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The North Sumatra Elephant Odyssey Adventure is an amazing experience unlike any other holiday. It provides a great variety of activities – tubing down the river, bathing and riding an elephant, traditional cooking and medicine, visits to villages and local markets, jungle walks, the opportunity to see orangutans and other animals in the wild. I now have a much greater understanding of these communities and the issues involved in wildlife and habitat preservation in this region. Jess McKelson is inspirational in her commitment to the people and the animals of Sumatra and the practical ways in which she supports them. Most of all – the trip was a lot of fun and I would recommend it to anyone. Elisabeth Jackson. Melbourne, Australia. Elephant Odyssey Adventure |
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Thank you so much, Jess, for providing me the most extraordinary life experience. Kylie. Country Victoria Australia. Elephant Odyssey Adventure. |
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In 2010 I had the privilege of going to Sumatra with Raw Wildlife Tours. What a wonderful experience this was. I loved the people: Jess McKelson our leader, the other guides, the mahouts, the other participants, and all the other people we met in the course of our time there. I adored the elephants, their gentleness, their intelligence, their occasional wilfulness (Theo, that's you), and their enthusiasm for food. I loved the delicious food we had for every meal, all prepared from scratch every time. Swimming and tubing down the river was so much fun. The rainforest - fascinating. The monkeys - entertaining. Actually seeing wild orangutans - breathtaking. And feeling that we were doing our little bit to protect this special piece of our world was priceless. Sian Smith, Melbourne Australia. Elephant Odyssey Adventure. |
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I travelled with Jess to Tangkahan in March 2010. Jess was an exemplary tour leader and guide, whose knowledge of and enthusiasm for the area, the wildlife, the local culture and people were instantly contagious. Through Jess’s care and support, the people living in this stunning, remote area at the edge of the jungle, have learnt alternate ways to earn income to support their families. This has enabled many of them to cease their previous involvement in pine oil plantations and illegal logging, activities which are so detrimental to wildlife and their environment. It was a joy to see the respect, admiration and affection with which Jess is held. Her visits to Tangahan are anticipated with great enthusiasm and between visits, she maintains frequent contact with her staff and the community. It is a privilege to be able to support the work of Jess and her colleagues at RAW Wildlife Encounters. I look forward to joining them again on many more wildlife adventures. Barb T, Melbourne Australia, Elephant Odyssey Adventure |
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My Sumatran tan has all but gone, but the memories and fun from spending the most amazing 2 weeks exploring the jungle and Indonesian way of life will remain with me forever. Even now, a month after my RAW experience, I have a huge smile on my face while writing this testimonial – remembering many of the adventures had along the way. Visiting Tangkahan and Gunung Leuser National Park, experiencing first hand the local hospitality and their loyalty to the many local conservation programs implemented by Jess, was inspirational. Other highlights include learning about traditional medicines, scrubbing the elephants, tubing down crystal clear rivers and bushwalking with the calls of gibbons in the distance. In saying that, the absolute highlight for me was sleeping in a cave with a cascading waterfall, oh and I almost forgot – going on elephant patrol, now that was amazing! It is impossible to narrow it down to just 1 or 2 highlights, there are simply too many to mention and I do not want to give too much away. This is something I believe you must experience for yourself, photos and words don’t quite portray the true essence of the environment you are in. My guess is that if you are reading this, then you are thinking about booking an Elephant Odyssey, or perhaps another adventure that RWE offers. My advice to you is this (to plagiarize a well known phrase) – just do it!! Knowing that you are a part (even if only a small part) of providing the local communities with an income from eco-tourism, while at the same time being part of an organisation that is helping to increase awareness for the need to preserve the remarkable wildlife within this region is awe inspiring. Nerida Taylor (Melbourne, Australia) Elephant Odyssey Adventure |
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| Graham family Testimonial | Just wanted to drop you a quick note to let you know our Tangkahan/Bukit Lawang holiday was fantastic. We all had such a great time - we have done a lot of travelling around the world and this was truly one of the best experiences we have had. The jungle, the environment, the activities and the people were superb. Ika and Bim Bim we absolutely excellent in all areas - we have never been treated so well and would now consider them friends to visit again and stay in touch with. The girls in the kitchen at Green lodge, the mahouts and everyone we came in contact with were a pleasure to be with. They all especially made our children welcome and the kids had so much fun with river tubing, waterfalls, elephants, games and food. Graham Family, Melbourne Australia. Custom Family Adventure |
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| Katie Holbrook Testimonial | Overall this was the best holiday I have ever taken (and I travel heaps!!) I had the opportunity to experience so many things that I never thought I would and to also meet amazing and motivating people both within the tour group and in Sumatra. It was on a personal level, a life changing experience and I really proved to myself that I can pretty much do anything!! From diving off rocks into the river, to riding elephants bareback, and hiking with the guides through the jungle – it was amazing!! I can’t wait to go back!!! Jess – I cannot thank you enough for giving me this opportunity. Your passion and drive for Sumatra, the people, the animals and conservation is highly inspirational. Thank you!!! I can’t wait to get more study done and be able to contribute in some way to the conservation effort and to the education of the Tangkahan people and development of the community!! Katie Holbrook, Canberra NSW, Elephant Odyssey Adventure |
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Personally, this tour was a dream come true. It allowed me to experience such close interaction with the elephants with the confidence that the animal and environment welfare is paramount. All of the senses were indulged, the mind and body was challenged and the memories along with the knowledge taken home are priceless.
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Thanks so much to the guys at Raw Wildlife Encounters. Our trip to Nth Sumatra to see the Orangutans was a life changing experience. It was the best holiday we have had by far. The organisation of the whole trip from Director, Jessica McKelson, to our wonderful tour guides, Kristin and Jon, couldn't have been planned any better. We were looked after so well. Our sincere thanks.
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The 'Elephant Odyssey' was everything I had hoped for and so much more. The program was educational but never in a lecturing way, it was challenging yet always doable; a challenging day early on gave me a good understanding of my skills and surely provided a good insight for the team as well, on how to manage and guide the rest of the tour in terms of fitness levels or phobias. The tours were wonderful, magical, and at times very emotional. To see the commitment of the RAW team to the local community, to feel the kindness of the local people and to receive the friendship of the team was surely special. The wildlife in flora and fauna is stunning, the landscape is breathtaking, and the days were delicately planned to gently guide us into the jungle lifestyle, so that the four day elephant jungle patrol at the end felt as the most natural thing to do. Accommodation at Green Lodge and the three camps during the patrol was so much better and more comfortable than expected and the food was plentiful and delicious. The commitment of the guides and their support staff was amazing! A huge ‘Thank You! to the RAW team, the Green Lodge staff, the mahouts, the wonderful people in the camps, and everybody who taught us about traditional medicine, cooking and dance. You all did a fantastic job and I would love to see you all again soon!
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