One typical afternoon, while anchored at Loh Dasami Bay between Rinca and Nusa Kode Island, we were between dives and considering the potential of the impossibly perfect beach cove before us, when out of the bushes at far right came a whole family of wild boar which trotted single file all the way across the beach to disappear into the brush on the far left. A minute later a group of deer (who were not nearly as well organized) meandered across, and hard on their heels three Komodo Dragons came out of that same brush on the right and clamored across the sand to exit stage left. I decided right then I wasn't leaving the boat for the remainder of our trip. They didn't tell me until much later that dragons can swim.

Later that day as we motored out to our next day's dive site we picked up an escort of spotted dolphins playing around our bow, leaping and bounding all around us with the sheer exuberance of being alive. There must have been hundreds of them. They stayed right with us for a mile or so, much o the delight of everyone aboard.

And then there's the whole under water world - reefs and fish beyond compare. They tell me there's 260 species of reef-building coral, 70 species of sponge and more than 1,000 species of fish down there, and I believe them, too. The coral comes in the most vivid and varied colors imaginable - colors I didn't even know existed in nature. And the fish! We swam with the manta rays, startled the turtles and admired the sharks who paid us no mind at all. We floated among the giant clams, followed the giant wrasses and even sighted a pygmy blue whale. Incredible!

Komodo National Park has claimed it's rightful place among UNESCO's World Heritage Sites and truly is one of the world's Last Great Places. It's one of those truly magical, one-of-a-kind spots that deserves all the help and protection it can get. At risk by poaching, blasting and cyanide poisoning, The Nature Conservancy counters the threats with a variety of programs. Floating ranger stations - boats that serve as a mobile base for park rangers - patrol 510 square miles to stop continued illegal fish poaching. FADs (Fish Aggregating Devices) are rafts anchored in really deep waters, which attract pelagic (deep-water) fish. Local fishermen are now moving from fishing reef fish to pelagic fish. Not only has this helped conserve reef habitat but it has also introduced a new way of fishing to the local communities and provided them with a source of livelihood. And the Conservancy's mooring buoy program has already decreased damage to coral reefs caused by boat anchors. The mooring buoys, which are needed througout Komodo National Park, are also being installed by the Conservancy in other Indonesian National Parks.

I came away from my trip hopeful, encouraged and inspired. You should go and check this out if you can, because this is something worth seeing.

Donna Perrot
Nature Conservancy Donor

*Picture of Donna Perrot provided by Joe Flanagan