called Pondok Wisata Lestari, tel: +62 365 61504.

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