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| | Medium Trek - Komodo Island Indonesia, WW | | | |
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Medium Trek - Komodo Island Indonesia, WW
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| Hiking | 2.00 Miles |
50 AEG |
| | Hiking | 2.00 Miles | 1 Hour 20 Mns | | 1.50 mph |
| 50 ft AEG | | | | |
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| no partners | | Following our long boat ride to Padar Island, we ventured over to the main island of the national park. Komodo Island is the biggest of the three, and home to the largest dragons in the world. Due to strong winds and current, our arrival was delayed so we had to settle for the medium trek. That also put us on the island in the heat of the day and the rangers informed us the chances of seeing a dragon was not very good. I felt defeated after traveling all that way.
So we ventured into the forest and came across one komodo sleeping in the leaves. Real exciting, right? We moved on and my dreams of seeing them interact in their natural habitat was starting to fade. Then I heard a noise off in the distance. Out of the thicket walks a huge male that wandered over to the path we were hiking on. I could not have been more thrilled. We followed for about 50 meters when two other dragons were spotted, a male and a smaller female. The two males squared off in a territorial wrestling match. I couldn't believe what I was seeing! This went on for a good 5 minutes until they gave up and all three rested in the shade.
Not only did we get to witness that, someone noticed a baby dragon in a tree (about the size of a large iguana). It's rare to see this as they live high in the trees to avoid being eaten by the adults until about age three.
It was an experience of a lifetime, one of those places I've always wanted to see ever since I was a kid.
A few things I learned on the island:
Largest (monitor) lizard in the world.
Live up to 25-30 years.
Males grow up to 10 feet.
Weigh up to 150-200lbs.
Can run as fast as 12mph.
Lay eggs, since they are reptiles.
Feed on deer, wild boar and water buffalo.
Can swim, but can't leave the islands because the water is too cold.
Have toxic saliva that slowly coagulates the blood of their prey.
Will eat their own young.
Different sizes and colors on each of the three islands. |
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