BUKIT KELAM

Gunung Kelam is a huge granite dome near Sintang in central West Kalimantan
province. It was first written about by German botanist Johannes Gottfried
Hallier in 1894. He was the second European to climb it, after a Dr. Gürtler,
and reached the summit ridge on five occasions between January 30th and
February 13th 1894. Of particular interest to him was the large number of pitcher
plants (Nepenthes). The following is his description:

“Mount K’lamm is a unique mountain of grand beauty. It rises singly and abruptly
from a wide plane overgrown by young forest almost up to 1000 m above seal
level and stretches approximately from west to east. Up to about half the
mountain the steep slopes are covered with vigorous virgin forest, but the upper
half is encompassed by mighty, almost vertical cliffs made of rock, over which
water runs down in numerous gullies. Above the upper edge of the cliff there is
high mountain vegetation compiled of bushes and small trees.
Gunung Kelam remains one of the most important known habitats in the world
for the pitcher plants, apparently being home to no less than 14 different
species, one of which – the endemic Shield-Leaved Pitcher Plant (Nepenthes
Clipeata) – was until recently thought to be the most endangered of all. The
pitcher plants grow on the side of the vertical granite cliffs at an approximate
altitude of between 500 and 800 metres. Most of the pitcher plants grow in
obscure corners of the mountain difficult and dangerous to reach, yet numerous
examples can be seen from the steep metal ladders which have since replaced
the rattan ladder that Hallier used over a century ago – and which hikers must
use if they wish to reach the summit ridge.

Kelam is a striking mountain from many angles both because it is an immense

Ayers Rock-esque boulder and because the surrounding land is mostly very flat,
with just a couple of minor hills to the northeast. More regular-sized boulders (for
example, those measuring between 2 to 10 metres in height) can be found
scattered by nearby village houses at the base of Kelam itself.

Just as those in Kalimantan call their highest peak ‘Bukit Raya‘ (‘big hill’ or
‘great hill’) despite its considerable size, so too do they refer to Gunung Kelam
as Bukit Kelam. However, those who have climbed the ladders up its vertical
cliff faces would probably agree that it deserves to be called a mountain rather
than a mere hill! Although it can be climbed in a day by the reasonably fit and
prepared, it is a significant hike up from about just 75 metres above sea level to
an elevation of 940 m (the official 1,002 metres seems to be an exaggerated
figure). A local man claims to have reached to summit ridge in just 45 minutes of
running, but for dayhikes you should realistically allow 4-5 hours to reach the top
and 3-4 to descend carefully. You’ll need a lot of water (minimum 3 litres each)
and a decent sunhat and suncream, especially if you have pale skin. Wonderfully
it would appear that there are no leeches on this mountain, which is an occasion
worth celebrating in Borneo.
The trail starts at the signposted Pesona Wisata Bukit Kelam which is about 22
kilometres (or one hour by car) from Sintang. Follow the cement steps up past
the stalls selling drinks (very busy with locals on Sundays) until you reach the
sign with ‘puncak’ written on it. The cement steps continue up past a cement
water pool (140m), up a short metal ladder (which is a brief taster of things to
come as there are 3 longer ladder sections higher up) to a cave with a view
(202m) and then a large rock (‘batu jengkol’, 230m) in a small grassy area with
excellent views over the surrounding countryside. You will already be sweating
by this point, so take a break here and admire the views. Unfortunately, much of
the nearby land – which in Hallier’s time would have been primary rainforest –
has been converted into palm oil (‘sawit’) plantations. It is a very sad state of
affairs and represents a threat of such severity that it is not inconceivable that
the majority of Borneo will be like this within the next couple of decades.
Ecosystems destroyed for private profit.
Mount Kelam (Indonesian: Gunung Kelam) is an exposed granitic dome in West
Kalimantan, Borneo, with an elevation of 1,002 m.[1]
In 1894, German botanist Johannes Gottfried Hallier became the second European to climb Mount
Kelam, after a certain Dr. Gürtler.[2] Hallier ascended the summit 5 times between January 30 and
February 13.[3] He wrote the following account of the mountain:
Mount K'lamm is a unique mountain of grand beauty. It rises singly and abruptly from a wide plain
overgrown by young forest almost up to 1000 m above sea level and stretches approximately from
west to east. Up to about half the mountain the steep slopes are covered with vigorous virgin forest,
but the upper half is encompassed by mighty, almost vertical cliffs made of rock, over which water
runs down in numerous gullies. Above the upper edge of the cliff there is high mountain vegetation
compiled of bushes and small trees.

Kelam Hill is the second largest rock in the world (the largest stone is the Great Stone in Australia).
Located in the Kelam Permai subdistrict , it is approximately 19 km from the Sintang district capital.
To reach the Kelam Hill Conservation Area, you can use bus from Pontianak to Sintang in eight
hours. This public transportation operates every day. If you have limited time, you can use airplane,
the flight will get you to Sintang for 45 minutes. From Sintang, you can use pioneering public
transportation for about 30 minutes to Kelam Hill Conservation Area.

Kelam hill has 900 meters above sea level height, with 600 meters vertical cliff walls. At the foothills
we can see a small area covered with tropical rainforest with some tropical tree species like meranti
(Shorea sp), Bangeris (Kompassia sp), Tengkawang (Dipterocarpus sp), Kebas-kebas (Prodocarpus
ceae). Moreover, we can find various types of orchids species. This conservation area is also habitat
for some rare animals such as the sun bear (Herlarctos malayanus), Armadillo (Manis javanica),
bats (Hiropteraphilie sp) and various species of birds.

