We Fell In Love With This Island All Over Again- S6 Ep 153

Rob and Karen Oberg drop anchor in calm waters off Belitung, returning to the granite-ringed Indonesian island aboard their Whitby 42 ketch for the latest chapter of Dreamtime Sail. Thirteen years after their initial stop here during the 2011 Sail to Indonesia Rally on the ketch Atlantia, the crew finds the sandy coastline largely unburdened by commercial overdevelopment. With more than 30,000 nautical miles logged since their early rallying days, stepping ashore reveals an unhurried tempo defined by quiet beaches, local warongs, and a freshly built timber jetty.

Their arrival marks a pause between extended ocean passages across Indonesia’s 17,000 islands before preparing to clear customs and head north toward Malaysia. Rather than encountering crowded tourist crowds like those found around Bali or Komodo, Belitung retains a slower pace of coastal living. Taking advantage of settled conditions in the anchorage, Rob and Karen lower the tender to retrace familiar waters and explore the island’s interior.

Revisiting Offshore Islets and Coastal Waters

Setting out across the anchorage by tender, Rob and Karen steer toward a small offshore islet remembered from their 2011 cruise. On that earlier voyage, they shared the empty sands with cruising friends, swimming in warm shallows without another soul around. Thirteen years later, modest day-trip ferrying boats transport day visitors from the mainland, and small beachfront warongs sell cold drinks under palm trees. Despite the extra activity, the islet remains peaceful and uncrowded.

Walking around the sandy perimeter, the crew pauses to drink fresh coconut water directly on the beach. Rob reflects on the gradual changes along the coastline, noting: “There is a few. A jetty for a start. But it’s still quiet. Still quiet.” The surrounding water remains clear, and the low-profile development keeps the shoreline comfortable and unhurried. After completing the shoreline circuit on foot, they throttle up the tender and head back to the main island for lunch.

Salvaged Wrecks and Recycled Architecture at Rock and Wreck

Back on the mainland, Rob and Karen discover that their former gathering spot, Rusty’s, has closed. In its place, modest beachfront establishments have emerged, including the Rock and Wreck Dive Resort. The property is managed by an American owner who has lived in Indonesia for well over 20 years. Rather than constructing standard modern accommodation, the proprietor purchased five sunken wooden vessels abandoned along the beach and transformed their timbers into structural posts, roofing accents, and interior fixtures.

Traditional Indonesian wooden houses were relocated to the property, renovated with modern air conditioning and new roofs while retaining their historical craftsmanship. The bar counter features the stern of a salvaged boat topped with mismatched marble fragments, while discarded ship ribs and buoy cutouts serve as overhead lighting. Inspecting the handiwork, Karen remarks: “The whole lot is just all mismatched, and it’s fabulous. I could live here.” Beyond the recycled vessels, the resort grounds display handmade batik and tie-dye textiles produced in the owner’s former fabric workshop. After enjoying a casual lunch of chicken burgers, fries, and cold Bintang beer, Rob and Karen take advantage of pool privileges before organizing transport for inland exploration.

Island Logistics and Sobering Wildlife Statistics

To coordinate inland travel and regulatory clearances, the crew relies on established maritime contacts. Cruising through Indonesian waters, they utilize Bali-based rally organizer Raymond Lesmana as their immigration agent for visas. On Belitung, Raymond connects them with a local associate named Evan, who arranges fuel deliveries, provisioning transport, clearance logistics, and an island driving tour with a local guide named Dedi.

Their first stop inland is a local cultural museum housing ethnographic collections and historical displays detailing the Dutch colonial tin mining era. Alongside historic mining implements, an informational exhibit presents sobering data on the region’s apex predators. Since 2015, Indonesia has recorded 1,167 crocodile attacks resulting in 556 deaths, with Belitung and Bangka Island to the north leading national statistics. The warning offers a stark reminder of the hazards lurking in local estuaries and coastal mangroves. Moving on from the museum, Rob, Karen, and Dedi stop beside an Amsterdam-inspired colonial canal in the city center, enjoying coffee and sweet coconut donuts beside waterways dating back to the colonial era.

