WILD BORNEO - TOUR INFORMATION
JULY 12-21, 2023 (SOLD OUT)
TOUR DATES: 12 - 21 July 2023
LOCATION: Sepilok, Kinabatangan River, Deramakot Forest Reserve & Kinabalu National Park.
PRICE: $7950.00 AUD per person (twin share). Single Supplement: $375.00 AUD
PAYMENT: Payment is via EFT transfer via online banking or contact Craig to make alternative arrangements.
RESERVE A PLACE: Deposits of $1000 AUD per person accepted to reserve a place (non-refundable within 60 days of tour commencing).
IMPORTANT: To ensure the best wildlife photography experience, this tour accommodates four guests only.
THE TOUR
Join Nicolas Rakotopare and Craig Greer for ten days visiting incredible wildlife locations on the Malaysian island of Borneo.
This tour is designed for photographers of all levels. Craig and Nico will assist you in improving your skills while viewing and photographing some of the planet’s most iconic and unique species. The tour is also educational — you will soak up an abundance of interesting facts about the wildlife we find and photograph. During the tour we will have time to review and process images, with Craig and Nico helping you improve your skills in this area.
The wildlife highlights on this tour will include Orangutans, Gibbons, Proboscis Monkeys, frogs, reptiles and, of course, dozens of beautiful and unique birds.
Supported by Borneo’s premier local wildlife guide, Craig and Nico will put you in position to shoot some stunning images while providing simple yet empowering advice to improve your camera skills.
Are you a budding wildlife filmmaker? Then this is also the trip for you - Nico’s film-making skills are in high demand. He has shot and edited dozens of nature and conservation films for organisations like Threatened Species Recovery Hub, Channel 4 (UK), the Australian Wildlife Conservancy and more Nico has had footage broadcast by BBC Earth, Netflix, ABC, SBS, PBS and other services. Nico was recently awarded for his rainforest photography and won two categories at the Canopy Awards 2022 and was shortlisted in the 2018 Birdlife Australia Photography and Australian Geographic Nature Photographer of the Year Awards.
Nico lived for six months in Borneo, sharing his time between amphibian research and documenting the natural wonders the island has to offer.
Craig’s bird and wildlife photography has been published widely by conservation organisations such as Green Adelaide, Australian Wildlife Conservancy, Birdlife Australia, South Australian Museum, Monarto Zoo and in various field guides.
Craig was also a finalist in the 2021 Australian Geographic Nature Photographer of the Year and 2019 Australian Bird Photographer of the Year.
ITINERARY
Day 1 - Sepilok
July 12: Transfer from airport or your accommodation to Sepilok. Today we visit Sepilok Forest Reserve and its famous Rainforest Discovery Centre trails and tree-top walk. Here we aim to photograph a wide range of bird species including Banded, Collared, Ruddy, Rufous-collared and Oriental Dwarf Kingfishers, to name a few. Various Hornbills and other iconic Bornean rainforest species are also present. Potential mammal species including Orangutans, Macaques, Flying-squirrels, and more.
Accommodation: Sepilok Forest Edge Resort. Meals: L, D
Day 2 - Sepilok
July 13: Today we will continue to explore the Sepilok Forest Trails searching for and photographing more of this regions abundant wildlife before dinner and then a nocturnal walk in search of the local “night life”.
Accommodation: Sepilok Forest Edge Resort. Meals: B, L, D.
Day 3 - Kinabatangan River
July 14: This morning we will make the two-hour trip to our accommodation at the Kinabatangan River. The Kinabatangan is a hotspot for various primate species, including unique Proboscis Monkeys, Orangutans, Long-tailed Macaques, Silvered Langurs, Pygmy Elephants, and more. The Kinabatangan River also provides habitat for a vast number of bird species including Oriental Pied Hornbill, Rhinoceros Hornbill,Helmeted Hornbill, Black Hornbill, Bushy-crested Hornbill, Wreathed Hornbill, White-crowned Hornbill, Wrinkled Hornbill, Black-crowned Pitta, Hooded Pitta, Grey-headed Fish-Eagle, Crested Serpent-Eagle, Oriental Bay-Owl, Yellow-vented Bulbul, Velvet-fronted Nuthatch, Greater Coucal, Asian Palm Swiftlet, Edible-nest Swiftlet, Mangrove Whistler, Mangrove Blue Flycatcher, Sunda Frogmouth, Bornean Falconet, and various Kingfishers. Over the course of the next two days we’ll take river cruises in search of these species and more.
