Cats of Borneo Photo Tour 2021

Cats of Borneo Photo Tour 2021

Cats of Borneo Photo Tour
Dates: April 24th – May 8th, 2021
Location: Malaysian Borneo
Price: $9000 ($975 single supplement)
Participants: 4 (3 spots left)
Wild Cat Difficulty:
Leopard Cat – Medium
Marbled Cat – Difficult
Flat-headed Cat – Difficult
Sunda Clouded Leopard – Difficult
Borneo Bay Cat – Extremely Difficult

 

Leopard cat, marbled cat, borneo bay cat, flat-headed cat, and Sunda clouded leopard will be the five target species of wild cat during this Cats of Borneo Photo Tour. We will spend two weeks in the prime locations of Malaysian Borneo to give ourselves the best chances of seeing these elusive forest dwelling felines.

 

Leopard cats have a difficulty rating of medium, this means that for the duration of the trip, we expect to definitely see a leopard cat, and have at least one, but probably multiple encounters, with good photographic opportunities. Marbled cat, flat-headed cat, and Sunda clouded leopard have a difficulty rating of difficult, this means that for the duration of the trip, our goal will be to have one encounter with each of these species with good photographic opportunities. The Borneo bay cat has a difficulty rating of extremely difficult. This means that if we encounter a bay cat, whether a good photo opportunity or not, we consider ourselves beyond lucky.*

What to Bring
Photo Equipment: We recommend bringing one SLR camera (or more), a telephoto lens at least 300mm long, an external flash, better beamer, and a tripod or monopod.
Clothing: Borneo is a very hot and humid place. To be the most comfortable, you want to wear lightweight, quick-drying clothes. I personally prefer to wear long pants, with a short sleeve shirt. Long sleeve shirts are a good idea for the night drives we will be doing. Finally, we recommend bringing rain jacket and pants, a hat, and swim wear.
Shoes: Lightweight running shoes (big hiking boots become bricks with all the mud and water). Bring sandals for relaxing.

Travel: Fly into Sandakan Airport (SDK) on the morning of the 19th of July. You will be picked up from the airport. Fly out of Lahad Datu (LDU) on May 8th.

Accommodations: Are included in the workshop fee and include lodges, chalets, and a B&B. Detailed descriptions of the accommodations are available upon request.

Food: Food is included in the workshop fee, however, alcohol at meals is not.

Transportation: Transportation to and from the airport and within the country is included in the workshop fee.

Schedule for the Cats of Borneo Photo Tour:

Day 1. April 24th. Arrive at SDK. Visit Sepilok Nature Reserve and go for night walk.
Day 2. April 25th. Leave for Deramakot Forest Reserve. Look for cats on 4×4 in Deramakot Forest Reserve (from afternoon to late at night).
Day 3. April 26th. Look for cats on 4×4 in Deramakot Forest Reserve (from afternoon to late at night).
Day 4. April 27th. Same as the previous day.
Day 5. April 28th. Same as the previous day.
Day 6. April 29th. Same as the previous day.
Day 7. April 30th. Same as the previous day.
Day 8. May 1st. Same as the previous day.
Day 9. May 2nd. Transfer to Kinabatangan River. We will look for wild cats along the river from a boat (from afternoon to late at night).
Day 10. May 3rd. We will look for wild cats along the Kinabatangan River from a boat (from afternoon to late at night).
Day 11. May 4th. Same as the previous day.
Day 12. May 5th. Transfer to Tabin Wildlife Reserve. Look for cats from vehicle (from afternoon to late at night).
Day 13. May 6th. Look for cats from vehicle.
Day 14. May 7th. Same as the previous day (from afternoon to late at night).
Day 15. May 8th. Depart via Lahad Datu.

Physical Requirements: You need to be in reasonable shape for this photography tour. We may hike up to three miles per day to look for the cats. The terrain can be steep, slippery, and uneven.

Deposit: $1900 will secure your spot in the photo tour. I will ask for this after you sign-up, or if you contact me directly.

What’s included in the price: Accommodations, transportation to and from the airport and between shooting locations, meals (except alcohol), guide services.

What’s not included in the price: International flights and domestic departing flight, and anything not listed in the “What’s included in the price” list above.

*Wild Cat Difficulty: Wild cats can be very hard to photograph subjects, they require a lot of patience and dedication. This means spending significant amounts of time searching for them, hours and possibly days without a sighting. Leopard cats have a difficulty rating of medium, this means that for the duration of the trip, we expect to definitely see a leopard cat, and have at least one, but probably multiple encounters, with good photographic opportunities. Marbled cat, flat-headed cat, and Sunda clouded leopard have a difficulty rating of difficult, this means that for the duration of the trip, our goal will be to have one encounter with each of these species with good photographic opportunities. The Borneo bay cat has a difficulty rating of extremely difficult. This means that if we encounter a bay cat, whether a good photo opportunity or not, we consider ourselves beyond lucky. Please do know that we have organized the cats of Borneo photo tour to maximize our chances to encounter and photograph all of these incredible felines.

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Other Possible Species to Photograph (underlined species are the most commonly seen):
Long-tailed Macaque (Macaca fascicularis)
Red Leaf Monkey (Presbytis rubicunda)
Proboscis Monkey (Nasalis larvatus)
Bornean Orangutan (Pongo pygmaeus)
Borneo Pygmy Elephant (Elephas maximus borneensis)
Sambar (Cervus unicolor)
Malayan Civet (Viverra tangalunga)
Common Palm Civet (Paradoxurus hermaphroditus)
Malayan Porcupine (Hystrix brachyura)

Terms and Conditions