INDONESIA - SANGIHE - ADVENTURES THE FAR NORTH - 30 JULY 2018

23 JULY 2018

We were up early for our Wings Air - lw 1160 - 7am to 7:50 am flight to Sangihe. 

The flight was on a Wings Air propeller plane. This was a great plane with heaps of leg room. The flight took less than an hour as it flew over many islands north of Manado.

At the airport, we organized a car to Tahuna (the main city) for 200 000R. Our first stop was the Wisma Mella Hotel but it was full so we stayed at the Tahuna Hotel which was next door.

The hotel was okay but it was all a bit confusing. The room was 360 000R which included breakfast and lunch. We spoke with the owner of Wisma Mella (David), who gave us a contact number for an expat who had a guesthouse in the mountains. We met up with him Michal and Ibha after lunch and decided to move to his guesthouse tomorrow.

It rained a lot during the rest of the day but cleared somewhat by late afternoon. We had a walk around Tahuna and down to the harbour. The people were friendly and the harbour area though messy was very pretty. At the end of the waterfront and just over the bridge, we took a turn to the right onto a small road. There were lots of houses along the narrow road and the people were so nice. We had a lot of fun chatting and taking photos. 

Back at the hotel we asked about dinner and they recommended a restaurant down the road.  We caught a minivan to a recommended restaurant but the food was crap.

24 JULY 2018



We had a simple breakfast and chatted with Mama the cook at the Tahuna Hotel. She was very nice and was concerned to give us food that we liked to eat.

After breakfast, Michal and Ibha the owners of Hattarua (250 000R per night) arrived in their car to take us to their guesthouse.

Michal was from the Czech Republic and Eva his wife was a local lady. They were both lovely people and did their best to make us feel welcomed, comfortable and informed. Meeting them made the trip to Sangihe even better. I would recommend anyone wishing to go there to stay with them.

Hattarua Guesthouse

+62 822 9640 5152 / +62 822 9640 5123

Email: hattarua@gmail.com

Also on Facebook

We stopped at the large local market and bought fish and vegetables then stopped at the supermarket for beer and other items.

The guesthouse was situated on top of a mountain with a panoramic view of the Awu volcano. The rooms were nice and clean. We settled in and had a delicious lunch.

After lunch, we drove to the eastern side of the island to Lette, a small seaside village. We walked the path through the village and then Ibha arranged a small boat (40 000R) to take us to a beach (Bobo) around the headland. The beach was white sand, fringed with palm trees, very pretty and deserted. The waters were crystal clear, clean and warm. We swam, snorkeled, wandered around the beach and sat in the sun. After a few hours, the boat returned and took us back to the village. What a great start to our stay at Hattarua and Sangihe.

At this point, I'll mention the roads. The roads were in very good condition considering the island's size and remoteness but they were also very steep and windy. I was considering hiring a motorbike but so many constant bends seemed like hard work to me.

We had another feast at dinner and spent the evening drinking beers, chatting and planning the following day.

25 JULY 2018

After breakfast, we drove to Manalu village (500 000R) for a boat to Tehang Island (250 000R). The local people called out 'hello mister' many times during the journey. The roads were good as we twisted and twined our way around the hilly terrain.

The boat was a small local boat with the two stabilizing poles on both sides. It cleanly cut it's way across the deep water towards the island. Nearing the island, the water become shallower and clearer. We skimmed over the sea looking at the coral below and the island shore of rocky cliffs and white sand beaches.

We landed on a beautiful white sand beach (Pantai Marahi) fringed with coconut trees. We settled our gear under a large broad leafed tree in the shade and had a short swim in the tranquil waters. Ibha, Michal, Jacinta and I snorkeled to the left of the beach pass the sea grass, along a narrow and deep channel to the outside wall. From there we drifted along gazing at the coral and fishes.

Back on the beach we had fried noodles and tofu for lunch and chatted with the local people who lived just behind the beach. There were five families living there. They were all very fit and healthy.

We spent the afternoon lazing on the beach, chatting and swimming in the warm waters. Late in the afternoon, the boat returned to return us to the village and car.

On the way back to Hattaroa, we stopped at the Tahuna markets to buy food. It was heaps of fun in the market and we were learning a lot about what foods were available and how to choose the better foods.

