Worthy

Waterfall in rinjani national park #lombokwaterfalls #waterfall #lombok #rinjaninationalpark

Source

It's been a while I'll admit. 

But I've not much newly enjoyed waterfall chases to add, certainly not in Southeast Asia.
So I might have been tempted to make this a very, very sleepy blog. Then again it's 3 years since the last posting, so maybe it was already sleepy ...

But I've decided to add a news section every now and then, a bit irregular. Also a way to add pictures and hopefully encourage chases and the safe use of waterfalls.

Playground
A big inspiration for this posting goes to the website Taiwan Waterfalls which has an exceptional detailed and extensive piece on Bali's waterfalls (August 10, 2015). 
No less than details of 13 waterfalls are noted, some more well-known, others more secretive. And the author adds that despite the details of these waterfalls, he's to add more.

This place is beautiful. #Maubisse #waterhole #waterfall #water #rocks #beautiful #jump #timor #timorleste #freezing #nofilter

Source  

Another inspiration for this awakening, was the tale by Richard Collett (travel-tramp, April 21, 2015) entitled The Man Who Fell Down the Tallest Waterfall in Laos:

'Hoping that we’d missed him at the top while we had been drinking our Beer Laos, we set about looking around through the forest, peering into abyss every now and then, to snatch a glimpse of the track.
There was no one else in sight though- not until we headed back to the entrance of the track and there, sat in the bushes, was an exhausted figure. Rushing over we realised it was our mate. He was battered, muddy and disheveled. We gave him a beer, and he said he’d fallen into the waterfall. Somewhat roughed up, after a while he began to tell us what had happened. ....'.

Less inspiring, Vietnam and China want to further exploit the border waterfall of Ban Gioc (Vietnamnet, August 7, 2015). Sounds very exciting:

'The fourth round of negotiations on an agreement on cooperation in protecting and exploiting tourism resources within the Ban Gioc Waterfall vicinity between Vietnam and China ran in Beijing from August 2-6.
....
Both sides discussed issues of mutual concern frankly and reached consensus on all draft contents of the agreement. They agreed to speed up their domestic assessments of the pact as well as the organisation of the next round for signing preparations. The two sides then inked the meeting minutes'.

A website with a fair share of waterfall info is travelfish; my fist call whnever needing travel info on Southeast Asia. 
Recent entries on waterfalls include those around Luang Prabang, Laos (January 30, 2015), the Bolaven plateau, Laos (January 31, 2015) and Munduk, Bali (March 3, 2015).

If wanting to check out a waterfall or two on that Bolaven plateau, mergingworldsstravel (April 25, 2015) has taken the time to write down all the details, a must see posting:

'Oh Pakse, Pakse, Pakse. Such great memories of whisking the motorbike through your empty highways surrounded by forest, jungle, foliage and villages. Cruising from waterfall to waterfall, swimming in natural pools as cascades of water drop from cliffs above crashing into the water below. Providing an escape from the heat, a natural playground, unspeakable beauty'.

Definitely not almost going in the drink... #Pakse #Paksong #Laos #BolavenPlateau #Travelling #Waterfall

Source

Must do
More waterfall related postings focusing on the most this or that. Here's just a short selection:

• 12 Relaxing Waterfall Picnic Spots Around West Malaysia (Healthworks.my, May 13, 2015).
• Top 10 Waterfalls You MUST SEE in the Philippines (wheninmanila, November 12, 2014).
• 14 stunning Philippine waterfalls worth chasing (skyscanner, December 2014).
• 16 Waterfalls In The Philippines That Will Take Your Breath Away (trekeffect,  August 3, 2015):

'Visiting a waterfall is probably the most relaxing and, at the same time, fulfilling kind of nature tripping. The sound of the water, from above crashing down below, is not only the best takeaway in the entire experience but the visually stunning greens surrounding it as well'.

• 20 Amazing Waterfalls to Visit This Summer (lamudi.com.ph, April 10, 2015). 
• 15 Waterfalls in the Visayas You Might've Never Heard Of Before (Choosephilippines, December 12, 2014).
• 10 Of The Most Spectacular Waterfalls In Indonesia (wowshack, January 7, 2015).
• Uncovering Bali’s 7 most spectacular waterfalls unknown to most (blimehthesheep, September 9, 2014).
• 10 spectacular waterfalls in Bandung that are unknown to most (Indonesia tripcanvas, July 10, 2015). 

And then our tops came flying off... emojiemojiemojiemoji #goodtimes #maesawaterfall #waterfall #chiangmai #ThaiFruitFest #thailand #RawTill4 #vegan #goodvibes #gofruityourself #carbthefuckup #travelgram #wanderlust #skinnydipping #gopro 

Source, see also youtube ...

