Deer Watching at Tahura Wan Abdul Rachman, Bandar Lampung.

Deer Sanctuary in Tahura Wan Abdul Rachman.

When you are in Bandar Lampung, deer watching can be one of your agenda of visiting Lampung Province. Apart from other destination of education tourism, Deer Sanctuary in Tahura (Taman Hutan Rakyat-People's Forest Park) Wan Abdul Rachman is close to city center, precisely in Kelurahan Sumber Agung, Kecamatan Kemiling, Bandar Lampung. Geographically, it is only one kilometer away from Taman Kupu Kupu Gita Persada and located next to Kampung Durian, a new destination of ecotourism in Bandar Lampung. 

Mount Betung at the foreground of Tahura Wan Abdul Rachman.

There are two alternatives of access road into the sanctuary; you take the governor office at Jalan Walter Monginsidi as you first reference point. Then, you will need to find Taman Wisata Wira Garden Bumi Kedaton Resort  at Jalan Way Rachman as your second reference point through Jalan Raden Imba which will take you a winding, up and down road before reaching Bumi Kedaton Resort. Once you are here, it is the only road to get there going up to the foot of Mount Betung. The second access road is from Jalan Imam Bonjol heading to Pringsewu but turn left before reaching Bus Station in Kemiling, then look for SLB B dan C (Disabled and Special Needs School) and SMA Negeri 7. After you get there, then turn to the right to follow the only road up to Tahura Wan Abdul Rachman.

Deers in Tahura Wan Abdul Rachman.

Tahura Wan Abdul Rachman covers an area of 22.244 hectares stretching from the city of Bandar Lampung to Kabupaten Pesawaran (Pesawaran regency). The forest park was officially based on the Forestry Minister Decree (Surat Keputusan) No.742/Kpts-II/92 dated on July 21, 1992. The Sanctuary is aimed at research and development (R&D) of science, education, supporting domestication, and tourist destination. The sanctuary center opened at December 7, 2012 with a total area of sanctuary approximately 2 hectares. The local government manages the deer sanctuary and becomes the only involvement as such arrangement.

Deer Feeding by Visitors in Tahura Wan Abdul Rachman.

Rusa Timor or Timor Deer was chosen as the conservation object in Tahura Wan Abdul Rachman. The reasons for the selection being not difficult in the keeping and the availablity of brood stocks in conservation center in Cariu, Bogor, West Java. In the beginning, there were 24 Timor Deers consisting of 6 male deer and 18 female deers. Currently, there are more Deer in the sanctuary.   

What you can do here? The attraction is like in the President Palace at Bogor, you can do deer watching, as well as deer feeding. In addition, to record the moments of deer watching and feeding don't forget photo taking session. No admission charge is required, it's free and open daily from 09.00 to 15.00. Don't miss it your children will love the attraction.

Source: Lampung Post, March 13, 2016.