26 JULY 2018

I woke and walked down the road and into a field to watch the sunrise. An awesome morning.

Back at the guesthouse for breakfast and later, we drove to Lose Lookout for breath taking views onto the city of Tahuna below. Tahuna was only a relatively short distance away but we were up very high.

Late in the afternoon, we stopped at the markets to buy fresh food for dinner.

Towards sunset, Jacinta and I sat on the wall at Tahuna harbour and drank a few large Bintang beers. It was a nice way to end the day.

27 JULY 2018

A big outing day today. Micheal drove us to the more southern end of Sangihe to visit waterfalls. On the way, we passed heaps of villages and friendly people. We stopped at Desa Basauh and then walked down a steep path and steps to a small creek running through a steep walled chasm with lush vegetation drooping and clinging to the precipice. We followed the creek and scrambled over the slippery rocks and through the water till we reached a waterfall. It was so pretty. The water didn't fall but rather gently flowed over the rock wall into a small pool. We continued to scrambled along the creek to a second waterfall. This fall bulldozed its way through a narrow passage at the top of the falls and poured heavily in a large pool of water. We swam in the cool waters of the pool and enjoyed the jungle scenery.

We scrambled back over the rocks and up the steep path back to the car. Next stop was a beach but unfortunately, there was a wedding and for some reason weddings are held in the middle of the road and so the road was closed. We had to detour back an hours drive to get to the beach which was 10 minutes away.

We passed through a village then a very rough road to two white sanded beaches. We choose the one with the easiest path. It was a nice afternoon strolling along the beach, chatting, swimming and eating a late lunch.

On the way back, we visited the Raja's (king's) house and the old church of Steller, the missionary.

28 JULY 2018

I woke early and walked the road to the lookout overTuhuna to watch the sunrise. Nice.

We hired motorbikes for the day (100 000R per bike). Michal and Ibha drove us through a few villages to look at the bamboo furniture making, a very old tree (with ghosts) and an abandoned missionary school site.

Later back at Hattarua, I had a play in the tree house.

Later in the afternoon,  Eba and a local guy drove us on motorbike to another lookout. The lookout was amazing giving a different view of the Tahuna Harbour below. We walked a short distance to a very brightly coloured four-storey house on the mountain top. I spoke to the lady caretaker and she opened the building and allowed us to look inside and climb the stairs to the rooftop. What a view! We had fun calling out to the field worker below. The building was a home with the 1st and 2nd floor being a large open rooms. the 3rd floor as living/sleeping area.

We continued down a narrow path and then onto the main road with the motorbikes towards the beach. About half way, we stopped to watch the knife making. Amazingly, they still had their eyes, as they were using a lathe to sharpen the knives with sparks flying everywhere and no protection.

The beach was a very long black sand beach. Not very inviting for a swim but it was still pretty so we continued along the coast road, passing through villages and over numerous bridges before heading back to the Hattaroa.

Ahmed, a German guy had arrived by boat from Ciel Island. A nice fellow.

29 JULY 2018

Today, we had a long drive (500 000R) to Palau Tehang, which wasn't so long to do as Ibha was driving. This time with had a speedboat (250 000R) to take us to an island white sand beach. Unfortunately, the wind had increased and the most sheltered spot was where we boated to a few days ago. Not that that matter as it was so nice. We snorkeled, swam, ate, talked and lazed in the sun. Jacinta and I had a short hike over the headland to another beautiful white sand coconut tree lined beach.

30 JULY 2018

A last morning gaze over the mountains, breakfast and Micheal and Ibha drove us to the airport for our flight to Manado, Sulawesi.

The airport (Taha) was small and cute. At the door, security checked our passports and tickets, we walked 4 metres to the check in counter, then two metres to the pay for excess baggage counter, then back to the check in counter then a four metre walk  to the waiting room where they checked our tickets and passports and finally, a passport and ticket check before leaving the waiting room for the plane and then we walked across the tarmac to board the only plane for each day, our propeller Wings Air flight to Manado.  It was all done with lots of smiles.

Goodbye Sangihe, Hattarua, Michal and Ibha. It was such a great experience. Thank you :)