The baucus adventure along Amandit River in Loksado, South Kalimantan.

Nothing has changed, not much at least. That was my initial thought when I revisited Loksado, a small village four hours by car northeast of Banjarmasin in South Kalimantan.

Greenery on the Meratus Mountains still encircles the area, the air is fresh and the water is crystal clear.

I was wowed! But then I began to see that some things have in fact changed.

The wooden bridge connecting the smooth tarmac road to the village market across the river had collapsed. It was still standing, but not in the right position.

“There was a flash flood last year,” said a boy I bumped into on the way to the village market.

For old times’ sake, I daringly crawled onto the bridge. It creaked a little, but managed to handle the weight of us three adults. Part of the river right under the bridge was calm and looked as if it was made of glass. I could vaguely see its pebbly bottom below the greenish water.

Fearless children played and jumped off the bridge. Their laughter echoed above the splashing water. Local women washing clothes were seen by the riverbank.

We spent the night in a small wooden lodge by the river run by a local man named Pak Alut. From the warm lodge, it was hard to distinguish the difference between the sound of the loud river and the heavy rain. We slept like babies that night.

The famous ‘lanting’ tour

The joki steers the lanting raft with pinanjak bamboo stick.The next morning, we booked a tour on the famous lanting, a bamboo raft.

With amazing speed, the joki — the one who steers the bamboo raft — made the lanting skillfully from trunks of freshly cut bamboo. Half an hour later, we were floating on the river. We took the route downstream from Loksado to Muara Tanuhi, approximately a two to three hour trip on the water.

Before the asphalt road from Kandangan (the capital of Hulu Sungai Selatan regency) to Loksado village was built, people in Loksado used the lanting to transport items like crops, rubber, cinnamon and candlenut fruit to Kandangan.

They used to spend an entire day on the lanting from Loksado village in the upstream to Kandangan in the downstream. Since it was too heavy to bring the lanting back to Loksado, they used to sell the lanting to people in Kandangan.

But, since the local government built the asphalt road that connects Kandangan and Loksado in the 1980s, land trade took over the river trade. Land trade had its advantages in cutting down production time
and costs.

Since then, the lanting has functioned as a tourist attraction along the Amandit River.

Sitting on the paundanan (the bamboo bench-formed tightly tied on the raft) we watched admiringly as our joki made agile maneuvers along the river rapids with a bamboo stick called pinanjak.

At times we had to grip the paundanan to maintain balance. With our feet drenched in water, we traveled through the wavy river. It was just as thrilling as my first experience.

‘Manyundak’ and ‘Baucus’

With self-made google and a traditional spear-fishing gun, a Dayak Meratus teenager is ready to catch fish in Amandit River.
In Teluk Panjang, half way to Muara Tanuhi, we met two Dayak teenagers, Isal and Ilham. They were doing the manyundak, fishing for small fish on the rapids with a traditional spear gun. Their self-made goggles were fascinating. They were made from glass circling that looked like a piece of rubber sandals. With their goggles on, they dived into the water to catch a glimpse of the fish behind rocks.

“We used to hunt for fish in the afternoon, when the fish were easier to catch,” said Isal, the older boy. But he succeeded in catching three small fish with his spear gun anyway.

It was the beginning of Ramadhan, and their school was closed for a month. Cooling off in the chilly water of the Amandit under the intense heat of the sun was a fun and wise option.

They brought along with them two large rubber tires that they used as inner tubes to conquer the waves along the Amandit River. Baucus was what they used to call the tubing adventure.

“The children used to play baucus from Loksado to Muara Tanuhi,” said Amli, our lanting’s joki.

It looked like so much fun! So, I decided to give baucus a try.

But finding the right position on the rubber tire was challenging. The supposedly relaxing laying-up position turned out to be not so relaxing at all, since you must be aware of the rocks under the shallow river hitting your butt.

Floating and holding the tire was not possible because the tire was too big to hold, and the river was too shallow for us to float. So I went facedown, very close to the rapids and rocks, the baucus felt even more frightening, yet adrenaline-pumping.

“I was trapped between two big rocks in the rapids and couldn’t make a move. The stream battered me to the right and left, back and forth and I could do nothing. So, I just waited until the stream caught and rescued me,” said Ramon Y. Tungka, an Indonesian actor who hosted a TV show about Indonesian traditional games called Kampung Main, who took part in the baucus. “But, WOOHOO! The fun was worth it!”

But still, paying attention to safety is a must. And the most important safety measure in Baucus is to stay afloat on the rubber tire.

Once, I lost my grip on my tire, I got dragged along the rapids with rocks bumping into my legs and butt. The result was a tear on my shinbone’s skin. But Ramon was right, the fun was worth it! Between the thundering sounds of the rapids, our laughs echoed along our river journey.

Dripping wet, we ended the journey at the hot spring in the Muara Tanuhi area. It was perfect!

Haratai Waterfall

Haratai waterfall.
The next day, we took a tour to the Haratai Waterfall, upstream on the Amandit River. Since we did not have much time left, we rented a motorcycle to get there. But, if you can spare two to three hours to hike along the pleasantly lush path, I highly recommend it.

We rode for about half an hour, passing the village of Loksado and Haratai. Cinnamon and candlenut fruit was laid out in front of houses and on the side of the road to dry in the sun.

The path to Haratai waterfall was tortuous, yet enjoyable at the same time. We passed a couple of wooden bridges before getting to the last bridge that led to Haratai Waterfall. Stepping into the area, it seemed like its glory days had passed.

Benches near the Haratai gate built to welcome visitors were now deserted as so were facilities in the area like the canteen and toilets. Mounds of dry leaves were scattered on the ground. I could imagine that long ago flocks of people once considered this place their getaway spot.

From the Haratai gate, we hiked a bit to get to the waterfall. Once we came to a steep grade, water sprinkled on our faces. We had arrived at the Haratai Waterfall, where the Amandit River came from.

The greenish-blue water was sparkling, calling us to go for a swim. But, hefty logs covering rocks made it difficult to do so. A silent reminder of the flash flood.

We didn’t swim, but dipping our feet and washing our face with the chilly water was fine with us.

As the sun started to set on the horizon to the west, we packed our things and headed back to Loksado village and then back to Banjarmasin. Finally, back to my everyday life in Jakarta. I realized that I wouldn’t mind coming back to Loksado, with its unforgettable adventurous Amandit.

— Photos by Vyara Wurjanta