Sukomade Beach Banyuwangi: A Beach of Green Sea Turtle

Image source: https://merubetiri.id/

If you're tired of the same old vacation and want to try something new, here is the place to go: Sukamade Beach, the paradise for green sea turtles. Located in the area of Meru Betiri National Park, Sukomade Beach offers more than just a beautiful landscape beach, but also a great adventure and incredible experiences.

The most outstanding attraction of Sukamade Beach is the turtle conservation activities, where the visitors can observe the process of a sea turtle laying their eggs and participate in the releasement of baby sea turtles into the sea.

The fun fact about sea turtle is, it is one of the oldest living species, and even though they spend their whole lives in the water, they will lay their eggs on land. It can be said that the sea turtle only live in land when it was an egg. And as soon as the eggs hatch, the baby sea turtles immediately walk towards the sea, then swim across the vast expanses of ocean.

While male turtles spend their entire life in the ocean, female sea turtles will occasionally come ashore to lay eggs.

The most interesting part about sea turtles is their geometric imprinting capabilities, which allow them to discover their nesting area– their home. It's still a mystery how those sea turtles can make their way home after swimming across the vast ocean and to distant locations. And Sukamade beach is the home for sea turtles.

Sukamade beach consists the four out of seven types of sea turtles in the world, they are green sea turtles, Hawksbill sea turtle, Olive ridley sea turtle and Leatherback sea turtle. Green turtles, on the other hand, are the most numerous sea turtles in Sukamade Beach Banyuwangi.

Image source: https://merubetiri.id/

The Sukamade beach of Meru Betiri National Park is not merely a home for sea turtles but it’s also a conservation area. It is a site where the sea turtle is aided in the egg-laying to hatching process. Moreover, to encourage people about the sea turtles' habitat and ecosystem, sukamade beach allows the visitors to participate directly in the process.

The first conservation activity is an observation of sea turtles' egg-laying process. Because sea turtles usually lay their egg at night, visitors can start to gather at the Sukomade beach post at 07:00 PM, and head to the beach at 07:30 PM, the activity will last until 11.00 PM so staying overnight is highly recommended.

To prevent predators (like monitor lizard and long-tailed macaque) from stealing or eating the existing turtle eggs. Once the egg-laying process is finished, the officer will collect and count the eggs, then they will be transferred to semi-natural hatcheries which can also be visited by the visitor. In the hatchery, turtle eggs will hatch in about 7-12 weeks.

After the egg-laying observation and visiting the hatching area, the visitors can also participate in the releasement of tukik (newborn sea turtle) into the open sea. But this activity is conducted only in the mornings, around 06.00-06.30, and in the afternoons, around 15.00-17.00. And I think, it's such an incredible opportunity you should not miss.

What is more, you may also enjoy the pearly sand and panoramic views of the sea. You can also visit Sukamade Beach's other attractions, such as its mangrove forest and the river that runs through it, where you can view sea terns, albatrosses, roko-roko birds, and other animals.

Way to go there

Sukamade beach is located 90 kilometres away from the Banyuwangi city centre. You can easily follow the map and street instructions to get to sukamade beach. But at the last 8 kilometres, you have to drive a jeep, trooper, land rover, or something similar like that to pass the hard track, coming from; a cobblestone, muddy road, and a river.

Before you finally get to the sukamade beach, you'll pass the other scenic beach like Green Bay and Rajegwesi beach.

Note

Be prepared for no signal, no wi-fi connections, and limited electricity.