Sawah Lunto Sijunjung besides known as producer of Coal mines in Indonesia, also known as a tourist destination in West Sumatra. Located at north-east and about 114 KM drive from Padang, Dusun Tanggalo, Desa Air hangat, Kecamatan Sijunjung, Kabupaten Sawah Lunto Sijunjung, West Sumatera, through narrow, winding road with tropical forest viewed at left and right sides, seems like ready to challange the travelers who want to explore this karst mountains.
One of the caves known better by many climber lovers in list of West Sumatra caves is Loguang Cave (Ngalau Loguang). “Loguang” which means great or large, is one of the many limestone caves located in Sawah Lunto Sijunjung County. This cave has 7 KM length with 3 main entrance. Actually in this karst area, there are still many limestone caves, but most of these caves are not allowed to be visited because of cultivation of swallow’s nests, to enter that caves must have special permits and most were really no admittance for the public and were guarded. In Loguang cave you also can find some swallow’s nests, but still a few and new nests. This cave is also as the wellspring for the people around, there’s underground river flows with fresh water, penetrate unto the surface through one of the main entraances which called ciek door (Pintu Ciek).
To enter cave must have permission from the local village government. Around year 1990 this cave was ever opened as a public tourist destination, it can be seen from the existence of several former shelter buildings and a permanent building that looks like government administration building , but due lack of supervision, only in about ten years, buildings and facilities were only ruins. To preserve the cave or even a visitor’s own safety, entering this cave visitors must obey few rules, such as not to make fire around buildings or forests wood, keep clean and not allowed to make noise around cave area, and more interesting, visitors are recommended not to brings eggs into the cave and visitors are not allowed to patt stomach, because the locals believed it would invite a wild tiger and according to the story is not just any ordinary tiger.
Cave exploration is started from first entrance, the entrance completed with some ladder steps, with 1.5 m ceiling wall height. During the exploration, from first entrance to second entrance, we can see large, long cave corridor with colorfull, various sizes and shapes of stalactites and stalagmites as its ornaments, complete with the columns. Observing from the stalactites/stalagmites, calcites formation and flow stones, indicates that this cave is old enough. This cave is still alive, because there is a small stream of cold water splashing out. More amazement, a small river in this dark cave is decorated with various kinds of fish and other domesticated animals. Fascinating cave scenery plus mysterious legend stories behinds, increase your curiosity and overawed that make you explore deeper and deeper into the cave.
If lucky, you can meet rare cave animals, long-legged crickets which called sipungguk (read: sipungguak), pale blind fish, long leg shrimps. Bats and leechs often found on the cave walls, makes travelers must be careful and watch every steps. To reach the second entrance (Pintu Duo), you must through the upstair cave corridor, which has about 90 degree slope, with 2-3 M height. From first entrance to second entrance, takes time about one hour. At second entrance, there’s a shelter for travelers to take awhile rest. When you reach to the second entrance, we can say that you already reach one-third of the total cave exploration journey.
From this second entrance, the cave passage is narrower and not so winding. Approximately ½ hour journey, you’ll find an interesting situation. If you look up, you’ll find small alleys as the hiding nest places of bats or swallow birds. Most of that alleys are dead-end alley, if you trace further into its hallway, guano (bat’s pile) is smelt. Next, you will find such a big chamber in the cave, wide and long, approximately 10 m height and 50-80m width, just like aircraft hangar. This area is ussually used for camping area, you can setup some group of tents, cool air flow blows through the cave mouth and cave wall holes. Fresh air and clean water are quite abundant.
Not too far from this chamber, you’ll meet such as plateau, shapes like altar, flooded, or often called as rimestonepool. After passing a fairly sharp turn, there’s a ladder shaped path on the left. It’s meant that you almost reach the third entrance. Fresh air will be felt on your skin and paddy fields scenery was the first encountered when you came out from this cave mouth. Total time takes for this journey, first entrance to third entrance, approximately 3 hours.
Hot Spring
Be exhausted after exploring Ngalau Loguang, travelers can immerse themselves in the hot water pool. There’s 2 place you can enyoy the natural hot water pool, first one, about 400 m from grotto, the others 800 m away from the grotto loguang.
