Rangko Caves

I’d been doing some reading and discovered we were not far from Gua Rangko (Cave), which looked interesting.

Of course, the government ban on tourist boats is still in place (been extended to 9 Feb), but we figured it was worth a look.

We went by dinghy - it didn’t LOOK far. On the way there, the water was calm and we had blue skies and sunshine. Oh boy this place is glorious under a blue sky!
The trip was about twice the distance it seemed, but pleasant enough, despite the prevalence of trash in the water at times.

A long wooden pier told us we had arrived at the correct beach. Once we were on land there were a myriad of signs, so we followed the trail up into the forest, which rapidly became rougher then petered out completely. We had noticed just before that a lookout that had been cleared, a rough sign ‘Janlgan Sampah’ which we figured must be another ‘Point of Interest’, so went back for a look. A hole beside the track had stone steps leading down to a cave - the cave we were looking for! We wondered why it didn’t say ‘Gua Rangko’ and thought it must have a local name too. No, the sign says ‘Don’t litter’ 😂😂😂

The cave is in the limestone hill, and has stalactites and stalagmites, has a salt (very salty) water pool, that when the light hits it, is turquoise. Just beautiful! It obviously extends underground to the sea, but we couldn’t see where.

We had a snack and a drink, then went down to explore it. The water was cool, and so easy to float in! And we had it all to ourselves. I’d have happily stayed to late afternoon, but eagle-eyed Dale was eyeing the sky!

Back to the dinghy and off we went.
This time the water decided to make it more exciting, and gave us some nice swell to fight. I have finally learned how to ride the waves and not just sit there and let the waves crush my spinal cord. I still missed a few and got a sound whack, but being proactive and reading the waves sure saves a lot of tail bone and lower back beating - though a bit of shoulder strain from hanging on to the rope! The threatening storm skirted us, and we got back to Eden safely, thrilled with our outing.

To finish the trip on a high note, we decided to go to the upmarket resort next door for dinner. It was a lovely night, and a fitting end to a really memorable trip. And in keeping with the rest, getting there was an adventure - see the Waecicu ‘footprint’ as I’m all over the place!

Til next time …Read more