Danau Ubur-Ubur Lenmakana, Stingless Jellyfish Lake in Misool

Ingat cerita tentang ubur-ubur tidak menyengat di Danau Kakaban, Kepulauan Derawan? It was so fun, I feel like Spongebob having fun there!

Remember the story about the stingless jellyfish in Kakaban Island, Derawan Islands? It was so fun, I feel like Spongebob having fun there!

This jellyfish is stingless!

Namun ternyata keunikan luar biasa itu tidak hanya ada di Kakaban. Jika sebelumnya banyak yang menyebut bahwa danau ubur-ubur tidak menyengat hanya ada di Danau Kakaban dan Palau, Mikronesia, ternyata Indonesia punya banyak danau seperti itu!

But apparently that uniqueness isn't only in Kakaban. Most people know only 2 place with stingless jellyfish lake, which are Kakaban and Palau, Micronesia, turns out it was wrong, Indonesia has more!

No need to be afraid when the jellyfish approach you

Di Pulau Maratua, juga di Kepulauan Derawan, Kalimantan Timur juga terdapat danau ubur-ubur yang tidak menyengat. Teman saya yang berkunjung ke Togean juga mengatakan bahwa Togean memiliki danau serupa. Dan ternyata Misool, Raja Ampat memiliki tidak tanggung-tanggung lima danau ubur-ubur yang tidak menyengat. Namun baru dua danau yang dapat diakses, cerita mengenai adanya lima danau saya dengar dari penduduk lokal.

In Maratua, also in Derawan Islands, East Kalimantan, there is also a stingless jellyfish lake. My friend who visited Togean also said that Togean has the similar lake, and turns out Misool, Raja Ampat have a lot of stingless jellyfish lake. Local residents said that there are five stingless jellyfish lake in Misool, but only two are accessible.

Don't you just wanna touch them? Photo by Lotus

Dua danau ubur-ubur tidak menyengat bagi saya bukan "hanya," ini berarti double fun! Karena waktu yang terbatas kami memilih satu danau untuk dikunjungi yaitu danau ubur-ubur di Lenmakana, Misool, Raja Ampat.

Two lakes aren't "just" ,this means double the fun! But due to the limited time, we choose to visit the Lenmakana stingless jellyfish lake in Misool.

View from the lake

Berbeda dengan Danau Kakaban yang telah memiliki jalur dan tangga kayu, untuk masuk ke Danau Lenmakana, kami harus melewati trek yang cukup membuat kami memanjat-manjat baru karang dan untuk masuk persis sebelum danau kami harus menginjak paha guide lokal kami karena tidak ada pijakan untuk turun.

Different with Kakaban Lake which already have decent track and wooden stairs, to get to Lenmakana Lake you literally have to crawl and climb the rocky hills, and before the entry you need a help from local guide because the access is quite a challenge. 

Pinky jellies!

Can't swim? don't worry just bring your life vest and have fun!

Namun apalah artinya sedikit kesulitan tadi jika sampai di danau. Dari atas saya sudah melihat bulatan-bulatan pink, ubur-ubur sedang naik ke permukaan karena saat kami datang matahari sedang bersinar terang, a perfect time!

But anyway, a bit of hard work climbing the path is nothing compare to what you'll get. From above I've seen pink dots, the jellyfish are coming into the surface to get sunlight, a perfect time!

Where are you going Jell-O?

Dancing with the jellyfish, photo by Agus Praditya

Tanpa perlu dikomando kami semua langsung mencelupkan diri ke danau dimana ubur-ubur terlihat sangat jelas dengan jumlah yang banyak. Berbeda dengan Danau Kakaban dimana area masuk danau memiliki sedimen lumpur sehingga mudah keruh jika banyak orang kicking saat berenang, Danau Lenmakana dasarnya cukup dalam sehingga lebih jernih meski rombongan kami masuk bersamaan.

