Batu Bolong does not look much – it is a nondescript rock jutting out of the ocean off the north Coast of Komodo Island. However, it has
become almost as much of a tourist attraction as the giant lizards that made this mini archipelago in eastern Indonesia famous. It is not the
bit above the water that is important here, but the rest of it – a steep underwater wall of rock descending 20m to a seabed that is positively riotous with marine life.
Intrepid divers, and dragon chasers, have been coming to Komodo since the 1980s, but it is only in the past few years that the islands' more mainstream pleasures have attracted attention. The number of foreign arrivals on Flores Island, gateway to the Komodo national park, topped 60,000 in 2013, up 20% on the year before.
Being named one of the New Seven Wonders of Nature in 2011, by conservation body the New7Wonders Foundation, no doubt helped. However, this area also has colorful fishing villages, coral cays, and deserted beaches of pale pink sand.
As well as the above, it has dragons, excellent diving, ragged volcanic islands straight out of King Kong (the films were inspired by American millionaire W Douglas Burden's expedition here in 1932). In addition, it has the kind of laidback vibe (and budget) that appeals to backpackers on the hunt for the next undiscovered destination – along the lines of Bali but 15 years ago. Flights to Flores from Bali cost about £85 return, and take an hour and a half. What has not to love?
"Three years ago, there was hardly any interest in Flores and Komodo – we were really lucky to get this place," Stefano says as, after a day
The diving club is 200m from the edge of the national park, which stretches several kilometers offshore around the islands of Komodo, Rinca and Padar. Land-based resorts are not allowed inside it. More than 20 excellent dive sites are within easy reach of the resort, which is also an hour by speedboat from Labuan Bajo, the ramshackle harbor town on Flores where the airport is.
There I meet a French free-diving enthusiast who has been here for eight days "to unwind.” It turns out she lives on Koh Tao, the serene palm-fringed island in Thailand. It is hard not to succumb to a sort of tropical torpor in such idyllic surroundings. However, I am roused by the prospect of swimming with manta rays. Brit Ed Statham, whose swarthy complexion and random tattoos are testament to his commitment to the lifestyle, has opened an independent dive outfit on Kanawa, taking people to Manta Point, another legendary dive site that is also shallow enough to snorkel. When six shadowy shapes materialize out of the deep blue, I am struck by their sheer size – their wingspans must be four or five meters. They oscillate gently to counter the current while tiny fish nibble the parasites off their skin. In addition, of course, you have to see the world's largest living lizards. On Komodo Island a few years ago, I had to hightail it out of the forest with five slavering dragons in hot pursuit after a park ranger deprived them of the goat they were hoping to devour. It had been hung from a tree as a lure and when it was pulled out of their reach, they turned their reptilian gaze on me.
They have held a strange fascination ever since. I head to Rinca, an hour by boat from Labuan Bajo, where spindly lontar palms punctuate a savannah-like landscape. However, we arrive late, and at midday, they are doing pretty much what all lizards do when the sun is high –snoozing. Therefore, I head back to my hammock at Kanawa and follow suit.
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