Climbing Weathered Tailings at Abandoned Tin Mines

Heading away from the urban center, the expedition continues into the open-pit mining districts that once anchored Belitung’s colonial economy. The Dutch mining company Billiton extracted tin across the island throughout the early twentieth century before later merging with an Australian firm to form BHP Billiton. Decades of heavy excavation left behind stark, moonscape terrains stripped of topsoil and piled with vast heaps of discarded white quartz sand.

Surrounded by towering mounds of pale quartz, Rob climbs partway up an exposed ridge under 30-degree midday heat. Rob observes the stark landscape, stating: “Behind me are the remnants of one of the old tin mines. Now filled with water and giving us this beautiful blue color. And this is all just basically quartz. It’s now all powdered quartz.” Down in the excavation pit, the lake displays an intense aqua-blue shade caused by residual chemicals leaching through the quartz basin. Looking out over the water, Karen adds: “It is very, very hot. But, what an amazing thing to see. The lake on the other side is blue as in aqua blue. It is so pretty, but it’s full of chemicals and it’s just been left.” Down along the water’s edge, modern excavators work to load the quartz sand onto trucks for transport to Jakarta, where it is repurposed into industrial construction materials.

Mountain Conservation and Traditional Belitung Cuisine

Leaving the open mining pits behind, Dedi drives the crew toward the cooler interior highlands. Entering a mountain nature conservation area, Rob and Karen walk through shaded tropical rainforest along damp trails enveloped by native birdsong. Reaching a freshwater waterfall flowing over smooth boulders, the temperature drops noticeably compared to the sunbaked coastal plains. Stepping into the cool mist, Karen notes: “It is, it’s actually really nice and cool. The heat of Belitung has been quite draining but this is beautiful, isn’t it?”

After hiking out of the rainforest reserve, the crew stops at a local eatery to sample regional Belitung dishes. Rob and Karen order Ganggang, a traditional aromatic fish stew simmered with turmeric and pineapple, served alongside rice and local vegetables known as Katang Buton from Buton Island. Accompanied by fried calamari and fresh cucumber, the flavorful yellow broth delivers an intense chili heat despite Karen requesting a milder preparation.

Bushwalking Coastal Scrub to the Balancing Rock

In the afternoon, the expedition shifts toward Belitung’s southern plains to locate one of the island’s most distinctive geological oddities: the Balancing Rock. After asking Dedi about the landmark, the driver consults Google to navigate uncharted rural roads. A wrong turn leads the vehicle one kilometer down an overgrown dead-end trail before backtracking to the correct highway verge. From the road, a 5-minute bushwalk leads into thick coastal undergrowth.

Karen, managing lingering back pain from an earlier military career, navigates the rough terrain with determination before choosing to remain at the base of the granite formation. While Rob scrambles up the steep granite face, Karen marks the trail intersection for the return walk, calling out: “When the track veers, turn right.” Once on the granite summit, Rob gazes out across the coastal plains and examines the massive boulder perched precariously on a weathered contact point. Surveying the erosion beneath the stone, Rob comments: “There’s really very little surface area that the rock is sitting on. It’s just eroded away, and no doubt one day it’ll become a victim of gravity.”

Recovering the Flooded Tender and Final Outbound Clearance

For their final stop of the driving tour, Dedi takes the crew to a quiet coastal resort lined with massive traditional wooden boats. While strolling along the deserted shoreline, Rob and Karen discover that the incoming tide has surged past their landing mark. Rob points out the rising sea around the tender: “We brought it right up the beach, but I don’t think we brought it up enough.” The hull has filled with seawater, though the outboard engine remains safely elevated above the waterline. A local Indonesian bystander immediately wades in with a shovel to dig a drainage trench and bail out the boat. Appreciating the unprompted assistance, Karen remarks: “Of course. They’re so wonderful, always here to help us.”

With the tender drained and floated, Rob and Karen motor back to Our Dreamtime to commence outbound clearance preparations. Bright and early the next morning, Indonesian customs officials arrive on board to review vessel documentation. The inspection proceeds smoothly as the lead officer explains: “But you you need to sign and put the stamp, both stamps.” After signing paperwork, stamping cruising permits, and taking commemorative group photographs on deck, official clearance formalities conclude. With fuel tanks topped, fresh provisions stowed, and hull growth scrubbed clean, the crew prepares to weigh anchor on Friday and set sail north toward Malaysia.

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