Ketambe

Ketambe sits on the upper Alas River, on the Aceh side of Gunung Leuser, and is the main trailhead for the western half of the park. The setting is a forested valley between steep ridges, and the village itself is a handful of guesthouses, warungs and guiding outfits strung along the road. It is much quieter than Bukit Lawang and the trekking is more serious — the trails climb hard from the start, the leeches are abundant, and the wildlife is genuinely wild.

Trips run from one to ten days. The standard three-day option camps in the forest and gives reasonable chances of seeing orangutans, gibbons, Thomas leaf monkeys and macaques. Longer treks aim for the rhino-and-elephant country in the interior, but sightings of those animals are rare and not guaranteed. Guides are arranged in the village; fees include the park permit and food. Bring boots, long trousers, leech socks and quick-drying clothes.

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A story
Ketambe is the site of one of the longest-running orangutan research stations in the world, established by the Dutch primatologist Herman Rijksen in 1971. The station was the first to demonstrate that orangutans, long considered solitary, in fact maintain loose social networks. The research has continued through earthquakes, civil war, and a period of complete closure during the Aceh conflict, and the area around the station is one of the few places in the park where habituated wild orangutans can be reliably observed.