Nobody have to told us to get in, we got our self dipping into the lake, no time are wasted. Here we can see the jellyfish, so visible and in large numbers. This quite different with Kakaban Lake where the entry are a bit muddy especially when there are a lot of people swimming at the same time. Lenmakana Lake is deeper at the entry so it will stay clear even though a group coming in together at the same time.

Saya tidak perlu menjelaskan mengapa ubur-ubur ini tidak menyengat, proses yang mereka alami sama dengan di Danau Kakaban. Yang pasti kembali berenang sambil melihat ubur-ubur ini sangatlah menyenangkan! Misool have plenty of fun!

I don't have to explain why this jellyfish don't have sting, the process is the same as Kakaban Lake. One thing for sure, swimming while seeing these jellyfish totally makes me ahappy. Misool have plenty of fun!
 

@marischkaprue - she doesn't sting like jellyfish, also ain't soft like jellies 

NOTES:

• Ubur-ubur di Danau Lenmakana ini sangat rentan karena tidak memiliki pertahanan diri dalam bentuk sengatan, sentuh dengan hati-hati dan jangan diangkat keluar dari air.
• The jellyfish here are so fragile since they don't have any sting to protect themselves. Touch carefully and don't lift them out of the water.
• Misool terletak di area Selatan Raja Ampat. Misool adalah salah satu pulau dari 4 pulau utama di Raja Ampat, area di Pulau Misool dan sekitarnya ini juga disebut Misool.
• Misool located in the southern area of Raja Ampat. Misool is one of the 4 main islands in Raja Ampat. The area around Misool Island is also called Misool.
• Untuk menuju ke Misool ambil penerbangan menuju Sorong. (Penerbangan Jakarta - Sorong biasanya via transit di Makassar, budget Rp. 4 juta PP). Dari Sorong dilanjutkan dengan speed boat selama 4-5 jam perjalanan.
• To reach Misool, take a flight to Sorong (Flight from Jakarta to Sorong usually via Makassar. The usual ticket price for return ticket Jakarta - Sorong - Jakarta is around 350 USD). From Sorong you can continue with speed boat, around 4 to 5 hours boat trip.
• Terdapat homestay Harfat Jaya di Pulau Harapan Jaya, Misool dengan budget sekitar Rp. 400.000,- hingga Rp. 500.000,- per orang per hari.
• There is a homestay in Harapan Jaya Island, Misool. Harfat Jaya homestay cost about 34 USD to 43 USD per person per day.
• Sewa kapal ke Misool sangat mahal sehingga untuk mendapatkan budget trip sekitar 6 juta selama 5 hari, anda harus share hingga 20 orang dalam satu kali trip. Lebih baik ikut penyedia trip seperti Wisata Raja Ampat yang menyediakan Misool Trip dengan budget di bawah Rp. 6 juta (exclude tiket pesawat). Contact Wisata Raja Ampat di +62852 960 43961 atau PIN BB di 2A495979. Trip biasanya diadakan 2-3 kali dalam setahun, antara di bulan Mei, Oktober dan Desember.
• Renting a speedboat to Misool is highly expensive, to get a 509 USD budget for 5 days exploring Misool, you will need to share speedboat cost with around 20 person on one trip. I suggest you to join open trip such as Wisata Raja Ampat who provide Misool Trip with budget under 509 USD (exclude plane ticket). You can contact Wisata Raja Ampat through +62852 960 43961 or Blackberry PIN 2A495979. The trip usually takes time in May, October and December.
• Penginapan yang tersedia hanya homestay, pilihan lain adalah Misool Eco Resort dengan rate Rp. 5,8 juta per orang per hari. 
• The only accomodation available is homestay, for more comfortable choices you can stay at Misool Eco Resort with rate around 492 USD per person per day.

RELATED STORIES:  

• Kakaban Stingless Jellyfish Lake in Derawan Islands
• How to Make Fun Photos at Kakaban Lake 

ABOUT MISOOL:

• Yapap, A Piece of Heaven in Raja Ampat
• Lenmakana beach, another Retreat in Misool