By Andrew Miners

At the beginning of this month Marit and I were back up in Sorong, where after a little more than five months on the island we were going a little stir crazy and looking forward to a much-deserved break. Unfortunately it wasn’t to be, and our holiday was hijacked for what felt like the 10-millionth time. But this time, the postponement was well worth it - we received a last minute request from the esteemed Franco-German TV network ARTE, who are working on a 10-part series called 'Les Nouveaux Paradis.' Due to air this summer, one entire episode will feature eco-tourism in West Papua. Half of the programme will cover trekking in the highlands of Papua amongst the Dani tribes people. The other half features Misool Eco Resort! We were tremendously flattered and excited about showing the film crew around our 'New Paradise.' And don't worry, we'll be sure to let you know when to tune in.)

Once on the island, Marit and I set about taking Thierry, Olivier, Didier, and Avandy to just a few of the fascinating places we have here, including the ancient petroglyphs and the mind-boggling labyrinth of lagoons that have kept them secret for so long. We also took them to a few of our favourite dive sites, as Avandy was filming underwater. We did a bit of exploring as well, searching for a cave rumoured to be full of lobsters. We wondered if it was perhaps home to the giant “Spobster”, a mythical (we hope) creature that resembles a unhealthly cross between a spider and a lobster. It is reported to follow divers on night dives around Batbitim, always staying directly behind them, just out of the torch beam and out of sight...

No luck with the lobsters or the Spobster. We did however have an amazing adventure investigating a huge karst cliff face near the village of Usaha Jaya on mainland Misool. It's a place that we’ve seen in the distance many times but not previously had the opportunity to check out, and as we drew close we weren’t disappointed. Local legend has it that a young boy who refused to let his mother pick lice from his hair was seized by a huge bat and carried to a small ledge high up on the cliff, there he was to remain for the rest of his life and you can still see the mark of the bat on the cliff.

exploring caves around Misool with Bapak Mohammed

We drew closer to the cliff, and at its base we discovered the entrance to a cave. Someone had marked it with a small cairn of rocks topped with one long thin standing stone. Inside, on a small ledge, we could see a plate with traditional animist offerings of coloured cloth binding tobacco, a sure sign that this continues to be a sacred place. We entered with quiet reverence that quickly turned to giddiness...

Ground Cuscus (photo from the Cotswold Wildlife Park in the UK)

The cave narrowed quickly and we scrambled and squeezed around the stalactites and stalagmites. This is not an easy task when you are carrying a massive broadcast camera, microphone and boom, and your wife has chosen this precise moment to get over her claustrophobia. Not far into the cave we came eye to eye with a medium sized marsupial with a prehensile tail, caught in our torch beam just a few feet away. She gazed back at us with casual interest and didn’t seem at all bothered by these strange intruders into her home. We later discovered (thanks to good ol' Wikipedia) that she is a Ground Cuscus (Phalanger Gymnotis). They are endemic to Papua and some of the surrounding islands such as Misool and the Aru Islands. They are mainly frugivious and they can occasionally be found inhabiting caves.

The very end of the cave was littered with leaves and we could only assume that the cuscus had brought them in for a nest. There were also a few big seashells lying around, perhaps snacks brought in to feast upon later? Unfortunately we didn't get any photos, but I believe the film crew got everything on video. We'll find out this summer...

We also paid a visit to the local village of Fafanlap and met with the Imam, one of their most respected elders just back from the Haj. We were welcomed into his home and invited to sit on beautiful woven mats made by his wife. Sweet coffee was served, and then we interviewed him about his feelings on conservation. He is a clever and soft-spoken man and a great supporter of Misool Eco Resort. He truly believes that cooperation between the local villages and conservation groups is the key to long-term protection of the environment as well as economic gain. Pak Imam also told us the story of how he started smoking in the 1950s. He was hunting crocodiles and found it to be very stressful work. I can only imagine!

Irijan, Bapak Mohammed, and Pak Imam

paddling into a cave in Misool

All in all, we had several exciting days of adventuring with ARTE. The night that we and the film crew departed Batbitim for Sorong, tiny reptilian flippers were pulling themselves up through the sand on our beach, just a few steps away from the restaurant. Precisely 30 days after a massive she-turtle deposited her eggs on our beach, hordes of baby green turtles were making their way down the beach and towards the North Lagoon, taking their turn in a puzzling and ageless life cycle. It was a sigh of relief for Marit and me, as we both had a nagging worry that when we moved the nest to higher ground above the high-tide line, we had perhaps inadvertently damaged the fragile embryos. Obviously not so and there are a good few more turtles around Misool to show for it!

For those of you that have visited our hosts in the village of Yellu, you already know that their tiny island is seriously over-crowded. Recent constructions are built further out over the reef, precariously perched atop rickety posts. What you might not know is that many of the villagers have decided to make the move to a neighbouring island, build their homes and in fact a completely new village there. The new village, “Djabatan," will become the district headquarters and will be complete with a clinic as well as primary and secondary schools. The secondary school has been open for a year already, and construction of the primary school has just been completed. Although the school year officially started on the 9th of January and forty children are already enroled, the government has not given them an allocation for the school, salaries for the teachers, or operational funds for the school.

Last week the Headmaster of the new Djabatan school came to the island and asked if we, or anyone we knew, might be able to help out by funding the teachers in the interim period until they receive the official government funding. They plan to employ four teachers, each with a wage of 1,000,000 IDR (around 82 USD or 65 Euros) per month. They also are looking for additional funding for the operation of the school and of course for books and other essential learning materials.

Of course we offered our help, as aside from wanting to help them get a start with the school, education is as essential to the protection of Raja Ampat’s marine eco system. Something that I have often struggled to get across to people who have grown up surrounded by such rich waters as our friends from Yellu, the rest of the world isn't this rich in natural resources and untouched beauty. And it wont stay this way unless we make concerted joint efforts to stop it from being over-exploited, like so much of the world's fishing grounds. My more “worldly” view of the oceans is afforded me by the luxury of a good education and access to books, magazines, and other media. The connection is clear. With a better education, the future leaders of Misool will be able to make better informed decisions with the long-term preservation of the marine and terrestrial environment in mind.

schoolboys in a local village

Some of you have expressed interest in donating to an education program. Well, now’s your chance! Contact us at info(at)misoolecoresort(dot)com for further details. We are happy to accept a one-time donation, or we can set up a recurring subscription payment through Paypal.

Aside from this, the Headmaster and I discussed future scholarships and field trips for the children. I proposed bringing them to the resort so they can see what eco tourism is all about. Hopefully this is the beginning of a long-term relationship in which MER helps to show the future generations how eco tourism and conservation go hand in hand to preserve the beautiful reefs and islands that they have grown up calling home.