Komodo Island to close January 2020

[WesW]

Just fyi for those booked on a voyage with Komodo Island as a port stop after January

2020.  Looks like this closure may affect about eight Regent itineraries.

 

https://www.afar.com/magazine/komodo-island-is-closing-because-people-keep-stealing-dragons?fbclid=IwAR0mgipE-4Q3-FGPiwYYhe38G98cR4DHa9T3ZDvAXdaJcCreBTyHQg7A1Gc

[UUNetBill]

Just another item in the long list of reasons I think humanity is doomed...

[Travelcat2]

This has been in the newspaper the past week.  Giving the Komodo dragons an opportunity to breed is likely a good idea.  In my opinion, protecting animals is more important that people visiting the island.

[Travelcat2]

Just now, Travelcat2 said:

This has been in the newspaper the past week.  Giving the Komodo dragons an opportunity to breed as well as getting a handle on poaching is likely a good idea.  In my opinion, protecting animals is more important than people visiting the island.

 

[forgap]

2018 RSSC Voyager

[SWFLAOK]

2 hours ago, Travelcat2 said:

This has been in the newspaper the past week.  Giving the Komodo dragons an opportunity to breed is likely a good idea.  In my opinion, protecting animals is more important that people visiting the island.

The reason given for the closure was not a lack of breeding., or any environmental problem. 

It was due to poaching. A group was smuggling out Komodo dragons, and selling them for 35,000 dollars a piece. I think it's unlikely that cruise ship passengers are bringing them back to the ship. Why not just crack down on the method actually used to remove them. I'm thinking that no dragons were poached while cruise ship passengers were taking their tours. 

If protecting animals was more important than people visiting islands, there would be no cruises to places like the Galapagos where there are way too many visitors to not affect the fauna. I never plan to take one for that reason. 

[Travelcat2]

1 hour ago, SWFLAOK said:

The reason given for the closure was not a lack of breeding., or any environmental problem. 

It was due to poaching. A group was smuggling out Komodo dragons, and selling them for 35,000 dollars a piece. I think it's unlikely that cruise ship passengers are bringing them back to the ship. Why not just crack down on the method actually used to remove them. I'm thinking that no dragons were poached while cruise ship passengers were taking their tours. 

If protecting animals was more important than people visiting islands, there would be no cruises to places like the Galapagos where there are way too many visitors to not affect the fauna. I never plan to take one for that reason. 

 

Smuggling is one reason why the island is being closed.

 

"As per the International Union for Conservation of Nature, the dragon is now at a ‘vulnerable’ status on its Red List of Threatened Species."  

 

Closing the island will allow closer observation of the island to catch and eliminate poachers as well as giving the dragons a chance build up their numbers. (Note: "According to data from the Indonesian Environment and Forestry Ministry, over 10,000 people visit Komodo National Park monthly, with 95 percent of them being foreigners, while only 130 people monitor the park.)"

 

They really need to spend their resources on protecting the dragons.  

 

BTW, Galapagos has had limits on visitors since around 2011 (and so does Machu Picchu).

 

As far as where cruise ships will be able to go....... that is actually a good question since some ports are over-crowded already and there are 500 new cruise ships being built in the next decade.  

 

 

 

[Travelcat2]

1 hour ago, mpatry said:

FYI, there are not limits to the # of visitors to Galapagos, beyond what planes can carry.  There is a maximum number of allowable ship berths (e.g. any new ship is allowed if an equal sized ship is retired) - but ships run at about 80% capacity on average.   Land based visitor numbers have increased from bascilly zero in the early 90's to 250,000 / year these days.   

 

Not disputing what you said but the rules are changing.  See linked article https://www.notyouraverageamerican.com/new-rules-to-enter-the-galapagos/?cn-reloaded=1

 

[Travelcat2]

mapatry - Interesting and sad.  I care very deeply for animals and get extremely upset when they are not treated well.  We were in Galapagos in the '90's during an "El Nino". The water was so hot that trying to swim wasn't refreshing - it was like a sauna.

 

Baby seals were dying everywhere (mothers going out to sea in order to survive) and, of course, no one was allowed to intervene with nature.  I was devastated by seeing this and, although I found the Galapagos interesting, I am sorry that we went as it has left lasting negative memories.  

[Floridiana]

I don't know if closing Komodo Island will prevent poaching. To me it looked like tourism is the only cash income. I am sure the Indonesian government and police have a strategy. 

