Trooper Nusantara Sumatera Expedition 2011

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venue :
Sumatera Island - Indonesia
12 day trip, 3451 Kilometers

photo set :
- http://s931.photobucket.com/albums/ad156/ervan_m/TJS/?start=all
- http://troopernusantara.com/berita/59-liputan-perjalanan/98-trooper-nusantara-jelajah-sumatera.html


Sumatera makes up one of the 5 major islands of the Indonesian Archipelago, which consist of more than 17,000 islands. It’s situated on the western part of Indonesia with total land area of 473,481 km2. From July 1st – 11, some members of Trooper Nusantara set out to explore some parts of the island on a car which is renowned as being “as tough as truck yet comfortable as sedan”. Five Chevrolet Trooper 1st generation ranging from 1985 to 1991 models bravely roll on an unchartered road of southern to central part of Sumatera with the aim to strengthen the brotherhood of Trooper Nusantara members. The expedition was nicknamed TJS 2011, short for Trooper Nusantara Jelajah Sumatera 2011 (literally means Trooper Nusantara Sumatera Expedition 2011). By the way, Trooper Nusantara, affectionately called TrooNus, is a community of Trooper enthusiast based in Indonesia, membership is open to anybody who loves and owned Chevrolet Trooper.

In a quiet midnight of July 1st, 5 Troopers comprising of 20 persons ranging from 3 to 65 years of age departed from the outskirt of Tangerang on the western site of Jakarta going west to get to the ferry port of Merak in the eastern tip of Jawa to cross the Sunday strait to Sumatera. The ferry ride took almost 4 hours and we landed in the ferry port of Bakauheni of the Province of Lampung. We took the eastern coastal road as the condition is better. Apart from poor road condition, we also have to be aware of the unreliable supply of diesel and petrol along the road in most part of Sumatera. Hence, each Trooper has one or two Jerry can sitting on the roof rack filled with fuel for emergency need.

After a home cooked breakfast in a small restaurant in the outskirt of small town called Mataram, we rolled out to our first planned overnight stop in Palembang, the capital of South Sumatera Province, some 400 km north. It turned out that we had to spent the night in a losmen in Tulang Bawang, southern Lampung due to mechanical problem experienced by 2 cars, one with broken rear right hand axle and another with fuel pump. Yet as always, the spirit of togetherness is as strong as ever. The rest of the group patiently waiting for the cars to be fixed, just like the infamous Three Musketeers catch phrase “One for All and All for One”.

to be continue.......

 

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Lampung province is well known as being the area for transmigration of farmers from Jawa. In the 1970s till early 1990s, government program to redistribute population and therefore prosperity, people from densely populated districts in Jawa and Bali were asked to move to the islands of Sumatera, Kalimantan, Sulawesi and Papua. Government provided land, housing and living allowances for the trans-migrant up to a certain period. Nowadays, this program was run on voluntary basis and is no longer sponsored by the government. Plantations of palm oil, cassava and rubber dotted the landscape.

The following day, after the “storm” has settled, we continued our journey to Palembang, Jambi and hoping to reach Pekanbaru the following night. Once again the trip north was marked with long queue of cars, trucks and motorbike in almost every petrol station. This is the irony of Sumatera, despite being the producer of crude oil yet people have to queue for petrol and diesel. Indeed, Sumatera is rich with natural resources. The tropical rain forest of Sumatera were once one of the major sources of tropical hardwood timber, of major biodiversity and richness in ecological value. Nowadays, most of those tropical rain forest have gone and being replaced by plantations of palm oil and trees for pulpwood.

to be continue.........

 

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Finally on day 5 since we left Jawa, we reached Pekanbaru in the early morning of the hour welcomed by our brothers and sisters of TrooNus Pekanbaru who had waited since a day earlier. As we reached Pekanbaru, all five cars had to undergo repair and engine services; the oldest Trooper, known as “black ant” even had to had engine overhaul suffering from massive broken cylinder arm.

While the cars were being fixed, we ventured on a tourist route to visit the remnant of an old kingdom known as Kerajaan Siak or Siak Kingdom (from 1723-1946), located at Siak Regency, Riau. It was founded by Raja Kecik from Pagaruyung Kingdom (Sultan Abdul Jalil Rahmad Syah I), after failed to seized the throne of the Sultanate of Johor. After the Proclamation of Independence on August 17, 1945, last sultan of Siak, Sultan Syarif Kasim II declared his kingdom to join Republic of Indonesia. The palace of Sultan Syarif Kasim II is one of the few remains of the kingdom that draw many visitors.

to be continue....

 

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On day 7 we left Pekanbaru for the picturesque town of Bukittinggi in the Province of West Sumatera. Bukittinggi is situated in high elevation, around 900 m and famous for its landmark the tower clock or locally known as Jam Gadang (big clock), and spectacular gorges of Ngarai Sianok. This is also the home-town of one of the Indonesian founding father, the first vice president Mohammad Hatta.

The five Troopers had successfully ventured a distance of over 3000 km from Jakarta crossing 7 provinces in 12 days in one piece; all members of the team was in good health and high spirit and greatly enjoyed the adventure. The messages that we brought home are:
• Trooper is indeed “as tough as truck yet comfortable as sedan”;
• the spirit of “One Team One Goal” which is the tagline of TrooNus has passed the test of time and hurdles;
• road travelling in Sumatera is challenging but fun.

We’ll see you in another TrooNus adventure to other islands of the Indonesian Archipelago.