Selfie
As said above, despite the high degree of pleasure a dip under a cooling waterfall can result in, they are also something to be treated with caution as the following short links will prove. 
Also note that many a casualty is the result of risk taking either be it to take a selfie or to overextend.

Thanh nien news (July 28, 2015):

'An 18-year-old man fell from a waterfall in central Vietnam and died during a trip with his friends on Sunday.

Huynh Thanh Son climbed up the Ba Waterfall in Binh Thuan Province with three of his friends after they arrived. 

It just stopped raining and his friends said he slipped and fell when they were taking photos'.

'A German student has died after falling into a steep ravine at a waterfall on a popular Malaysian resort island [Langkawi], police said on Sunday'. 

(ndtv, October 19, 2014).

'A man was badly injured in the head and neck after he fell while bathing at the waterfall at the Kanching Recreational Forest in Templer's Park near Kuala Lumpur yesterday'.

(The Malaysian insider, June 23, 2015).

'Two high school have plunged to their deaths from a Central Java cliff while trying to take selfies, an official said on Tuesday'.

(Jakarta globe, March 21, 2015).
Spaniard falls to death from waterfall (Bangkok Post, March 26, 2015).

'A 24-year-old Newcastle man has died while on holiday in Thailand. Hugh Smith was on Koh Samui when he and a friend, Benjamin Kemp, 20, from Bar Beach, both fell from a waterfall'. 

(Newcastle Herald, February 12, 2015).

Stay safe.

simple Saturday morning getaway to Tengkil Falls, a beautiful 4 storey high waterfall in Kota Tinggi. Took a 2.5 hr hike to get to it, but the refreshing waterfall massage makes up for it. Washed away all the sweat! Definitely wanna go again! =D #TengkilFalls #KotaTinggi #Waterfall #MalaysiaWaterfall #WaterfallMassage #Relaxing #Refreshing #WashingUp #WantToGoAgain

Safe selfing, source

Continued II

What seemed impossible, is now just a byline. The announced fee hike has been shelved. New Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation (DNP) chief Rerngchai Prayoonvej has turned back the decision by his predecessor, so reports the Nation (1 Nov. 2012). 

No reason given, so just pure populist tactics?

The Thai Travel Weekly though adds:

'The decision is in response to a deluge of criticism from various travel industry associations'.

So ends another unneeded drama ...

Continued

And yes, it is continued.

On August 30 TTR weekly report 

'Thai Ecotourism and Adventure Travel Association is preparing to a letter to the Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation requesting a postponement of higher entrance fees at 29 national parks'. 

And then on the tenth of September: 

'Following complaints from tour operators, the Department of National Park, Wildlife and Plant Conservation decided to postpone admission fee increases at 29 popular national parks from 1 October to 1 Janaury 2013. 

... 

a reliable source at the Department of National Park, Wildlife and Plant Conservation said another postponement might follow after further discussions.'. 

Possible relief ...

Same same? But not in entry fees

'Farang under waterfall'. 

From flickr member floschneekoenig

Your money's worth

Just thought I would warn you. Thailand's National Park Department has decided to raise entrance fees on 29 parks as of 1 October 2012. In the TTR Weekly there is a full overview of which parks and why the tariffs are up.

'The department claims the top national parks are suffering from too many tourists and the new fees will be a deterrent to help fight deterioration of a sensitive environment. Also the department says it will use the additional revenue to improve facilities to better serve tourists'.

Already complaints are mounting. And I have to agree. Despite the entrance fees, there's little to show. Visitor facilities are at best mediocre, trails extend at best 20 minutes by foot, anything beyond that is a jungle expedition and the staff tend to hang around a lot, hardly see them doing anything productive.

But yes some national parks are packed (witness Erawan waterfalls) but maybe putting a day limit on the amount of visitors might do wonders. Or help to develop alternatives.

To be continued? 

Dry and salt?

For those of you seeking even more info, here are two snippets of news.

The first concerns a travelfish entry on Phu Quoc, Vietnam Tranh stream, possibly the only (seasonal) waterfall on this otherwise dry island.

The other concerns a saltwater waterfall in Trang province, Thailand. Posted on the TTR Weekly it mentions that money will be thrown into creating visitor facilities for this rare waterfall.

'The downside is that the waterfall is only visible during the 14th to 15th full moon and first and second days of the waning moon from 0600 to 0800 and from 1700 to 1800'.

Hmmm, ....