Rinca Island: Another Option to Witness the Komodo Dragon and Other Wildlife
Rinca Island is a second biggest island in Komodo National Park after the Komodo Island. Known as one of the islands that is the natural habitat of the Komodo dragon, this island is an authentic alternative offering for travelers to have the opportunity to see the Komodo dragon.
Where is Rinca Island?
Rinca island is Located in West Manggarai Regency. Precisely located between Flores Island and Komodo Island , and is still included in the Komodo National Park with an area of around 19.000 hectares.
Apart from being the natural habitat of the Komodo dragon, Rinca is also home to several other wildlife that live side by side here, such as water buffalo, wild boar, deer, monkey, some kind of birds, etc.
Why Should Rinca Island?
There are some interesting facts why Rinca Island is special:
- Rinca Island is still part of the Komodo National Park.
- Rinca Island is easy to reach, because it is very close to Labuan Bajo Town as a main gateway to Komodo National Park , about 2 hours by local wooden boat or about 45 minutes by speedboat.
- The number of Komodo in Rinca is more than on the other islands (about 2,318 population of Komodo).
- The trekking trail on Rinca Island is very friendly, especially for travelers who have mobility problems because the government has built a bridge as a trekking path for travelers. Although there are still trekking routes that require you to go down to the ground, this is usually chosen by travelers who want to explore more about this island and choose the long trek type. But don’t worry, even though you will only walk around the bridge as a trekking route, you still have the opportunity to see Komodo dragons and other wildlife from that path.
- Rinca Island has a slightly different ecosystem and vegetation from Komodo Island. For example, in terms of wildlife, there are several types of animals that are not found on other islands. For example, monkeys that you would not find on Komodo Island.
- Another name for Rinca Island is Loh Buaya, while Komodo Island is called Loh Liang.
Rinca Island is Also Known as Loh Buaya
Loh Buaya on Rinca island is a small bay where crocodiles wildly living in this place. Loh Buaya is coming from the local word where Loh means bay, while Buaya is a crocodile. Since the crocodiles found in this bay then slow down this area is called Loh Buaya or Crocodile Bay. Furthermore, Loh Buaya is the only arrival jetty of Rinca Island where the boats usually docked at this place.
There is a wooden bridge in front of the entrance gateway to facilitate the tourists to visit the island. Meanwhile, the island is the easiest place to find Komodo dragons due to we can find the Komodo when we arrive at this island. There are also several trekking adventures available through this island to discover the Komodo Dragons on the island.
What can you see in Rinca Island?
Rinca is one of the 5 islands inhabited by Komodo dragons with the highest population of Komodo dragons of the other four islands. even beating the number of Komodo dragon populations on Komodo Island itself.
Population of Komodo in Rinca around 2.318 Komodo dragons with a population in Komodo Island of around 2.126 komodo dragons. The four other islands that are the habitat of the Komodo dragon are Komodo Island, Gili Motang, Nusa Kode and Padar Island.
if you have the opportunity to visit this island, the popular activity for travelers is an exciting trekking adventure through the island to explore and discover Komodo dragons, other wildlife, and spectacular landscape.
