Misool Island in Raja Ampat, located in Southwest Papua is one of the tourist destinations that is visited by tourists who come to the islands. It is known that Raja Ampat has 4 large islands, namely Waigeo Island, Misool Island, Salawati Island, and Batanta Island.
Misool Island consists of hills, dense forests and mangrove swamps, and on the eastern and western sides of the island there is a maze of limestone that leads to the open sea. Its beauty is also seen in the presence of ancient cultural sites in the form of petroglyphs on cave walls throughout the island, which are on average about 5,000 years old.
The 2,034 square kilometres (km) island also offers underwater beauty. Raja Ampat lies at the heart of the Coral Triangle and is home to some of the richest tropical marine biodiversity in the world, which includes the underwater area of Misool Island. Plenty of marine life can be found, including various types of ornamental fish, turtles, rays and corals. Those who are fortunate can even see large sea creatures passing by, such as whales.
There are many interesting destinations in Misool, including Sacred Cave, Skull Cave, Sumbayo Palm, Harfat Peak, Yapap, Jellyfish Lake, Namlol Beach, Balbulol Peak, then there is Karawapop Lake or known as Telaga Love.
Lake Lenmakana on Misool Island is home to beautiful marine life, stingless jellyfish. The location is in the middle of the sea and remote, surrounded by large karst rocks. To get there, you have to do a trek that can be considered extreme because it goes through steep cliffs. Quoted from Kompas.com, Lake Lenmakana has been isolated for thousands of years so there are no predators. This has led to the jellyfish evolving and losing their stingers, which are usually used for self-defence. Tourists there can snorkel with stingless jellyfish.
Karawapop Lake is also a charm for visitors on Misool Island. Its unique shape, which resembles the shape of a heart, gives Karawapop Lake various nicknames such as love lake, or love lagoon. To enjoy this view, you must climb to the top of the hill through a steep track with a 90-degree slope. The hike takes 30 minutes. Meanwhile, to reach Karawapop Island, tourists must first take a route from Sorong Port to Yellu Port in Misool in a four-hour trip by express motorboat. After that, the journey continues by riding a speedboat to get to the main destination.
Those who wish to travel in Raja Ampat, those from outside the city must first go to Sorong city then look for a travel service to take you around the Raja Ampat Islands by boat or speedboat. The tour offers also vary. From one day return to four days or overnight. The cost of the trip starts from Rp 1.8 million to Rp 6.5 million. If you take a longer trip, the tourist sites visited are more numerous and diverse. It is recommended to come during the summer months, including October. The scenery is brighter, and the tourist trails are not slippery.
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