[GOARMY]

Sad.  Our only excursion there was early 2014 aboard Voyager.  One of those once in a lifetime experiences.  Competent, and careful Guides.  But--hard not to notice the overall reality of basic primitive conditions for the indigenous population.  People, not dragons.  The dragons were adequately fed to limit their proclivity to forage by looking for tourists who might stray off the path.  No joke. 

 

The biggest concern was for several in our group who did not take adequate precautions as to head cover, light clothing, and water.  One guy in our particular group gave up after less than a half-hour, and before reaching the really big dragons.  He was escorted back to the beach--on the path.  That was the morning excursion.  Our long-time friends traveling with us took the afternoon segment.  One in their group had to be evacuated via stretcher from the trail to the shore due to the heat exhaustion. 

 

Give this three or four years and would bet there will be return of cruise ships. 

 

GOARMY!

 

 

[landingsduffer]

So we are booked on a Voyager cruise that was supposed to stop there next February. Will Regent just add an extra sea day or  arrive early in Bali?

[PSU]

We are on that voyage too. Maybe they will add another night to Bali? The have already eliminated Newcastle Australia so we can have an overnight in Sydney.

[WesW]

When we visited Komodo in January 2017, one of our passengers had a massive heart attack during our path walk.  We had enjoyed Don's company at Dinner, at our meet & mingle, and a few days prior to visiting Komodo Island, we on a private snorkel excursion together at the Great Barrier Reef.  Very fortunately for Don, we had four cardiologists in our group who took immediate medical action and saved his life.  He was medically evacuated and once he was stable in Bangkok, he was flown to Houston for continued treatment.

[fudgbug]

JMO - Not a great loss.  It was hot, humid and the dragons looked as if they were posed.

[Travelcat2]

It was 114 degrees when we were there so it is definitely hot.  The dragons might look posed but they are free to roam where they wish and, if they wanted to attack a person, they can run faster than a human being can.  Fortunately, the people that work on the island know how to handle them in a way that does not harm them.

 

In my opinion, it is worth seeing - once.

[fudgbug]

Agreed!  Once is enough!  For me, it was one time too many. 🙂

[SWFLAOK]

2 hours ago, fudgbug said:

Agreed!  Once is enough!  For me, it was one time too many. 🙂

So was once enough, or was once too many? Are you just trying to be agreeable?

We're still hoping to see them once in the wild on December 27, 2019. We expect our 32 night cruise to be hot and humid. Please don't come to South Florida. It's very hot and humid here most of the year. And there are large monitor lizards that have started to breed in the SW Florida area.

On our April road trip, we saw a Komodo dragon at Moody Gardens in Galveston Texas, and at the Zoo at Lowrey Park in Tampa. They both looked posed, since they just stare at you, but we would much rather see them in the wild rather than being all alone in in a small enclosure.

[fudgbug]

Since I'm short, fat and well over 40 :-) and for what I experienced, one time was too many.  What we didn't know was that there were two routes.  The one we chose was the longer not shaded route with inclines, narrow path and no place to sit along the way.  Since I didn't go on the easier path.........

 

If I were younger and in better shape, even though it was hotter than hades, I would probably have enjoyed the hike.  I know that some people did see dragons that were moving.  We saw the dragons that looked as if they had been placed.  There are two guides with forked sticks.  One guide is at the front and the other at the rear.

 

We've seen the dragons too in Tampa.

 

It is very, very, very hot and humid on Komodo.  Be sure to have a lot of water and enjoy them in the wild while you can.

 

I know about south Florida as I have sisters who live there. :-)

[forgap]

Well, I loved seeing the dragons, on the move and in a group.  Yes, it was hot but the hike was reasonable.  Our guides were great naturalists, pointing out dragon scat, a dragon nest, birds, and flora along the way.   The hike was reasonable in length and the payoff was spectacular!  

[SWFLAOK]

On 5/5/2019 at 7:42 PM, forgap said:

Well, I loved seeing the dragons, on the move and in a group.  Yes, it was hot but the hike was reasonable.  Our guides were great naturalists, pointing out dragon scat, a dragon nest, birds, and flora along the way.   The hike was reasonable in length and the payoff was spectacular!  

Thanks for the info forgap. We're way past forty, and are reasonably fit and active, and definitely aren't short, or fat. And we actually live in South Florida year round, so we don't mind the heat. I love your pictures and hope we get one last chance at seeing these huge reptiles in the wild.