The peaks are often covered by clouds, thats why at some spot, we can see masive moss covering
the forest floor, stone or tree. It is easy to find some orchid species at the peaks. Alloy of tropical
climate, high rugged mountains and very lack of nutrients made Bukit Kelam has a very unique
micro climate to become habitat of an endemic plants, Nepenthes clipeata. Bukit Kelam is the only
natural habitat of these plants, it can be found growing on the cliff as wall creeper, or just crawling on
stone.
RUMAH BETANG
Betang merupakan salah salah rumah khas di Pulau Kalimantan, tepatnya di Provinsi Kalimantan
Tengah. Sama halnya dengan rumah Radakng atau rumah Panjang di Pontianak, Kalimantan Barat,
rumah Betang juga merupakan tempat tinggal masyarakat Dayak. Rumah Betang banyak tersebar
di daerah hulu sungai yang menjadi tempat tinggal kebanyakan suku Dayak.

Bentuk rumah Betang Bentuk dan ukuran rumah Betang bervariasi di berbagai tempat. Ada rumah
Betang yang mencapai panjang 150 meter dan lebar hingga 30 meter.

Umumnya rumah Betang dibangun berbentuk panggung dengan ketinggian tiga hingga lima meter
dari permukaan tanah.

Tingginya bangunan rumah Betang tersebut untuk menghindari datangnya banjir pada musim
penghujan yang mengancam daerah-daerah di hulu sungai di Kalimantan. Beberapa unit
pemukiman bisa memiliki rumah Betang lebih dari satu buah, tergantung dari besarnya rumah
tangga anggota komunitas hunian tersebut. Setiap rumah tangga (keluarga) menempati bilik
(ruangan) yang disekat-sekat dari rumah Betang yang besar tersebut.

Keunikan rumah Betang

Hampir semua bangunan Rumah Betang terbuat dari kayu yang kuat dan tergolong tahan lama,
tidak mudah rapuh.

Kayu yang digunakan umumnya kayu ulin, di mana kayu ulin merupakan kayu yang sangat kuat dan
tahan lama. Karena mampu bertahan terhadap perubahan iklim dari musim hujan hingga musim
panas. Dayak membentuk rumah Betang dengan arsitektur berbeda dari kediaman lazimnya.

Berikut tiga tujuan tersebut:

Untuk menghindari kerugian akibat banjir. Secara umum, suku Dayak banyak bermukim di hulu
sungai yang kapan saja dapat berisiko banjir jika air pasang.

Mencari keselamatan dari binatang buas yang masih banyak berkeliaran di hutan Kalimantan.

Agar aman dari orang-orang jahat ingin menggangu sebab bentuk Rumah Betang begitu besar dan
megah.

Makna rumah Betang

Budaya rumah Betang merupakan cerminan mengenai kebersamaan dalam kehidupan sehari-hari
orang Dayak. Di dalam rumah Betang setiap kehidupan individu pada rumah tangga dan
masyarakat secara sistematis diatur melalui kesepakatan bersama yang dituangkan dalam hukum
adat.

Keamanan bersama, baik dari gangguan kriminal atau berbagi makanan, suka-duka maupun
mobilisasi tenaga untuk mengerjakan ladang.

Nilai utama yang menonjol dalam kehidupan di rumah Betang adalah nilai kebersamaan di antara
para warga yang menghuninya, terlepas dari perbedaan-perbedaan yang mereka miliki.
Dengan tinggal bersama di dalam Rumah Betang, memberikan arti bahwa suku Dayak ingin selalu
menciptakan kehidupan yang harmonis terhadap lingkungannya.

Bentuk Rumah Betang suku Dayak megah dan tinggi itu tentu saja membuatnya perlu menaiki anak
tangga agar dapat masuk.

Uniknya dalam kepercayaan suku Dayak, anak tangga Rumah Betang harus berjumlah ganjil.
Sehingga menjadi seperti kewajiban yang tidak boleh ditawar tentang jumlah ganjil anak tangga
Rumah Betang.

Ada banyak alasan yang melatari mengenai anak tangga Rumah Betang harus berjumlah ganjil.
Salah satunya supaya rezeki mudah datang ke semua penghuni Rumah Betang dan dijauhkan dari
kesulitan hidup.

Selain itu, tangga untuk masuk ke Rumah Betang setiap malam diangkat. Tidak ditinggal begitu saja
di luar rumah oleh suku Dayak.

Mereka meyakini dengan membawa masuk tangga ke dalam Rumah Betang akan terhindar dari
gangguan hantu serta serangan ilmu mistik yang jahat untuk menyerang sang penghuninya.

Rumah Betang merupakan simbol dari kearifan lokal masyarakat adat di Indonesia. Ada banyak
yang terkandung di dalam rumah Betang.

Untuk pembangunannya saja, hulu rumah harus menghadap ke arah matahari terbit. Bagi suku
Dayak, itu menandakan bahwa mereka adalah pekerja keras.

Suku Dayak harus bekerja agar bertahan hidup sejak terbitnya matahari, sedangkan untuk hilir
rumah dibuat searah dengan matahari terbenam.

Secara filosofis mengartikan bahwa kerja kerja suku Dayak akan berhenti saat sore hari dan dimulai
lagi besok pagi.