Mentawai Island
One of the most fascinating and thrilling island called Mentawai Island is the
favorite destination of the people who love the adventurous sport, surfing. The
perfect waves, warm water and the incredible atmosphere make this place the
paradise of surfers. People from all over the world do not mind to coming to the
other side of the Atlantic.
Located almost 150km west of Sumatra in the Indian Ocean, Mentawai Island
situated on the border of a continental shelf, which is surrounded by the coral
reefs. Deep-water flows up onto these coral reefs that protect the continental
shelf.
Siberut, Sipura, North Pagai (Pagai Utara) and South Pagai (Pagai Selatan) are
the four main islands, which make up the chain of Mentawai Island and these
islands are surrounded by many smaller islands.
Siberut Island (4030 km²) is the largest island among these four Mentawai
Islands. The position of these islands makes them an outstanding location for
surfing. The residents of the islands are called the Mentawai. The Mentawai
Island contain one of the most enthralling and best-preserved indigenous
cultures of the world, but, due to the unrestricted tidal wave of Indonesia’s
modernization this culture is dangerously close to being extinguished.
The Mentawai Islands are part of West Sumatra (Sumatera Barat) province and
Padang is the capital of the province, which situated on the Sumatran mainland
opposite Siberut. Mentawai Islands rain forests ecoregion, which is located on
the Mentawai Islands, accommodates numerous endemic species, including Four
endemic primates, such as Mentawai or Kloss Gibbon (Hylobates klossii), Mentawai
Macaque (Macaca pagensis), Mentawai leaf-monkey (Presbytis potenziani), and
snub-nosed monkey (Simias concolor).
Mentawai Islands is isolated from the rest of the world. To visit at the island
you need to fly to Singapore (7 hours from Sydney), stay overnight there, and
then fly to Padang (an Indonesian Port) (1hr 20 min flight). From Padang, the
only mode to reach at Mentawai Islands is boat, which takes an overnight 10-hour
journey to straight waves.
Popular attractions in Mentawai Island:
| Mentawai Island Popular Attractions | |
|---|---|
|
• Siberut National Park |
• Sikakap Town |
undo Indonesia Popular Destinations