In Reply to: #4 posted by Darcyg7 on Sunday, 1. June 2003 at 06:58 Bali Time:
The Taman Nasional Bali Barat Reserve in the west of Bali, one of the few places in Bali which still has original uncultivated forests.
This park is the home for deer, long-tailed macaques, civets, black monkeys, wild boars and a few banteng and numerous butterflies and birds, of which the white sterlings is the most famous.
The Taman Nasional Bali Barat Park was initially established by the Dutch in 1941 to protect the endangered white starling of Bali and the last wild banteng.
The area is mountainous and consists of primary monsoon forests along the watershed on the southern slopes of the mountains. The northern part is much drier than the south. Here you will find palm savanahs, dense mangrove swamps and unspoilt reefs.
Today the Park comprises roughly 10% of Bali's total land area, about 77 ha, and it is managed by the PHPA, the Indonesian Forestry Service, which limits and controls public access.
There are two official entrance sites of this park:
1) HQ with a visitor center in Cekik in the southwest
2) a branch office in Labuhan Lalang in the northwest.
You can do guided tours ranging from a few hours to a few days with camping in the Park.
Cheers,
Ringo