First pool is designed for public facilities, which shower rooms and dressing rooms are available. The other pool is located at foothills with primitif natural shower surrounds with shady trees, and far away from public crowded. Both pools have hot water level around 40-500 C with sulfur concentrate level ranged between 0,08-1,00 mg / I and effective for curing skin diseases, rheumatism, etc.
Cool Spring
Besides hot spring, there’s cool spring available too in this tourism area. Cool sping also has 2 location, first one located near to the one of the cave entrances (there’s 3 entrances into the cave) and the other one is just beside to the one of the hot spring pool. These cool spring pools have very cool, clear and fresh water, directly flows from the cave stream and Tanggalo river, all exhaustion after exploring the cave dissapears, only freshness body left.
Other activities :
Ngalau Loguang Sijunjung Padang
Cave exploration is started from first entrance, the entrance completed with some ladder steps, with 1.5 m ceiling wall height. During the exploration, from first entrance to second entrance, we can see large, long cave corridor with colorfull, various sizes and shapes of stalactites and stalagmites as its ornaments, complete with the columns. Observing from the stalactites/stalagmites, calcites formation and flow stones, indicates that this cave is old enough. This cave is still alive, because there is a small stream of cold water splashing out. More amazement, a small river in this dark cave is decorated with various kinds of fish and other domesticated animals. Fascinating cave scenery plus mysterious legend stories behinds, increase your curiosity and overawed that make you explore deeper and deeper into the cave.
If lucky, you can meet rare cave animals, long-legged crickets which called sipungguk (read: sipungguak), pale blind fish, long leg shrimps. Bats and leechs often found on the cave walls, makes travelers must be careful and watch every steps. To reach the second entrance (Pintu Duo), you must through the upstair cave corridor, which has about 90 degree slope, with 2-3 M height. From first entrance to second entrance, takes time about one hour. At second entrance, there’s a shelter for travelers to take awhile rest. When you reach to the second entrance, we can say that you already reach one-third of the total cave exploration journey.
From this second entrance, the cave passage is narrower and not so winding. Approximately ½ hour journey, you’ll find an interesting situation. If you look up, you’ll find small alleys as the hiding nest places of bats or swallow birds. Most of that alleys are dead-end alley, if you trace further into its hallway, guano (bat’s pile) is smelt. Next, you will find such a big chamber in the cave, wide and long, approximately 10 m height and 50-80m width, just like aircraft hangar. This area is ussually used for camping area, you can setup some group of tents, cool air flow blows through the cave mouth and cave wall holes. Fresh air and clean water are quite abundant.
Not too far from this chamber, you’ll meet such as plateau, shapes like altar, flooded, or often called as rimestonepool. After passing a fairly sharp turn, there’s a ladder shaped path on the left. It’s meant that you almost reach the third entrance. Fresh air will be felt on your skin and paddy fields scenery was the first encountered when you came out from this cave mouth. Total time takes for this journey, first entrance to third entrance, approximately 3 hours.
Hot Spring Sijunjung
Be exhausted after exploring Ngalau Loguang, travelers can immerse themselves in the hot water pool. There’s 2 place you can enyoy the natural hot water pool, first one, about 400 m from grotto, the others 800 m away from the grotto loguang.
First pool is designed for public facilities, which shower rooms and dressing rooms are available. The other pool is located at foothills with primitif natural shower surrounds with shady trees, and far away from public crowded. Both pools have hot water level around 40-500 C with sulfur concentrate level ranged between 0,08-1,00 mg / I and effective for curing skin diseases, rheumatism, etc.
Cool Spring
Besides hot spring, there’s cool spring available too in this tourism area. Cool sping also has 2 location, first one located near to the one of the cave entrances (there’s 3 entrances into the cave) and the other one is just beside to the one of the hot spring pool. These cool spring pools have very cool, clear and fresh water, directly flows from the cave stream and Tanggalo river, all exhaustion after exploring the cave dissapears, only freshness body left.
Other activities :
- Enjoying the gorgeous Bukit Kunik scenery
- Cross country
- Wild boar hunting
- Fishing (Sukam River)
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