Home DESTINATION CENTRAL KALIMANTAN TENGAH 中加里曼丹 Isen Mulang Carnival 2016 Part 5 : Regatta @ Kahayan River

Isen Mulang Carnival 2016 Part 5 : Regatta @ Kahayan River

March 13, 2017

Location : Kota Palangkaraya, Kalimantan Tengah, Indonesia.

The sleepy 600+ km long Kahayan River came alive as the regatta started below the Kahayan bridge.

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Festival Budaya, Isen Mulang, indigenous, backpackers, Borneo, 中加里曼丹, Indonesia, Palangkaraya, culture, bridge, Kahayan river, native, Pariwisata, Tourist attraction, travel guide, tribal — The beautiful tribal mural of the Kahayan bridge

The morning event started with the men /women longboat racing finishing right below the bridge where thousands of spectators cheered for their teams. The highlight for the morning was the ‘row of war’ where 2 teams of 2 paddlers each battle it out in 2 rigidly connected boats.

regatta, Festival Isen Mulang, indigenous, Borneo, Kalteng, carnival, event, Kahayan River, native, suku dayak, Sports, Tourism, backpackers, traditional games, tribal, tribe — 2 boats attached and brought to the arena

Each team rowed in opposite direction as to pull the other across just like ‘tug of war’ with a rope. Very interesting and never seen elsewhere. The strong current could be quite a nuisance at times for the paddlers and officials. Meanwhile, as the tiring competition was underway, a gentler competition was brewing along the banks of the river as last minute decorations were carried out on big fishing boats for the afternoon’s river parade. Watch out for it!