Accommodation: Borneo Nature Lodge. Meals: B, L, D.
Day 4 - Kinabatangan River
July 15: Today we will take two more river cruises to make the most of both morning and afternoon bird activity. You’ll need plenty of memory card space to last the day as there will be plenty of birds and primates to photograph.
Accommodation: Borneo Nature Lodge. Meals: B, L, D.
Day 5 - Deramakot Forest Reserve
July 16: While Borneo is home to hundreds of incredible bird species, it is also an internationally recognised hotspot for unique mammals. Today our tour will continue to Deramakot Forest Reserve where day and night 4x4 safaris will take us on forest tracks to target some of these species. The jewel in the crown of this area is the secretive yet iconic Clouded Leopard, and our guide is an expert at locating this species. Other targets include, the Bornean Orangutan, Pangolin, Bornean Pygmy Elephant, North Bornean Gibbon, Maroon Langur, Slow Loris, Malaysian Sun Bear, Otter Civit, Marble Cat, Moon Rat, and more. Deramakot is also an excellent place for birdwatching, with a record of more than a hundred species of lowland bird species in the reserve including babblers, bulbuls, all eight species of hornbills. Banded Pitta and the endemic Bornean Bristlehead are also present.
Accommodation: Deramakot Chalet. Meals: B, L, D.
Day 6 - Deramakot Forest Reserve
July 17: Today we will have time for birding around the accommodation before we take more 4x4 safaris in this incredible forest in search of more birds and mammals to photograph.
Accommodation: Deramakot Chalet. Meals: B, L, D.
Day 7 - Deramakot Forest Reserve
July 18: Today we will be photographing more great forest species in Deramakot.
Accommodation: Deramakot Chalet. Meals: B, L, D.
Day 8 - Kinabalu National Park
July 19: Today we make our way to Kinabalu National Park, another location with abundant bird species to see and photograph. Some of the new species we are likely to encounter include Ashy Drongo, Chestnut-hooded Laughingthrush, Indigo Flycatcher, Golden-naped Barbet, Whitehead’s Broadbill and several Trogon species and more.
Accommodation: Hill Lodge. Meals: B, L, D.
Day 9 - Kinabalu National Park
July 20: Today we spend more time finding and photographing the exotic species of Kinabalu NP.
Accommodation: Hill Lodge. Meals: B, L, D.
Day 10
July 21: Depart Kinabalu to airport for return/onward travel.
THE GUIDES
Craig Greer
Craig is based in Adelaide where he runs bird and wildlife photography workshops and tours. His interest in wildlife goes back to his childhood growing up in the bush in Victoria and Tasmania.
In recent years, Craig has combined his love of nature, wildlife and photography and has spent countless hours photographing a diverse range of animal species, particularly bird life, from Adelaide to Alice Springs and Malaysia to Bruny Island.
Craig was a finalist in the 2021 Australian Geographic Nature Photographer of the Year Award and has a background in teaching, training and communications. His photos have been published widely.
Nicolas Rakotopare
Originally from Madagascar, Nicolas (aka Nico), is an ecologist and professional wildlife photographer and film-maker based in SE Queensland. He has filmed wildlife throughout South-East Asia and the sub-continent, including Sri Lanka.
Nicolas is an excellent communicator and enjoys sharing both his ecological and technical knowledge with others.
Recently inducted into the International League of Conservation Photographers, Nicolas is passionate about promoting important conservation outcomes for endangered species.
SOME OF OUR IMAGES FROM BORNEO
CLICK OR TAP TO SEE IN FULL
